I can't even get angry anymore. I expect little and The Hawks deliver exactly that. At this point I think I'm just hoping to be surprised.
The Same Old Same-Same. Another slow start, possibly the worst first period The Hawks have played this season. The Jets had three goals on fourteen shots before The Hawks recorded their first shot on net. This is after a lot of chat after Monday's practice about coming out of the gates hard, matching The Jets' intensity. Just shut up, guys. Do something, then talk about it.
The Middle 30 Minutes looked pretty good on The Hawks, although it was about 50% CHI bearing down and 50% WPG not giving a damn until The Hawks scored a few. Once Perreault put WPG up 5-3 The Hawks kept skating but began missing passes, making poor decisions....all the stuff they do in the third period when they're still within a goal or two.
And that's it. Nothing we haven't already seen over a dozen times this season.
The Rockford Shuffle has begun, with Alex Fortin going north while Dylan Sikura and Carl Dahlstrom will be the next young ones to have spirits crushed in the 312. Not sorry to see Fortin's tail lights as he remains far from ready for The NHL. Dahlstrom replaces Forsling, who was placed on IR a day or two ago, while Sikura The Younger fills Arthur The Large's roster spot as he is sidelined with "concussion protocol" (which is seriously how they articulate this now).
Can We Call Time on Chris Kunitz Now? He's accomplishing nothing except embarrassing himself. Just end it, now.
Next: Penguins, I think. Does it matter? Right now, what I look forward to the most where The Hawks are concerned is Trade Deadline Day, our last best hope to unload Seabrook and/or Keith, providing a contending team or two need a second-pairing guy and have some money to spend AND either of those guys are willing to leave. That's a lot of Ifs but, hey, I'm an optimist...
Johnny Cash - No Expectations
When was the last time one of these Western Canadian swings went well? 2015? 2014? It's become ridiculous.
It's looking as if not even Corey Crawford is going to get this team where they need to be. Crow was excellent - maybe he'd like either of Monahan's goals back but it's hard to fault him on the others and, given the terrible coverage in front of him, 4 GA doesn't look that bad. Too often the D were backing in too far before even thinking about closing their gaps and the forwards weren't picking up their guys very often at all. Just a bad, bad effort in which the final score actually suggests that The Hawks were in this game. The Hawks were outshot nearly 3:1 fer goodness' sakes.
Only Three Hawks were north of 50% Corsi: Toews, Kruger and Fortin, and we have to take Fortin's stat, here, with a grain of salt 'cos he spent much of the game cruising the neutral zone looking for the stretch pass. Despite appalling possession stats I thought Schmaltz was good, trying stuff, at least, but Anisimov was downright awful and Kane kinda came & went, still not feeling his normal self, I suspect.
The Third Line accomplished nothing.
DeBrincat put us through a third consecutive game in which he was painful to watch. His pass to send Saad in to score was the first he'd made this week.
Seabrook was excellent. His Corsi line tells a different story but, with Keith "unavailable" he was out almost every second shift, always against The Flames top six.
And Then There's Maude. I know I said I'd just pass on slagging Manning but I can't let this crap pass without comment. He has no idea what he's doing. His positioning is dogshit and his decision making is terrible. I'd like to see what would happen if, given two opposing players to contend with, he chooses to check one of them, y'know, instead of pissing around between the two guys, accomplishing nothing. Edzo continues to talk about "the element" that Manning brings which is, presumably some snarl, but all we've seen in that vein is some slashing and the occasional cross-check to the back of a player who's just scored on us. He's had one meaningless fight in which he fought a middleweight to a draw and the only hits he's made have been on stationary players along the boards, so I don't wanna hear about "the time and space" he creates for his teammates. Yeah, Hard Pass on this idiot.
I Didn't Mind Martinsen and, if Q doesn't get any ideas about expanding Marty's role I'm quite fine with him doing what he does for the amount of time he's being allotted to do it. He hasn't hurt the team in his last couple of games and his puck retrieval has been impressive.
Anyway, this wretched road trip is mercifully done and, now The Hawks have a few days in which to focus on either continuing to do all that stuff that failed to work over the last six or so games OR they can start making some passes and not allowing their opponents' third forwards unlimited access to primo shooting zones. Y'know, good hockey...
Illyus & Barrientos - Just Bad Shit
Thought we had a good one going, for 35 minutes anyway. Even then I was confident that The Hawks would regroup after those few rough minutes at the end of the second period and resume having their way with The Canucks. Alas, The Canucks stormed the gates right off the trot in the third, while The Hawks failed to respond.
These west coasties always have me a day late so let's not muck about.
