Speaking of getting it right, the Hawks couldn’t in tonight’s shutout by the Avs. I don’t think we have ever seen Captain Serious, Jonathan Toews, so frustrated. In the dwindling moments of the game, Toews was slow to get up after having been knocked once again to the ice, and he just never seemed to recover his will. When the game was over, Toews uncharacteristically was one of the first off the ice to the dressing room, foregoing his usual fist bump to each of his teammates. I can only imagine what he had to say to his teammates once off the ice. Hopefully he angrily yelled at them and said something like, “I can’t carry an entire team by myself. So if you don’t have the heart to get out there and do your best and stop bumbling around with the puck, then what are you doing here???” Toews had every right to take a breeze on his team after the game was over; they took a breeze on him while the game was still on.

Dallas was all over the Hawks with active sticks and they constantly cut off passing lanes, leaving the Hawks with only the option of crashing hard on the net, but none of the Hawks, save Nick Leddy and perhaps Patrick Sharp, were able to get anywhere near the net.  You have to hand it to the Stars; they had killer D, and the Hawks weren’t up to the challenge with their sloppy passing and giveaways.

And while Eddie Olczyk, Pat Foley, and others repeatedly talked up net minder Corey Crawford, trying to downplay the potentiality for a sophomore slump, Corey did appear to be showing early signs of the dreaded sophomore slump in last night’s game.  It’s like a no-hitter.  While it’s in progress if you talk about the possibility of a no-hitter, you will inevitably jinx the pitcher.  Yeah, well, if you repeatedly talk about the possibility of a goaltender’s sophomore slump before the season has even started, you’ll jinx him too.  And while we’re talking goal tending, how in the world could the Hawks have given the back-up goal tending job to Ray Emery and sent Alexander Salak back down to Rockford?  Baffling.  Simply baffling.

Oh yeah, and what happened to the Hawks’ special teams last night?  The power play unit couldn’t score at all, though the Stars gave them ample opportunities, and the PK couldn’t kill a fly let alone a penalty.  <Shakes head>

Well, there certainly have been some mighty big changes with the Blackhawks in the last two seasons, and the strain appears to have left the team not quite ready for prime time.  Jonathan Toews said something to the effect of that he hadn’t been this excited for a season to start in a while.  Unfortunately, when they make the players say things like that it usually means the opposite.  Hopefully the season-opening loss to the Stars was just a fluke, but I’m afraid it may not have been.

However, in pre-season play it has been delightful to watch Brandon Pirri’s rising star.  This kid is amazing!  He almost had a hat trick in last night’s loss to the Penguins.  And while the guy in the Hawaiian shirt at the bar where I was watching the game disagreed with me, the call on Pirri for “interference” in the last minute or so of the game was in error.  Unless I missed something, it looked like Pirri was just following through with a check on the boards, though it was difficult, judging from the camera angle, to see where the puck had gone.  What wasn’t hard to miss was Pirri on the ground, on his back, getting his ears boxed by, it looked like Pens’ Zybnek Michalek.  Still, it looks like Pirri will go far.  Apparently opponents think so too or Pirri wouldn’t have become an early target.   So bang on Pirri.  You’ll get that hat trick yet! 

And speaking of pummelings, how in the hell could Red Wings’ coach Mike Babcock defend that nasty hit to the head from Wings’ defenseman Brendan Smith on Hawks’ winger Ben Smith during the September 28th pre-season game???  Babcock called Brendan Smith’s resulting suspension “extreme.”  Really Babcock?  Extreme?  You know what’s extreme is when you get your bell rung so hard that you can’t move, have no idea where you are, and need a trainer and your teammates to help you off the ice!  Babcock’s comments really shocked me.  Normally he is pretty level-headed about such things, but not this time.

You can clearly see from the video that Brendan Smith intended to throw a shoulder as his elbow was flailing out well after the hit. (In other words, the shoulder and elbow were going and there was momentum there well after the hit.):

It clearly wasn’t an accident and the NHL was more than justified in suspending Brendan Smith for the remainder of the pre-season and for 5 games of the regular season.  Well done NHL, and rule 48.1 concerning ‘illegal checks to the head’ will be a good one if applied and enforced properly.

