About Last Night: Capitals 3, Hawks 2

Well, we were never going to keep winning forever.
Still, this looks like a strange result when one ignores what they saw and scans the data surrounding the game.
- The Hawks won eight straight games after being outshot in most, possibly all, of those games (I cannot be arsed to verify that) yet lose on the night that they DO outshoot the opposition.
- The Hawks' PK has been near-perfect the last two weeks and last night they weren't even asked to kill any penalties, which sounds like a sure-fire recipe for success. Unless you're allowing shorties, of course.
- The Hawks crushed Washington in possession and zone starts...like, it wasn't even close.

So how did this go sideways?  Let's see...
- The Caps were extremely opportunistic; any game in which Jay Friggin' Beagle scores twice is likely going to be a Capitals win.  Practically any shortie is a gift, so there's that, and on Beagle's second tally, the wrap-around, Crawford stops that play half the time and Beagle loses the handle halfway through the maneuver most of the time.  That's just the way it goes, sometimes.
- The winning goal - oh my.  Disaster loomed when the Caps player, Oshie I think, slipped in behind Hinostroza but we caught a break when Oshie fell down, right?  Nope, 'cos Hino, our last man back, for some reason, managed to fall over Oshie, springing The Caps on a two-on-one.  A bit ridiculous, a bit unlucky, but there we have it..
- What was the idea with having Hinostroza out there in OT, anyway?  I know I've been grinding away about giving the youngsters a chance in these situations but this decision just makes no sense; the guy was healthy scratch for four straight games and all of a sudden Coach Q is gonna...I don't know what...play a hunch?  Odd choice there.
- Duncan Keith: despite what the stats line says he did not have his best outing, struggling with some keep-ins, topping the puck on a few pass attempts and making an absolute mess of things leading to Beagle's shortie.  He also stopped skating while in pursuit of Beagle, which is totally uncharacteristic and just adds another layer of weird on this game.
- Kruger on the second line: again, the stats look positive but the reality is that Krugs failed to cash a couple of times where a center with better hand skills would have; create all the chances you want but you have to finish those chances.  Kruger is awesome at what he does, among the very best, but placing him between Hossa and Panarin is not unlike buying a Camaro and asking them to put a Toyota Corolla motor in it; that Toyota will run reliably forever but it's not gonna win any races or pull any chicks, etc.
- The other option for Line Two would have been, I believe, Nick Schmaltz, with Panik then slotting back into his familiar, if inappropriate, spot on the top line.  Well, given that Schmaltz was again nearly invisible I guess Q selected the lesser of two evils deploying Kruger as he did.  Schmaltz has the whole lurking-in-the-weeds thing going on, but for that to work he has to pop out of those weeds now and again, call for a pass, get into position to make a play.  As it is, he spends a lot of his shifts obscured behind opposing players.
- The Second Line is a House of Cards: okay, hyperbole, but Large Arthur missing one game and The Hawks booting the game perhaps indicates some fragility in the forward corps.  It was a peculiar game, though, and we've got a long way to go so it's probably nothing...
- Jordin Tootoo; why do I have to type that name after every damn game?  Well, in this one, he managed to miss a wide open net and then doubled down with the softest pass back to the point that I've ever seen, a pass so weak that The Capitals player who intercepted it had to wait for it to reach him.
- I did not like Campbell and Forsling's reunion at all.  They were running around in their own end far too much and neither of them seemed very sure of what the other was doing.  I can only guess that Q chose to shuffle the pairings in order for Keith and Hjalmarsson to shut down Ovechkin et al which, excepting Keith's aforementioned gaffes, actually worked pretty well.
- Goaltending: Holtby was near-perfect for The Caps, Crawford was a little less good than that.  It was reported that Crow's trip to the dressing room was for a skate repair but I'll wager he had to poop, 'cos a comfortable Crow makes a save on Beagle's wrap-around. Never trust Tex-Mex food prepared north of the Mason-Dixon line, at least not on game day. Scott Darling made only one save but what a save it was.

Still, it wasn't a total nightmare, and it was a game The Hawks coulda shoulda won.  Hossa was fantastic, even if it was pretty fortunate that Small Arthur's speculative wrister somehow reached him to create the tying goal.  Kempny had, I think, his best game thus far.  We'll get 'em next time.

