Blackhawks vs. Hurricanes 2-1 Win Recap

"The Last In Line"

By Patrick Norton
@pdnorton3

After picking up their first victory of the new year, the Blackhawks had to immediately prepare for this season's series finale with the Carolina Hurricanes. Only one week removed from an abysmal performance at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, the Blackhawks are still trying to regain their stride from the beginning of the season. Whether or not that is an attainable goal remains to be seen, but the recent 2-3-1 post-Christmas stretch has left much to be desired on the ice. With the Minnesota Wild breathing down Chicago’s necks trailing just one point with four games in hand, a quick turnaround is necessary if the Hawks plan on retaining their status as number one in the Central division.

What better way to get back on track; a match filled with sweet victorious revenge after the curb stomping the Hawks endured on December 30th. Scott Darling was in net on the back end of a back to back when these teams last met, so it was only fitting that the backup goaltender would find himself protecting the 4 x 6 this time around. Darling has provided excellent services to the Blackhawks in his three year tenure as Corey Crawford’s support, but as another successful year for the netminder dwindles down, the conversation has shifted to where Darling’s next home in the NHL will be. He’s shown flashes of starting capabilities and plenty of teams will be searching for their next netminder come this offseason, so it’s not a matter of whether Darling will leave, but a matter of where he will leave for. At 10-4-2 with admirable statistics to accompany his record, he’s become more than just a serviceable backup.

The opportunity for Chicago to string their second win in as many games together is there for the taking, but it all hinges on what team shows up tonight. No, I don’t mean Blackhawks or Hurricanes; I’m talking about the whether we’ll see the offensive driven Blackhawks or the tired and slacking Blackhawks. Last week, we saw the latter in Carolina, but if a win last night can rejuvenate the team, this game has the potential to flip the script written in Raleigh. Chicago is not alone in coming off of a win the day before. The Canes handled the Blues in Carolina, too, but can you catch on to the recurring theme? Carolina thrives at their home stadium, but struggles on the road, just sporting a 6-10-6 record away from PNC Arena.

To answer the question of which team we’d see tonight, I can honestly say I could not tell. First period leads have been difficult to come by for the Hawks this season, but tonight, they struck first. A meticulously beautiful set-up led to a wide open net for Jonathan Toews and the captain cashed. Paired with two quality penalty kills in period number one, the Blackhawks escaped a back-and-forth first period with a one goal lead. Scott Darling was overworked (at least from a millennial’s viewpoint), facing nineteen shots in the first frame, but he stayed strong and kept his team in front.

The Blackhawks made some near-fatal errors in the first period, but Darling bailed them out every time. Not much changed in the second. The Blackhawks were eventually outshot in the period 12-7, but they still escaped with a 2-1 lead over Carolina. It took another penalty kill and a quick powerplay to get the second goal; a Panarin beauty from the left wing circle. But the Blackhawks took their foot off the acceleration and with under five seconds remaining in the frame, Victor Rask picked up a rebound that was the shot off of a previous rebound and put it underneath the frame of Darling and into the back of the net. Just four seconds from entering the intermission with a satisfactory two goal lead, the defensive letdown slashed the lead in half heading into the third period.

It wasn’t until fourteen minutes into the period that anyone invested in this game really had any reason to pay attention. The beginning was a heap of trash for both clubs, but finally, the Blackhawks gained their legs. They sustained dramatic pressure for a few consecutive shifts, but it didn’t result in anything to show for on the scoresheet. Carolina’s bench pulled a Quenneville move and tried to yank Cam Ward with two-plus minutes on the clock down just one, but even with the empty net, the Canes couldn’t figure out Darling, which was assisted with the Canes inability of entering the offensive zone effectively and efficiently. The Blackhawks were thankful to eventually pick up two points against the inferior traveling Hurricanes. Scott Darling can add this one to his highlight reel, as he stopped thirty-nine shots, a season high for the netminder.  Hawks survive, 2-1.

The Good

• The penalty kill had a much better night than the effort they put on display against the Sabres just twenty-four hours before. Scott Darling deserves the majority of the credit for his work on the kill, but it was a solid team endeavour nonetheless.  
• After playing a dozen games in December, Scott Darling picked up right where he left off in 2016. With Corey Crawford back from his emergency appendectomy for a few weeks now, we’ve seen much less from Darling in recent times. 
• Now that Michal Kempny has a longer consecutive games streak than Brian Campbell, he’s making the best of his chance. Sure, KempGod has made news for his recent offensive production from the blue line, but he had a sound night on the defensive end of things, too.
• If you couldn’t watch tonight’s game, make sure to look up the highlights. The set-up to the opening tally scored by Toews was blissful execution. From Campbell successfully pinching along the boards, to Hinostroza muscling the puck over to Hossa, as well as Hossa’s feed to Toews, finished off by Toews lasering the puck from a tough angle into a gaping net, the whole entire play was beautiful.
• Before I bash the intermission reporting of Steve Konroyd, I thought I might express my satisfaction of the Pat Foley and Eddie Olczyk pairing in the booth. I’m not old enough to recall Dale Tallon as the color man, but Olczyk continues to put a smile on my face with his quips about hockey, keeping sticks on the ice, and most importantly...soft-serve ice cream. We make fun of that on the Shoutcast, but I chuckle every time. 
• Holy moly, Vinnie Hinostroza can fly. Oh my god. With nine minutes gone in the second period, Hinostroza went lightning speed to save icing and provide an A+ opportunity for a trailing Toews. No score came of it, but the Hawks were able to change up their men afterwards. 
• Following the kill of the third Canes powerplay, Dennis Rasmussen drew a penalty and it only took #17SECONDS for the powerplay to cash. Panarin received a cross ice pass from Kane and with open ice in front of him, Panarin took a few steps and buried it past Cam Ward for the easy PPG. And the best part? It all stemmed from a failed Viktor Stalberg clearing attempt. 
• Ryan Hartman couldn’t find his way onto the score sheet and was caught with his head down a couple of times, but the rookie had another solid performance, even stuck down on the third line.
• Tanner Kero isn’t here to play offense, so you can’t complain when he lacks a scoring touch, but his defense once again proved why he stayed in the big leagues once Hossa was activated from IR.
• Even though they were severely outshot, I never once felt that the Hurricanes were the better team on the ice. The defense had trouble suppressing shots, but I wasn’t severely disappointed with the teams play.