No Kane looked like No Problem for awhile. Kunitz was an odd choice to fill 88's boots but Saad was so good that it could have been anyone on the left wing. Saad was a beast all evening with a goal, a shot off the post and an optimistic kick-in that was called back. All his game seems to lack, when he's switched on like this, is precision - he could stand to be slightly more patient and choose his shot locations more carefully rather than just shotgunning the puck.
The Hawks Third Line was a nightmare. Schmaltz's errant pass led directly to VAN's first goal, annoyingly scored by a guy who, had he not stumbled onto that interception, would have been hollered at for lazy-dogging it back to The Canuck's zone. Fortin did little more than chug up and down the wing, rarely involved, probably just hoping for a long pass and a scoring chance. I didn't mind Johnson on the PP, actually. He'd got some poise and he appears to know what to do and where to do it, even if he lacks any finish (which is still left to be seen).
Brandon Manning: I'll partially violate my standing order to not discuss this lump unless he's anything except bad, but only because he was well beyond merely bad last night. As usual, his first pass was rotten all night and, on Virtanen's second goal, he was absolutely pantsed by Granlund. Why was he standing still at his own blue line with three Canucks entering The Hawks' zone? Tipping Roussel's shot past Crawford was just the icing on Manning's shit cake. He might have gotten away with fucking up the Granlund thing had Davidson not been paralyzed by indecision. Maybe if Davidson had committed to Virtanen he could have closed the gap and prevented the shot, or maybe the shooter was always gonna be out of reach. We'll never know.
Crawford had a so-so game, mighty in many ways but three of the four VAN goals were nothing special. That's partly on the guys in front of him, allowing so many mano-a-mano chances, but Crow did lose all of those duels.
DeBrincat wasn't super sharp, either, whiffing on passes and having the puck bounce off his stick a bit. He's going to have off nights like anybody else but his timing kinda sucked, what with Kane being ill and half of his teammates not showing up for the third period.
Dominik Kahun is in a precarious spot right now. That line has been great, generally, but his contributions have been infrequent. If that trio fails to get going in EDM and CAL I expect Kahun to find himself in the bottom six next week.
Trooper - 3 Dressed Up as A 9
I guess it was always going to happen, tendencies that The Hawks had been leaning toward more and more over the last couple of games coupled with the lack of a last-moment bailout by Toews or Kane. What looked like, on paper, to be a potential slam dunk was instead a disjointed effort versus a team that was desperate to accomplish something, anything really.
I gotta get up for work in 20 minutes, so let's go.
Corey Crawford Returned. That's the big news, all results aside, and he looked okay. Maybe not at the tippy-top of his game but that wasn't gonna happen. He'd probably like to have Hinostroza's goal back and was perhaps a little soft on Keller's (which he gets a pass on, anyway, 'cos what was Kunitz thinking there?) but, overall, a good effort given he's been dizzy since last Christmas.
Some Good Moments from several players, but no complete game from anyone, really. Kahun had a great first period but was nowhere to be seen in the last half of the game. Gustafsson, who's been shockingly good and arguably The Hawks' best defender en toto thus far, made some excellent defensive and offensive plays but also committed a couple of needless turnovers. Only Kane appeared to put in a near-complete game, but even that was hamstrung by his linemates, which I'll mention shortly.
The Coyotes: before I go off complaining about people and things let me acknowledge that The 'Yotes hung in there and made The Hawks pay for their sins. Really, only Hinnie's goal was a result of purely their own efforts, the others made possible by botched plays by The Hawks, but they're a quick team and their forecheck was the toughest The Hawks have had to deal with so far this season, as they harried Chicago's D relentlessly all evening. They weren't as pretty in their own end, but their fall-back of simply plugging up the danger zone in front of their own net worked well enough, as The Hawks, especially the D, failed to get many shots through. Antti Raanta was excellent, as well.
So, let the bitching and picking apart commence.
Nick Schmaltz did a few good things but it was the opportunities he passed on that irritated me. He seems loathe to drive the net or to shoot, unless the puck is on a tee for him. Schmaltz exemplified The Hawks' offensive problems, tonight: there were precious few second chances because the first shot either didn't get through the wall of Coyotes or, just as often, wasn't taken at all. Soon enough, other teams will realize that his strong preference is to look to pass, first, and he's going to find teams ceding his route to the net in order to take away his passing lanes, and it'll work unless Schmaltz changes his mindset.
Alexandre Fortin does not appear ready for the top six. He has eyes only for Kane, rarely involving Schmaltz or his D, always looking to find or be found by Kane, alone. Maybe if he hits for a goal soon he'll be able to settle into a headspace where he's more aware of non-Kane-related opportunities but, based on what he's shown so far, it might take awhile for that to occur.