Finally, send some positive vibes in the direction of former Hawk and occasional playoff hero Bryan Bickell.  Bicks announced yesterday that he's been diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, which goes a long way toward explaining the cliff that Bick's play fell from over the last couple of seasons.  Get well, fella.

Bickell, Teravainen Cast Off: Hawks Receive Nothing in Return

From blackhawks.nhl.com:
The Chicago Blackhawks today acquired a second-round pick (50th overall) in the 2016 National Hockey League Draft and a third-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for forwards Bryan Bickell and Teuvo Teravainen.

So the good news here is that The Hawks just saved themselves $4 Mil cap space that had been soaked up by a fella who would never again set foot (skate?) on United Center ice.
The obviously disappointing news is that the associated cost of ditching that salary was Teuvo being packaged into the deal.
But, maybe it's not the worst idea, dealing Teravainen, although this is perhaps indicative of who's really in charge of the organization.  Coach Quenneville has rarely deployed Teravainen "properly", as in "the way any sane person would" and, when he does appear to get it right, it's only because he's out of other options.  Teuvo still has another year on a mighty cap-friendly deal but, after that, he'll be expensive whether Q chooses to utilize him efficiently or not.  It's likely that GM Stan Bowman saw this as perhaps the only real chance to get Bickell's salary off the books and that it might be best to not break his neck protecting Teravainen if Q only inserts him into the top six when Hossa's injured.  It's also possible that it was Teuvo's preference to leave.  Also, we're one year away from Panarin becoming extremely expensive and possibly requiring another veteran to be dispatched, so it's probably okay to let Rasmussen / Hinostroza / Motte / whoever get a full season in before having to fill a more important gap.

Teravainen found himself in a weird spot with The Hawks, some of which is down to him not having been granted admission into Q's Circle of Trust and some of which may well be his own fault.  Ostensibly a center, Teravainen failed to click with any combination of wingers he was matched with.  Granted, one of the wingers he was often saddled with was Brandon Mashinter, but there no chemistry with Fleischmann and Weise, either, which would have been a kickass third line if it had worked out.  His brief spells on the top two lines were, as mentioned, due to injury or suspension to others and, while he had some good moments during those auditions, it clearly wasn't enough to entice Q to extend the engagement.  I think we'll miss Teuvo on the power play - I thought he was a quite capable point-man - but, looking at the remaining centers I don't think we'll miss him too much in that capacity.  Dennis Rasmussen can endure Mashinter, or whatever lout inevitably fills that role, as well as Teuvo can.

Looking ahead, I guess we can expect Stan to try for a UFA or two because, at it stands right now, we have only seven forwards ready to go and I do not anticipate The Hawks planning to make do with four or more Icehogs in the lineup.  I hope Stan re-ups Richard Panik and wouldn't mind Rasmussen returning.  There may be a chance that Shaw remains but I don't see Fleischmann, Ladd or Weise being invited back.

That is all, until the next shoe drops.

Problem Solved!

From blackhawks.nhl.com:
The Chicago Blackhawks announced today that they have recalled defenseman David Rundblad from the American Hockey League’s Rockford IceHogs and reassigned forwards Bryan Bickell and Dennis Rasmussen to Rockford.

Even I, the world's most inveterate Rundblad apologist, find this puzzling.
I cannot imagine Q slotting Rundblad in ahead of Goose or Ehrhoff, unless he hates Ehrhoff more than he hates Rundy so what's this about?  As far as I know, Svedberg is day-to-day and still on the roster, so this cannot be a cap-compliance thing.  I think.  
The best I can come up with is that Rundblad looks awesome in a suit and will class up the press box, propping up Bobby Hull.
As for the others, I guess it was worth a shot to see how Bickell looked, even if everyone figured on "terrible", as was the case.  I thought Moose had a pretty good game against Columbus but, if we're going to carry 28 defencemen, something's gotta give.
Assuming Hoss, Shaw and Large Arthur return tomorrow, who will be the odd forward out? I'm guessing Weise, because who is Q to deprive us of another vital Reaves vs. Mashinter encounter?

          What a nice collage.  I like that it includes Rundy's usual view of the arena!

Blackhawks Recall Bickell

From blackhawks.nhl.com:

The Chicago Blackhawks announced today they have recalled forward Bryan Bickell from the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League.

