Beige: Sharks 96, Hawks 3

Hey, it could have been worse and, depending on what's going on with Corey Crawford, it might well be a lot worse.  No news on that front yet, so here are just a few notes on this unremarkable "effort".

If The Hawks Think They "let this one get away" they're kidding themselves, 'cos Martin Jones made them look good.  Three goals on four shots flatters to deceive, especially given that The Hawks recorded only one shot on net in the last six minutes of the first period.  
Not One Hawk Was Particularly Bad (okay, maybe Martinsen and possibly Seabrook, but stick with me) but only a few Hawks cobbled together more than a handful of shifts in which they played really well.  Strome was noticeable and Saad had some looks that were brushed aside but, aside from isolated incidents, The Hawks were just....meh.  Beige.
Special Teams Were Garbage.  The Sharks move the puck so quickly on the powerplay that The Hawks' PK units were just running around most of the time.  Meanwhile, our PP was rotten and I'm going to pin that mainly on Seabrook - he's simply too ponderous and too sloppy to get that job done, missing passes and taking forever to decide whether to shoot, pass or count the stickers on his SubWay Club Card.  He makes it dead easy to defend 'cos the bad guys know pretty much what he's going to do and, if I'm honest, he fucks it up half the time, anyway.
To be fair, I guess, that's on Colliton, too - he keeps trotting that goof out there.
Piss-Poor Defensive Coverage.  If not for The Hawks' D failing so badly they might have been able to stand on those three opportunistic goals but, after two games in which The Hawks' D had tightened things up considerably, they reverted back to mid-November form tonight. Keith was soft on Sorenson's goal, Murphy and Dahlstrom thereabouts but not covering anyone, really, on E. Kane's tally, Seabrook choosing to help screen Cam Ward instead of clearing Goodrow the hell out of there and Gustafsson standing idly by while Couture tips one in unopposed.  That's four of the seven goals against right there.

Anyway, it was a crap attempt at hockey tonight and the worst may yet be coming as we await word on Crow's condition.

Pistol Annies - Beige

Not Good Enough: Jets 4, Hawks 3 (OT)

So close....
The truth is, though, The Hawks needn't have been on the wrong side of this one.  Shots were close, chances were closer, but The Hawks made too many bobbles to seal the deal.
Too Much Meh.  Only a few Hawks had truly bad nights (Strome, Martinsen, DeBrincat, maybe) but even fewer had a great night (maybe only Toews and Crawford).  There were just a lot of seemingly insignificant things that did or didn't happen that added up to an overall weak effort.  Saad was flying all night, made a brilliant pass to Toews to put The Hawks up 2-1, but was awkward around the net.  DeBrincat was stepping on the puck and lazy on the backcheck.  Murphy wasn't terrible but had his weakest game of his short season.  Strome couldn't hit water if he fell out of a fuckin' boat.  Perlini took a lot of shots, all indiscriminate without a thought to where his linemates were.  None of these shortcomings sunk The Hawks on their own but they added up to enough weak, failed or thoughtless plays that led to goals against or opportunities missed. The small plays matter, and The Hawks blew a lot of these details.
Signs Of Life: I thought we exited our zone and moved north as well we've done all year.  They're persisting with that silly push-'em-back stuff but at least they were brisk on on-target tonight, actually hitting Kane with a pass when he was already at speed, allowing him a greater chance of barging into The Jets' zone.
Carl Dahlstrom might be alright.  
Could We Try Someone Other Than Keith to start OT?  I know Gustafsson has his defensive issues but, good lord, so does Keith these days. We're 4-and-5 in OT games and Duncs has been on the ice in only one of those wins but in 4 of the 5 losses.  Change it up.

Next: Sunday at home vs. The Sharks.  With a little fine-tuning we'll be alright.

Blood Orange - You're Not Good Enough

That's The Way I Like It: Hawks 6, Penguins 3

For a few hours all was right in the world.
It wasn't an especially pretty win and, if I'm honest, it was maybe a bit fortunate 'cos how often do we get two goals from the fourth line, but it's two points, The Hawks showed some commitment and maybe it's something they can build on.  Let's go.
The Hawks Went Wildly Off Script by not sucking in the first period.  In fact, they were very good, breaking out with precision and moving the puck briskly in the offensive zone.  The defense were shockingly responsible up until late in the frame when they started running around a bit.
Order Was Restored however, in the second period when, all of a sudden, The Hawks couldn't clear their zone for love nor money.  Apart from DeBrincat's goal-scorer's-goal the second period was a complete mess.
The Third Period was better.  Still not great, as The Hawks gave up a lot of chances, but Crawford was outstanding when he needed to be at his best.  They've been in this situation a few times lately, up a goal late in the game, and the fact that they didn't collapse or commit the unfortunately common fatal error should be a big confidence builder.
Fourth Line Represents.  While the Kruger - Hayden - Martinsen trio didn't blow the doors off during all of their shifts they had a handful of crazy-dominant turns, cashing in one goal that was, while a little lucky, made possible by a relentless effort by Kruger in which he kept a play alive by kicking the puck to Hank Jokiharju, hit the crossbar and only then made the pass to Dahlstrom, whose shot would deflect in off Martinsen.  And later, a perfect pass by Marty to Kruger cashed in the game winner.  
The Defence Were A Mixed Bag, the strongest games coming from unlikely sources.  Dahlstrom was very good, keeping things simple and, holy shit, THAT's what it looks like when a d-man pays attention to opposing forwards in front of The Hawks' net.  Murphy and Manning played it quiet and steady,  not giving up much.  Keith and Jokiharju were so-so, with Duncs too often choosing to just launch the puck up the boards without any apparent thought and Hank was yippy a lot of the time.  Seabrook, despite scoring a goal, was garbage, too often out of position and serving up yet another unforced giveaway that ended up in The Hawks' net.