The Bad

• Brent Seabrook found himself turning the puck over more often than not. Another lousy effort from the highest paid defenseman on the roster. With the recent struggles of the team, I understand lacking motivation, but when the team is beginning to figure it out, they can’t be picking up the slack of their #2 D-Man.
• Steve Konroyd critiqued the way Kempny broke up a 2-on-1 in the first period, calling it “nontraditional.” Give me a break… Kempny blocked two A+ chances from the stick of Jordan Staal. He got the job done and potentially saved a goal, so quit your whining, you cut-rate, dreadful, abominable, disgrace of a broadcaster and analyst. 
• Anisimov struggled to keep himself out of the box tonight. A bit surprising coming from him, but sure enough, he found himself seated for two minutes on two separate occasions through the first two periods. Deuces wild!
• After jumping out to a two goal lead in the second period, the Blackhawks seemingly took their foot of the pedal. It bit them in the ass, as Victor Rask netted the third attempt in as many seconds on Darling. That type of defensive letdown is unfortunate at any point in the game, but with just a few ticks on the clock in a period, it’s beyond frustrating to have a two goal lead cut in two.
• In a last ditch effort to suppress the amount of shots the Canes had acquired,  Quenneville put his defensive pairings through the lineblender to begin period number three. It caused a bit of chaos to start, but it quickly calmed down as the period progressed. Even though they were leading to begin the period, I can’t imagine Coach Wizzo was too pleased with his team yielding thirty-one shots through forty minutes. 
• After allowing the Carolina offense to pound Darling with shots, the defense finally bucked up in the third, but the first forty were so dismal in the shots department, the pairings tonight have found themselves in this portion of tonight's recap.
• In the Loop is still a thing? Power to ‘em. 

The Ugly

• It’s a shame that the Spencer Abbott experiment just lasted one game. Down to twelve healthy forwards, Jordin Tootoo found himself making an appearance in the lineup. Sometimes I wonder whether or not I’d rather see Michal Rozsival playing on the fourth line instead of Tootoo. Pretty similar skill level between the two and Rozsival didn’t try and dangle through his legs with zero points this season.
• Something tells me that the Centennial year patch on the sleeves is the league feeling out possible advertisement placements in the future. It’s inevitable, no matter what anybody tells you, but please, if you’re going to do it, keep it simple and put the patches on the front of the jersey.
• Chris Boden looked orange and I don’t think it was my TV’s contrast. Someone’s been spending a little TOO much time in the tanning booth, eh?
• We can praise individual efforts as much as we’d like, but the defense as a whole really hung #LemontNativeScottDarling out to dry. He faced nineteen shots through one and another dozen in the second frame. TVR and Hjalmarsson were on the ice for the Canes late tally in the second period, yet those two have been the least of Chicago’s problems defensively as of recent.
• It wasn’t pretty for either team, but the third period dragged and lacked oomf. One goal deficits always create excitement in hockey, but I could’ve napped throughout the entirety of the period and my recap would still be sufficient. 
• Just when I thought I was finished in the ugly section, Comcast SportsNet blessed us with the incoherent Jamal Mayers. Yikes! You could tell he’d experienced more hits to the head than just the memorable errant elbow from Desjardins a few years back. He sounded like a darn robot conducting the post-game interview with tonight’s number one star, Scott Darling.

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Blackhawks at Hurricanes3-2 Loss Recap

"Sad But True"

By Patrick Norton

@pdnorton3

One night after taking down the Nashville Predators in Tennessee, the Blackhawks took on the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. Although they were coming off of a victory the night before, the Blackhawks were having trouble getting their offense jump started. And while the offense had been struggling, the main storyline surrounding the Blackhawks going into tonight’s action would be the goaltending and the defense.

After Crawford guarded the 4 x 6 on Thursday, Coach Wizzo called #LemontNativeScottDarling’s number. Darling has openly expressed his interest in returning to Chicago when he becomes a free agent this season, but with the Blackhawks already bursting at the seams of the salary cap, it has become apparent that he’s auditioning for a starting job somewhere around the league. Darling kept the heart beating for Chicago in the absence of Corey Crawford while he dealt with injury, but no matter how well Darling performed, it was always a secure job for Crow.

The defense has been steadily improving over the past few weeks, so it came as a bit of a surprise when Brian Campbell was a healthy scratch in Nashville on Thursday, ending his 423 consecutive game streak. Another surprise took place tonight in Carolina when Michal Kempny was not listed as a healthy scratch. The defenseman had struggled in a couple of games and found himself watching a few too many games in a suit. A side effect of riding with eight d-men, but it was seemingly unfair to Kempny. Kempny wasn’t going to progress much if he wasn’t getting any game action, but that finally changed tonight.