Bickell, 30, has registered two assists in 23 games with Chicago this season. The Bowmanville, Ontario native has also recorded 31 points (15G, 16A) in 44 games with Rockford.

Yikes, I must admit that Bicks had been gone so long and missed so little that I had completely 

forgotten about him.  Still, if he assumes Mashinter's spot in the lineup that would be A Good Thing.

The Hero of Zero: Hawks 4, Canucks 0 and Sunday's Big Boy

Tonight's was the first game all year that I had an easy, confident feeling about throughout the match. All four lines were ticking away like never before this season.  The defense...maybe not as much, and the level of competition may have flattered to deceive but, for the most part, I liked what I saw.
- That makes four consecutive solid outings for Andrew Shaw, after two months of sometimes-okay-sometimes-chowderhead.  I wonder if playing on a line in which his duties are more in tune with his abilities has anything to do with that.
- On that topic, I thought the Bickell-Rasmussen-Shaw line was excellent tonight.  This was easily Bickell's best game since returning from the gulag and I'm beginning to think this Razmatazz guy might be okay.  I think he owes Bickell a steak or something after bogarting that goal, but he had a strong game with some good looks and sound positioning.
- TVR was a nightmare and Rundblad went back to being unable to get the puck out of the zone if any opposing player was within 20 ft of him.  Hjalmarsson was oddly yippy in the first period but seemed to settle in after that.  On the plus side, Daley almost hit the net with a shot.
- So, Mashinter managed to cash in his third of three gift-wrapped chances tonight.  Bravo, sir.  I guess that will buy him another, what, 10 games?  20 games?  A four year contract?
- What of the others?  Toews' line was, I thought, the least dynamic line tonight, but they had the task of covering those Creepy Twins for most of the game.  They had a shift in the last half of the second period, though, that shifted the momentum back The Hawks' way after being outworked for almost all of the period up until then.  The Art Line was good but just seemed on the wrong side of the inch tonight, which is just going to happen, sometimes.  Even the Kruger line manufactured several legit chances that were done in mostly by Mashinter but, let's face it, neither Krugs or Dez have soft hands, either. 

Extra credit, maybe, for posting two consecutive shutouts, but Corey Crawford was a beaut tonight. The boxscore says he made 30 saves and, while it didn't seem like that many when it happened, some of those were tough stops to make, what with a couple of semi-breakaways and a dandy at point blank range off Vrbata (I think).  F*ck yeah, Chicago.

                                                                 Oy-yoy-yoy.

Two is Better Than One: Hawks 3, Jets 1 and Sunday's Big Boy

Well, that wasn't perfect but it wasn't bad, either.
Here's what I saw or possibly hallucinated.
- It was a decent enough first game back for Bryan Bickell, in which he played the way Bryan Bickell is "supposed" to play, with 7 hits in 7 minutes of work,  I've always found his rep for being a hard-hitting player a bit odd 'cos there have been long stretches throughout his career in which he didn't, wouldn't or couldn't play all that fiercely.  If that's what it takes for him to stay in the lineup I hope he remembers what seems to be expected of him.
- How nice to resolve a game, with a win no less, in regulation and equally encouraging that The Hawks saved their best for the final period.  The Jets looked a little dangerous on their third period PP (but I'm not sure they actually hit the net) and had a pair of good looks before that, but they didn't really trouble The Hawks that much in the final frame.  I was surprised to learn that The Jets put up 31 shots, too, as it sure didn't feel that way to me.
- It was doubly nice that Coach Q saw fit to keep Toews-Hossa-Teravainen together, 'cos I half expected he would stick Bickell in TT's spot, and they ended up generating the most chances of The Hawks' forward lines and scored both of the goals that mattered.  See what happens when you ice two skilled lines?  
- After the game Patrick Kane admitted that he was probably thinking about his points streak a little too much.  He and his linemates weren't bad, exactly - his second period pass through Anisimov's feet and onto his stick was pretty cool - but Kane wasn't as consistently commanding as he's been the last several weeks.  Ah, but we have two scoring lines, right?
- Ryan Garbutt had a good game going until he took that idiotic penalty in the third.
- Had a brief moment of terror and disbelief when I realized it was TVR and Rozsie working the points on The Hawks' last PP.  Get well soon, Trevor Daley.
- Speaking of Rozsie, it almost looked like he was going to join a rush there midway through the third period, but I guess he would have had to leave yesterday to get that done.
- Crawford, as it turns out, had a good crack at a shutout until Kero lost interest in Chris Thorburn.  Yeah, it was kind of a goofy goal, but if Kero kept the check on it never happens.

