The Beginning of a Man-Crush?

It's not Marian Hossa, it isn't Mathieu Garon, Steve Sullivan, or Ty Conklin. It's John Madden.

John Madden will be the best free agent addition in the Central Division.

Madden is the center that Chicago needed at the trade deadline last season. Instead, they got Sammy Pahlsson. He won a faceoff there, scored a goal here, but Pahlsson is not the same caliber a player as Madden.

He brings a wealth of talent and experience to Chicago.

“His tenacious work ethic is what made him so good at stopping the opposition's best forwards on a given night for years,” John Fischer, manager of the New Jersey Devils blog In Lou We Trust said in an e-mail.

Madden is one season removed from earning a career high in points, when in 2008 he tallied 20 goals and 23 assists. In 2001 he was awarded the Frank J. Selke trophy, an honor he has been nominated for on four occasions. To top it off, he has won two Stanley Cups.

Clearly Madden will have a positive impact on the ice, but more importantly at this point in his career, are the intangibles he brings to one of the youngest locker rooms in the NHL.

“He was a leader in New Jersey's locker room, if I recall correctly, and his wealth of experience playing on a dominant New Jersey Devils team for this past decade, should be a big benefit for the young and relatively inexperienced Blackhawks,” Fischer said.

There are a couple issues though, but they shouldn’t matter much when you consider the situation Madden is entering into with Chicago.

At 36-years old, Madden is not going to be the same player he was while hoisting the Cup in ’00 or ’03 and he followed his career year in ’08 with a slow start and disappointing 23 points last season.

“According to Behind the Nets numbers, the goals against/60 min. and the shots against/60 min. did rise when Madden stepped on the ice in even strength situations which isn't so good,” Fischer said.

“And, along with the rest of the team, he wasn't nearly as effective on penalty killing as one would like.”

Despite a disappointing season and a dip in production on the penalty kill, when asked about his speed, Fischer explained “He's not as quick as he once was, but he's far from slow. I think he still has something in the proverbial tank.”

So he’s still got some quickness. And as for his less than stellar ’08 campaign, I don’t think it’s anything to be worried about. Madden is joining a perfect, talent-latent situation in Chicago where he’ll be responsible for less of a load than he was in New Jersey.

Presumably, he’ll be on the third line with Andrew Ladd and Dustin Byfuglien. That could change once training camp rolls around and Coach Q sees something else that works. It’s not like Chicago is lacking in the “talented forward” department.

He won’t have to deal with same pressure as Hossa to put the puck in the net, so he can just go out there and play. His resume alone should garnish instant respect when he joins the locker room, and although it isn’t exactly measurable, his presence on the Blackhawks could solidify them as a legitimate contender for the Stanley Cup.

“He's the typical player who doesn't do much on the score sheet, but fans fall in love with how he works on the ice and eventually understand that his benefit is in stopping the opposition.”