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Blackhawks not enough in series opener |
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The Blackhawks came out with a valiant effort in game 1 but ultimately succumb to the Golden Knights in the series opener.
That 4-1 loss on Tuesday night didn't sting as much as the score indicated to me, to be honest. Had it not been for a couple of soft goals given up by Corey Crawford or a couple of posts that gone the Hawks way, this game could have been closer.
No, I'm not going to be naïve to the fact that the Knights are a better team up and down the lineup. However, I don't think the gap is as big as many are making it out to be based on the pre-series analysis that pinned up regular season stats and advanced metrics.
If the same Hawks' team from last night came out and played like that, I firmly believe they would be more successful then they were in there
The thing is, this is not the same Hawks team; they have grown so much and are playing with confidence and more determination than they have maybe in the last two years.
It helps to have the "up-and-coming" talents Kirby Dach and Dominik Kubalik on the scene sooner than later. It also helps to have a relatively healthy team - I know Seabrook, Smith, and Shaw are out but I feel Shaw might be the only one that would improve this lineup right now. So essentially, they have the best version of their roster out there.
Is it all rainbows and roses? No. This team still only put up 20 shots on goal and had too many one-and-dones in the defensive zone.
I do think they can build off of this game though.
Here are a few thoughts I have on how the Blackhawks could improve and steal the next game from Vegas:
* Stay patient, while becoming more opportunistic – If the Hawks stayed the course and Corey Crawford gave them a couple more saves, I believe this game could have finished 2-1 in favour of the VGK.
The Hawks still would have an "L" and be trailing 1-0 in this series, however, it would have been closer at the end.
Coach Colliton commented on this very thing on how his team needs to maintain this patience in their style and the chances will come.
I'm on board Jeremy, but when your team does get these chances, they need to A) SHOOT THE PUCK and B) capitalize on them.
Vegas won't give them much so the Hawks need to strike when the opportunity is there.
* Missing persons – This leads me to the next topic that I like to call either, "your offensive guys need to be your best offensive guys" or "where the hell is Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat?"
Sure, there has been some bad puck luck for #88 but he needs to fight through that. I'm not worried, I believe he will.
Alex DeBrincat has been non-existent this postseason – outside of one game in the Edmonton series – and the Hawks can't afford that.
* Lineup tweaks? – Which leads me to my next topic of possible lineup tweaks. I just mentioned how the Cat and Kane need to get going.
The Hawks also need better balance across their 4 lines to thwart the Knights 4-line attack.
Currently, the Strome-Nylander-Caggiula line isn't working.
I saw Slavko Bekovic of NBSC Chicago suggested the following adjustments:
I have to say, I might be on board with that for the next game.
If you didn't want to go too crazy, you could also just go with smaller moves like:
Kubalik-Toews-Saad
Caggiula-Dach-Kane
DeBrincat-Strome-Highmore
Nylander-Kampf-Carpenter
I tweeted back at Slavko saying that I'm not sure Nylander makes it the entire series in the lineup. He was solid enough yesterday, but obviously, he and Strome don't have Colliton's full trust anymore.
I wouldn't be opposed to inserting Brandon Hagel into the lineup in his spot.
Is it Carlsson-time? – Speaking of guys who might not last the entire series, Adam Boqvist is playing really scared out there.
The Knights have really honed in on him and it's making Boqvist into a terrified turnover machine.
I know it's an amazing experience for Boqvist to know what playoff hockey is all about so a part of me thinks Colliton should leave him in there. Another part of me thinks you plug in Lucas Carlsson on Keith's right-side and get another one of your young defencemen some experience.
Carlsson could very likely be on the Hawks next year. He's shown signs of being an NHLer in his small sample size and doesn't have much to prove.
On paper, both Swedish defenders are about the same size (Carlsson has about 10 lbs on Boqvist), but at 23-years old, Carlsson plays with more of an edge and appears to be a lot stronger – which is understandable considering the 3-year age gap.
Boqvist has still learned a lot during this time with the most important takeaway being that he needs to get stronger and hit the gym a lot this offseason.
* Corey Crawford, ya need to be better, pal – This goes without saying. So all I will say is if Crawford doesn't play significantly better from here on out, the Hawks will be heading home after game #4.
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That's all I have for now. Looking forward to how the Hawks react on Thursday for game #2.
Stay safe and see ya out there!
TC
Chicago Blackhawks Blogger • 
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