The Hawks are in San Jose tonight to wrap up the season-opening road trip. After starting the season against two playoff contenders, they will now face a Sharks team who is more on par with them. After holding their own against Colorado and Vegas, it will be a great opportunity for this Hawks team to get in the win column and gain some confidence. With this being the 3rd game in 4 days for the Hawks and not playing again till the home opener next Friday, let’s hope this team leaves it all out on the ice to grab that first win.

The Sharks are currently 0-3, dropping the first two games against Nashville in the global series and then losing again last night against Carolina. This is another team that has to see this game tonight as an opportunity to stop the bleeding and get a much needed win.

Line Up

As of posting time, there have been no indications of what the line-up for the Hawks is going to look like. However, expect Jason Dickinson to make his season debut as he was activated yesterday after getting his visa issues resolved. I also would expect to see defenseman Alex Vlaasic make his season debut as well. Petr Mrazek should get the nod in net after a solid performance against Colorado.

Things to look out for

Max Domi

Domi has had himself a decent start to the season, getting his first goal on opening night. What is also a key to his game right now is his success in the faceoff dot. He has won 57.5% of the face-offs he’s taken so far and that is something this team has desperately needed over the past few seasons. I do want to see him get involved more on the offensive side of things as he has only one shot on goal so far.

Patrick Kane

After losing DeBrincat this off season, we knew his numbers were going to take a hit. So far the growing pains have been extremely visible for 88 as there have been times camera has caught the look of pure frustration on his face. With one assist in two games, tonight has the makings of a classic Kaner explosion.   

Overall Team Play

As I mentioned earlier, this team held their own against two really good hockey teams. Now is the time to get into the win column and get all four lines involved. Focus on special teams and continue to build on Coach Richardson's systems. Its going to be a good test to see where this team stands overall among the teams in the rebuilding category.

Quick Notes

~Buddy Robinson was sent down to Rockford to make room for Jason Dickinson

~Colton Dach left his game last night after a check to the head, very concerning as he missed most of training camp with a concussion.

~Prospect Frank Nazar is sidelined for a “few” months with an undisclosed injury. Again, not ideal as he was expecting to get top line minutes for Michigan.

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