GAME TIME

The Blackhawks struck first in the opening frame. Wow, that’s a phrase you don’t see written too often. And who was responsible for goal? Michal. Fucking. Kempny. Gosh, I can only imagine our dear beloved Gatekeeper creamed his pants when he witnessed KempGod score his first goal as an NHLer. It was a slick little slapper from the left circle and Cam Ward had absolutely no chance at stopping his shot. Ward even got a piece of it, but it just wasn’t nearly enough. Another point for #OffensivelyHandicappedJonathanToews as he and Hartman picked up helpers on the goal. It didn’t take long for the Canes to get on the board, as Elias Lindholm picked up a rebound to knot the game at one. One minute later, a Teuvo Teravainen bad angle shot left a juicy rebound with little hope of a Darling save, Lee Stempniak gave the Hurricanes a one goal advantage. With three minutes left in the period, Vinnie Hinostroza nearly tied the game backup, but Ward denied him with two right pad saves.

The second period was empty. No scoring. Not many fantastic saves and some pretty hideous puck control coming from both teams left much to be desired in the frame. I made an argument that scoring isn’t needed to make a game exciting earlier today on Twitter. This period did not backup my claims.The period seemed to drag on like a #Fatrick game recap. A few rushes for each team, but nothing to brag about. In all honesty, the Blackhawks had a decent portion of time in the offensive zone, but with refusal to shoot gave the Blackhawks a hard time trying to score an equalizer. At the end of two, still 2-1, Hurricanes.

The started like the first period of oh-so-many Blackhawks game this season. It was only a matter of time until the Canes extended their lead to two goals. Sure enough, it was Jay McClement that scored on a treacherous turnover in the defensive zone, which left Scott Darling helpless. Then, the Toews line awoke and the Blackhawks mounted strong and sustained pressure. Vinnie Hinostroza finally broke through for the Blackhawks in the third and brought it back down to a one goal deficit. After an eventful final two minutes, in which the Blackhawks looked poised to score, but struggled to put the puck on net, the final horn sounded and sixty minutes had come to a close… with the Blackhawks still trailing, 3-2. In the final game of 2016, the Hawks leave North Carolina on a sour note, but will have a shot at revenge come January 6th when the Hurricanes visit the United Center.

The Good

• Michal Kempny… who knew? Gate knew. And on the next shoutcast, we’re all gonna hear about it. But on a serious note, Kempny looked pretty good. He totaled a goal and an assist and finished a +1. Good game for fresh legs.
• The “Jonathan Toews can’t help the offense” narrative is coming to an abrupt end. His two game goal streak ended, but his point streak continued with two helpers on the only two Hawks goals. Another solid night for the captain.
• Pisses me off, yet also puts a stupid smirk on my face to see Teuvo have a decent game. A secondary assist and he bodied Toews along the boards in the first period.
• I don’t know how the Panarin - Anisimov - Kane didn’t crack the scoreboard, but they put together some incredible sustained pressure throughout tonight’s game.
• Duncan Keith was playing with some nice speed. Always good to see, given how I’ve slammed him for half-assing some recent games.
• Darling had some excellent saves throughout tonight’s action. I have absolutely no idea how the Canes only won the game by one goal. Darling may have lost the game, but it wasn’t a bad performance. 10-4-2? Not bad for a backup just halfway through the regular season.
• Tanner Kero and the penalty kill looked pretty good. With Kruger listed as week-to-week, Kero might find himself with a bit more responsibilities and ice time. Let’s just hope Stan Bowman doesn’t trade him for Dale Weise and Tomas Fleischmann when Kruger returns.
• Hinostroza and Hartman continue to impress me, especially as “rookies.” I’ve like Ryan Hartman for such a long time, the number 38 has been in my phone passcode since he initially came up a couple years back. The other two numbers? 57. Yes, for TVR. I was young.

The Bad

• Steve Konroyd and Dan Roan sometimes make me hate hockey. And I write about (or aboat) it as a damn hobby. Their analysis is laughable and it doesn’t help that they look so cramped in the WGN intermission studio. Steve Konroyd’s GRADE A take on MS: “It’s not a death sentence.”
• This happens when you’re double-shifted, but Patrick Kane didn’t have the best defensive game of his life.
• Sebastian Aho… what an unfortunate name that must’ve been to have in grade school. “Hey, what’s up Aho?”
• The defense, as a whole, had a pretty tough time defending their goaltender. A loss isn’t always indicative of poor defense, but tonight, it wasn’t difficult to see the miscues when goals were scored by Carolina.
• The final two minutes of the third period were all Blackhawks with puck possession, but they kept trying to be a little extra with their passes. I feel like a lot of amateur hockey fans will yell this a couple of times during a game, but I mean it when I say, “SHOOT THE GOD FORSAKEN PUCK!” Kind of frustrating.
• You can add injury prone to “Words to describe Marcus Kruger,” along with #Scoreless.

