In the handshake line after the Bruins-Habs series last year Lucic promised Emelin that he was going to kill him. He ddn't get to him soon enough for Sharp.

Actually, Emelin has been on the receiving end of some real punishment. Burrows was the last guy to give him a cheapshot. Lucic knocked him out of action fo a few months a couple years ago.
- RickJ

Ya then was it not him that went out and told everyone about it There's a reason Lucic wanted to kill him .Them euro are sneaky dirty , always have been ..

After about the first 25 minutes or so that was an utter display of dominance, Habs couldn't even touch the puck. Very impressive. Hopefully Sharp will only be gone for a few weeks, possibly a month, and then we'll get a chance to see someone from Rockford.

I am guessing Mark McNeill gets the call up after the two he got tonight.
- wiz1901

Regin netted 2 as well, and he's been playing LW I believe, and has NHL experience. Would like to see McNeil though to see how he does against the big boys...

I think the Hawks only have 800K in cap room so I'd guess it's most likely going to be Peter Regin.
- dan9189

If Sharp goes on IR, that frees up plenty of cap space...

Regin netted 2 as well, and he's been playing LW I believe, and has NHL experience. Would like to see McNeil though to see how he does against the big boys...
- nelli312

I like Regin game , think he fit's in nicely .And also think someone mentioned they don't have the cap space for anyone else .

If Sharp goes on IR, that frees up plenty of cap space...
- nelli312

Hope it don't come to that , but guess it would be nice to see what the some of the kids have ..

Sharp eats a lot of coin on the cap, I think for sure they put him on IR immediately if he will be out a minimum of a few weeks.

Will also just add to the cap space at the deadline if he is replaced with one of the ice hogs

By my math, if Sharp gets put on LTIR and misses 15 games, gets replaced with someone from Rockford at lets say $800k cap hit...

the Hawks will have an extra $930k in cap space at the deadline

that could prove very interesting down the line

By my math, if Sharp gets put on LTIR and misses 15 games, gets replaced with someone from Rockford at lets say $800k cap hit...

the Hawks will have an extra $930k in cap space at the deadline

that could prove very interesting down the line
- FourFeathers773

That could be silver lining

>Not because he had 2 goals -- but Versteeg really was flying around tonight like the 2010 Versteeg -- which helps the Hawks depth quite a bit
>1 game of net presence doesn't = problem solved
>Let's see if the Hawks can win a solid number of games in a row
>PK and goaltending continue to be bright spots
>Six game road trip looms at the end of the month

Also, further on the thought if the Hawks LTIR Sharp, I believe that if they could swing a deal, if they could convince Arizona (former trading partners with CHI) to send Vermette to us as a rental, I think the hawks could acquire him if ARZ retains about 33% salary

also, since ARZ clearly is going no where this year and will likely be sellers come deadline

Hawks now lead the league in GA, a lot of that while shuffling goalies and reworking the bottom D pairing.

And thats not all...

4th in goal differential
3rd in PK
5th in SV%
6th in FO%
1st in SF60
1st in CF%

Those are all very impressive, very telling numbers in some very key areas. Even the PP is 16th which isn't all that horrible. I think they're far better than their record shows, hopefully they can string together some wins and build off tonight.

Hawks now lead the league in GA, a lot of that while shuffling goalies and reworking the bottom D pairing.

And thats not all...

4th in goal differential
3rd in PK
5th in SV%
6th in FO%
1st in SF60
1st in CF%

Those are all very impressive, very telling numbers in some very key areas. Even the PP is 16th which isn't all that horrible. I think they're far better than their record shows, hopefully they can string together some wins and build off tonight.
- SimpleJack

Yup. And just another reason for all the Doom and Gloom posters to chill-ax a little. Yes, they sometimes don't bury, and go a few frustrating games where they lose games they badly outshoot and outplay others. But this is not new. This has been the case for 5-6 years, even through the two CUP years. Can this team use a more physical player or two?...Hell, yes. But, a true Cup contender just the way they are. Every team has some weaknesses and slumps. Hawks are no different.

Last night showed what they are capable of when all aspects clicking. Solid win. Now, back it up with another over the Caps on Friday and the nay-sayers may take a back seat for a game or two.

Ya then was it not him that went out and told everyone about it There's a reason Lucic wanted to kill him .Them euro are sneaky dirty , always have been ..
- oldduffman

Ouf, i think you guys pushing a little bit on the dirty hit by Emelin. It was a clean check, althought a little bit late. But saying he was targeting the knee is a totally biased. The play went to fast to even think about being dirty on that play.

That being said, holy fock did we get ass beaten again. If there was no panic after sunday's again, i predict it will be a completely diferent story today.

And if we cannot beat Buffalo clearly tonight??

I predict we will here some ''Fire Therrien already'' in the medias.

Hawks now lead the league in GA, a lot of that while shuffling goalies and reworking the bottom D pairing.

And thats not all...

4th in goal differential
3rd in PK
5th in SV%
6th in FO%
1st in SF60
1st in CF%

Those are all very impressive, very telling numbers in some very key areas. Even the PP is 16th which isn't all that horrible. I think they're far better than their record shows, hopefully they can string together some wins and build off tonight.
- SimpleJack

So which stat means they will continue to go to the net like they did last night? If they score the goals from where they did last night they should be all right. But why haven't they most nights so far? Show me something that explains that.

