Three's Company

So I never got to check in after that beautiful victory over the Canucks, nor to preview this Sharks series, so now I'm just rolling those thoughts into my Game 1 post and giving you all a lot to sift through. Enjoy:


-After giving up 13 shots in the first period of Game 6 against Vancouver, it was huge to get those two quick goals to start Period 2, but it clearly wasn't enough to feel comfortable. Although the Hawks outplayed the Canucks in the second, 2-0 was not a safe lead. When Keith went ahead and got a penalty with a minute left in the period, the obvious fear was that the Canucks could steal all the momentum on their home ice by scoring, either before or right after the break.

So while I'm fretting away about that, my wife says that she hasn't seen a short-handed goal in a while and she wants one now. Ever the optimist, I start thinking that she is right, that the Hawks are the league's top shorty team and they haven't yet potted one against the Canucks. So they are kinda due. And how sweet would it be to get one now, at such a crucial juncture? And how much sweeter would it be that my wife called it?

Then about 20 seconds in, freakin Bolland steals the puck and has a beauty chance. At the same time two thoughts are going through my mind - it's funny that such a chance presents itself, but odds are Bolland doesn't do much with it, but also what if he does score this here, how freakin awesome would that be?

And holy balls that's exactly what happened! Bolland, getting hooked the whole way, somehow puts a shot past Luongo, who up until then had been playing fairly well. Game Over. Sure, a 3-0 lead going into the third isn't insurmountable, but the way the game had been flowing, you just had the confidence that this was it. And my wife saw it coming the whole way.


-I'm not sure where it came from, but JQ was rolling some very funny combinations out in Game 6, including giving some good minutes to Hendry (12 total), who had been all but buried for the last few games (averaging around 7). Eager and Burish also seemed to be logging decent ice time, while the defensive pairings were constantly mixed up.

Some of it probably had to do with being the road team, trying to match lines on the fly and thus ending up with half changes here and there. But some of it was JQ calling on his depth. Hendry, who I had recently realized was ill-prepared to be a NHL blueliner at this point, answered the bell. He sure wasn't great, but he wasn't as shaky as he had been.

The hope is that some experience and confidence is all he needs. I'm not even worried about him contributing to this playoff run, but it would be nice if he develop into a respectable (and cheap) 3rd pairing guy next season. In the meantime, all those minutes Q gave him in Game 6 seemed to help him in Game 1 with the Sharks, when he looked a bit more confident. Still a bit shaky, but definitely progressing, which is what you want and need.

I was especially pleased about Eager and Burish getting some time. They thrived in their role, flying all over the ice, beating Vancouver to open pucks, digging hard along the boards, and hitting whatever moved. They really epitomized the energy line idea and even created a few chances for themselves. As has been said over and over - the Hawks gain a huge advantage when their fourth line plays as it can. No other team can match that kind of depth.

What I dug about JQ giving Burish and Eager time in Game 6 is that it allowed him to confidently go to them again in Game 1 against the Sharks. And once again, these guys responded. I absolutely love how they get out there and play with reckless abandon. Especially because the Sharks are rolling only three lines (they dress 7 defensemen and use the extra guys mainly just on special teams), this becomes a double bonus for the Hawks.

Not only are they getting the benefits of the high energy play Burish and Eager contribute in their limited minutes, but they also get a bit of rest for their top three lines without any great detriment. Because they've got such a plus defender centering the line in Madden, because Burish and Eager actually have good speed, and because they actually have respectable skill, this 4th line really can hold its own in spot play and be a nice advantage. Keep an eye on that for the rest of this series.


-My immediate reaction to Game 1's W is all over the place. One thought - as I've said over and over, I fully expect every series to go 6 games. So just as I didn't freak out when we lost Game 1 to the Canucks and shouldn't have been too bothered when we lost Game 1 against the Preds, I can't get overly excited about this win. Because I knew the Hawks would take two games in this series. Just as I know the Sharks will come back and take a pair themselves.

However, don't take that to mean I'm not flying high about that W. There are a lot of ups and downs in a series - teams don't play to the same level every night. Sunday, you can argue that the Sharks burned one of their better performances without getting anything for it. Their skaters played well, creating shots and great scoring chances all game long. And their goalie was strong, stopping shots and flurries from start to finish. The team worked hard, won face-offs, defended well, created plays, and got shots on net and bodies out front.

Yet, despite clicking on all those levels in one night, the Sharks lost. That's a big coup for the Hawks. I just don't see the Sharks playing like that all game, every night - some aspect of their play will disappear for stretches. The Hawks were able to take a game without having the Sharks play poorly in any significant way. When San Jose inevitably does fall off a bit, the Hawks are in even better position now to make it hurt.

