With Bolland’s Return Imminent, Where Does He Fit In?

Jim Neveau, PIB Co-conspirator

With the return of Dave Bolland to Blackhawks practice today, the possibility of him returning before the Olympics has become a little bit more reality than fantasy.

Coach Joel Quenneville said that he will continue to skate with the team throughout the rest of the team’s road trip, and he will be re-evaluated when the squad returns to Chicago.

Dave Bolland (Pam Rodriguez/PIB)

Although the topic of which line Bolland would skate with when he returns was broached to Quenneville in the video linekd to above, Q declined to address it at any length.

As you may recall, Bolland found success last season skating with left winger Andrew Ladd and right winger Martin Havlat, forming the line that gave the Hawks a lot of bang for the buck and was a primary driving force behind the team’s Western Conference Finals appearance.

In the absence of Dave, Quenneville has been using winger Patrick Sharp as a center, putting him between Ladd and the man who replaced Havlat, Marian Hossa. This line has seen a measure of success in its time together, but with Sharp’s lack of goal-scoring punch at times, Joel may decide it’s time to re-shuffle the lines again.

With his propensity for doing that, and with Bolland giving the team a true center to fill out the roster, the question becomes this: where does Dave fit in to the grand scheme of things?

The first line should certainly remain intact. Troy Brouwer, Jonathan Toews, and Patrick Kane have seen a great deal of success in their time together, and with Toews and Kane both being All-Stars in the eyes of Puck Prospectus, it wouldn’t make a great deal of sense to split them up from a linemate that keeps them safe from aggressive body checkers.

The remaining nine forwards, however, are an entirely different matter. Bringing Bolland back into the fold means that Sharp will be able to move back to the wing spot on a line, but also means that one of the fourth line guys will be the odd man out.

This comes at a time when the fourth line has not only been producing solid defense and back-checking, but also has started to come around offensively. Tomas Kopecky has looked like a completely different player since Joel Quenneville threatened him with benching, and his selection to the Slovakian Olympic Team is evidence of this. Ben Eager and Colin Fraser have also seen their production go up, with Eager even seeing some power play time against the Canucks on Saturday night.

Before we get to possible line changes, there could be other changes on the horizon. Multiple media outlets are still reporting that the Blackhawks could be interested in Ilya Kovalchuk, and trading for him would certainly mean that the Hawks would have to trade away at least a few players. The Boston Globe earlier this month detailed some of the guys who could leave, and if a guy like Kris Versteeg or Sharp were included in a deal, it could make any decision to remove a player to make room for Bolland a moot point.

If a trade doesn’t happen in the immediate future, then the Hawks will be forced to shuffle lines again. Here is the Paint it Blackhawks’ recommendation for line arrangements upon the return of Dave Bolland:

Line One: Brouwer-Toews-Kane

Line Two: Ladd-Madden-Hossa

Line Three: Sharp-Bolland-Versteeg

Line Four: Eager-Fraser-Byfuglien

Yes, Joel Quenneville may want to someday put Bolland on the line with Ladd and Hossa, but as we witnessed when Hossa was thrown in with Toews and Kane immediately upon return to NHL action, it may take a while for Bolland to regain his sense of the speed of the game. Putting him on a lower line will help ease some of the pressure during his return, and will give him an opportunity to demonstrate that he is sufficiently healed from his back woes.

As much as it would stink to lose Kopecky from the lineup, there is no law that says he can’t play every other game or so. The depth of this team is one of its greatest assets, and it will be given another boost with Bolland’s return.

Tags: Dave Bolland, Joel Quenneville, Jonathan Toews, marian hossa, martin havlat, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp