Desperate Stars Hammer Lankinen, Blackhawks
Fans at the United Center got to see a potential playoff team from Dallas play against the Blackhawks on Sunday night.
Fans at home got the chance to listen to Pat Foley and Dale Tallon talk hockey for a couple hours. Frankly, I think those at home got the better end of the bargain.
Head coach Derek King decided to throw his lines in a blender before the game. Most notably, he put the Erie Otters trio back on a line together and put Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews on the same line. Lukas Reichel was on the wing of the third line with Kirby Dach as his center and Sam Lafferty on the other side. Because why not?
Four goals were scored in the first period, and all four were scored by a member of the Stars. Unfortunately for them, the score was tied at two after 20 minutes.
Jamie Benn scored a power play goal at 4:14 to give Dallas a lead. Less than four minutes later, Philipp Kurashev attacked and had Toews coming with him. Kurashev should have shot the puck; this was exactly the kind of play King was talking about when he said the team needs to be more selfish. But Kurashev opted to try to pass to Toews. Somehow it ended up with Kurashev getting credited for the goal.
Three minutes with Chicago on the power play, Toews shot a puck that went off Esa Lindell — who was the unfortunate scorer of Kurashev’s goal. Once again, Lindell scored on behalf of a Blackhawks skater.
Lindell’s two goals didn’t hold up, unfortunately. Joe Pavelski tied the game with a power play goal.
The Blackhawks out-shot the Stars 13-10 in the first, but neither of their goals came on what would have been credited as a shot on net. Thanks, Esa!
Sadly, the second period didn’t see as many deflections helping the Blackhawks. Roope Hintz gave the Stars a 3-2 lead less than two minutes into the second period, his 31st of the year.
Boris Katchouk scored his first goal with the Blackhawks to tie the game at three.
That was it for the Chicago offense in the second; Dallas, on the other hand, would get two goals from Jason Robertson before the period would end.
Dallas took a 5-3 lead to the room. On paper, the Blackhawks had a 25-20 advantage in shots on net but the play was clearly favoring the Stars. Kevin Lankinen was fighting it and his skaters weren’t doing much to help him.
Lankinen’s play was far from inspiring, so King decided the third period wouldn’t be his problem. Collin Delia replaced him in net to begin the third period. Lankinen’s night came to an end after allowing five goals on 20 shots for a terrible save percentage. If the final couple weeks of the season is a tryout for next year — and, for some, the next contract — Sunday night wasn’t a good night for Kevin Lankinen.
Tyler Seguin somehow scored a wrap-around goal with 4:35 left to extend the Stars’ lead to three. It wasn’t a good goal for Delia to give up, but thus is life.
Dach scored with 2:57 left in regulation, reminding us that good things can happen when you shoot the puck.
For the third time in the last month, the Hawks allowed six goals in a game. That’s very, very rarely going to be a winning formula. And in this one, four goals wasn’t enough from the offense. And the Blackhawks took a seventh consecutive loss.
Delia allowed one goal against ten shots.
Alex Vlasic started the night with Seth Jones but, once again, was held to the lowest ice time on the blue line (14:55). Again, what is the point of skating Erik Gustafsson almost 20 minutes and Vlasic less than 15 if one of the two should be here next year? Afraid he might be exposed or make a mistake? What he hell have we been watching from the rest of the defensemen all year?
Toews won 12 of 22 faceoffs. Dylan Strome won 11 of 21. No other Hawks skater took more than eight faceoffs.
I watched in Canada on SPORTSNET Coast to coast ! 10 goals ! Garbage ! Mistake after mistake ! Both clubs aren’t going anywhere ! 1000s of empty seats ! Poor defence played by millionaires ! Disgusting ! Gone are the Canadians that knew how to play D , it’s just unbelievable to me ! I’ve been a hawks fan for 60 years and I’m shocked ! Pops 4
I would have liked to hear Tallon and Foley, but had to watch the Stars’ feed. Their color commentator said something that would make him popular with this board. “Gustafsson has been active offensively tonight, but marginal defensively, which is his pattern.” After Dach scored that crucial goal (sarc), he also said, “Dach was one of the giveaway boys earlier in the game so this helps even that out.” LOL
This loss is King’s fault. He should not have used the line blender because the other lines have been working so well (sarc). He also did not play Seth Jones enough minutes. 28 minutes in a lost season is inadequate. He should be over 30 (sarc).
If it hadn’t been for Fleury, the whole season would have been like this almost every game.
