from Mark Potash of the Chicago Sun-Times,

Not only is NHL commissioner Gary Bettman not celebrating the continued success of the Blackhawks — despite the obvious impact a championship team in the market the size of Chicago has on the league — he’s almost officially against it.

“Competitive balance is what we think is paramount,” Bettman said last week in Chicago. “The fact that seven teams are in the playoffs who weren’t in the playoffs last year … the fact that if you’re a fan of any team you have hope going into the season that your team can compete. That’s what it’s all about. That’s why having the right system was so important to us.”

By advancing to their fifth conference final in seven years and now their third Stanley Cup final in six years, the Hawks are almost mocking Bettman’s vision of NHL parity....

If Bettman’s vision of the NHL in the salary-cap era proves true, what the Hawks are doing could prove to be more special than we know. Even the recent contenders are struggling to keep up. The Bruins, who won the Cup in 2011 and lost to the Hawks in the Final in 2013, did not even make the playoffs this year. The Kings, who won the Cup in 2012 and 2014 and are the only team on the Hawks’ level of mental toughness and resilience, failed to make the playoffs as well. The Penguins have won four playoff series in six years since winning the Cup in 2009.

Mike Babcock bailed on the Red Wings — formerly the NHL’s gold standard but now first-round losers the past two seasons with only three playoff series victories in the past six years. The underachieving Blues had to think about it before re-hiring Ken Hitchcock, an accomplished coach. Playoff losses to the Hawks have Wild and Ducks fans wondering if Mike Yeo and Bruce Boudreau — two more pretty accomplished coaches — are the right guy for the job. Not even Barry Trotz could keep Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals from being the Capitals.

more