Hawks now lead the league in GA, a lot of that while shuffling goalies and reworking the bottom D pairing.

And thats not all...

4th in goal differential
3rd in PK
5th in SV%
6th in FO%
1st in SF60
1st in CF%

Those are all very impressive, very telling numbers in some very key areas. Even the PP is 16th which isn't all that horrible. I think they're far better than their record shows, hopefully they can string together some wins and build off tonight.
- SimpleJack

Where are they in PDO? That should be the biggest indicator of whether the goals will eventually come more consistently or not.

So which stat means they will continue to go to the net like they did last night? If they score the goals from where they did last night they should be all right. But why haven't they most nights so far? Show me something that explains that.
- 6628

How about (and give credit to LBR for these numbers):

Against the Peg, 30 shots attempted by the defensemen - about 40% of the total.

Against Montreal, only 17 of 70 by defensemen - about 24% of the total.

More shots by forwards down low.

As to why?????

How about (and give credit to LBR for these numbers):

Against the Peg, 30 shots attempted by the defensemen - about 40% of the total.

Against Montreal, only 17 of 70 by defensemen - about 24% of the total.

More shots by forwards down low.

As to why?????
- StLBravesFan

Thanks, good post.

Got Dustin Brown?

Got Justin Williams?

Got Milk?

At least Kesler stood up and took his lumps from Ladd. Never seen Brown or Williams do that in a legitimate way.

Shaw has answered the bell far more than any of them. He plays on the edge but backs it up. Even when he shouldn't. This Hawks roster is so "low T" (as JJ says) I think Shaw has been pressing to get more hits since he is about the only one who will.
- tredbrta

Williams? Weird...

Brown, I get it that other teams think he's dirty, I don't. The thing about Shaw, for me, is that he sticks people on fly-bys, Brown simply crushes them face to face in an expected confrontation. Shaw ruins his talent by that, which is why I called him a hacker.

Gotta' diasagree with you, my man. Shaw is probably the only guy willing to do the dirty work on this roster. Every team needs a balance of styles and temperment. Not many Hawks (none, actually) are willing to do what he does, especially get in front of the net and take the beatings that come with that territory. He's not a pretty player and that's fine. He's kind of a throwback to an era of chippier hockey, in my opinion. He provides a spark.
- Hank3Henshaw

See, a rational post !!!

I just think Shaw goes over the line sometimes with his stick. I think he doesn't need to do those things to be effective. I would love his game, except he blades people on the feet in scrums, he rakes people on the Achilles as he skates by, just dirty play like that away from the puck when guys are playing honest hockey and he cheap shots them. Otherwise I'd love him.

After about the first 25 minutes or so that was an utter display of dominance, Habs couldn't even touch the puck. Very impressive. Hopefully Sharp will only be gone for a few weeks, possibly a month, and then we'll get a chance to see someone from Rockford.
- SimpleJack

Hopefully 15 or 24 ! When asked on the NHL channel yesterday about Chicago , Mike Johnson not even worried about it, said, " They 're built for the playoffs".Hopefully Brad Richards will start to find his way , Bickell played good last nitebut don't worry, He'll blow a fart next game and revert back to previous.

Solid game last night. Sucks to see Sharpie hurt. Have to figure that he's going to be out for a few weeks. Certainly makes things interesting. Who do you bring up?
Regin? McNeil? And it also plays into the cap down the line here as we get to the TDL.

Meanwhile thought Craw was stellar last night. Great to see him get a shutout in his hometown. Versteeg looks to be coming back to his old self.

The Hawks really took over as the game went on.

Caps on Friday - they've lost 5 in a row...let's keep that going.

I have a bad feeling Sharp is going to be out a lot longer than a couple of weeks. The way that knee hyperextended looked like an ACL tear to me. Hope I am dead wrong, but it did not look good at all. I did like the new lines a lot. Would love to see 19 and 88 skater together for the next little while. Encouraging game, but can the Hawks get it together on a consistent basis. I also think Rundblad has looked good the last 2 games. He still has some serious brain farts, but he is starting to look more confident with the puck. He made some nice outlet passes last night that allowed the Hawks to counter very quickly.

>Not because he had 2 goals -- but Versteeg really was flying around tonight like the 2010 Versteeg -- which helps the Hawks depth quite a bit
>1 game of net presence doesn't = problem solved
>Let's see if the Hawks can win a solid number of games in a row
>PK and goaltending continue to be bright spots
>Six game road trip looms at the end of the month
- SnapitUpstairs

Agreed with all points. Good post.

I'm with a lot of you here. The way Sharpie couldn't even get up off the ice and the way the knee looked on impact suggests a significant injury. LTIR is definitely a possibility.

Who replaces him? My vote would be for Mark McNeil. He has 5 goals and 5 assists in Rockford. Regin is playing well also but I think that MM deserves a shot and gives the Hawks more strength and size down-low and on the boards.

It also looks like Ville Pokka and TJ Brennan are doing well down on the farm? Danault and Ross look like near-future role players.