Next: Winnipeg again, in a game that may well be decided in the first ten minutes. If The Hawks come out like they did vs. PIT, like they've promised they'd do for weeks, they could be in it.

KC And The Sunshine Band - That's The Way I Like It

Better You Bet: Hawks 3, Wild 1

Not great, not even very good for much of the game, but The Hawks were good enough, at least when it mattered most.
Despite being outshot badly, more than 2:1 in the last 40 minutes, and being manhandled in possession, The Good Guys managed to make the most of the opportunities they created and got another all-universe performance from Corey Crawford.  Let's get this done.

Saad WasA Beast Tonight, constantly barging into The Wild zone which, in addition to resulting in one goal, gave The Wild D something to think about: when Saad was on the ice in the latter half of the game The Wild had at least one D-man hanging back.  On the goal, he not only outfoxed Dumba but somehow jinked around Stalock's poke check. Equal parts will and skill, my friends.
Crow Was Phenomenal, full-stop.  When he's playing like this a little goal support will go a long way.  Imagine what a shit-show this would have been with Wardo or Bergie in net.  Still, The Hawks mustn't expect to be bailed out by Crow night-in, night-out -- the skaters really have to get back to scoring and take the pressure off the guy.
On that tack, Schmaltz and DeBrincat have to get going.  One fumbled chance between the two of them tonight and a total of 3 points between them in the last ten games is not remotely good enough.  Still, I hope Colliton keeps them with Anisimov a little longer 'cos I think there's some potential there.
I Have A Hard Time Congratulating The Hawks' Defence when they let the bad guys land 40 shots but, only a few mishaps aside, they weren't too bad.  Gustafsson's form was more like in October and Forsling had another good game.  Gus and Hank Jokiharju were the only Hawks north of 50% Corsi which looks pretty good on them on a night when The Wild just never stopped coming at them.

Next: In Maryland to face the also-not-in-a-playoff-position Capitals.  Let's see who wants it more.

The Who - You Better You Bet

Flat, Beat: Kings 2, Hawks 1 (SO)

I don't know what it's going to take for this team to score some goals.
Two half-throttle periods followed by a kind of frantic third just isn't going to get the job done.
In the first two frames The Hawks had ZERO primo chances.  Not a one.  No traffic in front of the net, really, until the third power play and they never looked like scoring at all.
Well, there's yer headline: yet another lacklustre attempt at hockey, far beneath what this lineup should be capable of.
Crawford was excellent, yet again, beaten only (in regulation) by a puck deflected off his own guy.  In all but one or two games that Crow has lost there's been some "circumstance" that prevented a victory, be it a bad bounce or a terrible mistake in front of him.  He deserves better than his teammates have been able provide.
The Hawks' D was okay, apart from a few conspicuous giveaways - Keith, Forsling and Seabrook all committed unforced errors - and Gustafsson's unfortunate tumble wasn't so great but were overall solid.  Manning, though....if he has this much trouble simply getting the puck out of The Hawks' zone how does he manage to cross the street without being killed?
Forsling came to play, though.  Yes, he's defensively anemic but boy did he push the play tonight.  He was credited with only two shots on net but he was launching bombs on practically every shift in the last half of the game, and had a near-miss on a tip-in attempt in OT.  I'll take that trade off.
Adjustments To The Forward Lines in the third period perked things up considerably.  Schmaltz had been invisible on L1 and slotting Saad in there brought at least some urgency to that trio.  Anisimov - DeBrincat - Schmaltz had a couple of good shifts in that frame, as well, and is probably worth further investigation.  Schmaltz and DeBrincat have been MIA for almost the entirety of The Hawks' slide down the standings and I see kicking their asses back into gear as Priority #1 to getting back on track.  Kampf, I fear, has been miscast at 2C.  He does what he does pretty well, but keying offense isn't something he does well, at least not yet.

Next: Two more sleeps until The Hawks get pummelled by Minnesota.  Can't wait.

Flat Eric - Flat Beat

How It Ends

It was arguably a fortunate win but, after more than two weeks between wins, ya take it when you can get it, right?  Beyond the two points and the bonus of earning them vs. the Missouri Jackholes there were things to like about this game.
The Defense Was Solid.  Mostly, anyway.  Despite being raked over the coals possession-wise, having played the vast majority of their shifts vs. The Blues incredibly dangerous top line, Seabrook & Keith were good.  STL had some looks against The Hawks' top pair but no second chances as rebounds were either gobbled up or the nearest Blue was pinched out of the play.  Gustafsson and Jokiharju were outstanding, playing a safe, smart game while generating a lot of push from the back end. The only time either of these fellas put a foot wrong was Jokiharju panicking a bit in the last minute, blindly firing the puck up the boards.  Manning and Forsling were okay - I'm still not sold on Goose's defensive acumen, as he's tentative when challenging opposing forwards and, if he fails, kinda gives up on the play.  We've seen this film before and, if that's how Forsling is going to go about business, he'll be back to Rockford soon enough.  Manning started well but, in the final moments of the first period made an awkward outlet pass and then joined the rush that never happened, getting caught out of position and making a weak poke check attempt.  He followed that up by ending a full-court press in the third period by just flinging the puck away, as he does, when he could easily have skated it back a little and maybe hit Kane or Schmaltz as they cleared The Blues zone.  
Corey Crawford, behind a solid D tonight, was obviously excellent.  He had only a handful of really tough saves to make but he was there every time.  Crow's puck handling was outstanding, too, getting breakouts off to the best possible start.
Andreas Martinsen is a marginal player, at best, but he's been executing his directive to the letter, credited with seven hits tonight.  Not to overstate the importance of the physical element of the game but this is something The Hawks have lacked for a long time and, if it gives opposing defensemen something to think about, I guess that's a good thing.  Marty on the PK, though....I'm less convinced of that being a good idea.
John Hayden, similarly, had a strong game.  He's a puzzle, though: he can rag and drag and otherwise maintain the puck for a long time, but rarely does anything useful with it after all that effort.  Hopefully, sometime soon, he can connect the dots there and start creating some chances but, until then, he's not setting The Hawks' efforts back, anyway.
Each Of The Forward Lines had their moments.  The Toews line played opposite O'Reilly's line for much of the night and spent a lot of time in their own end, but someone's got to pull that duty.  Saad stormed back into the lineup and, while his line often looked like three guys operating independently of each other, he drove The STL net hard all night.  I'm not convinced that David Kampf between DeBrincat and Kahun constitutes a viable 2nd line.  I like Kampf, generally, but I just don't know if his offensive instincts are up to the task of centering a couple of guys who move the puck quickly, often unpredictably, as he's rarely where you wish he'd be when his wingers have the puck.  Maybe that's something he'll grasp with more experience, maybe not.  That said, I think Anisimov would struggle to keep up with those two guys and Johnson is nowhere near ready for that responsibility, so Kampf it is, for now anyway.
So We Get a Win on an Own Goal but, hey, if Bouwmeester hadn't kicked that one in Schmaltz would have tapped it in, himself.  The goal was hard-earned, with a determined effort by Kane to get the puck to Toews, followed by a dandy pass by the captain to Seabrook.

Next: At Home vs. The Kings and an opportunity to rough up a team that's scored only two goals in their last three games.  Keep the foot on the gas, boys.

DeVotchKa - How It Ends

Gift Of Death: Hurricanes 4, Hawks 3

An interesting, entertaining if somewhat frustrating game, in which The Hawks did some very good and some very bad things, ultimately making enough mistakes and poor decisions to gift The Hurricanes a win, despite carrying the play for much of the game.  Let's break it down, with the bad stuff first.

