Imho this only hurts the hawks if hes playing mind games. Backes Brouwer and Berglund will get top assignment (prob Kane line). Stastny Steen Schwartz will get Towes line.
- Gerk

You know something about line changes that nobody else does?

This might be the most troubling news the week! The playoff mullet has been great luck so far...why mess with a good thing Patty Kane???
- EnzoD

It was cool and funny at 1st but it's played out. Great news is I don't have to watch Jim Rose interview the barber or talk about "Kaner" like they are teammates.

Sadly some goof is going to blame the Hawks failure to win on Kane not sporting his mullet.

2 words: Brandon Faber

A McDonough soldier who will control the message in the locker-room. Every Hawks player wears a hat postgame interview, and everyone floats around the same clichés. Not one organization controls information like a McDonough led one.

I do agree and that's where Tim S is missed. Nobody in this beat circle asks the tough question. They are all lap dogs. Myers technically works for the Hawks. Uncle Barry views McDonough the same way the Hawk views Yaz. Lots of tissues being used in both cases. Lazerus I don't think cares outside of being a smart ass, and Kuc has no clue where he is...So we dont' get much. We know it. They know it, but most importantly the Hawks know it.
- SteveRain

Good news with the playoffs, we'll at least get some national / international reporters in there. They will likely not be as silenced.

The media's Twitter accounts currently blowing up over the Mashinter choice. Maybe they feel like they'll have to ask and seems they might have in the post-practice today.

From: Chris Hine ‏@ChristopherHine
Tomas Fleischmann on Mashinter: "He can skate and has a big body to open up more space for us with Teuvo. That’s basically what it is."

Quenneville on Mashinter being in the lineup: "You've got 3 guys that probably all deserve to start if you're going to look at one spot."

More Quenneville on forwards: "I could foresee changes as we go along here and it's nice dealing when we've got options like that."

Only thing I can think on Panik being in the box for the first game is the staff wanting him to get a picture of how much faster and more intense playoff games are. Otherwise

But. . .I know what I'm going to blame if we are one and done:

Chris Kuc ‏@ChrisKuc
Patrick Kane on @WGNRadioSports: "I think I'm going to skip the mullet this year." #Blackhawks
- pdx2ord

those comments are like

Mash doesn't really hit. 62 hits in 41 games ave 8 mins ice time a game.

Reaves is over 200 with about 60 games played.
- Gerk

Who cares. Irrelevant statistics for 2 completely irrelevant players.

I think it was 2-3 games ago but when panick was in for Hossa and Eddie O said he thought Panik was the best forward on the ice for the hawks. So its very smart guys saying the same thing. If Q had any smarts the 3rd line would be Panilk TT WEISS after the game that Mash and Flesh had Vs Columbus. They were terrible.

2 words: Brandon Faber

A McDonough soldier who will control the message in the locker-room. Every Hawks player wears a hat postgame interview, and everyone floats around the same clichés. Not one organization controls information like a McDonough led one.

I do agree and that's where Tim S is missed. Nobody in this beat circle asks the tough question. They are all lap dogs. Myers technically works for the Hawks. Uncle Barry views McDonough the same way the Hawk views Yaz. Lots of tissues being used in both cases. Lazerus I don't think cares outside of being a smart ass, and Kuc has no clue where he is...So we dont' get much. We know it. They know it, but most importantly the Hawks know it.
- SteveRain

Ain't that the truth.

Without Keith for Game 1 you would think Q would want to play his best 12 possession forwards. Q frequently does not play the best roster he has available and it costs the team.

Last year, Q was a stubborn ass when it came to Vermette, and not playing him/playing him at wing contributed to the Hawks losing home ice and almost being bounced to a wild card. Then he scratched Vermette in Game 3 against the Ducks. He's lucky that Vermette's response was to play his ass off in Game 4. Q just as easily could have (frank)ed with his head as Vermette was great in Game 2 IIRC (not to mention a very young player in Tuevo that could have easily had his confidence shaken by the scratch) and Vermette could have come into game 4 looking like Gus and Weise do now - gun shy as a result of being scratched.