Hossa looked a little tight early on, I thought, failing on a stuff attempt and losing the handle on the puck a couple of time.  He got better as the game wore on, exercising great patience on his goal and keeping the puck moving on the last Hawks PP as well as during many of his even strength shifts in the third.  I'm encouraged.

                                                        Unbeliebabal perogies.

Would You Pay an Extra $2 Million?

The Hawks recalled Bryan Bickell from Rockford earlier today and, to make room on the roster placed Viktor Tikhonov on waivers, where he was promptly snapped up by Phoenix.  Or Arizona. Whatever.
The hope is that Bickell can jump start some line, any line on The Hawks, having notched 7 goals and 14 points whilst in The AHL.  The reality will likely be that, if he fails to win the next couple of games single-handedly, Bickell will assume Tik's role of watching Mashinter do whatever the hell it is he's trying to do.
And that will cost The Hawks and extra $2 million in salary (over a full season) for Bicks to sit and watch Mashinter, Shaw & Desjardins accomplishing very little.  Oh, and Bobby Hull will be there, drunk.

Roster Surprises: Hawks Assign Eight Players, Waive One

If this is your first time hearing this news go ahead and try to guess all eight guys assigned to Rockford, as well as the player placed on waivers.
Hands up, everybody, who included Marko Dano in the list of the Rockford-bound.  He is joined by Dennis Rasmussen, Brandon Mashinter, Ville Pokka, Ryan Hartman, Vincent Hinostroza, Erik Gustafsson and Garret Ross.
The widely held assumption entering the preseason was that Dano would line up alongside Toews and Hossa, at least to start the season.  Hell, it was Coach Quenneville that equated Dano's appointment to the first line as being like winning the lottery, giving rise to the hacks calling The Hawks' top trio "The Lottery Line".  Well, I've never seen anyone have to give their lottery winnings back, but today Quenneville referred to Dano's three-game preseason as "ordinary".  None of the other demotions are surprising, although I would not have been shocked to see Hartman or Mashinter stick, not because they belong in Chicago, necessarily...it just wouldn't surprise me.
Part Two of today's excitement involves Bryan Bickell being placed on waivers, ostensibly to send him to Rockford.  What this really is, of course, is one final "take him, he's yours" effort, after being unable to trade Bickell The Hawks are prepared to try to give him away.  At this point, though, who has $4 million to blow on a third-line banger who doesn't actually do much banging, likely has concussion-related issues and a manky knee?  This, to me, is more sad than surprising but I must admit I didn't this, specifically, coming.  I'm not sure about the salary cap implications if Bickell clears waivers and reports to Rockford, so I'll find that out and maybe type some more about this after Bick clears, or not.

Where this leaves The Hawks is with 12 forwards, one of which is Kyle Baun.  I guess granting a roster spot to a young fella who had one pretty good preseason game is not that different, philosophically,  than offering $4 mil a year to a veteran forward who had one great playoffs, right?   Baun is projected as a fourth-liner, playing with Kruger and Desjardins, which is likely his ceiling and doesn't really concern me that much.  What does bug me is that, with Dano sent to Rockford, you just know that Andrew Shaw is going to be thrust into yet another role he isn't qualified for...first line left wing.
Yeah, the season hasn't even started yet and The Hawks are being dumbasses.  I'll try not to get too stressed about any of this, 'cos even if Baun plays 50% beyond himself he'll still only top out on the third line, if he sticks at all.  Dano will be back and, I suspect, so will Bickell, providing he is and remains healthy.  Wait and see, right?

Meanwhile, on defence, we still see Kyle Cumiskey and Viktor Svedberg hanging around, trying to catch that 7D spot on the roster which, given there are only 12 forwards at the moment, might have evolved into a 7D and 8D sort of thing, which has always worked so very, very well (hi, Mike Kostka!).  This is just until Michal Rozsival is "fit" again, of course.  I can't wait to see what happens when Rozsie is good to go; Svedberg playing left wing a-la John Scott, anyone?