Too Many Giveaways.  First goal, Rutta's outlet pass was way too soft and easily picked off, while Davidson chased the wrong guy in front and Anisimov was lazy picking up his man.  Third goal, Gustafsson does essentially nothing and loses the puck while Jokiharju chooses to cover a guy with two Hawks already on him, leaving DiGuiseppe wide open.  
Gustafsson got away with another couple of terrible turnovers due to what I can only guess is impatience, in which he chose to take the first action that came to mind rather than take a look and take a better, smarter path, which he is fully capable of.  Just mentally lazy.
Crap Coverage: Beside the botched decisions described above, the 'Canes' fourth goal was made possible by neither Fortin nor Kampf bothering to get after DeHaan.  Baby Huey was a little deep, maybe, to respond, but Fortin was floating in the high slot, something he'd best stop doing if he wants to stay in the lineup.  Breakaways are great and fun and all that, but first things first, son - this ain't beer league hockey.
Generally Weak Defence: While Seabrook did make a pair of clutch defensive plays he couldn't make a pass all night. Keith and Jokiharju started well but gave up their gaps an awful lot, collapsing into Crawford's crease far too much.  I already spoke of Gus' giveaways but that wasn't all, 'cos far too many of his passes were much too soft, either being picked off or causing the intended recipient to have to break stride to corral the puck.  Finally, Rutta and Davidson flailed pretty hard a lot of the time.  I liked Davidson joining the rush and getting a couple of good looks for his trouble, but he and Rutes spent too much time chasing Hurricanes forwards around.
No Deception: Each of The Hawks' goals were scored by either driving or crashing the net, which is great I guess, but there were virtually no shots on net off a quick pass, no one-timers to speak of and no plays in which you could say that they took The 'Canes by surprise.  On the flip of that, the Carolina forwards were coming back diligently and plugging up the middle of the ice, cutting off passing lanes.
But it wasn't ALL Bad....
Kane played a ridiculous 27+ minutes and looked quite comfortable with that.  Hopefully double-shifting Kaner isn't the only item in Jeremy Colliton's playbook, and it was partly down to Kruger's injury, but it almost kinda sorta worked tonight.
Nick Schmaltz was tremendous.  He had a shift midway through the first period in which he just kept ending up with the puck, digging, scrapping and making "small" plays to try to create a chance that just astounded me.  
Crow was excellent, again, complicit on only one of the four goals against, really.  He deserved better.
The Hawks didn't quit.  Down four goals early on they DID battle back, which they don't always do.  Sure, they fell short, but they competed and left with something to build on.
Trevor Van Riemsdyk played just as stupid a game as any he'd played when he was a Hawk.  Is it wrong that this pleases me to no end?  

And What Of Jeremy Colliton?  Too soon to say.  I cannot point to any deployment issues that pissed me off and it was players' decisions/failings that led to any CAR goals.  It'll take more than two practices and one game for the new guy to even begin to figure out how to bring the best out of what he's got.  Let's see what happens.

Next: an afternoon delight in Philly on Saturday, which sounds like something vile on urbandictionary.com.  It might be, actually.

iwrestledabearonce - Gift Of Death

Just Bad...: Flames 5, Hawks 3

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

A Three Dressed Up As A Nine: Canucks 4, Hawks 2

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

You Can't Get What You Want: Blues 7, Hawks 3 (Hide The Knives)

Almost entirely disappointing, that one, especially being that this flat effort took place in Garbagetown, whose inbred denizens will get a shit-ton of mileage out of their massive victory.  Hell, they'll probably hang a banner or some damn thing.

Only Patrick Kane had a truly good game.  Even Anisimov, with three points on the night, bookended his great middle part of the game with some pretty shoddy passing and failing to transition to defence in time.  Kahun and DeBrincat both played lazy games. Jokiharju was decent, overall, but made a bad/weird choice abandoning O'Reilly on that first goal.  Kunitz was a disaster.  Keith had one of those nights when the simplest pass was beyond his capacity and his decision to stand idly by while Maroon screened Crawford, unopposed, was a poor choice.  And so on...
Crawford was not sharp, even if a couple of The Blues' goals were simple tap-ins, or made possible by defensive shortcomings in front of him.  He got himself ridiculously out of position before Bozak scored, but we'll spread the blame a bit by mentioning that a) that goal was moments after The Hawks committed an unforced icing and b) Manning was, as usual, being worthless.
I saw Rutta commit one obvious giveaway but was there more than that?  Is that why he was benched for half of the game?  If so, I'd be happy to gin up a lowlights tape of Manning, one that will make Coach Q never stop vomiting.
Passing Was Poor in general.  Breakouts were not crisp and O-zone passes were largely off target.  Even Gustafsson, who has been on-point nearly all the time thus far, was passing behind guys and not putting enough muscle on his passes.  They can be better, they just chose not to, tonight.
I'm Still Not Sure What Luke Johnson does, exactly, but he somehow reeled off 72% Corsi tonight, so I guess he did it properly, whatever "it" is.

Edmonton tomorrow, with The Oilers emboldened after defeating The first-place Predators earlier today.  With last change, I wonder who Q will match up against McDavid.  Can he afford to "waste" Toews to try to cover McD?  What about Draisaitl's line, then?  Some tough decisions are in order and, no matter what direction The Hawks choose, it's likely going to come down to them needed Kane & Co. to score a few.