The Ugly

• For no apparent reason, the Canes were throwing shade on Twitter with a GIF of Blackhawks fans leaving early. Jokes on them though because half of their stadium was empty.
• Brian Campbell complains about being a healthy scratch, which I do have sympathy for the guy losing his streak, but if you want to earn your playing time back, then play some decent defense. I was disappointed with his effort tonight. Kind of seemed like he was phoning it in tonight.
• I often forget that Andrew Desjardins is on the team. He has played fourteen of the previous fifteen games, yet has not scored a point all season. Yikes, man.
• “Being too cute” took a big ol’ L tonight. Panarin and Kane have some incredible comfort and chemistry together, but when the passing lane isn’t there, stop forcing it and shoot the damn puck.
• I couldn’t make out a single chant the Hurricanes faithful cheered. I kept hearing “Wets Go There!” C’mon, Carolina. Make some damn sense for once.
• Was the ice shitty or did the players from both squads forget how to pass the puck? Or both? Seriously, that whole second period was a huge dumpster fire when it came to puck possession.
• Since when did Carolina become Chicago South? When Campbell returned from Florida? I mean, come on. Viktor Stålberg, Joakim Nordstrom, Teuvo Teravainen and they’ve got Bryan Bickell on IR? When are Versteeg, Pirri and Klas Dahlbeck signing?
• JUST SHOOT THE PUCK. OKAY?
• A crappy turnover led to the eventual GWG from Jay McClement. Turnovers happen, but they totally left Darling hung out to dry.

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION

• Stop turning the puck over at high rates in high risk areas.
• Shoot. The. Puck. How many times must I plead?

Alright, it was a tough loss in a dumb game, but as 2016 comes to an end, I’d like to express how happy I am to be contributing to this site. I hope everybody had a fantastic holiday and Christmas and I hope everyone has a splendid New Year. Don’t go too crazy because the Hawks play on the 2nd at noon! Should be fun! See you all in 2017.

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Blackhawks at Carolina5-0 Shutout Loss Recap

"No Excuses"

by Gatekeeper

With the All-Star break looming, the Blackhawks headed to Raleigh North Carolina to face former Rockford Ice Hogs coach Bill Peters and former Blackhawks players Kris Versteeg and Joakim Nordstrom with the Hurricanes. The Hawks seemed back on track, after a boring, yet important, 2-0 shutout Sunday night. This was also the debut of former first round draft pick Mark McNeill, with the Blackhawks. Nothing says, "set up for success" like being relegated to the fourth line with offensive juggernauts like Dennis Rasmussen and #DickPanik. I'm sure he'll really make the most of his handful of minutes, though.


The Blackhawks were not mentally present in the first period of this game, whatsoever. They had an early chance but then proceeded to give up 16 shots and 3 goals in a matter of about 13 minutes. The Blackhawks managed a measly 5 shots, and none of which were "grade A". Clearly this team was looking forward to 7 days off for the Allstar break, and it didn't bode well for the final two periods.

As expected the Blackhawks came out with a different goalie in net, but the same dogshit play. The porous defense continued with the Blackhawks giving up two more goals on ten shots. They managed a few more shots on net, but really none were serious scoring chances in this period either.

Eh fuck it, the Hawks didn't care, and neither do I. Let's wrap this shit up. I've already wasted more effort than this team gave.


The Blackhawks came out in the third period without their captain and still without any fucks given. They were dreaming about their flights home, or to somewhere sunny. Shots were 15-11 in favor of Carolina, and not a single Blackhawks player other than poor Scott Darling looked like he cared. On to the break. Clearly we all need it. Shoutcast tomorrow, Sweathogs.

The Good

• I was going to find something good, but you know what? Screw it...
  
• Actually, fuck that, you're not getting off that easy. Hey meatballs, The Blackhawks out hit another team. How's that work out, slobbering chimps?

The Bad

• It took the Canes less than 3 minutes to take the lead. Crawford left a fat rebound on a long Elias Lindholm shot that looked to be slightly deflected on the way to the net. Future Blackhawk Jeff Skinner was standing on the doorstep and swept the puck into the net.
• With just under seven minutes remaining, the Canes took a 2-0 lead. Once again, it was a double deflection shot from Riley Nash that eluded Corey Crawford. Play was a complete Shanghai Fire Drill in the Hawks end for about a full minute previous to this one, so I don't think anyone was surprised.
• Just two minutes after the Nash goal, Kris Versteeg and John-Michael Liles caught #GusBus getting a little greedy and raced in on Brent Seabrook. Versteeg set the plate for Liles, who didn't get a lot on the shot, but the changeup was enough to get through Crawford.
• Just past the halfway point of the second period, the Blackhawks were bitten by yet another familiar face. Joakim Nordstrom. He found the puck in front of the net and had a helluva time controlling it. Once he spun and shot Scott Darling had committed to his left, and Nordstrom shot left.
• Poor Mark McNeill has to file this one away in the memory bank for his first NHL game.

The Ugly

• When the Blackhawks came out of the locker room in the second period, Scott Darling was in the net. This was absolutely no reflection on Crawford. He had little chance on the three goals given up.
• When your best offensive chance is by Richard Panik and Dennis Rasmussen and it comes over halfway through the game, you're in fucking trouble.
• thirty three seconds after the Nordstrom goal, Quennville trotted out the old fucking nag, and it cost him. Blob Suckderi got caught covering not a single fucking person but Scott Darling, leaving Riley Nash wide open to beat Darling on the back side.
• Pat Foley was on the sauce early, calling Scott Darling "Corey Crawford" a few times. I really couldn't blame him because I was wishing that I was boozing.
• The Hawks won only 20 of 62 faceoffs for a whopping 32%.
• Jonathan Toews didn't come out of the locker room for the third period, which just goes to show you the Blackhawks intensity in this one. I would assume this was just rest due to some kind of illness that Olczyk mentioned. No use burning your captain out in the third period of a blowout that the Blackhawks had zero interest in.
• I brought this up on twitter but maybe if Quenneville's relief players weren't 50 years old, or useless face punchers the Hawks could rotate more effectively in these stretches, eh? Ya think? Na, fuck all that noise. MOAR HITZ!