And unlike the Hawks' Game 1 loss to the Preds and Canucks, the Sharks don't have a ton of room for improvement. Against the Preds, the Hawks knew they had to work that much harder and play that much tighter of a game. Mistakes would not cut it. Against the Canucks, the Hawks learned they had to show up from the opening drop and bring their A game or risk embarrassment.

What about the Sharks? Where can they improve? Certainly they made mistakes and can do better in some areas, but it won't be so obvious nor easy to get that much better in Game 2. It'll be a challenge enough to play to the same level. To get that many shots again, to stop that many shots again.

On some level, the Sharks are just hoping they repeat the same performance, catch some better breaks, and that the Hawks take a step back. That's not an easy spot to be in. And that's why I'm looking for the Hawks to pounce on this team and take two of the next three. I don't care what order they do it, but that's got to be their goal. It's the only way this win matters. You reach the final three games of the series all knotted up (or worse), and the mo has shifted back to the Sharks.

And while I know all the Hawks "needed" was one in San Jose, I'm not really buying into that. Home ice isn't that much of an advantage. For the Hawks really to return to the UC in a good place, they've got to win again tonight. Not just because of the commanding 2-0 lead, but because I think the Sharks are vulnerable right now. They played great and lost on home ice. They've struggled with the Hawks all year. They've struggled with the playoffs for years.

Sure the Sharks know how important this Game 2 is and will come out firing, and sure they'll have some confidence from how well they played on Sunday, but a significant amount of doubt has to be welling up. So if the Hawks can take it to them, the Sharks, like the Canucks before them, might become their own worst enemy. Probably not in the same dumb penalty way Vancouver did, but self-destructive all the same.

Hence, tonight is no throw-away game for the Hawks. No icing on the cake. This is a huge opportunity to really bury a dangerous team that is now vulnerable. The Hawks have failed to show up far too many times in the playoffs, making both the Nashville and Vancouver series closer than they had to be. The Hawks cannot do the same thing tonight and allow the Sharks back into it. Losses will happen, but the Hawks can't lose this one because they didn't come strong and stay strong all game long.


-Have to give a shout-out to ESPN 1000's Hawks pre-game coverage on Sunday. With the Sox and Cubs playing on The Score and WGN, ESPN 1000 was the only place to go. Fred Huebner, a guy I got to know when I worked at The Score and one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet, was hosting and had ESPNChicago.com's Jesse Rogers calling in from San Jose.

Within their maybe 10 minute conversation a couple key points arose, one possibly mentioned by a caller. The first is that despite all the scoring of the Thornton line these playoffs, those guys had a negative plus-minus. That suggested that they were very vulnerable in their own end.

Another point that came up was that Buff was going to have to do something a bit different from the Vancouver series - that he couldn't just hope for cleaning up rebounds, but should also look to score in other ways. Rogers stressed how he was working on deflections, but Buff using his big shot was also brought up.

Well, lo and freakin behold, the biggest play of the game involved both the Thornton line failing in their own end and Buff finding ways aside burying rebounds to score. Well played, fellas. It was especially cool because as you watched the replays, you could see Buff camp out in that spot and call for the puck. It wasn't happenstance - Buff knew exactly what he was going for.


-Another issue that came out of listening to that pre-game show was that the Hawks have to stay out of the penalty box. You score a lot of goals and end up with an iffy plus-minus both because you're not good defensively but also because you take advantage of power play opportunities. The Sharks have a boatload of guns and they all can fill it up on the man advantage.

The easiest way for the Hawks to keep San Jose in check is not to take any more penalties than necessary. The penalty at the end of Game 1 - ya know, I wasn't too upset. Sure it gave them a huge 6-on-4 and should have cost us one of our best PKers, but the fact was that it was a penalty of a player trying his ass off to keep them from scoring in a key situation.

Similarly, if you get a high stick because you're working hard along the boards and you randomly happen to hit a guy as you swing your stick around to make a play, I'm not gonna fault ya. That's just bad luck most of the time.

However, the Hawks took a number of penalties in their own end or the neutral zone when not a lot was going on. That cannot happen. Unless you're killing yourself to create or stop a good opportunity, a penalty is unacceptable in this series. San Jose is too good. Be it the Thornton line or even Pavelski's line - these guys will make the Hawks pay over the course of a 7-game series if they can't stay out of the box.


-Speaking of the Thornton line, a lot has been made of the Sharks coach's decision to leave those guys out on a defensive zone face-off against the Toews line. I can't say that was the right or wrong decision. There is some wisdom to getting your best defenders in on a defensive zone face-off against their top scoring line. But was that play really a failure of the Sharks or just a good play by the Hawks?

