What a difference a year makes at Prospects Camp! I could tell you what I observed about the players on the ice, but folks on the Blackhawks Message Boards with much deeper knowledge than mine have already done so. I’d like to give a little insight into a different aspect of Camp.
Last year Camp was unique in that it was populated not only by the usual hopeful players but also some very well known and promising young stars. The opportunity to get a preview of almost certain greatness was offered free of charge, yet the attendance for the event consisted of the same five to fifteen diehard fans and autograph collectors that I’ve become familiar with the last few years. Although the players on the ice are just as spirited as last year, they’re far from household names, yet literally hundreds of folks sat in the cold confines of The Edge in Bensenville every day to watch the preview event! Its not only exciting to see the increased numbers of fans, its interesting to see what kind of folks showed up.
From the Blackhawks Organization I saw nearly every member of the front office, and if I noticed them, so did the players. It’s nice to be taken seriously enough to draw that kind of attention from the brass, and I believe I saw that attention translated into energy and passion on the ice! Its also refreshing to see the event being observed (and I imagine being evaluated and assessed) by the team’s decision-makers.
I was surprised to see the superb radio broadcast team of John Weideman and Troy Murray up in the broadcast booth during the Prospects scrimmage! I was NOT surprised to see John and Troy taking time afterward to talk at length with the diehard fans of the Blackhawks Message Boards. Our radio team is a class act and I’ve often see them long after practice interacting with the fans for no other purpose than being polite and social.
In the stands I saw a variety of folks for a change, businessman, jersey wearing hockey fans (one in a Detroit sweater?), women and girls. Most notable to me were the kids-knowledgeable kids. I spent most of my day surrounded by ten-year-olds that were really aware of the Blackhawks player roster. I handed out art prints featuring both current and past players by quizzing the kids on their ‘Hawks Knowledge’ and rewarding them with the art. They didn’t just know the subjects of the drawings of current players (which was impressive on its own), they knew about Bobby Hull, Tony Esposito and Stan Mikita (although I stumped ‘em on the ‘Stosh’ nickname). In the past few years the kids attending regular season practice had no idea who the current players were! Speaking of ‘Stosh’ how refreshing to get the chance to sit and talk with an actual legendary figure of the game! Stan quietly made an appearance and patiently signed the shirts and hats for anyone who asked. That’s another first for a Prospects Camp.
If you appreciate the re-emergence of hockey in Chicago as I do, you had to love what you saw at Prospects Camp this year. Past, present and future!
Go Hawks!
