Tristan- Andre Dawson
I can't believe the Hawk fell to the 4th round, and was picked behind such non-HoF baseball players such as Mark Buehrle, Kenny Lofton, and Frank Thomas (although I suppose Thomas might get in if they ever allow anyone from the steroids era in). Andre might not have the best career numbers in the world, but he earns points for being the slugger on the team of my childhood, and absolutely crushing the ball for some not-great Cubs teams in the early 90s. Plus he predates the steroids era by a little, so I don't have to worry about these memories being tainted.
Katz- Sid Luckman
Seeing as how I had already gotten a big time defensive player from the Bears I felt I might as well take the second biggest offensive weapon the Bears have ever had. A Hall of Fame QB who spent all 12 seasons in the NFL with the Bears where he won 4 Superbowls and an MVP award in 1943. In the NFL, he holds the record for most TD passes in a game (7), has the highest career TD rate (7.9% of his passes were TDs) and is second in YDs per throw (8.4). Best. Bears. QB. of. All. Time. I know it's not saying much, but the best is still the best. And he was amazing.
Ethan- Cliff Floyd
Ethan says he didn't understand the draft criteria, which explains some of his picks, but not Cliff Floyd. I want to know what criteria we could possibly be using that would make Cliff Floyd a good pick. I mean, I suppose he once came in 22nd in the MVP voting (of course, the guy I got 2 picks ahead of Floyd actually won the MVP for a last-place team, but I digress.) There are just so many better players in any sense of the word that have passed through Chicago than Cliff Floyd. I would have taken Jacque Jones over Cliff Floyd. In fact, I'd put him somewhere between Jeremy Burnitz and Todd Hollandsworth on my "mid-00s Cubs outfielder" draft sheet.
Sam- TT
Picking TT in my 4th round is integral to the make up of my team as a whole. His hard-nose work ethic is the definitive style of my players. Everyone I drafted has that similar mindset. Winning matters more than accolades and practice is vital to performance. In his first year as coach, not only was TT coach of the year but his team lead the league in wins last season. The bulls may have come up short losing to Miami, but they are a team with character and that starts with the coach
BJ- George Halas
Despite the fact that I blatantly stole this pick from Katz (stop announcing your picks ahead of time!) it turned out to be one of my favorites. A legitimate Chicago sports icon, Halas also is one of the key figures in the development of American pro football both on the field and on the business side of things. As an owner he literally built the Bears franchise (picked the name and colors) and changed the way the game was played by co-inventing the T formation. Also one of the great old-school coaches - player-coach-owner, wore badass hats, fought with other players, fought in WWI and WWII, etc. Won 5 NFL championships so I'll end by asking you all to COUNT DA RIIINNNGGGZZZ!
Conall- Patrick Sharp
This feels like a little bit of reach to me. I know there was a run on cup-winning Hawks, and Sharp is a very talented player, but he was maybe the 4th or 5th most-important Hawk on that team (depending on how much credit you want to give Niemi.) But I suppose you probably gave him points for attractiveness, didn't you? That's what it is. You looked into his soulful eyes and couldn't resist, could you? It's OK, Patrick Sharp is a dreamboat. I'm secure enough in my masculinity to admit it.
Ron- Norm Van Lier
Seriously, Ron's strategy was to pick nothing but beloved Chicago athletes who died too young, and thus I can't poke holes in their case, and wouldn't want to in any case (although I could in Norm's case). But like I said, Lou Brock is coming tomorrow, and I have a lot to say about that pick.
Gomez- Antti Niemi
Even if you put Niemi above Sharp in terms of importance to the Cup team, this is a huge stretch, as Niemi only really played that one year in Chicago, and Sharp has at least contributed 7 seasons in the Indian head. I mean, Niemi was great in the playoffs that year, and during the regular season, too, but if there's anything we've learned about hockey lately, it's that goalies are like closers in baseball. It's nice to have a good one, but it's more cost-effective to go cheap.
Will- Joel Quenville
Credit for pushing the right buttons in the Cup run, and for sticking with Big Buff at forward with JT and Kaner. But man, I wish he'd be a little more consistent with his lines and give groups a chance to gel. And stop trotting out Bickell and Frolik so much and let the young guys with more upside a chance for some ice time. And thankfully it's over now, but what the hell was John Scott ever doing on the ice? I'm glad the ship has been righted, but I don't think I would have put up too much of a fuss if he had been canned during the long losing streak this year.
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