Blackhawks Re-Sign Vandermeer, Richmond and Brodeur

[vandymeer13]

General Manager Dale Tallon announced today that the Blackhawks have re-signed defensemen Jim Vandermeer and Danny Richmond and goaltender Mike Brodeur to 1-year contracts.

Vandermeer, 27, stands at 6.01 and weighs in at 208 pounds. Last season with the Blackhawks, Vandermeer appeared in 46 games scoring one goal to go along with six assists for seven points. He also had 53 penalty minutes for the season before suffering a broken leg in a game on Jan. 26 vs. Nashville. Vandermeer missed the remainder of the season.

Vandermeer was acquired by the Blackhawks from the Philadelphia Flyers on Feb. 19, 2004 with Colin Fraser and a 2004 2nd round draft choice (used to select Bryan Bickell) in exchange for Alex Zhamnov and a 2004 4th round draft choice (used to select R.J. Anderson). As a junior, Vandermeer played on the Memorial Cup Champion Red Deer Rebels in 2001.

In his NHL career, Vandermeer has appeared in 192 regular season games scoring 14 goals to go along with 37 assists for 51 points. He has compiled 279 penalty minutes during his NHL career.

Richmond, 23, stands at 6.0 and weighs in at 192 pounds. He split last season between the Blackhawks and the Norfolk Admirals in the AHL. For the Blackhawks, Richmond appeared in 22 games and posted two assists with 48 penalty minutes. For Norfolk, he played in 57 games scoring 10 goals to go along with 224 assists for 34 points with 144 minutes in penalties. He also appeared in six playoff games for the Admirals and had eight penalty minutes.

Michael Brodeur, 24, split last season between Norfolk in the AHL and Augusta and Toledo in the ECHL. For Norfolk, he appeared in 10 games posting a record of 4-3-0 with a 3.39 goals against average. He appeared in two games for Augusta in the ECHL and won both games with a 2.00 goals against average. He also played in seven games for Toledo and posted a 5-2-0 record with a 2.00 goals against average.

[Rugged]

Boy, that seems like a lot but good for him. I hope he and Koci play a ton this season.

[pbag]

Originally Posted by Rugged

Boy, that seems like a lot but good for him. I hope he and Koci play a ton this season.

It seems a bit high but that only shows that they have confidence in him.
And lets not forget that when Vandy enters the ice there´s always a possible F.O.T.Y coming our way...

[FlagsFan]

Hell if the Blackhawks got Arron Asham and played David Koci the whole season i would buy season tickets to their games.

[Mr. Pink]

Originally Posted by vandymeer13

According to the NHLPA site http://nhlpa.com/WebStats/PlayerBiography.asp?ID=23306 he signed a one year deal worth $1,225,000.00. Hopefully he regain his nasty streak now that he's a 100% healthy and will most likely be our 5th d-man. Him and Koci are a great tandem. Now if we get rid of Lapointe and Vrbata and pick up Aaron Asham. A line of Asham-Sharp-Koci would be ****ing awesome.

I'm not sure where people get this idea of Vandermeer being this elite heavyweight or even a heavyweight for that matter. He doesn't fight that often, but when he does, it is always exciting. He is a player first most assuredly, but he can fight in retaliatory or revenge scenarios, but he isn't going to go out there and just pick fights.

Getting Asham would be great too, and I don't think Koci and Vandermeer will ever be a pairing.

[Snipes19]

Awesome news.
Vandermeer is a very tough defenseman that's a very entertaining fighter, and he will fight the middles AND the heavies. Good thing the Hawks re-signed him.

Hopefully both Vandermeer and Koci get a lot of playing time in Chicago, because that would be quite a tandem. If they do, then the Blackhawks are looking like one of the tougher teams in the league!

[Rugged]

Originally Posted by Mr. Pink

I'm not sure where people get this idea of Vandermeer being this elite heavyweight or even a heavyweight for that matter.

In which post did someone refer to Vandy as an "elite" heavyweight, or even a heavyweight?

I'm just thrilled when someone tough and scrappy is signed to a contract these days.

[Orr=God]

vandermeer is a solid light heavyweight and his fights are always slugfests. let's hope that he fights more than last year.

[vandymeer13]

Originally posted by Mr.Pink
I'm not sure where people get this idea of Vandermeer being this elite heavyweight or even a heavyweight for that matter. He doesn't fight that often, but when he does, it is always exciting. He is a player first most assuredly, but he can fight in retaliatory or revenge scenarios, but he isn't going to go out there and just pick fights.Getting Asham would be great too, and I don't think Koci and Vandermeer will ever be a pairing

I never said they would be a pairing and when did I say he was a heavyweight? And if you watched Hawks games the past couple of seasons and when he was with the Admirals Vandermeer starts a lot of fights and raises hell. He always trys to get Hordichuk and Tootoo to go and look at this he starts this whole brawl. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugWMVbv07fY

[jkidd]

Good to see. Been a fan of Jimmy V's for a while now, and he never disappoints when he drops the mitts. I wish he'd do it more often, or have the Hawks bring up a guy to do it - like they've done now with Koci.

[Colt Seavers]

The chances of Jimmy V dropping more than last year are slim now that Koci may be a regular. Either way, I'm glad to see him signed!

[OLLBLUEEYZ]

No surprise. Vandy has meant a lot to the organization since the day they acquired him. He has proved that he has the skill set to become a solid 4th or 5th defenseman and someday captain. His toughness is not just his ability to fight, but he also has the character toughness that the Hawks need. I envision him to be a Jason Smith type player in the future with the Hawks. Good job Dale.

[Isles4life]

Good news here. Vandermeer has turned into a real solid, physical defenseman. He's an exciting scrapper when he does drop the gloves, even if it's not that frequent.

[Mr. Pink]

Originally Posted by vandymeer13

I never said they would be a pairing and when did I say he was a heavyweight? And if you watched Hawks games the past couple of seasons and when he was with the Admirals Vandermeer starts a lot of fights and raises hell. He always trys to get Hordichuk and Tootoo to go and look at this he starts this whole brawl. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugWMVbv07fY

I misinterpreted what someone said about the pairing, but several people in other threads are always talking how Vandermeer is going to fight Laraque, Boogaard, etc. They aren't very intelligent, but there is no way in hell. Jim is the top line d-man with Keith.

[OriginalSix]

Great news. One of my favorite Hawks will be here another year. He will be making a pretty penny too. Jimmy deserves it. You can count on him for big hits, great PKs and defense and at least three solid fights a year with a chance for FOTY. Nice guy too.