Davidson had to say that King has a chance of being hired permanently, but the odds of that are close to zero. That said, even a good coach wouldn’t be doing well with this roster and won’t next year either. If they are building something decent for the future, there needs to be continuity of coaching during the process, so they should probably hire the guy that they want to be there 5 years from now and live with the bad seasons that will follow. No more stop gaps.
There are lots of words to describe what is going on. Maybe the best is that this is “rugged.”
See you Tuesday. Can’t wait!
Talon said the way you get today’s players attention is to make them a healthy scratch. But you need a coach smart enough to sit the right players, Hawks don’t have that luxury.
I loved listening to Pat Foley say, with conviction, that DALE TALON was the architect of the Blackhawks Stanley Cups. I also LOVED it when he asked Dale about the phone call that Dale received from the LOCKER ROOM when they won the Cup in 2010. That was a slap at John Mcdonough, Stan Bowman and Rocky Wirtz. LOVED IT!!!
As for the game, Jones is a soft a pillow and avoid body contact at all costs. Dach scored, but he has to go. Tired of his weak ass board play. I’ve seen enough of our goalies, it’s time for an upgrade. Unless King benches Seth Jones and Dach, he should be gone. The coach has to start trimming ice time of the guys who play like it’s a men’s league.
With 10 games left let’s see who really wants to be part of the future. Right now, EVERYONE is available to be traded.
The leaders on this team Toews and Kane are just phoning it in at this point – be very surprised if they re-sign
So if your leaders are phoning it in what do you expect from the rest – there was little compete in their overall defensive game
Lank had a bad night but didn’t get any help
Really don’t like the idea of bringing King back – we need a whole new coaching staff
This season can’t end fast enough
Nice to see Dach score with a good shot – that feels like the first time he’s done that all year – maybe he should do it more
McCabe can’t be here next year – please
At least Vlasic got double digits in minutes- he should be getting a regular shift by season’s end – he continues to show promise
reg dunlop
agree with you totally about jones. he is a talented player, but it is inconceivable how a man his size can play the game as gently as he does. can you imagine the force he could be if he would light up a couple of the opposition early every game to send a message the hawks came to play? of course the other half of it is who from that pathetic locker room would follow that lead? and dach is no better. when was the last time he threw a crunching check?
looking to the future and the likelihood kane and toews are gone after next year. guess they have to keep murphy around because there is no one else on that team who could wear the “c” on their sweater. imagine toews hangs them up after this season and kane is back. what a joke it would be to make “no defense” kane the captain.
Dach had a nice goal top corner but Lank had a bad game ,,,getting closer to a chance of getting a lucky lottery pick .
Their is always a way to look at it positively. ;)
Soft,Lazy,Irresponsible, Turnover prone team with no coaching will a you very predictable results. I have .rarely seen a worst coaching staff at any in game adjustments and have never seen an NHL team that avoids the body like this team. Good to hear Tallon point that out. We all know this whole mess has to be blown up. Lankiinen is bad. No need to see this human Pez Dispenser anymore. Kings here Tuesday to grab themselves some valuable playoff points.
Soft Jones? Eight very high AAV years to go. I remember when some were posting that it was a good trade and signing. Now we can watch CBJ draft the high pick Stanbo gave them. His legacy will be hurting this organization for years to come.
@Dach…nice goal and about time, but that silly giveaway on Robertson’s goal nullified any good will towards you on my part. He still needs to go!
We lost to a better team that was just in neutral until they needed to win. Playing the Blackhawks now is just a friendly to the playoff teams.
The good – Katschouk, #11, #12, #17, Reese Johnson, Entwhistle, Vlasic, Kurashev, Tallon and Foley!
The bad – Team D, McCabe, Lankinen.
The worst – Derek King! 10 more games of the Court Jester!
Definitely fans watching at home got the better deal, very interesting tidbits from Foley and Tallon. As mentioned, previously about the “architect” of the championship team, call from the locker room, about defensemen being the toughest position to play, not rushing players to play (Dach, Boquist immediately come to mind). Forwards being on their shift’s way too long, the reason why he drafted Kane. and on and on. I hope our GM was listening to the broadcast or will later. He didn’t throw anyone under the bus, even praised Bill Zito of Florida for the job he was doing. Dale Tallon as always, a very classy person who will ride off into the sunset with his old buddy Foley. The end of an era.
Dach needs to stay ,we have let to many young guys who are still developing and going through growing pains go .
Hartman , Forsling ,Joki ,Tevo , Hagle , Danault , Kahun , some guys come into their own 4 or 5 years in .
