Individually, the Blackhawks speak English, French, Swedish, Czech and Slovak. Collectively, last night, they spoke solid defense (for the most part), effort, sacrifice, and dependable goaltending.

Can they make this their common tongue going forward?

First, let's all give the Hawks and Joel Quenneville credit—they showed how good they can be, when many (myself included) had really begun to doubt them. That said, the Hawks have played good games, even recently, against San Jose and L.A., for example. It's the intermittent steaming piles that have caused so much doubt.

So put last night's 5-2 victory over the Blues in the category of a great single game—maybe the best the Hawks have played all year—especially after an early St. Louis goal resulting from poor defense and rebound control. But now we need to see if the Hawks can continue this effort, defensive responsibility, physicality and goaltending against the Coyotes Monday night at the UC.

The Hawks rose to a physical challenge posed by the Blues last night, and with that, their overall game seemed to rise as well. But let's be clear, all things being equal, the Hawks are not a terribly physical team—so maximum effort in this regard has to be there.

Lo and behold, Dan Carcillo took what amounted to an instigator penalty in defense of linemate Jonathan Toews. Did any Hawk fan have a problem with that?

Some might have bemoaned Duncan Keith (at 185 pounds) getting lit up by hits from larger Blues forwards. Who cares? What matters is, Keith gave back (and had a great game by the way).

Marian Hossa, the best player on the ice last night, delivered a couple of nice hits.

ALL the Hawks were engaged and played with a chip on their shoulders. And all the Hawks need to play that way every night.

Some individual stars:

- Hossa

Flying from the opening horn, Big Hoss' quick release tested Brian Elliott all night. Hossa has 11 goals on the year. What many might not realize is how close he comes on just simple shots from 20-25 feet out, where pucks have beaten goalies and hit posts, or trickled off a glove or a pad and out of the crease.

A Vancouver fan (probably among others) has mocked me for saying over the summer that Hossa, if healthy, could be a dark horse Hart Trophy candidate. Well, my friend, if you're reading, i stick by that. Sure, Sid's back and he's head and shoulders the best. But when you look at and Hossa's overall game a forward's responsibilities over 200 feet of ice, I'm not sure how many better players there are in the league.

But I digress.

- Nik Hjalmarsson

+1, a huge assist on the Hawks' first goal (which really changed the tone of the game), a couple of great defensive plays and 7 blocked shots, in which he is now 2nd in the league.

There's a reason defensemen are called 'defensemen.' Their job is to prevent the other team from scoring. As I've said in the past, Hjalmarsson is often the least noticeable of the Hawk defensemen, because, let's face it, most fans notice defensemen only when they score a goal or they have a defensive failure. Hjalmarsson's game is simple and defense first. As I've often said, he's like a furnace; you typically only notice him when he breaks down. Most of the time, you can count on him to do an important job. Which is why in spite of an unusually bad game recently, he still leads a struggling Hawk defense at +5.

- Jonathan Toews

Despite getting rocked all night by the bigger David Backes, #19 gave his usual unreal effort. As I said yesterday on the message board, Quenneville probably owes his job right now to the Captain, who has carried the team through its recent sleepwalk.

- Patrick Sharp

He's not getting the same credit as Toews, which might be wrong and unfair. He has an A on his sweater and he's earning it. Sharp, Toews, Hossa, Marcus Kruger, Brent Seabrook and Dan Carcillo have been the Hawks whose effort, leadership and heart can not be questioned.

By the way, I want to hear from anyone who thinks the Hawks haven't found their two best point men on the power play—two forwards, Sharp and Hossa. And hey, guess what, the Hawk power play has climbed from 30th earlier in the year to 11th this morning.

- Kruger

If he's on the ice, look in front of the opposing net when the whistle blows, that's where he'll be.

- Ben Smith

The Hawks need to get this guy to a secret lab and have him cloned. His heart and effort are exactly what the Hawks need in spades.

- Michal Frolik

'Baby' got rewarded last night with an open netter last night. Fans and even broadcasters constantly lament that he doesn't score more goals, but his effort on the forecheck and winning puck battles is there night after night.

- Viktor Stalberg

Although he got moved down from the top line last night in order to make a spot for Dan Carcillo
(a great move by Q, by the way), Stalberg is using his speed—and now his size— to be a disruptive force on the forecheck.


So that's what I have. As I said, lots to feel good about this morning. But it won't be worth squat if the Hawks don't continue it.

Thanks for reading. I'll have the particulars of the Hawks-Habs ticket contest up tonight or tomorrow, along with a Coyotes Preview.

JJ

Join the Discussion: » Comments » Post New Comment

» Thanks and Farewell

» Where do we go from here?

» Preds at Hawks Breakdown

» "All Teams Have Flaws"

» The Games You Should Win