Keith and Jokiharju were not good, with young Henri cracking a little under the Coyotes' forecheck. Keith just seemed slightly off with his timing, especially while passing, and positioning.
Chris Kunitz has contributed something between very little and nothing. He actually had a couple of near-looks tonight but was either too slow to the puck or mishandled the puck when it came down to it. And again, what was he thinking with that cross-ice pass that was so easily plucked away by Keller?
Brandon Manning has been terrible. It's probably not a good idea to call for a pass and then promptly give the puck away while under zero pressure but, of course, that's what he did. And he made a shambles of defending The Coyotes' two-on-one leading to Crouse's goal - he's gotta take the pass away and let Crow worry about a shot from the puck carrier but, in an apparent homage to his spiritual brother TVR, he chose to linger in between, taking neither the pass nor the shooter. Just brutal.
Off to Columbus on Saturday, then, when I reckon we'll see Cam Ward get the start and perhaps Brandon Davidson draw in on the third pairing. But Q being Q, you know it'll be Rutta that'll sit.
Roster Stuff: The Hawks dispatched Luke Johnson to Rockford to make room for Crawford as they quite rightly need a third line of defense in case Crow pulls up lame after a start or three. If Crawford proves to be Good To Go I expect The Hawks will attempt to trade Anton Forsberg rather than merely expose him on waivers.
Big Black Sleep
A day late due to a late night beer league game, so this will be quickish.
The talking heads remain positive, asserting that The Hawks have yet to lose in regulation. That's not the same as "unbeaten" however and I believe they can count themselves lucky to not be 2-and-2 right now. If not for Kane's heroics vs. TOR and DeBrincat having a bit of a time in MIN last night that's exactly how things would stand.
While I'm loving the fast starts to each game thus far, I've been unimpressed with The Hawks taking their foot off the gas before the games are half over. In Toronto they faced a team that struggles to prevent goals but, given the space, will cheerfully run up the score. Yet, even after leaping to an early lead, The Hawks stopped pressing the matter and, even more frustrating, it's not because they tightened up defensively. Last evening they met a team that hasn't been able to score at all, again took an early lead and, facing a determined attack by The Wild, largely collapsed defensively, allowing far too many chances and only mounting sporadic offense of their own. While Cam Ward did play his best game in his four starts, he's been weak, and the guys in front of him haven't helped his cause a whole lot.
So let's mention the defense. Breakouts have been undeniably outstanding, better than they've been for two or three years, and that has certainly keyed the offense, giving them the head start they've lacked for some time. Simple defense in their own end, however, has been lacking, with missed assignments, soft play in front of and behind their net and, most aggravating, d-men needlessly chasing opposing forwards, taking themselves out of position.
The forwards could be doing more to help, as well. On the tying goal last night, Keith had a man, Jokiharju sort of had a man (he escaped, but that'll happen sometimes) but none of the forwards had picked anyone up at all. This is elementary stuff that they can and must pay more attention to.
However, based on this morning's practice, the response has been to shuffle the bottom three lines, the highlight there being Fortin being slotted in the 2nd line and Saad moving to the 4th alongside Kruger & Kampf. Saad has not been great, granted, but I doubt that inserting A Guy in the top six after only one not especially notable game is the solution.
You know those Purina-crunching mouth breathers from Missouri are going to be gunning for a "statement game" tomorrow - The Hawks had better sort themselves out.
The Step And The Walk
Well, that was as boring as a Devils/Coyotes matchup on a Tuesday night in January.
I fully expected The Hawks to test drive some young wingers with Toews tonight, and assumed Hossa would come out and do a few laps, but neither star even dressed for the game. In fact, The Hawks went with four 4th lines, essentially, for one last look at the handful of fellas still in the running for the 2-3 forward spots, as well as an opportunity for the aspiring d-men to get a leg up in a very tight competition for a roster spot that may not even exist.
Since this was an entirely flat, unexciting game, I offer these unentertaining observations.
- It was somewhat gratifying that The Hawks kept up with a Blues squad that consisted entirely of actual NHL players. Sure, Bouwmeester and Schwartz sat out, but since Schwartz misses half the games, anyway, we'll call this a viable Blues lineup.
- I see no reason for Nick Schmaltz to make this team. Evidently, he played 17 minutes tonight and somehow avoided being noticed at all.
- As flat as The Blues were they were still that much better than some of the lineups The Hawks have faced in this preseason, and that put the performances of some of the Hawks Hopefuls into perspective. Fortin and Hinostroza found themselves with a lot less time and space in which to work, and Forsling, for the first time, really, looked a little less confident and a bit rushed. Motte was better; not as dynamic as in his last two games but he didn't look out of his depth. Hartman looked okay, I thought, but the role he's auditioning for is not terribly dependent on controlling the puck.