The Hawks have a hard time developing kids ….at one point our team was to good to crack the line up …now more than ever do we need to draft well and develop .
I realize the players i listed above were delt for various reasons but hell …signed and pissed away in most cases ,
It will be interesting when Dach has no one to defer to and is the focus along with a coaching staff that holds him responsible for dumb turnovers and soft play. I would give him that opportunity next season before giving up on him. If I were Davidson I would send Interim Coach King a message that Gus sits the rest of the season and Katcheuk gets over 15 minutes a game on a 3rd line. Debrincat, Kane,and Jones should not be playing more than 18 minutes a game the rest of the way. Let King know that he is not auditioning for a job and do what he is told regarding playing time the last 10 games.
Game was SSDD
But listening to Dale and Foley again was magical. Tallon getting the call from the
locker room at winning the Cup in Philly is as classy a move as anyone in Hockey
has ever made!!!!
Anyone notice that Stan wasn’t mentioned?
The end of the era is upon us, what comes next is totally up to speculation.
DCat didn’t score for 3-4 games ,Reichel ? Did he played ? Kane ? Radish ? Dach
I think they are bad players and we should trade them for second or third round pick . Except Dach …for a 7 round pick in 25
Lank had a bad game …trade him for a six round pick .
And we should also trade the next first round pick in 23-24 for second round pick in this year draft .
And iff we win the lottery maybe we can trade for 2 third round pick a 2 for one is always a good deal .
Just to please a few ( supposed Fans here ) Sarcasm…. hahah
Love my Hawks and hope they can find a way to become a good team in the next 3-5 years when I will be 60 -61 . Go Hawks Go
Was fun to hear Tallon and Foley together again.
They were good announcers calling games for the 2nd best team of the 1980s.
Savard, Secord, Larmer, Graham, Bannerman, Tim Higgins, Troy Murray, and that bunch could never beat the damn Oilers in the WCF playoffs back then.
Then the Oilers would steamroll whoever won the East, en route to a Cup.
Tallon was funny and smart then…..just like now.
He built the 2010 Hawks, and left behind a core that won two more Cups.
He has also built the current Florida Panthers squad that is very good, and entertaining as hell to watch.
Piss on McDonough and Stan Bowman.
Anybody remember Tallon calling out Peter Zezel of the Blues back in the 1980s?
He said during a game, and I paraphrase, ‘That Zezel. He should be trying out for the Olympics with all the diving he is doing.’
Was funny as hell then. Is still funny now.
But time marches on….as we continue to see 32 act like Rice paper in the net, and a team that has lousy defensemen.
Lankinen horrible at best as usual, horrible rebound control, and weak glove side. Hawks defense no help. Hawks will need a “decent” goalie in order to rebuild with some confidence and stability between the pipes. I enjoyed Tallon and his observations, that often don’t get expressed simple stuff, like FINISH YOUR CHECK and the Hawks habit of weak backhand and blind passes in their own zone, and too much east west play due to lack of speed. His point of it’s all “mental” is so true, it’s just concentration and consistency and confidence that separate the really good from the not so good. Vlasic good, will get better, Yes Seth Jones is Mister Softy, standing around the crease, put a BODY on someone. He is a bust sadly . . . get rid of him. Love to see Bruce Boudreau behind the bench. Go hawks . . .
Reichel? yikes . . . nothing to show me yet? Think the German kid needs to bulk up, and show us what he’s got, so far not very much. Not sure what one thing he does GREAT? Reichel is a good example or warning to those who think piling up draft picks is a strategy, not sooo fast.
I really enjoyed the anecdote about Tallon watching Kane get crushed by a hit only to come back with a slew of points and the game winner. Kane may not be physical, but he isn’t soft either. Keen insight that brought a HOF player to the Hawks.
I kind of felt that Foley anointing Dale the “Architect” of the Hawks cup run was more than a little pandering. Dale took it graciously and humbly responding that “it takes an army…” All I could think about was that Tallon wanted Havlat over Hossa and how disastrous that could have ended up for the Hawks…
I thought the experience was cathartic, for Dale and Hawks fans. Initially I thought the invitation was more selfish on Pats part, but after seeing it play out I think this was more about giving Dale one last hurrah with a Hawks fan base that still adores him. It was nice to see the initial discomfort that Dale was showing turn into gratitude by the end of the broadcast. There was a lot of class being displayed by both Pat and Dale and despite some awkward moments, I really enjoyed seeing them together one last time.