Joe Jackson: You Can't Get What You Want (Til' You Know What You Want)

Sink Em Low: Hawks 4, Rangers 1

Allllright, just quick some remarks tonight as I'm catching up on the end of the game as I'm typing this thing.
The Straws That Have Been Stirring The Hawks' Drinks all showed up tonight.  Toews, Kane, DeBrincat, Crawford and Gustafsson....all excellent.  I'm slightly worried that when one, two or all of these guys go off their boil we'll be lacking much secondary scoring, but let's maybe cross that bridge when we come to it.
Additionally, we got a great game from Nick Schmaltz, who had been a little wishy-washy in the last couple of affairs.  His puck protection and the pass to Fortin for goal #2 was terrific.
Take Note: Erik Gustafsson led all Hawks in icetime, as it bloody should be the way he's been performing.  I'm still pessimistically waiting for the huge regression but enjoying watching this kid play out of his mind in the meantime.
Anything Here That Was Not So Good?
Sure.  Brandon Saad kinda failed to maintain his momentum after two very good games.  He wasn't awful, by any means, just not as good.  And where Brandon Manning is concerned, unless I indicate otherwise, let's just assume that he played another garbage game in which he failed simple plays in both zones.  Without his shambling giveaway followed by no attempt to pick up a man, any man, Crow coulda had a no-no tonight.
Let's not forget that The Rangers are in the midst of a major rebuild.  They have some good pieces in Zuccarello and Zibinejad, and that Nick Pionk might be an actual thing, but their roster is bulked up with old dudes and role players at the moment.  Brendan Smith played nineteen minutes, fer goodness' sakes, and he's even worse than Manning.  This was a should-win, a must-win, and The Hawks executed very well.

So it's off to Shit City for another tilt against the Purina-fed Blues, where their slack-jawed fans will blow the importance of the game all out of proportion.  Still, it took overtime to subdue those jackasses in each of the two games already in the books, but Cam Ward was still finding his feet at that time.  If The Hawks do what they've been doing the last two games we'll be in good shape.

Clutch - Sink Em Low

The Return of...: Hawks 3, Duckies 1

That's more like it.
It was "only" two goals and one was an empty-netter but the potential effect Brandon Saad's busting out could well be huge.  The expected joy and relief of having finally scored was plainly evident but, almost as good, Saad played with fury, purpose and swagger from there on.  It's not as if he'd been playing so badly up until last night but, when that first goal went in, it's like a switch was flipped.
I'd thought he was lost, perhaps he is found.
Yes, there's more
I don't know what to do about Anisimov.  It felt like he was dragging Kane & Saad down a bit yet, he's pretty good in front of the net, being as he's large and has okay hands.  Is it worth putting up with his lack of speed and his defensive indifference for awhile to see what these three can accomplish?  
Toews and Gustafsson had fantastic games apart from one gacked play....and it was the same play for both of them and Toews very nearly undid his end of the mistake, barely failing to lift Rakell's stick as they bore down on Crawford.  Gus has been a revelation, having upped every aspect of his game to unforeseen levels.  Two months ago I'd written that the roster could only support either Gustafsson or Forsling and not both and, at this point, Forsling will be lucky if Stan Bowman doesn't delete him from his contacts list.  Gus could still use a bit of improvement defensively but he is already ridiculously better than he'd been last year.
Marcus Kruger - penalty minute leader.  Okay, that has to stop.
Luke Johnson - does anyone know what he does?  Schmaltz and Fortin had a few interesting moments last night but Johnson was nowhere around.  Coach Q seems really enthusiastic about Johnson so maybe there's something there and I just haven't spotted it yet.  As it is, he appears to be a downgrade from super-steady David Kampf.
Corey Crawford is The Man.
That is all.

NEXT: The Rangers on Thursday.  Get ready for The Attack of The Killer Zees....or possibly Zeds, with Zuccarello and Zibanejad leading "the charge" in the midst of an icky rebuild.

Left Boy The Return of...

Been Caught Stealing: Hawks 4, Blue Jackets 1

Yes indeed, The Hawks got away with one tonight, with an "effort" that was 80% vintage Corey Crawford and 20% opportunism.  But sure, we'll have that, 'cos it makes up for being on the wrong end of it against The 'Yotes on Thursday, right?
This should be rather concise, as the headlines are quite broad & simple.

It looks like Crow needed all of one warm up game to find his feet.  Great positioning, few juicy rebounds and outstanding puck-tracking made it appear as if he's fully prepared to go as long this year as his teammates allow him to.  Hopefully not a mirage.
The Possession Game was a near mirror image to Thursday's loss in which PHX hardly touched the puck yet walked away with a kinda easy win.  Tonight it was The Hawks who struggled to gain any traction but, given a few plum chances, were able to beat a team that largely outplayed them.  It helped that CBJ's typically all-world netminder Sergei Bobrovsky struggled.
Nick Schmaltz had his grittiest game that I can recall in some time.  Why he even took a few shots!  If Nicky-Boy continues to suggest that he's willing to do something other than defer, defer, defer Kane's going to find the going a little easier in the offensive zone.
Passing was a big problem for The Hawks tonight.  In the skates, out of reach or, most often and most annoying, too soft and easily picked off by alert Blue Jackets.  All but one of the many CBJ solo rushes were made possible by a guy attempting a lateral pass that simply lacked the oomph to make it to its destination.  Could have been bad ice but more likely a collective failure to apply oneself (oneselves?).
Brandon Davidson made his Hawks debut in lieu of B. Manning tonight.  Ehhh...he's slow, he flails a bit and he was demolished in possession but, on the few occasions he found the puck he made calm, safe outlet passes which I see as a slight upgrade from Manning.  Worth another look, I guess.