The #Fatrick Stankus Fatsy Stats

• Even though Anisimov was a minus 3, the #AK72 line led the Blackhawks in possession which means they just took as many or more shots than they gave up.
• Keith, and Toews didn't have great possession nights, which is why it was probably good that Toews sat the third period.
• Blob Suckderi had good corsi numbers but #Fatrick's favorite, the eye test, tells you that he sucks at hockey.
• Riley Nash, Jay McClement, Ron Hainsey, Justin Faulk, Eric Staal and Chris Terry were all over double digits in Corsi. OOOFA

The Lineblender
Shaw - Toews - Hossa
Panarin - Anisimov - Kane
Desjardins - Danault - Teravainen
Panik - Rasmussen - McNeill

Keith - Hjalmarsson
Gustafsson - Seabrook
van Riemsdyk - Scuderi

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Blackhawks vs. Hurricanes2-1 Loss Recap

"Verbeauty And The Beast"

by Patrick Stankus

The Blackhawks returned from the Christmas break on Sunday night to take on the Carolina Hurricanes at The UC on Sunday night. Also returning to the rink on Sunday was Marian Hossa who missed the last couple of games due to an upper body injury. With four days off between games, tonight's game had the makings of being one of those trap games, especially with the fact the Hurricanes played last night. Oh, should I also mention, tonight marked the return of Kris Versteeg and Joakim Nordstrom to Chicago?

When the puck dropped, the Hawks didn't look as sluggish as they could have been, but the Canes did have the extra jump to their step. As the period went on, both teams had a few quality chances, but neither could convert. With just over four minutes remaining in the period, Artem Anisimov had a great opportunity, but Eddie Lack denied him with a shoulder save. For the majority of the period, the Hawks fourth line was the best, but as the period wound down, the other lines started picked up the slack. As the horn sounded however, the game would be scoreless after 20 minutes.

As the second period got underway, it was mentioned that during the intermission the Hurricanes held a closed door meeting. Judging by the play early in the period, it didn't look like the meeting had much motivation for them. Just prior to the midway part of the game, Jonathan Toews had a great chance in front of Lack, but Lack made the save. A few seconds later, the Hawks would head to their first power play of the night, which would prove to be powerless. For the most part, this second period could have been brought to you by Serta because it damn could have put you to sleep. With 18 seconds remaining, Justin Faulk fired a wrist shot that beat Crawford five hole, and after two periods, the Canes would lead the Hawks 1-0.

The final 20 minutes of the game would be nothing short of frustration for the Hawks. They dominated the Canes in the shot department, out shooting them 19-9 in the third period. Despite that, it would be the Canes who would add to their lead. Off a lost face off in the defensive zone Victor Rask would increase the Canes lead to 2-0. Down the stretch, Corey Crawford came up big in net for the Hawks, keeping it a two goal game. In the final seconds, Brent Seabrook would score the lone, meaningless tally for the Hawks to cut the Canes lead to 2-1. With the final horn only seconds away, that would prove to be the final as the Hawks lost to the Canes on Sunday night.

The Good

• For the first 50 minutes of this game, Corey Crawford was the only reason the Hawks were even in the game. In the end he made 25 saves in the loss.
• The Hawks showed some fight in the final 10 minutes of the game, but it was too little too late. Frankly, I'm just stretching for something else to put in the good category.

The Bad

• In the first period, the referees missed two, too many men on the ice penalties on the Hurricanes. Pat and Eddie made sure you knew that "they weren't even close."
• The Hawks first power play of the night just might be the cure for my insomnia. Talk about vanilla.
• Thanks to a Hjalmarsson hooking penalty, and a Joakim Nordstrom embellishment penalty, we were treated to 4 on 4 for two minutes in the second period. It was riveting to say the least.
• Typical loss for the Blackhawks tonight, another time when they make a backup goalie look like an all star. Eddie Lack was peppered with 36 shots tonight, and probably deserved the shutout.
• Carolina blocked 21 shots tonight. That screams laziness to me on the Hawks part of finding open shooting lanes.
• In the first period, the fourth line was the best line for the Hawks. That's a hell of a way to open a game.

The Ugly

• Early in the second period WGN had a nice blackout of the game for about 30 seconds. I guess they must have blown a fuse while charging Dan Roan for the second intermission.
• How boring was the second period? Pat and Eddie talked about the Cubs off season signings and what kind of sandwiches they'd make out of the Christmas dinner leftovers while play was going on.
• The shitshow that was the second period, ended just as you'd expect with the Hawks allowing a goal in the final minute of the period. Terrific.
• I love Q's coaching of young players. Phillip Danault loses a face off draw in defensive zone, and Canes score. The result? Q benches Danault. God forbid a young player makes a mistake. Nothing says great coaching of young players by making them feel like they're walking on eggshells.
• Who else enjoyed seeing Rob Scuderi's ass stapled to the bench in the third period while Q tried to "generate offense." 
• What the fuck was the Kane-Shaw-Desjardins line in the third period?
• Man, Jeff Skinner would look awesome in a Blackhawks sweater. Maybe Eric Staal too. I wonder if those are 100% true rumors @TheHockeyPress is reporting on. Fuck off.
• Screw it, I'm gonna go back to my Twitter battle with Kelly Chase and other Blues fans. That was at least enjoyable.