I felt there was a bit of Foley sliding in comments made by Tallon “back in the days”, complete with date of quote, to rub in the static Pat took for his -paraphrased – shoot myself in the head – comment, which appears to have ultimately cost him more than maybe we thought. It felt like a rip at the organization to me.
Lest Foley forget – While he has been a far better than average announcer, he was fired, went and did AHL level games, and rehired by the Blackhawks. He has been admired by many, but still is old school, and old school is – old school. The times change (and they have greatly in the past 15 years), and he chose not to change with them in an industry that speaks to all classes of people. I’ve enjoyed his work with the Blackhawks (and Wolves), but it was time for him to step aside in my opinion. He got his parting shots in last night. I hope that part of his exit is over. Leave with the class you have brought to our television sets for so many years. You deserved the HOF in my opinion.
Thanks for the good times.
Funny how people forget in 2006-07, that summer Havlat and Smolinski were brought in and Versteeg added at the 2007 tdl in an attempt to put a playoff team on the ice. Sharp and Khabiboulin the year before as well, if the front offices plan had been succesful, the opportunity to draft Kane wouldn’t have never fallen in their lap or maybe Toews either.
Dach has 41 takeaways vs 17 giveaways this season, clearly much better the mostly all his teammates. Bad breaks happen and hindsight is perfect. When the games mattered in the playoff bubble, who showed up there, Dach. Who came back late last season unselfishly from his wrist injury to try and help his team make the playoffs, yup Dach again. Yes he has taken some big hits, you don’t see rolling on the ice or heading to the dressing room or even the bench, he just sucks it up and finishes his shift like nothing happened. Imagine what the opposing teams reaction to that is. He is the only skilled player who actually battles for a puck and only a few of the lessor skilled ones actually do. After watching this team the last few years with lack of players willing to try and battle for the puck, posters wanting to get rid of him because they are offended how he looks doing it, unbelieveable.
ian
dach isn’t a bad hockey player. just a huge disappointment for being the third player taken in the draft. so far he shows nothing that indicates he will even be a forty point player. or a capable 3c. and being able to take a hit doesn’t make him a good player. he is a big kid. he should be able to play through big hits. i would like to see him hand out some of those big hits, which lead to goals.
The Hawks rolled the dice. We (the management) chose to put a bunch of players on long and expensive contracts that would become less impactful as time moved forward, assuming that the salary cap would increase at a pretty quick rate. The roll came up CRAPs. And then Covid made it a bunch worse by taking revenue away and lengthening the entire salary cap pain process.
Forced to play cheap salaried players in pivotal roles on the team, choices like Dach and Boqvist were made to play NHL time with NHL responsibilities on a team with borderline talent any more. We cycled through young, unproven – but cheap – talent on the team in forwards and defensemen, usually giving them up as lost causes because they just couldn’t handle the roles and pressure. Let’s see – Rutta, Forsling, Joki, Schmaltz, Hartman… we all know the list. Many will be quality NHL players or currently are. Someone put together a list already on this site. We traded away multiple picks (future building blocks) in an attempt to get ONE LAST CUP. When you rush talent and trade the rest away, bad things are bound to happen. It did happen.
The salary cap manglement, poor evaluations on whether players were ready for the NHL, clear fighting within the management itself (Bowman and Q). There are plenty of reasons we are where we are.
Blame the players all you want. This is on management (though I do give players an assist on the goal), and they need to fix it. It’s finally apparently going to happen, and it won’t be pretty. Anyone here certain of the type player Dach will be 5 years from now is only full of themselves. Or a soothsayer (and probably should be winning national lotteries every week so they can buy the Hawks and win a Stanley Cup every year).
And for those that feel you only need a ton of talent to win a Cup – Look at Edmonton, Toronto and Colorado. A lot of things need to go right. The relatively talentless VGK almost got there their first year of existence. It was a whole bunch of things besides talent.
Dach isn’t the problem. Toews isn’t the problem. I think the entire Hawks program is the problem, and currently it is being torn down. Finally. Now finish the job this time, and maybe we can contend again, and perhaps get lucky and win another Cup in our lifetimes.
I think Dach is trending up – we all expected a breakout year and it didn’t happen but he is still just 21
I agree with the notion that the Hawks have given up a lot of young players who went on to decent careers elsewhere at an older age – Ryan Hartman is an excellent case in point
I believe there is a top 6 player there yet and worse case scenario a very good 3C – time will tell but you have to give him time – trading a 21 yo like him would be foolish
Great post SS. Agree with your assessment. This is gonna be a long process. There are no quick fixes to be had. Hopefully KD is up for the challenge and he finds a coaching staff, scouts and player development team to help him get it right.
