Fleury

Theo Fleury could be a nice replacement for departed unrestricted free agent Tony Amonte (if he can control his demons), and general manager Mike Smith expects new forward Sergei Berezin to rediscover his scoring touch. But forward Eric Daze, after a career year (38 goals), is out for six weeks with a herniated disk. Defense is solid but long in the tooth, so a little consistency from goalie Jocelyn Thibault would go a long way.

	The Big Question
	Q: Is there life after Amonte? Hard to believe they let another quality player and person go for nothing to another team. Tony Amonte's jersey was by far the top seller and he's a terrific person. That said, the Hawks aren't on life support, even after learning Eric Daze will be gone for the next month as he recovers from back surgery. To replace Amonte, they brought in Theo Fleury and Sergei Berezin, who scored just 11 goals last season and is a very inconsistent player. Fleury is in great shape and has solid support around him. He has to just go out and play the game with the passion and fire that has made him an impact player in the past -- keep it simple and play the game. They have depth now that they haven't had before, especially with youngsters Kyle Calder, Mark Bell and Tyler Arnason. They have a very solid defensive corps that can move the puck and take care of their own end. This is the biggest year for goalie Jocelyn Thibault. He has to be more consistent down the stretch to battle the NHL's best if he wants to be regarded as a top-flight goalie. -- Darren Pang
	Good: It's tough to find a holdover on Chicago's roster who didn't overachieve last season, and that's the only hope for Sergei Berezin. A colossal bust in Phoenix and Montreal, he is a former 30-goal scorer. With Eric Daze out to start the season, Berezin should get a chance to prove he too can overachieve. Bad: Jocelyn Thibault played a lot of games and faced a lot of shots last season. That workload showed in his second-half fortunes. With no major improvements on defense and no new No. 2 goalie, he'll again be asked to do too much. -- Eric Karabell
	Top Prospect
	Igor Radulov, RW A lanky right-winger who made the move from Russia to the Ontario Hockey League last season, Radulov has good hands and instincts, scoring 63 points in 62 games for a dreadful Mississauga team.
	Minors Outlook
	Norfolk Admirals These Admirals were hugely dependent on goalie Michael Leighton last season and figure to be strong again if he comes back. The parent Blackhawks usually send in some veteran help to go along with another new solid prospect or two. -- Bill Ballou

Forwards The loss of Tony Amonte isn't the end of the world for the Blackhawks, as Theo Fleury has the ability to replace the lost offensive production. While Alexei Zhamnov and Michael Nylander have been filling the roles of the No. 1 and No. 2 centers, neither one rank among the top half of Western Conference pivots. Eric Daze, had a career year first-year coach Brian Sutter, will be out at least a month while rehabbing from back surgery. The choices to fill in for him on the left wing are Kyle Calder, who scored 52 points in his first full season, the inconsistent Sergei Berezin and sophomore Mark Bell. On the right, Steve Sullivan can be relied on for 20 goals and Steve Thomas provides adequate depth. Western Conference Position Ranking: 11th Defensemen The addition of free-agent Jon Klemm during the summer of 2001 instantly improved the Hawks' defense. Phil Housley experienced a resurrection under his old coach Brian Sutter, who has a knack for keeping players on their toes. But this is the one of the oldest defenses in the league and needs to have everyone playing on top of their game to be effective. Western Conference Position Ranking: 11th Goalie Jocelyn Thibault started strong last season, but faded down the stretch and was replaced by Steve Passmore. This season may be his last chance to prove his worth as a No. 1 goalie. Then again, because he comes at a reasonable price, the Hawks may give him more time. Western Conference Position Ranking: 13th

Rankings: 12th Overall
Forwards | Defensemen | Goalies

RECORD: 41-27-13-1, 96 points Rank: T8th overall 5th West 3rd Central Playoffs: Lost to STL in first round Home: 28-7-5-1 Road: 13-20-8-0 2001-02 results 2001-02 statistics 2002-03 schedule 2002-03 roster OFFENSE DEFENSE GOALS FOR/AVG. Overall: 216/2.63 (14th) Home: 114/2.78(12th) Road: 102/2.49 (16th) POWER PLAY Overall: 17.9/54-302 (6th) Home: 17.0/26-153 (12th) Road: 18.8/28-149 (6th) GOALS AGAINST/AVG. Overall: 207/2.52 (12th) Home: 81/1.98 (3rd) Road: 126/3.07 (25th) PENALTY KILL Overall: 81.5/63-340 (27th) Home: 80.5/33-169 (28th) Road: 82.5/30-171 (21st) STATS LEADERS GOALS Eric Daze (37) Tony Amonte (26)* Alexei Zhamnov (22) ASSISTS Michael Nylander (45) Zhamnov (44) Amonte (39)* POINTS Daze (69) Zhamnov (66) Amonte (65)* PENALTY MINUTES Bob Probert (176) Mark Bell (124) Ryan VandenBussche (103) PLUS/MINUS Nylander (+27) Steve Sullivan (+22) Daze (+16) GAA (MIN. 20 GP) Steve Passmore (2.26) SAVE PERCENTAGE Passmore (.904) * - no longer with team