- I sincerely hope that putting Tootoo out there with the net empty was a going-away present from the coaching staff.
I had hoped to draft up something for the opening night lines & pairings, but the situation is so cloudy I just don't know if it's even worth doing. I will make a few specific predictions, though.
- Despite all hopes and expectations otherwise it will be Toews, Hossa and Panik on opening night. When Panik washes out Motte draws in.
- Hartman and not Schmaltz makes the cut, which suits me 'cos it always takes me several tries to type "Schmaltz". Does that leave room for Hinostroza? I guess that depends on how many D The Hawks end up carrying.
- Keith and TVR on the first pairing, because....well, I have no explanation for it apart from an increasingly dark world view. Okay, they'll say some shit about "balance".
Alright, that's it until Wednesday, unless I receive some intel from The Hawks' practices. Which I won't.
In a reversal of the previous match between The Hawks and The Wings it was The Hawks who iced a slightly more representative lineup, a group that ran wild on a largely inexperienced Wings squad. The talent disparity was most evident when comparing their respective defense corps, and it didn't help that Jimmy Howard was brutal, either.
The Good
- We saw the best outings from Hinostroza, Hartman, Panik and Fortin, so far. Hino' appeared to slow things down a little and it made him more effective, as he took that extra fraction-of-a-second to look for a play rather than simply storm toward the net. Hartman had a strong game, but I'm still unsure that he's among the dozen-best forwards available who aren't Tootoo or Mashinter. Panik was Panik, and it worked in this case, but let's not get too excited; his goal was an absolutely perfectly placed shot, which might occur once in 200 tries for the hardworking forward. The hockey media is, somehow, still talking Panik up as a potential linemate for Toews but, if that's even remotely a good idea, then why not Desjardins? They each fill a similar role and Des', as impossible at it sounds, may have the better hands. Panik works at a higher speed but are they really all that different when you look at what they each accomplish? I am not advocating for Des' to end up on Toews' line, but picture Desjardins on Toews wing and tell me if Panik really belongs there, too.
Fortin has spent the preseason buzzing around, looking industrious as hell, but too often trying to do it all himself. His infrequent pass attempts have been poor, his vigor has often left him out of position after his solo charges down the wing & behind the net fail, and he's been a chucker of the highest order. One can see the urgency with which he's approaching his duties and, if what he's doing works, that's great, but when it fails to provide a result it just appears...I dunno...desperate. Last night he tried to do a little less and accomplished a little more.
- Gustav Forsling is just so damned poised. I'm unsurprised that Gustafsson was dispatched to Rockford, as Forsling provides everything Goose brings, but better. He's quicker, more precise and makes far better choices. Goose is a little bigger but has played as if he were a smaller man, anyway, so he'll get no credit for size. Forsling belongs in the lineup, every night, but more on that in a little bit.
The Bad
- Jordin Tootoo. I guess there's way to get out of this, is there?
- TVR. Oh I wish, how I wish, I could believe that The Hawks will play their six best defensemen on opening night...and beyond. I keep telling myself that I need to understand that TVR will stick, he'll play, and there's nothing I can do about it, but it's not easy when he just sucks nine nights out of ten. This is the reason Ville Pokka isn't getting a longer look...not Forsling or Kempny, but The Hawks wasting a lineup spot on that slug, TVR.
The Indifferent
- Nick Schmaltz. Yes, I do see that he tipped-in a goal last night but, apart from that, what's he done? I like his puck control and his apparent confidence, but I have to say that he's being outshone by Motte, Hino' and even Fortin.
- The Hawks packed a tour bus with guys heading to Rockford. As mentioned, above, the only sorta surprise there was Pokka, but it is pretty crowded on defense, he's not going to supplant TVR or Rozsie, so he may as well get busy in Rockford. Well, at least there's no longer any sign of Kero, Baun or Svedberg. The only remaining fellas with no apparent shot at the lineup are Mark McNeill and Ivan Nalimov.
Other News
- Cody Hodgson, age 26, retired from hockey. There was a time that I would have taken gleeful delight in any scenario in which the Canucks fail, but this is actually a pretty sad story. Thanks to an alleged misdiagnosis of a back injury and subsequent nerve damage, Hodgson was compromised physically and in terms of his confidence at arguably the worst possible time in a young player's career. The guy shoulda coulda been great.
- Barrett Jackman. I couldn't be more pleased that this mouth-breather's long con has come to an end, as I'm pretty sure the Best Before date on this goof reads "2009".