Kurashev was decent offensively and caught well out of position defensively multiple times. This is coming from a guy who really likes what Kurashev can bring on a good day and wants him to get regular top 6 minutes. Unfortunately it looked like Kane was disinterested in playing d (shocking I know) and toews was also in questionable position a few times so that can be weighed in that kurashev may have been simply trying to cover those gaps and also from what I’ve seen he’s much more comfortable as a center. We have too many possible top 2 centers moving forward now. Not the worst problem to have though. Strome leading the charge. Who would have thought that last year!? Wow. What a difference playing with some confidence and players he knows exactly how they move and think make. Chemistry is bigger than most give credit for in the NHL. With that said the Erie otter line could get more looks and I would be completely on board with that. Dach, Reichel, or even Kurashev could be 2C once Toews moves to 3C or gets traded out of the city for a chance at one more cup maybe though logistics of that move won’t be easy to pull off. Do NOT trade Dach at this point. IF Reichel develops and Strome keeps up play and Kurashev advances THEN you can consider moving Dach but at this point, he’s got a massive upside. It’s almost like trading Teuvo all over again if you trade Dach while he’s figuring out the game playing against men as a kid – albeit with good size but not a lot of man strength or bulk on that frame yet. Daniel and Henrik Sedin took 7 yrs of NHL development or so to become superstars. Teuvo took a good 4 or 5 years to become a star. It takes time but when you are a star in junior at the world junior level or at the top of your peers, you have a great chance of also doing that at the NHL level given enough opportunity and quality ice time to figure it out and gain the confidence needed to find your game and adjust it to the NHL style and level.
@Dach – I see the sentiment, but I will say that Hartman, Tuevo, Forsling, Schmaltz, Panarin, Suter, Joki – all showed something…the word is grit! Now, the guy who we traded that reminds me most of Dach is Nylander. So, if Dach would quit playing like a Nylander, then I would be open to having him get opportunities here. I don’t hate the player, I just hate his game. He is horrible! With all the chances that he gets, he is marginally better than Henrik Borgstrom, and even Borgstrom is tougher than Dach-Nylander. It’s not like we are going to be better next year, so why re-sign him and see what you have. Maybe, his brother comes to camp and shows him up and lights a fire under him. We aren’t getting the 3rd overall for him, so might as well see if he loses the Nylander label and mans up!
Ian
Agree and Dach turn 21 less then 3 month ago Dach is online with the First pick Alexi Lafreniere ( Rangers )( 6 months younger ) 25 pts in 71 games this season. Kakko 14 pts ( same age ) in 38 games .Nobody in New York wants to trade them even iff they where first snd second pick .Why ? Because they are still young and learning the NHL game.
I will get worried iff Dach is not better in 2-3 years . Bowman didn’t leave the kid Lear in Rockford and played a 18 years old like he was a superstar . It was a big mistake.
Like when some people here though Mitchell was NHL ready last year …hahaha.
Now he his a leader in Rockford and becoming a good d man with 51 games played in Rockford. ( last year he played 5 games in Rockford and was lost ) kids needs time to develop and only a few will become NHL players .
I would send Reichel back in Rockford now. The kid is 19 . I don’t say it’s bad to play a few games with the big team but it’s better to play with his team with many young players like him in league where he can play more then 12-13 minutes/ game.
Don’t need to be Einstein to understand how it works …more minutes you play more experience you get .
Just my 2 pesos
Tommy – you must have a different definition of grit
When TT Schmaltz Joki we’re in CHI I didn’t notice any significant grit from those 3
Dach wins way more board battles than especially the first 2 on this list when they were here
Kirby Dach is definitely an enigma. Is he a center? Is he a RW? Where does he end up slotting in? Is he a 1st line talent? If not, what is considered a success? I recall that Hartman used to drive fans crazy with his stupid penalties and undisciplined play. Well, he’s doing very well, now. But, I submit that he’s also gifted with quality wingers. My personal opinion, Dach is a RW. Yes, he’s 21 y/o. That could change. Maybe, like Strome, he dedicates himself the art of the faceoff. Maybe, like Strome, he blossoms at 24 or 25. Like Strome, I want him to succeed. HC King made a comment about Dach’s commitment to the game. That he wasn’t a big workout warrior. That very well could be. If that’s the case, hopefully, this offseason changes that trend. I guess, some of us will be right and some of us will be wrong. It’s up to Kirby Dach. Stay tuned. This isn’t over just yet.