What additionally concerns me is that the refs weren’t calling many of these goony hits during the Sept. 28 Hawks/Red Wings game.  I saw lots of elbows and shoulders being thrown and spearing well before the hit on Ben Smith, so part of the blame for Ben Smith’s injury must lie with the officiating.  Too many missed calls.  Oh but the refs didn’t miss a beat in sending Brent Seabrook to the box for a five-minute major for “fighting” when Seabrook was just trying to defend Ben Smith.  Really?  That’s what constitutes fighting now?  I didn’t even see Seabs throw a punch!  Third-man-in rule maybe, but if you call a major, it better be…well…major.

And sorry Brendan Smith.  I don’t buy your aw-shucks routine, your apology to Ben Smith, or your lame explanation that you were “never targeting his head.”  Perhaps the minor leagues will teach you about playing respectable hockey.  Shame on Mike Babcock too.  There is no defending that kind of hit, though it’s not unexpected from the Red Wings, one of the gooniest teams in hockey. (They used to be THE gooniest team in hockey ’til the Canucks started giving them a run for their money.)  Still, the Hawks got the ultimate revenge by winning over the Red Wings, 4-3, a win that was clearly for Ben Smith.

And speaking of injuries, it is unfortunate to lose Viktor Stalberg to a knee injury before the season has even started.  We eagerly anticipate his return of course; the Hawks need and clearly miss his grit, though Michael Frolik exhibits a fair amount of grittiness too.

Grit is something the defensemen have needed the past few seasons too, and it looks like the Hawks have beefed up by pairing Niklas Hjalmarsson with Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith with Nick Leddy.  I love these pairings and hope they continue.  I also love that Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews are on separate lines.  These two may work well together on special teams, but Jonathan Toews can excel much more without having to constantly set Kaner up for sweet goals.  I also don’t think Patrick Kane is effective as a center, but time will bear that out I’m sure.

Also on kind of a sad note, I was sorry to see Marty Turco go after last season.  I thought maybe he had another season in him with the Hawks if for no other reason than to impart some of his veteran moves to the up-and-comers, but if he had to be on his way, so be it.  Corey Crawford is coming along nicely, though I still miss Antti Niemi. And, hopefully it is not in doubt that Alexander Salak should be back-up net-minder.  Ray Emery just doesn’t have what it takes, at least, not yet.

All-in-all it looks like the kids are alright.

So, as they say, let’s go to the film.

Despite the commentators in the above YouTube video obviously stumping for a suspension and purposely not seeing what was right in front of them in a slow-mo, slow-frame replay, this was NOT a dirty hit from behind.  It was a side hit, and probably a hard one, but Hjalmarsson didn’t even throw an elbow, again, despite what commentators were saying (and the commentators are suspect in this case because they knew that, upon review, the NHL would hear their comments and be swayed by them). 

So, with hindsight being 20/20, what the NHL should have seen is that while there was an injury, it was as a result of a clean hit with unintended consequences.  I mean, seriously, are there no accidents anymore?  No, really, how much of an example is the NHL willing to make of a player?  How intensely are they willing to scrutinize hockey ’til it’s nothing resembling the sport we all came to know and love?  And what’s next, no-tackle football? These contact sports — like hockey and football — are dangerous.  Yes, you can make rules and punishments to deter dirty play and prevent injury, but you can’t prevent all injuries.  You just can’t, at least not without ruining the game.  So, I have to ask, is that what the NHL seeks to do?  Are they trying to ruin hockey by so overly scrutinizing it that no one will want to watch?

And before critics accuse me of being blinded by favoritism, since I have always been a big fan of Niklas Hjalmarsson, readers should remember that I came to the defense of Alex Ovechkin for his hit on Brian Campbell last season.  I did not think that a dirty hit either, at least not intentionally, but it was a hard one. (Although I think the entire hockey community, including Ducks fans, can agree that James Wisniewski’s hit last season on Brent Seabrook was pre-meditated, given the charging from across the ice and his leaving his skates to deliver that knock-out hit, and deserved the suspension Wiz got and then some.)  So, believe me when I say, if a Hawk is guilty of a dirty hit, you won’t see me defending them just because I’m a fan. I was certainly not shy about criticizing Dustin Byfuglien for instigating with goalies last season, so neither would I defend a dirty hit, no matter if it was from a Hawk or an opponent.