                                                        Uh, is 17 taken....?

Everybody Exhale

From blackhawks.nhl.com

The Chicago Blackhawks announced today they have acquired defensemen Dennis Robertson and Jake Massie and a fifth-round selection in the 2017 National Hockey League Draft from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for forwards Kris Versteeg and Joakim Nordstrom and a third-round selection in the 2017 NHL Draft.

Well, that takes some pressure off.  After Versteeg's Houdini act that coincided with Kane's injury last winter this was always a likely and desired move.  The $2mil he would have earned will be far better spent on re-signing Marcus Kruger.  Kind of sorry to see Nordstrom go, as he always worked so hard.  What he was working on was often anybody's guess, but that's for the folks in Charlotte to figure out, now.

As I said, the immediate pressure is off, and Stan Bowman won't be forced to barter Bickell for a set of gently-used snow tires.  This also opens up the roster a little; today's deal leave The Hawks with 12 forwards including Kane and Morin, so at least one of the fellas from Rockford and beyond will likely begin the season in Chicago, possibly two if Quenneville is still not buying what Morin is selling.  We know it won't be Danault, who seemed the best-positioned to make the leap, so I expect Hartman and Panarin to get long, long looks when training camp starts.

TVR Extended for Two Years

Blackhawks defenceman Trevor Van Riemsdyk has received a contract extension keeping him in red & black until the end of the 2017-18 season.  The bonus is that it is reportedly at an alarmingly cap-friendly $825K per year.  This is great value as TVR is one of the only young players who Coach Quenneville appears to trust with any significant ice time.  Now all he has to do is remain healthy, as TVR underwent surgeries for two separate injuries this season.

Rumour Mill
From letsgohawks.net:
According to veteran reporter Marc De Foy of Montreal Journal, Bowman has been very busy talking to his former assistant Marc Bergevin of the Canadiens. De Foy mentions that Bowman had talked to the Habs general manager about both Bryan Bickell and Kris Versteeg.

That would certainly go a long way toward solving some problems, as long as a big salary doesn't come back to Chicago in the bargain. 

About Last Night: It's All to Do Now

It wasn't all bad, but it wasn't good enough and, frustratingly, not nearly as good as it can be.

• On that tack, it was gratifying to see Toews recover from a so-so effort earlier in the game to give The Hawks a chance at OT.  I guess that's what we need and expect from him, though, isn't it?
• Bickell needs to be removed from the second line, possibly from the roster.  Whatever mythical playoff mojo he's possessed in the past deserted him sometime during the MN series.  His bungled shoot-in, basically the hockey equivalent of a lay up, is inexcusable.  It doesn't end with Bickell, though, 'cos Quenneville continues to trot him out on a line that has, lately, been compromised by Bickell's secret injury/ lack of concern / whatever and Richards' inconsistency.  If Q insists on continuing with Bickell in the lineup I wonder if swapping Kane and Saad might be worth a try.
• Seabrook looked awful on the winning goal but, to be fair to him, he was alone, trying to turn around in the face of two Ducks entering the zone with speed and was probably unsure who would have the puck when he stopped spinning.  Yeah, it would have been better if he took away the passing lane rather than chase the puck carrier, but it was a lost coin-flip as much as anything, I think.
• Another positive; at least we can expect Teravainen and Vermette to remain in the lineup.  Vermette's touch pass on TT's goal gave me chills.
• The Ducks are still very beatable but only if The Hawks refrain from the lazy, thoughtless stuff that so often lead to a puck behind Crawford.  They can do it, let's see if they will do it.

About Last Night: Cheese Steak Gobbling Morons 4, Hawks 1

First off, The Flyers played well.
That aside, just because The Flyers didn't stink doesn't mean The Hawks still shouldn't beat the tar out of them.  But they didn't beat and here's why.
- The lineup made even less sense than the hot mess that Quenneville conjured up for Monday's game in Carolina and that's saying something.  Yeah, we all get that Bickell was awful and looked likely to be scratched tonight, but Teravainen being sat down is mysterious.  He had been climbing the depth chart, line by line, every few games and apparently practiced with Toews and Saad this morning.  Instead, we're treated to Shaw on L1 and Desjardins AND Carcillo in the lineup.
- Yes, fucking Carcillo, who has now played two games in the last month.  Hilariously, he played 2½ minutes more than Nordstrom who has been in the lineup consistently and has done nothing particularly wrong. 
- Something is wrong with Toews.  He doesn't have his usual giddyap and has not been stellar at the dot.  What's more is that he is either puzzled an/or annoyed by Q's inane line shuffling.
- Someone has to unplug Rozsival's iron lung tonight.  Let the old boy drift off peacefully in his sleep...