Malkin cross check in the face ..4 games suspension..well deserve ..what an idiot to do that . Really a cheap shot with no reason except frustration.
That can be very bad for penguins.
Coach Ivan gotta agree with Wrap. TT Joki Schmaltz can not be considered grit players. Forsling and Suter on the fence. Hartman and Panarin ok. I am pretty sure TT and Joki haven’t dropped them. Schmaltz Forsking and Suter maybe. Panarin Hartman and Dach yes. I am not worried about Dach. Give him till 24 or 25. He will fill out and strengthen up. Also hopefully smarten up too.
Thinking the bottom will be next year. I think that will be great. Sign Lanks and use him. The worse that could happen is we tank without tanking. Sign Kubalik to a one year. Next year’s TDL will be a big win for us. Heck even Sign deHaan for less but use him less. Maatta’s retention comes off next year and if TJ and McCabe are serviceable retain some at TDL. They are worth half of their salary for veteran leadership.Kubalik could bring back prospects and Rafferty might bring us some in return with an opportunity to resign him if we see fit.
Agree giving up on the young is a coin flip. I want to give up on Kurashev Borgstrom but let’s see.
Dach, just turning 21, will continue to be the target of growing fan frustration. Frustrated at what is a great, deep question. Not everybody at #3 becomes a Toews, let him grow, there’s not a lot of young forwards with potential in the system. May I suggest some hobbies-gardening, golf (no forget that), hiking or stamp collecting.
Of course this is gonna be a long process. Who does not know that?
Talk about bloviating on the obvious…………this is not news.
Glad Foley is leaving.
He has already gone thru that process many times in his career, calling games where lousy players and crappy management put forth a bad product to a half empty Chicago Stadium and UC.
He does not need that and the current woke crap that is going on now.
Hell….who does?
Re: TT/Forsling/Hartman… all were better at the same stage as Dach… All had way better shots/offensive instincts… all had their own issues… TT – played completely different STYLE to the Hawks around him… never gonna take the Hit… but ALWAYS pushed puck ahead- or to “the Right” areas of the Ice… ALWAYS aware of when to throw the puck to the net- from bad angles- cuz he was aware of the entire ice… really Hurt to see Blowman- let this asset go due- to his Cap mis management
Hartman- excellent shot/skating/ only negative- didn’t know when to pull in reigns- on penalties
Dach- can still be good… but I think it “Handzus” good and NOT Hartman/TT good
Dach? Dach? When you watch Dach in the pre-skate you could see why any NHL scout would think this KID is the next Sid Crosby. Sid is under 6 feet and Dach is like 6 foot 4. That is a big kid! Size matters! He has all the obvious skills but needs to get much much tuffer, stronger on his skates, and use his upper body better in the corners ( think Marcus Krüger) He still has some upside potential, but he is still floating in a supporting role, a pass first dude, a set up kinda guy when he should be driving it to the net, playing in front of the net. If Dach had the toughness of a Michael Frolík or even Bolland or my main man Bickell he’d have 30 goals easy. Dach is not slow but he’s not fast, he cant use his speed to create space, time and distance to get open shots on net or lead on the rush. Like most average players they don’t play well in tight spaces, or in traffic and are constantly being checked from behind. The problem is NO ONE has defined his role, Coach Q was the best at that, Dach has been able to play due to his focus on defense, ye ole back check , ye ole Hosssssa. But he was picked first round to score, to lead and create space on the ice. Back Check you can teach, scoring and drive you cant.
Looking at the scratches for tonight and wondering if any of these 5 will be back next year with the Hawks
TJ, Borgstrom, Kub, DeHaan and Gus
Maybe KD sat down with King and told him who possibly has a future in CHI and to play them and not those who don’t
If Gus doesn’t play another game for CHI count me as a happy man
Regula gets a shot tonight – I’ve liked him in limited minutes so hopefully he plays a regular shift and Vlasic too
Yeah Wrap looks more like tryout lineup for next season. King said Kurashev has to be a top 6 to be part of the lineup, play him with 19 and 88 to see if he shows anything worth bringing back. Reichel with 12 and 17, possible line for next season. Vlassic and Regula getting some more high leverage time hopefully, with C. Jones and Stillman in too. Could assume from Kings comments before about Mitchell in line for a callup, if not injured might be seeing him some down the stretch here as well. Even argue Lafferty- Dach -Raddysh and Katchouk-R. Johnson- Entwistle are combos that could be playing together next year too.