Seth Jones - Jan. 18 Chicago Blackhawks Media Availability postgame The Chicago Bears of the National Football League made a huge hire in their world on Monday as a new head coach named Ben Johnson is coming to town. However, they weren't the only Chicago team to make an important hire on Monday. The Chicago Blackhawks hired Chris O'Hearn as VP of Hockey Operations. He will work with Kyle Davidson and the front office going forward. The primary roles that O'Hearn, an attorney, will serve are contract negotiations and CBA. Helping with contract negotiations and salary cap management will be the main objectives that O'Hearn has with Chicago. O'Hearn is the former assistant GM of the Minnesota Wild. That is a team that has had a lot of success on the ice and being smart with their money is a part of it. Having a specialist for these things is important. The Hawks are hoping to begin a competitive window in the coming years and managing the business side of the game is necessary. Guys like Nolan Allan, Frank Nazar, Colton Dach, and other young players are going to have to fit under the cap if they are worth a good amount of money by the time their entry-level deals are up. 2023 first overall pick Connor Bedard is also eligible for his first contract extension this summer. Do you overpay him to end up with a team-friendly deal in the long term? Do you give him a bridge deal? Decisions like that are where O'Hearn will help Kyle Davidson. One major key to sustaining success is being smart with the roster and fitting it under the salary cap. The Hawks are hoping that they run into issues with their young players in the coming years because that will mean they are good. Seeing them make smart hires like this should give the fanbase confidence when it comes to their current building process. This is a move that proves they are thinking ahead. Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks/] team site to stay updated on the latest news [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/nashville-predators/latest-newshttps://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks/latest-news], game-day [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/nashville-predators/game-dayhttps://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks/game-day] coverage, player features [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/nashville-predators/playershttps://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks/players], and more.