Good Enough to Win (and not one bit more): Hawks 3, Hurricanes 1 and Monday's Big Boy

So, how do you get outshot by 19, make a series of bonehead plays yet still win the game?  First, surprise a rather easily exploitable defense and, second, have Corey Crawford as your own last line of defense.

The Good
- Corey Crawford, full stop.
- Patrick Sharp appears to be emerging from the fog, despite appearing to play on a different line every second shift.
- The Hawks' D did a decent job of limiting second chances, clearing rebounds and blocking access to the dirty areas.  I suppose it's the least they could do after their role in 44 shots against.  Bear in mind that The 'Canes are offensively pathetic but, given the fact that these guys were great against the two NY teams and horrifying against Dallas, who knows what to expect from one night to the next?
The Bad
- Coach Quenneville had assembled four lines that worked tremendously in two games against top teams but, at the first sign of trouble (see Dallas, above) he shook up the top three lines once again.  Tonight's result flatters to deceive but I fear that Q will trot out the same combos (sans Bickell) on Wednesday vs. the only slightly less pathetic Flyers.
The Ugly
- Desjardins in for Bickell on Wednesday?  You betcha.

Yeah, Shaw's awesome with no goalie in the net or when he's able to corral a sweet pass, but here's the real man of the match.

                                                                   Superbad.

Finishing Strong: Hawks 4, Bloos 2 and Sunday's Big Boy

Didn't that feel good?  It looked pretty good.  Not perfect but, it shocks me to say this, I don't have much to complain about today.
Aside from the two points and, obviously, denying STL two points, I'm most encouraged by The Hawks finishing better than they started.  While the third period wasn't ALL Hawks they managed to limit the chances against really, really well, what looks The Blues did get were generated off their fierce forecheck in which they forced Seabrook and Hjalmarsson into errors.  What else....
- Not a bad effort from Oduya and I hope to hell that Tarasenko's goal won't dissuade J.O. from driving the net like he's been doing.  More of that, please.
- Teravainen did make a couple of blunders but he made things right with some tenacious backchecking.
- Hey, Carcillo was actually not too bad today.  He made a bit a mess of his tussle with Ott, and the meatheads will chirp about him not taking his helmet off, but his teammates and the coaches will like that he responded quickly to Ott's hit on Kruger.
- 10-91-88 looked a bit like individuals today, with more than a few optimistic passes and some pucks sent nowhere in particular, yet each member of the line generated some quality chances.  Richards' breakout and lateral pass to Bickell leading to Hossa's first goal was pretty special, indeed.
- Man, Rundblad can sure shoot the puck.  That 15 foot rebound onto Bickell's stick was off a wrist shot, for goodness' sake.

Even with two other forwards notching two points, as well as Crawford and Keith having outstanding games, two primary assists and a determined effort all afternoon ensure Brandon Saad the belt on this day.

                                                           Future ruler of Earth.

A Proper Wilding: Hawks 4, Wild 1 and Sunday's Big Boy

Check it out - The Hawks cracked the 30-shot mark!
A closer game than the score would suggest, with significant, lasting momentum swings, this one was most influenced by The Hawks' greater scoring prowess and Niklas Backstrom's...whatever he was doing out there.

Five Hawks notched two points apiece and Corey Crawford put in another solid effort, but on merit of a goal, a helpie and five hits, Bryan Bickell is again The Big Boy.

                       I will continue to post dog pics until all of Bick's Pits are adopted.

It's Opposite Week: Hawks 4, Wild 2 and Thursday's Big Boy

You have to ask what's going on when a team launches 54 shots in a game and is shut out and, two days later, is outshot 44-20 and manages to win. I guess the easiest answer may be that there was a very good goalie at the other end on Tuesday and not so much tonight.  At least The Hawks received a decent effort from their netminder in each game.