So just to sum up, the NHL needs to unclench.  Punish true offenders and stop tarnishing the reputations of good hockey players who are just doing their jobs. (Poor Niklas Hjalmarsson looked like he’d been flogged after he was suspended two games he was so dejected.)  I’ve spoken my piece, now I’m going to crawl back into my hockey withdrawal.

P.S. Just so this post isn’t entirely negative, I was pleased as punch to see that the Hawks had signed Bryan Bickell and Jack Skille.  These guys more than proved their worth to the organization last season and so it’s good to see them rewarded, though I’m not quite sure Corey Crawford is ready for the bigs.

When the Blackhawks traded James ‘Wiz’ Wisniewski last season, I was not shy about saying what a mistake that was.  How could the Blackhawks trade a valued and tough d-man like that?  Since then, the Hawks have been struggling with their ‘D’ no question about it.  But watching as Wiz and Brent Seabrook exchanged pleasantries before the first intermission in tonight’s Hawks/Ducks game and then watching Wisniewski gun for Brent Seabrook in the 2nd period, charging across the ice and purposely leaving his skates to take Seabs out by the head?!  Oh, them’s fightin’ words Wiz!  And are you kidding me with just that “charging” call?  What?  No automatic ejection?

At least Duncan Keith rushed in to box Wisniewski’s ears after that dirty hit.  Similarly, Nick Boynton more than proved his worth in having a go at Wisniewski in the last minute of the game.  If only Boynton had gotten some good shots under Wiz’s visor!

And seriously, if ever we Hawks fans had to prove that the ‘War Room’ in Toronto was out to get us, this game would live on in infamy as proof!  This isn’t like the Alexander Ovechkin hit on Brian Campbell.  When Ovi hit Soupy, I’m not so sure there was “intent” there like everybody keeps saying.  Did Ovi intend to hit Soupy that hard, or is Brian Campbell just that crunchy?  However, when you take a running skate from the blue line, like James Wisniewski did, and then shoulder and forearm a guy in the head while taking a running leap off your skates, I think you can safely be said to be gunning for someone!  Judging from Joel Quenneville’s reaction on the bench, I think he agreed.

And yes, while the NHL will certainly review this, will they rightfully punish James Wisniewski (meaning a big fine and multiple game suspensions), or simply take it out on the whole of the NHL by restricting players even more?  No NHL, for the nine millionth time, you don’t need to crack down on fighting or body checking.  You simply need to more harshly punish offenders.  That’s all!  And you can start by throwing the book at James Wisniewski because while Wiz played on, Brent Seabrook was out having a very unpleasant MRI. (And he will probably be out for several games hereafter with a nasty concussion.)

P.S.  Props go to Corey Crawford for maintaining poise during what was clearly a nerve-racking game!

What was evident in game four is that the Hawks were extremely undisciplined committing repeated needless penalties.  For instance, Kris Versteeg committed a conspicuous cross-checking penalty (resulting in a Red Wings goal) in the second period, served his two minutes, and was back on the ice for mere seconds before being called for roughing.  Then, for Steegy’s big finale, he was thrown out of the game in the third period for a game misconduct.  Similarly, how many times did Ben Eager need to be called for a game misconduct before he realized he should shut his mouth and maintain his composure?

Don’t get me wrong, the officiating in this game was off.  They didn’t call a lot of hooking and tripping, only to turn around and make calls for roughing that were unjustified.  But the Hawks certainly didn’t help by being so conspicuous about some of the penalties they did commit.  As I said in a prior post, when the Red Wings stepped up their D, which they obviously did today, the Hawks would be in for an ordeal, and an “ordeal” is just how I would describe today’s game.

And the final nail in the Hawks’ coffin in game four was the goal tending.  Subbing for the injured Nikolai Khabibulin was Cristobal Huet who could have (and should have) been pulled after the third Red Wings goal but was pulled after the fourth instead.  Corey Crawford did ok only allowing one goal, so why put Cristobal Huet back in for the third period?  (And where was Antti Niemi?)

Surely, this has to have been the worst game we’ve seen all year with the Hawks lacking their usual poise leading to the 6-1 loss to the Red Wings.