In the bigger picture, I respect match-ups but think coaches can over-do it on the road. I know I was really bothered by how JQ over-used match-ups last season when we were away. The Hawks were so focused on having the right guys out there that they would pass up chances to rush the puck in favor of dumping and changing. Sure we had the right guys on the ice, but we were never in their zone and our opponents always had possession.

This year, JQ hasn't done that nearly as much. Yes, he's changing to get match-ups he likes and being more aggressive with changes on the fly when he's on the road. But it hasn't struck me as being detrimental as it did last year. I think JQ has both gotten more confidence in all of his lines to hold their own and realized that reasonable limits to matching up.


-That confidence in all four lines comes from something I've talked about for a while. Because the Hawks have so many strong two-way or defensive players, because they have so much speed and size, every one of their lines is capable of at least holding its own against any line.

Sure, the Bolland line is best-suited to be out there against the other team's top players, given their defensive focus, plus speed, and respectable size/grit. But as Toews showed in the Olympics, he can be as good of a shut-down forward as anyone in the NHL. Buff brings the size but also has a solid defensive awareness, while Kane's speed and surprising tenacity at least keep him from hurting you.

Similarly, Sharp, Hossa, and Brouwer/Kopecky are a lesser version of the same thing. Hossa hasn't been scoring like we'd all like, but lord has he played well in every other facet. He's amazing on penalty kills and can definitely D up anyone. Sharp's speed and defensive mindset also are a plus for this line, while Brouwer and Kopecky again bring that size and grit that's necessary.

As I mentioned above, the 4th line, with a former Selke Winner (top defensive forward), a former plus penalty killer in Burish (last year he logged a ton of PK minutes on a very strong unit), and a solid skating, big body in Eager also can do good work in their own end. Throw in that every group can dominate puck possession and none of these lines should be abused by anyone. That's a hell of an advantage.


-Can't believe I've written this much about the past two games and not one word has been about Uncle Niemi. Holy balls has that guy come to play! Two pivotal road games against some of the best offenses in the league, getting pelted with shots and being required to keep his team in it when they aren't doing a lot of scoring? No problem for the Finnish Fortress.

The blueliners have done well in clearing rebounds and the forwards have fought hard to win possession and keep the other team from skating free. But time and time again Niemi has been called upon to make the monster save. And that's exactly what he's done for the last 120 minutes.

I predicted that Niemi was good for a shut-out each series. Half because that had been his pace in the regular season, half because his work in overtime and shoot-outs suggested that he would raise his play when the stakes were the highest.

Well, they weren't shut-outs per se, but they were what I was talking about. Niemi would do everything in his power to give us a chance to win. And do it in a huge situation that demanded nothing less. Well, two straight such situations, two straight monster games. Just as I figured/hoped when these playoffs first started.

Now do I expect more of the same the rest of this series? Nope. There will be another bad goal or two, there will be another game he doesn't have it. Uncle Niemi is good, but he's still got a track record of inconsistency that two games can't erase.

However, I've long thought it and remain convinced - the Hawks can most certainly win with what Niemi will provide, even given the softies and bed-crappings that are to come. They can either survive the loss of a game here or there (such as was the case in Games 1 and 5 against the Canucks) or they can simply score enough to overcome it (as they did in the last two games against the Preds).


-I'm not sure how, but even with all the shots Niemi saw in Game 1, I still feel good about how our D is playing. More impressive than Keith's great rush to set up the first goal was the way he's settled down in his own end, not tried to do too much and instead just relied on his incredible skills to get the job done. Helping his cause is Seabrook's continued progression back to the reliable blueliner he once was and flashes of the powerhouse he turned into last post-season.

Campbell isn't all the way back, offensively or defensively, but he's at least been solid in his own end and definitely helps our whole game with the way he can push the puck. I noticed him jumping into the play in the offensive zone more - that could be a great sign. When he was at his best, Campbell was rushing deep into their zone, keeping things going, and then using his amazing speed and the momentum he had to fly back into his own end without any issues.

Of course, it helps that he has possibly the Hawks most reliable defender on his side. The Hammer has been flat out awesome, always on the puck, always noticeable, rarely making mistakes and constantly making plays in his own end. He can be physical, he can be smooth, he can cover ground, he can block shots. Whatever it takes, the Hammer has done it.