So, with karmic balance restored, we reset for a back-to-back at home vs. Tampa.  Cam Ward is likely getting the start, so The Hawks' D had best get their house in order.

Jane's Addiction, Been Caught Stealing

(When This Is Over I Will) Sleep: Coyotes 4, Hawks 1

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

Post 2017-2018 Blackhawks Report Cards: In The Twine

The Hawks used a whopping six goaltenders this season which offers a clue as to what the hell went on back there.  Two of these six guys did practically everything that was asked of them while the others blew warm and cold over the course of the season.  Yes, warm....merely warm.
With the caveat that these lads worked behind a ridiculously inconsistent defense group, here we go.

J-F Berubé 

Only one of the six men mentioned here today is a bona fide NHL-quality netminder and J-F Berubé is not that guy.  He failed to distinguish himself over two seasons in The Islanders' bullpen and, while he played his way into the #1 role in Rockford, he maintained his NHL-level mediocrity over 10 starts in Chicago.  J-F would likely have seen more action had he not himself been injured when Corey Crawford went on the Disabled List.  Sorry to be harsh but Berubé is a third-stringer, at best, his effort rating a C.

Corey Crawford

In a mere 27 starts Crow managed 16 wins.  That in itself is not especially great, but consider that the other Hawks goaltenders combined took only 17 wins in twice as many games and it looks a lot more impressive.  Crawford did have a couple of pretty rough outings but, aside from those, did everything we expect from him and stole more than a few wins on his own.  At the time of his injury Crow's Save Percentage (SP) and Goals Against Average (GAA) were 0.929 and 2.27, both of which exceeded his career averages.  Things could have been different had Crow been around all year.  A

Collin Delia

Young Delia had only two NHL starts in this, his first pro season, but showed well enough to suggest that there may be something there for the future, if not the present.  Delia was outstanding in his debut vs. WPG despite leaving late in the game due to dehydration/cramping, but much less so in his second start vs. COL.  This is a guy, though, who started the year in The ECHL, assumed the starter role in AHL Rockford during the winter and, as mentioned, had a brief look in Chicago, so even though he didn't set the NHL world on fire the progress he'd made is admirable.  Delia was on the bench for The IceHogs last several playoff games, however, so we hope that both he and The Hawks organization judge his overall perfomance and not just his last few starts.  I wouldn't be shocked to see Delia nab the backup role in Chicago, come September.   Incomplete, but promising.

Anton Forsberg

Bergie enjoyed the most starts of all of The Hawks' goalies this season....even if we didn't always find them enjoyable.  He may be the most frustrating netminder I've ever witnessed, often making saves he had no business making and ably surviving far-too-long goal mouth scrambles, yet he allowed at least one soft goal in every game he played.  Still, he posted the second-best stats after Crawford (0.908 / 2.97) setting career-bests along the way.  His inability to put together even one complete game all year is a problem, though.  B-

Scott Foster

Talk about exceeding expectations.  Foster provided the single-most entertaining fifteen minutes of The Hawks' miserable season.  Probably should be Incomplete but fuck it A++

Jeff Glass

Prior to Scott Foster's unlikely three-deep ascension to the NHL spotlight it was Jeff Glass, the 32-year-old rookie who had captured the imagination of the fans and sports media alike.  A handful of herioc performances aside, like J-F Berubé, old Glasser had no real business being in The NHL.  I'm happy for the guy, enjoyed the story and admire his determination, but there it is.  C.

Yes, The Hawks' defense were largely rubbish the the team offense anemic, but this was not a good year on the backline.  Maybe if Crow had not been injured we would have had a better result, as not only did The Hawks lose their All-World netminder but I believe they lost a ton of confidence as a group, because once Crawford went on the DL The Hawks' scoring went in the pooper, too.  It cannot have been just a coincidence.  Maybe if Forsberg stole more than one win, all season, that confidence could have been bolstered, somewhat, but no joy there, I'm afraid.

The complete collapse that occurred when Crawford was hurt is going to affect this team until such time that they have a reliable starter and backup, this group is that fragile.  I haven't heard a peep about Crow's health since he did a bit of skating in practice back in March, so we can only assume he'll be back in September and ready to lead from the back, as he's done for so long, but who knows?  Forsberg and Delia look to be the realistic backup options, perhaps with Delia beginning the season in Rockford and finishing in Chicago.  I wouldn't be alarmed or disappointed if Stan Bowman trades for a backup upgrade, but I expect whether he goes that route depends a lot on Crawford's readiness.
This is undeniable, though: if Crawford is unavailable or is injured during the season we'll be looking at a repeat of this year, barring the unlikely possibility of  Forsberg / Delia / whoever stepping forward in a very big way.  Not a very cheerful outlook.