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Blackhawks at Carolina3-1 Win Recap

"Sad But True

by Gatekeeper

Despite the snow in Chicago, the Hawks traveled to Carolina to face the terrible Hurricanes. This was sort of a reuniting of coaches, with former Ice Hogs coach at the helm of the Canes. This team is just terrible. They are looking for the end of the season, and booking tee times.

The first period was pretty favorable for the Blackhawks, considering that they scored on their first two shots, and nearly scored on another. If you check the box score, it looks pretty even in shots at 10-9, in favor of the Canes, but that wasn't necessarily the case while watching.

The Blackhawks came out and played to the level of their opponent in the middle period, getting out shot 12-0 to begin the period, and 18-6 for the entire 20. Oddly enough, the few shots that the Blackhawks had were really good and the Hawks still held the lead.

The third period was almost as bad as the second. ALMOST. The Hawks spent a vast majority of the period in their own end, and it looked like they were going to surrender their lad at ant moment, if not for their goalie. They held on long enough to get a late empty net goal and pull one out by the skin of their teeth.

The Good

• Andrew Shaw opened the scoring for the Blackhawks about half way through the first period on a pretty easy play. He was allowed to camp out about 8 feet from Khudobin, and one time a pass from behind the net by Marcus Kruger. Not really sure just what the holy fuck the Canes defense was doing, but two of them got mesmerized with a player behind the net and left Shaw wide open. Not a good idea in ANY league.
• Just over a minute later, the line of Sharp/Vermette/Hossa put the Blackhawks up 2-0, on their second shot of the game. Hossa held up at the half boards, and waited for Sharp to drive the net. Once he cleared the defense, Hossa hit him for a perfect redirect through Khudobin's wickets.
• Crawford was a beast in this game saving 43 of 44. After the first period, the Canes had 34 shots in the final 40 minutes.
• Jonny Toews got his 500th career point on Shaw's empty netter. Not that exciting, but noteworthy nonetheless. Congrats to this very serious individual.
  

The Bad

• Watching Michal Rozsival get completely walked and then hearing Eddie O gush all over this supposed "great play" makes me want to kick puppies. Stop making excuses for him being a huge liability.
• Teuvo Tervainen showed a little immaturity late in the second period, when he was fed the puck by Toews and made a nice play to get a shot at being in all alone. He eventually made a pretty soft pass back to Toews for a nice one timer, but I would have liked to see the kid take that quick step and go 1-on-1 with the goalie, instead of conceding. In due time.
• Crawford took a physical beating. Several times, he took high shots in the collar bone area, and a shot off the face. All of those shots take a toll on you.
• Not the best game at the dots, by any means, but the Hawks won half.

The Ugly

• A questionable Blackhawks change early in the second period turned first into an Eric Staal breakaway, and then into a Victor Rask goal. Staal got in behind Hjalmarsson and Keith during said botched change and Crawford made the save. The defense kind of failed him when the rebound popped out and Hammer was neither able to get to the puck nor tie up Rask.
• Bryan Bickell has been just atrocious and he's not getting any better. The playoffs are all we have to hold on to, and that's getting really fucking old. After a brutal turnover in the third period, Bickell was benched and only saw 13 shifts the entire game for a whopping 9:17. If you're looking for a healthy scratch next game put your money on 29 white.
• Versteeg was right behind Bickell in the battle of waning ice time, with only 15 shifts and 11:58. As a result Richards only played 12:11 in 16 shifts. What is the point of this awful 3rd line?
• Talk about a boring game. There was ONE penalty called all game and it was early in the first period.

The Lineblender
Saad-Toews-Tervainen
Sharp-Richards-Hossa
Versteeg-Richards-Bickell
Shaw-Kruger-Nordstrom

Keith-Rozsival
Oduya-Hjalmarsson
Timonen-Seabrook

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Blackhawks vs Hurricanes5-2 Win Recap

"Off With Their Heads"

by Gatekeeper

After the flurry of exhausting transactions on trade deadline day, there was still hockey to be played. The Blackhawks hosted one of the members of the "dishonor for Connor" club, the Carolina Hurricanes. As we outlined earlier, the Blackhawks shipped out Ben Smith for Andrew Desjardins while bringing in Kimmo Timonen and Antoine Vermette this weekend. This was going to make for a very interesting playoff run that started right here on March 1st. Some day I'll be able to look back on this day and think things...

The Blackhawks first period definitely showed the effects of the new faces in the lineup. Luckily, this game was against the lowly Canes, so the Hawks were able to carry the play, even if it was sloppy. The shots and score favored the Blackhawks 7-4 and 1-0. Decent start, but they knew they needed to be better.

The Blackhawks started where they left off in the first period, by scoring an early shorthanded goal following a period ending penalty that carried over. The Blackhawks followed up that effort with 2 more goals in the middle period, even though they were out shot 14-10. It sure didn't seem that way.

The Blackhawks were on autopilot in the third period, both scoring one and giving up two goals. The Hawks were out shot once again, 11-8, but the game was out of hand far before this. Another Blackhawks win, and one step closer to the playoffs...

Don't forget that we will have a special Shoutcast to wrap up the trade deadline, tomorrow night.