One area he's done it especially well is on penalty kills, somewhere Sopel has also been amazing. The way they block shots is outstanding, but it's also in how they position themselves to stop passes, to clear the front of the net, to dig pucks off the boards. And Sopel is more than just a specialist - I've been absurdly impressed with is even-strengthed play. The way he's been able to take regular minutes has allowed JQ not to tax his Top 4 too heavily, and they've all profited from it.

I can't say it enough - Sopel has absolutely made a believer out of me. He's transitioned from "solid player" to "lost it" to "savvy vet." He's learned how to compensate for his speed and puck-handling short-comings with grit, guile, and physicality. As a 5th defender, Sopel is definitely an asset.


-Finally (I know, it didn't seem like I'd ever run out of things to say), there are the forwards. This is the area I think the Hawks have the most room to improve. These guys have played well, but they can do better. And I have faith they will - this is a talented group that is playing hard. They're gonna start seeing some more fruits to their labors.

It starts in the face-off circle. Early on especially, the Hawks were getting tooled. This is one of the main reasons the Sharks had so many shots - they were cleanly winning face-offs and controlling possession. And face-offs aren't just about the guy in the circle, it's about the rest of the team, especially the forwards, winning the battles away from the puck, so where ever it scoots out to, the Hawks are there to either take possession or disrupt the Sharks' possession.

The Hawks also have to clear the zone better. Some of this is on the blueliners, who had some risky passes up the middle and some lazy passes along the boards. But it's also on the forwards to get out and make it difficult for the point men to corral those pucks. You can't cover everywhere and the Hawks did a great job collapsing on rebounds, but they also need to be ready to help on clearing opportunities to ensure that the puck either crosses the blue line or whomever gets it up at the point is dealing with some pressure.

But most important, the Hawks need to continue to work their cycling. This involves a combination of both grit and skill, both of which the Hawks have in bunches. Early on they couldn't it going, but later they did and the game turned in their favor. The Hawks have taken the big step from good to great team this year thanks to the way they've executed their possession game, and that game is built on their cycling.

One part of the cycle/possession game they did not capitalize on that they ABSOLUTELY have to this game - their open d-men on the blueline. San Jose collapses everybody from the face-off dots on in. That made it hard for the Hawks to get any space to skate, to find passing lanes, to get clean shots off, and to capitalize on rebounds.

The answer is to take advantage of what the Sharks are giving them. If the points are open, the forwards need to find them and get them the puck. Sure, the Hawks aren't gonna score a bunch just on slap shots from way out - they don't have those types of blueliners. But they do have blueliners who can handle the puck and throw something toward the net that can turn into a rebound or deflection.

And they really have blueliners who can pass. Give Keith, Seabrook, Campbell, any of them, the puck up top and no Shark in the neighborhood, and they can move around and create opportunities for freed up forwards. The Sharks will be forced to scramble back to cover the blueliners - that'll open space back up down low, allowing the Hawks forwards to get back to work but with more room to do it in. Plus, as the Hawks throw it back to the point more and more, the Sharks D will inevitably soften up down low, again allowing more space to create in.

Who will take advantage? Who knows, but every one of these Hawks is capable of doing more than they have. Not a knock, just saying that this team is filled with guys who can score in bunches. So far, no one has yet to run off three or four games straight of heavy scoring. Toews and Buff had their hatties, Kane and Sharp have had some key goals, the secondary guys have done just enough to get us by.

But I'm looking for a multi-game explosion from someone. Maybe it's one of our stars. Hossa is most definitely due. His shot hasn't been very dangerous of late, not sure why. But he's working hard, he's very talented, and the Sharks aren't focusing on his line as much as Toews and Kane. Sharp can likewise take advantage - he's got a long history of running off big scoring stretches. Toews, Kane, and Buff have been consistently productive already - you can see them just exploding for a barrage of goals these next couple.

And that all-so-valuable secondary scoring has sort of been there for the Hawks, but not in the way I hoped. Not that they haven't done the job, just that I was hoping to see some unheralded guy break out. Happens all the time in the NHL - some nobody role player find his scoring touch at the right time and rides it to a magical post-season.

Versteeg, Ladd, Brouwer, Bolland, Kopecky - hell, even Madden, Eager, or Burish are all capable. Two goals over the next three games by the 4th line would be an invaluable outpouring. The Bolland line is doing their job just by keeping Thornton's line in check. But why can't they take advantage of their poor defensive play and run up 10 total points in the next three?


Well, there's a lot to take in from these last few games, but most of it is good. The Hawks are in a good spot, capable of putting themselves in a great spot. They've got the guns and just like against Nashville, just like against the Canucks, I firmly believe if the Hawks out-work the Sharks, they will absolutely win this series. They are the superior team and they match up well. Tonight is a chance to prove that all over again.