Cam Ward

He's new.  He's old.  He's great when he plays against The Hawks but, so far, not so great when playing for The Hawks.  It's early days, Q is obviously handing Ward the keys until such time that Crow is fit to play.  That's just the way it is, folks, and we have to hope that if the netminding falters the rest of the team are able to pull some slack, 'cos if The Hawks get themselves in a hole, standings-wise, early on, this thing could be done before it even starts.

We Now Return To Our Regular Scheduled Program: Blue Jackets 3, Hawks 2

It's true that all three CBJ goals were made possible by breakdowns on the part of The Hawks, and that Chicago once again got stuck on two goals-for...but I can't even get mad about it anymore.  At this point I'm looking for silver lining moments, just to ward off the disappointment.
So let's look at those bright spots.

Take away Toews' poor clearing attempt, Hinnie's horrible pass and Forsberg allowing his obligatory softie and The Hawks actually played a pretty solid game.  True, only two goals-for, yet again, but they had the shots and the chances, plus a couple of goalposts.  Mere inches away from flipping this one to a W, but that's the way it's been this season.
It's a small sample but the current forward lines are actually working not too badly. Each line had their share of dominant shifts, particularly the Kampf line (!) and the Schmaltz trio enjoyed a scorcher in which they penned the Jackets in their own end for over a minute.  Despite Tomas Jurco finding twine for the first time in forever, I thought L2 was the weakest unit, and that's mainly on Jurco.  Kane is kinda being wasted while Q fools around with this combination, whether they're showcasing Jurco or simply because Q is a dope.
Regardless, all four lines have scoring potential and I would think that's making it a little harder for the opposition to deploy adequate checking.  
I still think Wingels on L1 is silly at this point but I'll say this: when he's on the power play at least The Hawks are less predictable than usual.  He's a wild card!  An X-factor!  He doesn't know what he's doing!
Ryan Hartman: took a really bad, poorly timed penalty and then spent the remainder of the match sitting in front of Coach Q.  It was an idiotic thing for Harts to do but, thinking back, this is the kind of crap that Andrew Shaw pulled on a regular basis and, at worst, missed a shift or two.  For whatever reason, Q just does not seem to like Hartman, which is a tough, tough thing to overcome in this organization.
The NBCSNCH (I think?) post game show poll asked "Which player do The Hawks miss the most?"  The consensus was that Hossa's absence has been the hardest to make up for, but they didn't even mention Corey Crawford.  I know that Crow could not have done a thing about The Hawks' offense going in the pooper but, damn, you know he would have eked out more than a few wins just by not letting in one or more soft goals, night in and night out.  Review The Hawks' record since Crow went on the DL and tell me it's not true...

I Get an All-Star Break Too: Two Posts in One, NO Coupon Required

Alright, catching up after a busy couple of days and two more games done & dusted.
It could have been worse, right?  Oddly, I feel like The Hawks had the Toronto game slightly more in-hand than the Detroit game even if they did appear to dominate The Red Wings.

Statistically, there was virtually nothing to choose between the teams in both games, with Corsi coming up pretty much dead even for both matches and shot totals almost identical, as well.  
On Wednesday The Hawks got a decent game from Jeff Glass, beaten only by a deflection, a PPG on which Keith and Oesterle kinda pooped the bed and a penalty shot, which is basically a coin flip.  Downrange, though, The Hawks had lots of trouble mounting any offence to speak of.  We hear endless chatter about netfront presence, and that's all fine & good, but does that have to mean all three forwards standing in or around the crease?  Can't they be a little bit old fashioned and spread out a little bit?  At least the latest New Look Power Play was working, hitting for two out of four chances.
Don't Trust The Stats #71: Officially, Oesterle led all Hawks in Corsi with a 62% share, but he was rubbish in his own end.  Keith was slightly better in general but was culpable on two TOR goals.  It happens. 

With the consolation point salted away it was off to Detroit to meet the usually toothless Red Wings who nevertheless shut out The Hawks a couple of weeks ago.  Goaltending was the main difference here, as Jimmy Howard was touched up for three GA in nine minutes of work, while Anton Forsberg had hisself a fine game in The Hawks' nets.  It's true, also, that The Hawks eased up after the halfway point of the game, allowing The Wings to get some looks that they really needn't have had. 

On the plus, though, we got goals from someone other than Kane.  Maybe this was thanks to The Red Wings deploying what passes for a checking line against the Schmaltz - Kane - Saad unit, allowing the Toews - DeBrincat- Duclair mob to basically go nuts.

That opportunity wasn't wasted, with DBC notching his second hat trick of the season and Duc potting his first goal as a Hawk, to go with a pair of helpies.  