The Good

• About eight minutes into the first period, the Blackhawks got a nice feed from a highly unlikely source to spring Jonathan Toews for a 1-0 Blackhawks lead. After two games off Michael Rozsival held the puck long enough for Toews to sneak in behind the defense and in on a partial breakaway. Toews one on one with any goalie is frightening, and this was no different.
• The first powerplay of the game was pretty impressive, but for the wrong reasons. The Canes opened up the second period with a powerplay and it only took the Blackhawks a few minutes to take advantage of the Canes. Keith was able to saucer a pass Toews, who was in on another breakaway. Money time, and 2-0 Blackhawks
• The Blackhawks PK looked really good, especially with Ben Smith off to San Jose. They scored a shortie and killed off a long 5-on-3 in a very short span during the second period. Nik Hjalmarsson was out there for almost the entire 70 second 5-on-3, which is unheard of.
• Half way though the second period, Brandon Saad picked up a puck that Sharp dug out of the corner and took it straight to the slot. His first shot was blocked by the defense, but the followup beat Ward 5-hole.
• Late in the third the 4th line got into the action. Andrew Shaw grabbed a loose puck that was kept in the zone by Marcus Kruger and took it right up the middle of the Canes zone, snapping off a shot that Ward saved. He gave a fast rebound up, and Marcus Kruger jammed the puck into the net, for a 4-0 Blackhawks lead.
• After the Canes broke the shutout, Marian Hossa went to work on Michal Jordan, who was having a rough night. Hossa stepped over the blue line, cut towards the middle and used Jordan as a screen. The shot beat reserve goalie Khudobin for a 5-1 Blackhawks lead.

The Bad

• This is going to get extremely frustrating if we're going to be forced to deal with terrible Kris Versteeg, again. He is back to making bad passes, not getting the puck deep, and coughing up awful turnovers. I sure hope this is rust from his time off.
• Semin got a late "who cares" goal.
• Go figure. The Blackhawks tout their new faceoff specialist, and the entire team can barely break 40%. Vermette was only 5 for 17 (29%). That is terrible.
• Teravainen (11:58) played the least amount of time, but it was close with Vermette (12:04) and Richards (12:28).
• Holy shit, American Hero Justin Faulk is ssssslllllooooooowwwwwwww
• Timonen looked a little rusty, but he SHOULD look rusty.

The Ugly

• John-Michael Liles broke the shutout early in the third period with the Blackhawks looking a little "uninterested". The Toews line was on the ice with Timonen and Seabrook, which seems like a favorable matchup, but turned into a mess.
• In the latter half of the second, Corey Crawford made a goal saving sprawling save and that looks like he tweaked a hamstring or groin. He stayed in the game, but I can envision some more maintenance days for him.
• This was a nice win, so I'll lay off on the ugly

The Lineblender
Versteeg-Toews-Hossa
Saad-Vermette-Sharp
Teravainen-Richards-Bickell
Shaw-Kruger-Nordstrom

Keith-Rundblad
Timonen-Seabrook
Hjalmarsson-Roszival

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Blackhawks at Carolina - Loss Recap

"Hurricane Cam"


This is the first and last the Hawks will see of the Carolina Hurricanes this season, barring a Canes/Hawks Cup final. This was a curious matchup, because even though the Canes were only 3-3-3, they have completely owned the Blackhawks in Carolina since, get this, 1998!. Overall, the Canes have gone 8-1-3 overall against our boys in white. Not so hot. The people to watch in this game are, of course, Goalie Cam "Wardo" Ward, Former Blackhawk Tuomo Ruutu, Rookie of the Year Jeff Skinner, and the oddly -9 Eric Staal. Ward is a VERY good goalie, Ruutu was on a 2 game goal scoring streak, Skinner picked up where he left off last year gathering 10 points in 9 games, and while Staal had 5 points coming in, he also carried the previously mentioned minus 9.

The Hawks opened the first period with a dominant shift but shortly gave up a bad goal that took the wind out of their sails, and they spent most of the rest of the period chasing the puck in their own zone and killing a powerplay. The second was pretty much more of the same, with the Hawks blowing two powerplay chances, and giving up a dozen shots for a second period in a row. One goal game, going into the third. This has been a pattern. The Canes opened up the the game in the third with two goals, and the Hawks ended up losing this one 3-0 with very little momentum.


The Good

• The Hawks managed to pull off a textbook double minor penalty kill with little resistance, late in the first. Kane was sent to the box and the penalty kill ate up a good portion of time right when the Hawks were getting their momentum back.
• Crawford found his footings and shook off his early jitters, with a HUGE glove save on Jeff Skinner, and then a break-a-way and then on the resulting penalty shot by sniper Eric Staal.
• Early in the first period Quenneville split up Deuce and Leddy, and put Frank the Tank out there with Deuce. I can get on board with that, and it makes more sense. I'd prefer Seabrook or Hammer, but if it has to be Tank, then so be it.
• Frank the Tank FINALLY brought that physical aspect we'd heard so much about, since last trade deadline. The defining moment was when he dumped the 6'4" Carolina Captain on his dupa with a great open ice hit deep in the Hawks zone.
• It's really hard to root against a player I like so much, so if the Hawks have to get shut out, let Cam Ward be the goalie.