Despite being owned in the shots & chances departments there was still lots of positive stuff to take away from tonight:
- Rundblad, decisive with his shoot-ins
- Sharp, getting after the shoot-in!
- Kane, three more points and climbing steadily up the scoring ladder
- Bickell, unexpectedly on the second line and cashing in a pair
- Faceoffs, with The Hawks continuing to improve in that area (34-for-62 tonight)
- Best of all, though...

Brad Richards, with 3 sweet assists while playing more minutes than he's logged in several weeks earns secure trousers on this day.

                                              I'm makin' Mike Yeo anxious!

Better Late than Never: Hawks 5, Predators 4 and Monday's Big Boy

I'm feeling bullet-y this morning.

* So The Hawks won the coin toss portion of the event, which is way better than losing, don't get me wrong, but what impressed me most is that they potted all four (proper) goals in the last 35 minutes of the match.  That does not excuse what occurred in the first half of the game, but it warms my insides to know that they have the capacity to rally like this.
* The Predators are actually pretty scary, aren't they?  A new coach, with a far different outlook than their old coach, a healthy Pekka Rinne and the emergence of Filip Forsberg have transformed The Devils of the West into arguably the most dangerous threat in The Hawks' conference.
* Why is it that human chihuahua Mike Ribeiro failed to get a look at the 2C role for The Hawks?  Sure, he's kinda douchey at times, but would he be any worse than Richards or, heaven forbid, Shaw?  I think not.
* Did Sharp play in the third period?
* Speaking of ice time, Keith played nearly 33 minutes and it could well have been more had Rundblad not inexplicably taken more shifts in the third period than in each of the first two. I'm not complaining about Rundblad, it's just surprising to see Q place that much trust in him in such a tight game. I guess with two days off before the pond hockey game he could afford to lean on Keith a little more but, man, it's only December.
* Carcillo played 5 minutes.  Why is he out there, again?
* Last thing: it was cool to see former Lakehead Thunderwolf Shandor Alphonso working the lines in this game.  I was wondering where he went....

Two points, including the game-tying goal, in fewer than 10 minutes ice time earn Big Bick the Big Boy Belt.  Say that out loud.

             I know this is a rerun but it's the best photo ever taken in the history of ever.

Could'a Been Two

Hawks 2, Blue Jackets 3 in Shootout.

* Looking at the shot count for this game the assumption might be that Bobrovsky stole the game for Columbus, but he hardly looked bothered.  Were the Hawks' chances really not that great or does Bob just make it look sooooo easy?
* How is it that, on Tuesday, Rundblad was good enough to play 16+ minutes, yet he`s a scratch tonight in favour of the guy who played ~10 minutes on Tuesday and 11 minutes tonight?
* What was Rozsival doing on the ice in the final 40 seconds of overtime?
* I had a feeling we would see Morin in the shootout, not in the first three but soon after if it went that far.  He was called in the fifth round and scored, of course.  Enjoy the moment, J-Mo, but don't ever be doing that again.
* From now on, Versteeg should be banished to the dressing room as soon as shootout begins.  His shootout "attempt" was the kind of shot you take to warm up your goalie.
* Bickell wasn't much better, was he?
 

Sunday's Best: Hawks vs. Sharks Big Boy

Odd, that The Hawks pot four goals (plus an empty-netter) in a game in which the shot counts were pretty even, after out-chancing the opposition mightily during their recent losses.  No matter, a win is a win.  There were several deserving candidates tonight, but one Hawk really stood out for me.

Just a goal on the scoresheet, but a big one and a beauty, at that.  I thought he worked very well with Saad, instigating two odd-man rushes and helped minimize the disaster that was Andrew Shaw.  Tonight's Big Boy is Big Bick.

                                                              Dreamy.

Speaking of Andrew Shaw...

First, he ices the puck needlessly, executing a shoot in a full stride away from the red line.  On the ensuing defensive zone face off, which he loses, of course, The Sharks hit for their first goal.  Later, a lack of care & control causes him to cut Joe Thornton resulting in a double-minor penalty and the second Sharks goal.  Not a great night for old Chickenhawk.

                                 
                                   Hawks 5, Andrew Shaw 2.  Nice game, dum-dum.

It's Regin

What did I say yesterday... Bickell - Regin - Shaw?

How about Saad - Regin - Morin?  Remember a few years ago when Saad & Morin punched a big hole in the AHL...?