So, maybe a bit unlucky to get one the single point vs TOR and maybe gifted the win against DET by Jimmy Howard being just bad enough and The Wings not being deep enough to counter if The Hawks could get more than one line clicking (which is never assured).  It kind of evens out, I guess.

What else?
Loving Hinostroza, lately.  It often seems like he has no plan but the energy and determination he brings gets him by.  Eleven points in nineteen games, all while averaging 12:45 per night, is a welcome contribution.
Saad was virtually invisible in both of these games.
Seabrook made an ass of himself bitching about the non-call on the icing play vs TOR.  He's got to be less casual than that and had no one to blame but himself.
Glass was a bit lucky that Van Riemsdyk bowled him over and The Leafs' apparent goal called back, 'cos interference or not, he wasn't making that save.
Let's face it, Jordan Oesterle has no business being on the PK unit - he's just not that good defensively and lacks the strength to handle any opposing forward who chooses to camp out in front of The Hawks' net.  I like the rest of his game but he's often a mess around his own net.
Similarly, as dramatic as his first game in almost two years was, Erik Gustafsson has otherwise been pretty bad; decent enough offensive instincts but a disaster in The Hawks' zone.

The Hawks are now "only" four points out of a playoff berth but have four teams to catch and pass.  Corey Crawford has apparently been sighted around The United Center so maybe, just maybe, The Hawks might have a shot at this thing.

Big Trouble

Yeah, so Crow is injured again.

Crawford on Injured Reserve

Also, if post-game reports are late or don't come at all it's only because I'll be watching the next few games the following day.  Those Western Canada tours play merry hell with my schedule.

Take Five: Hawks 4, Wild 1

Here's the thing: if Crawford and Kane are playing like they can and should they can obscure a lot of sins committed by their teammates.
Not that the others were bad, 'cos they weren't, it's just that Kane and Crow can practically win games on their own.
The Blackhawks' cause was assisted by a tired-looking Wild team, a group that has scored more than two goals in a game only twice this month, something Hawks fans are all too familiar with, amirite?  The Wild's last three GF were all scored by Matt Dumba, and when that's the current state of affairs any opponent that can scratch together three or four goals is gonna get a W against this Wild team.

* The Hawks don't look that different to me this last 7-10 days vs. the two weeks previous to that, yet they're getting the job done.  Kane is finding the net, finally which, as mentioned above, is critical.  Crawford is back from his injury and playing superbly but, on the flip, the power play is still rubbish.  Puck luck?  A better forecheck?  I'm not sure...it's perhaps too subtle for me to detect.
* Hartman has looked rejuvenated the last few games and maybe that beauty goal he manufactured from nothing will kickstart his offence.
* Kane had two nice goals, both made possible by incredible passes from Schmaltz and Oesterle.  There were a few not-so-great moments for 88, especially early in the game, and he persists in shooting from bad angles, but he did plenty of good stuff, as well, and the puck has been going in so I'll shut up now.

* An OK effort from Oesterle.  With a few games under his belt he's making better passes and is moving the puck forward confidently.  His defensive positioning is brutal and he's muscled off the puck awfully easily but, alongside Keith, he'll get away with a bit of that.
* Forsling & Murphy were quietly effective tonight, tops in Corsi for The Hawks all while starting most of their shifts in their own end.  I was gazing over the Shift Chart to see what kind of competition they were up against and quickly determined it didn't matter - none of The Wild forwards are scoring so one line is just as good/bad as another.
* Tommy Wingels scores again and, while it was an empty-netter, it was a good empty-netter, batting it backhanded 3/4 the length of the ice after intercepting Suter's whiffed pass.

Three days off, now, and then The Hawks begin a run of six road games in a row that includes the Western Canada slog.  Next is Dallas for yet another four-point game.  Rest up boys and don't change a thing.

Sometimes The Cream Rises Even Though It's Gone Sour: Hawks 3, Panthers 2

They didn't really deserve it but The Hawks eked out two more points tonight.  The Panthers outshot The Hawks and made fewer mistakes, but Chicago had just a couple more players be really good at key times.  Corey Crawford outplayed Panthers' netminder Reimer and, while Vincent Trocheck was far and away the best skater on the ice tonight, Kane and Saad were just good enough, just often enough to steal the win.

* Enough Blackhawks fell somewhere between flat-out bad (Forsling, Hinostroza, Bouma) and merely ineffective (practically everyone except Crawford) that most of the game was an uphill battle.  Those that did play well did so only occasionally but, thankfully, had those moments of inspiration at opportune moments.

* I just about plotzed when I saw that Oesterle would play. While he wasn't as terrible as he was on Sunday he still wasn't very good.  It's difficult to have much confidence in a coach that scratches a player for over a month and suddenly gifts the guy with 20+ minutes despite the player wavering between "dogshit" and "laughable".  Imagine how Michal Kempny feels about all this.
* Speaking of Kemps, regardless of how Q feels about him, I guess we might see him soon enough, unless Franson & Rutta make quick recoveries.