The Bad

• Not a good start for the Hawks after having a majority of the pressure, a lost faceoff by Marcus Kruger led to a long point shot that went off Leddy's skate and in the net. Eddie pointed out the faceoff loss, and it was a pretty clean loss. If you ask me, and I'm sure you didn't; Mayers should have taken that draw.
• The boards in Carolina sounded like Lars Ulrich's drums on the St. Anger album. A bunch of garbage can lids. Ping, Ping, Ping, Ping. Foley's mic switch wasn't working and you could clearly hear him ask to have the mic behind the net turned down because it was "ridiculous".
• After the Hawks early pressure, and the Canes goal, the Canes proceeded to ride the Hawks like a wild pigs. The Hawks couldn't win a faceoff, and they couldn't even get the puck out of the zone. Not how you want to play a first period, on the road, down by a goal.
• You things are bad when Mr. Automatic-on-break-a-ways can't even get a really good shot off.
• The Canes Tlusty put the Canes up 3-0 after a 2-on-1 break that saw the combination of Leddy and Lurch get throttled. Leddy did his best to slow the play up, but Lurch still wasn't able to get back fast enough to help out.
• Bolly and Kaner were donkey punched at the faceoff dot with Kaner going 1-8 and Bolland going 6-16.

The Ugly

• I'm not sure just WHAT the holy hell Crawford was doing in the opening half of first period, but he was all OVER the place, and he looked confused on almost every shot.
• The Hawks powerplay has reached epically embarrassing proportions. 25th in the league and falling faster every game. Not only that, but they gave up a horrible shorthanded break-a-way against that resulted in Seabrook getting called for an infraction which turned into a penalty shot.
• After yet ANOTHER failed powerplay in the third, Brandon Sutter picked a puck out od Seabrook's feet, right in front of the box, and raced in on a break-a-way. I'm pretty sure you know how THIS chapter ends...2-0

Here are your video highlights:

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Oh, Carolina

It's March, and who would have predicted the Hawks would be in this situation last summer. Struggling each game to continue hanging on to a playoff spot. Not this smart ass. Last night the Hawks were having a rare Eastern Conference tilt with the Carolina Whalers. I actually like this team. I am actually a big fan of Cam Ward, Eric Staal, Jeff Skinner, and Eric Cole, but on this day, they are the enemy. Not to mention, they sat Cam Ward for the night, and that really irked me. Apparently the Hawks aren't good enough to warrant the first stringer, and they roasted the Canes backup.

The Hawks wasted NO time scoring in the first minute of the first period. Both the Hawks and Canes put goals in and the Hawks led 2-1 after the first. Both team had chances quality chances in the second period, but neither team could score. The Hawks opened it up in the third period with three goals, and the Canes got one of their own, but the Hawks finished with a 5-2 win. Seven in a row, and we're still streaking

The Good

• Fifty five seconds into the game and Corey Stillman decided that standing still in his own end with the puck on his stick was a BRILLIANT idea. Lucky for the Hawks, Sharpie and El Capitan agreed. Tazer hounded Stillman, poked the puck free to Shooter who fed it back to Tazer, and he wasted no time putting it past Peters. THAT is a start.
  
• Finally, Bickell has found what happens when you park your big ass in front of the net. Right after Seabrook rifled a shot off the post, the rebound lay loose in front of their goalie, who was still on his dookie, and One-Trick-Bick put it in the net.
  
• Who would have thought that the team of Stromboli and Ryan Johnson would hook up for the Hawks 3rd goal. Stromboli walked it into the zone, and dished it off to Johnson, who just banked it off Pitkanen's skate and past Peters.
  
• Sixty seven seconds after the Johnson goal, Boss 81 had a "moment" where he decided the puck was going to the net and Bolly picked up the rebound, and put it past Peters. All three Canes defenders looked confused as to where the puck was after the original shot.
  
• A few more minutes later, Shooter fed Kane with a pass, and he buried it. As they say on the Bud Light commercials, HERE WE GO!
  
• Once again three of four Hawks centers dominated in the faceoff circle. El Capitan, Snake and Johnny were all above 70% and Dowell was a stellar 11 for 12, and schooled Skinner, going 6 for 6. As far as the Canes go, Jokinen and Skinner were a combined 0 for 17. OUCH!

The Bad

• Someone on the Canes had a chance to absolutely MURDER Nick Leddy, as he stood in his own corner, with the puck on his stick. If I'm a Canes fan, I'm jumping out of my skin with that fly by. Is this Hockey or a Ballet?
  
• Sharpie in all alone on the goalie...what happens? If you said he didn't even get a shot off you can collect your winnings. Bad ice, Edzo? Really?
  
• How about KANER in all alone? If you put double or nothing on not getting a shot off, you can collect your winnings.
  
• If Toews can just lift that puck off the ice three inches on that second period open net powerplay chance, the Hawks are up 3-1. Jay Harrison bailed his goalie out big time.
  
• Young Jeff Skinner was able to halt the Hawks momentum with a rebound goal. Joe Corvo worked the puck towards Crow and the rebound squirted out to his right. Stromboli and Campbell both had their backs turned and couldn't keep Skinner from poking it into the net. This is no time to take the foot off the gas, guys.

The Ugly

• Talk about a Cal Clusterfuck on the Carolina goal. Seabrook really left Hammer hung out to dry, in the Hurricane end, and Hammer coughed it up. The Canes raced back on a 2 on 1, that turned into a 2 on 2. Unfortunately, the puck squirted out to the trailer, their captain, Eric Staal. I'd like to know why none of the forwards were screaming back, to help out. Bick? Hoss? Bolly? Anyone? Anyway, Hammer did an AWESOME job of screening Crow and not blocking the shot. Can we just get a "do-over" on that one? It was all sorts of terrible.
  
• The first period could be best described with one word. TURNOVERS.
  
• Looks like the old Deuce was back last night. In the first minute of the second Keith kindly turned it over right in front of his own net and the Canes missed, not one, but TWO open nets.
  

Here are the video highlights for your viewing pleasure:

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