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Running Out of Gas as the Finish Line Nears |
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The Blackhawks appear to be out of gas but that's not going to stop them from going full throttle until the buzzer goes in Game #82.
Sure, they won in OT last night, but with that in mind, over their last 4 games, it's been a big miss. They had an amazing chance to take the Avs down twice (in regulation) as Colorado is short-handed with some key injuries. Instead, they handed COL 3 points in 2 games.
There is also a level of frustration setting in, which was evident in Toews' game last night. This, to me, looked like an exhausted captain looking for answers.
The PP has dried up and the offense as a whole is averaging less than 2 goals/game in the last 5 contests.
I've heard Patrick Kane is a little dinged up (I mean who isn't these days) and I can see it. He's on pace to play 1:00+ more TOI / game than he has in any other season in his career. He's been worn down over the year and not even a line of Toews and DeBrincat can bring him back to life.
The week ahead has the Hawks on a mini 3 game road trip:
@ Arizona on Tuesday
@ San Jose on Thursday
@ LA on Saturday
To my eye, the Hawks sealed their fate this weekend, but hey, if they win every single game from here on out, then there could be a chance.
I wasn't a fan of Colliton's lines last night and thought DeBrincat should have been moved away from Toews and Kane so he could get his hands on the puck a little more. The Cat had some solid chances but overall, I didn't think that line was as effective as it should have been.
One forward that I did like was Dylan Sikura. He is starting to win me over in terms of his overall game. His made some comments in an interview with the Athletic a while back that impressed me as well; Sikura said that (and I'm paraphrasing) maybe he wasn't meant to be a big goal scorer in the NHL. Maybe for him to carve out a career he needs to focus on his defensive game and offer secondary scoring. He knew he had to be better in all areas, especially on the boards and he worked hard at that in Rockford.
You can see his dedication to playing defence, primarily on the backcheck. Now if he can just add some muscle over the summer, he just may very well be a great 3rd liner, penalty killer, secondary scoring type winger that the Hawks could use.
I mentioned the goal scoring has gone a bit cold, but I do have to give a shout out to the defensive side of the game. I think a lot of this has to do with Corey Crawford and overall as a group, I see more dedication. The last 5 games, GA have been: 0, 3, 3, 4, 1. Take away the empty netters (x2) and you have 9 goals on Crawford in 5 games equalling a 1.80 GAA.
I know some people are writing him off, but the best case scenario for all would be for Crow to remain healthy and be the starting goalie for next year… and maybe another year or two after that. I know it may not be possible with his health concerns but to turn the net over to Colin Delia (who gave up 8 goals in the AHL on Saturday) and Veteran Goalie X (probably Cam Ward) is just not even close to the same thing as having an elite goalie like Corey.
Moving on to some prospect news:
Adam Boqvist – London Knights are up 2-0 on the Windsor Spitfires in the OHL playoffs. Boqvist has been instrumental on the 1st power play unit but not being utilized as much near the end of the game for the fear of his defensive liabilities.
He is a +3 in the first couple of games, has registered 1 assist and 6 shots on goal.
By all accounts, Boqvist has had a great first year in North America and under the tutelage of Dale Hunter, his defensive play will get much better. If it were me, I would want him to stay in London, Ontario for at least 3 years before coming to Chicago full-time.
Mackenzie Entwistle – Guelph Storm also have a 2-0 series lead in their 1st round playoff series. They are playing their neighbours, the Kitchener Rangers.
Entwistle has 1 G and 1 A in his first couple of games. He was also voted in the OHL Coach's Poll as the best defensive forward in the Western Conference. He is the type of character, role player that this Hawks team could really use in the next few years.
Nicolas Beaudin – another Hawk prospect on the good side of a 2-0 series lead, his Drummondville Voltigeurs have the early jump on the Gatineau Olympiques. Beaudin has 1 assist and is a +2 playing an important top 4 role as he has all season.
Philipp Kurashev – this is quite a trend – Kurashev's Quebec Ramparts currently have a 2-0 lead over the Halifax Mooseheads in their series. The young Swiss centre has a goal and an assist; his lone goal was a big one, scoring the OT winner on Saturday night. This kid just screams clutch!
Brandon Hagel and Reese Johnson – the Red Deer Rebels are also in a 2-0 series (what gives?)… however, they are on the losing end of that as they trail the Prince Albert Raiders.
Hagel has 3 goals and 0 assists in his first 2 contests; he actually had a hat trick in game #2, a 6-4 loss.
Reese Johnson has been held off the scoresheet but playing a key role as a top centre on his team. Johnson, the Rebels' captain was 13/20 at the dot in game #1 and 15/25 in game #2.
NCAA – I will have an update as the playoffs continue as the Hawks college prospects eye the Frozen Four in Buffalo in mid-April.
As players' teams get eliminated, there could be some scuttlebutt of whether these players sign with Chicago with an NHL contract or an ATO with the IceHogs, like Fredrik Olofsson who made his debut this weekend with Rockford.
Chad Krys appears to be the first one to fall in the NHL contract category as per Jeff Cox's tweet below:
Ian Mitchell and Evan Barratt could be next this spring.
Rockford IceHogs – speaking of the ‘Hogs, they were blown out 8-2 with Delia in net on Saturday by the Milwaukee Admirals. They lost on Friday to the Admirals as well, but only 4-2. And guess what? They play the Milwaukee Admirals again on Wednesday.
They ‘Hogs didn't do themselves any favours this weekend with those losses. If the playoffs started today, they would be on the outside looking in.
They are currently 5th in the Central Division, tied with the Manitoba Moose. They will need to dig deep over the next 9 games.
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See ya out there!
JL
Chicago Blackhawks Blogger • 
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