This year, Q was a stubborn ass about playing Mashinter instead of better options, and it cost the Hawks home ice. Whether it costs them the series remains to be seen.

I agree with what JJ and others have said about the blue line being the big problem, but I think that's even more reason you need to play your best 12 forwards. Maintain possession and it doesn't matter that your 4D is TVR. It's not hard to imagine a series in which TVR does just fine, the three remaining horseman play lights out as does Crawford, but the Hawks still lose because Line 1 couldn't finish and Line 2 got shut down and Line 3 is Mashinter and Line 4 is your only line that manages to score and Tarasenko gets a last minute goal because Mashinter tried to stick handle through the neutral zone instead of chipping the puck up ice while the Hawks are changing... because that's never happened before

She at least tweeted that she personally would play Panik over Mashinter. Unfortunately the logical next step of her asking Q didn't occur to her apparently.

Q also said that Runblad looked great on the ice. So now we know he's completely full of poop and lying through his teeth so it's not like they'd get a real answer even if they had the balls to ask
- maria_wyeth

What is Q supposed to say about Rundblad - 'even my wife hates his cowardly f'n guts and she's really PO'd Stanbo inflicted this worthless piece of flesh on me and the team'?

Quenneville on Mashinter being in the lineup: "You've got 3 guys that probably all deserve to start if you're going to look at one spot."
- pdx2ord

Statistically speaking, Q is correct, none of the 3 stood out against STL this year:

Weise 4 GM 0G 0A -1 7 hits 2 blks 11:54 TOI/G 3 FOwin 1 FOloss
Panik 2 GM 0G 0A -1 5 hits 3 blks 11:11 TOI/G
Mashinter 4 GM 0G 0A 0 12 hits 0 blks 7:24 TOI/G

I personally go with Weise because he has about 150 more NHL games than Panik, 34 playoff games with 5G 5A +6 94 hits and 15 blks. Mashinter is just another ruse by Q, whether playing or in the press box.

What is Q supposed to say about Rundblad - 'even my wife hates his cowardly f'n guts and she's really PO'd Stanbo inflicted this worthless piece of flesh on me and the team'?
- RickJ

When he said this it seemed more genuine: "Q said David Rundblad is here mainly for depth, at least for right now. 'You can never have enough defensemen.'"

Sadly, father time has not been kind to his hairline. The "business in the front" has closed down.
- pdx2ord

This made me laugh unexpectedly hard

you guys have gone way off the rails with hyperventilating over weiss vs mashinter and the trade that brought weiss/fleisch here....

Q was looking forward depth and stan got it....what has happens after the trade is out of stans control...

as jj commented the hawk's biggest issues are not 53 over 25....there are about 10 more important that...

stop focusing on a flea on an elephants ass...
- bogiedoc

This exactly--- Q HAS depth at Forward-- and it will be needed for a deep run---

This is NOT a problem--

You know something about line changes that nobody else does?
- Jason Millen

wait-- Gerk is Hitch!

The media's Twitter accounts currently blowing up over the Mashinter choice. Maybe they feel like they'll have to ask and seems they might have in the post-practice today.

From: Chris Hine ‏@ChristopherHine
Tomas Fleischmann on Mashinter: "He can skate and has a big body to open up more space for us with Teuvo. That’s basically what it is."

Quenneville on Mashinter being in the lineup: "You've got 3 guys that probably all deserve to start if you're going to look at one spot."

More Quenneville on forwards: "I could foresee changes as we go along here and it's nice dealing when we've got options like that."

Only thing I can think on Panik being in the box for the first game is the staff wanting him to get a picture of how much faster and more intense playoff games are. Otherwise

But. . .I know what I'm going to blame if we are one and done:

Chris Kuc ‏@ChrisKuc
Patrick Kane on @WGNRadioSports: "I think I'm going to skip the mullet this year." #Blackhawks
- pdx2ord

There it is--- take it for what it is Hawks have depth and line 3 is a work in progress--

Anyone ponder that at some point we might see a 3l as Panik - Weiss - Fleischman or Rasmussen and TT sits? These are GREAT problems--

Runblad however-- ummm Erhoff-- whoops-- no defense there both are one dimensional players

2 words: Brandon Faber

A McDonough soldier who will control the message in the locker-room. Every Hawks player wears a hat postgame interview, and everyone floats around the same clichés. Not one organization controls information like a McDonough led one.

I do agree and that's where Tim S is missed. Nobody in this beat circle asks the tough question. They are all lap dogs. Myers technically works for the Hawks. Uncle Barry views McDonough the same way the Hawk views Yaz. Lots of tissues being used in both cases. Lazerus I don't think cares outside of being a smart ass, and Kuc has no clue where he is...So we dont' get much. We know it. They know it, but most importantly the Hawks know it.
- SteveRain

THHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHIS

Statistically speaking, Q is correct, none of the 3 stood out against STL this year:

Weise 4 GM 0G 0A -1 7 hits 2 blks 11:54 TOI/G 3 FOwin 1 FOloss
Panik 2 GM 0G 0A -1 5 hits 3 blks 11:11 TOI/G
Mashinter 4 GM 0G 0A 0 12 hits 0 blks 7:24 TOI/G

I personally go with Weise because he has about 150 more NHL games than Panik, 34 playoff games with 5G 5A +6 94 hits and 15 blks. Mashinter is just another ruse by Q, whether playing or in the press box.
- jmarducci

Exactly--- and thanks for the stat breakdown-- Weiss may end up with a bigger role than anyone imagines here--

When he said this it seemed more genuine: "Q said David Rundblad is here mainly for depth, at least for right now. 'You can never have enough defensemen.'"
- maria_wyeth

Q's right, a team in the playoffs can never have enough defenceman. So what he really should have said is 'Rundblad looked great out there figure skating and doing those triple salchows. But when you see that I'm down to dressing him for a game you know this team did not have enough defenceman'.

Q's right, a team in the playoffs can never have enough defenceman. So what he really should have said is 'Rundblad looked great out there figure skating and doing those triple salchows. But when you see that I'm down to dressing him for a game you know this team did not have enough defenceman'.
- RickJ

Yep-- now that is something I am concerned about--

Q's right, a team in the playoffs can never have enough defenceman. So what he really should have said is 'Rundblad looked great out there figure skating and doing those triple salchows. But when you see that I'm down to dressing him for a game you know this team did not have enough defenceman'.
- RickJ

Precisely. After how poorly Ehrhoff has looked I started saying I kinda missed Daley... I think we can all agree that Daley is at least better than Runblad

Precisely. After how poorly Ehrhoff has looked I started saying I kinda missed Daley... I think we can all agree that Daley is at least better than Runblad
- maria_wyeth

Daley is leagues above Runblad---- Its still a mystery to me why Daley didn't work out here-- that seems to have spiraled into a season long shuffle to find depth at defense--

Precisely. After how poorly Ehrhoff has looked I started saying I kinda missed Daley... I think we can all agree that Daley is at least better than Runblad
- maria_wyeth

Interesting on how the bloom is off the rose here with Errorhoff and all of a sudden Q isn't taking heat for not playing him. Daley isn't great behind his blueline but compared to Rundy and Ehrhoff he is Bobby Orr and Denis Potvin rolled into one.

Interesting on how the bloom is off the rose here with Errorhoff and all of a sudden Q isn't taking heat for not playing him. Daley isn't great behind his blueline but compared to Rundy and Ehrhoff he is Bobby Orr and Denis Potvin rolled into one.
- RickJ

I was a proponent of Q giving Ehrhoff a shot... then he did and I decided he was right to not play him

I forgot to put mine in.

Blues in 7

I just tweeted at Lazerus and Tracy Myers asking if anyone has asked Q what he sees in Mash and why he plays him when it means he's not rolling 4 lines. Not expecting an answer but who knows, maybe they'll eventually ask
- maria_wyeth

I don't think Q and company are visiting this board for help preparing their game plan. However, I suspect some of the beat writers do based what I've read. My suggestion: keep making waves and asking the tough questions. It can only help.