SB Nation - Brian Campbell

Great Kid, Don't Get Cocky: Blackhawks Shut Out Red Wings, 3-0

Matthew Dirt — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 06:51:51 -0000

More photos » by Charles Cherney - AP

Smell the glove

As Sam pointed out in the Indian - there's little to no bragging rights for this game. The Wings are so beat up right now and missing so many players that Wings fans have an ultimate trump card. We basically beat their AHL team... who the hell is Kris Newbury anyway? That doesn't mean we can't feel good about this one though - even with their injuries, the Red Wings are still the Scum and taking two points from them is always sweet, especially as it increases the Hawks lead in the Central Division.

This game started out with the Hawks looking off - either they were as hung over as I was or they were just trying to be too damn cute. The passes were too risky, the stick handling too cute and the fire wasn't there... Whatever the problem was, it was solved during a shift when the teams were playing 4 on 4. Patrick Sharp, Kris VERSTEEG!, Brian Campbell and umm.. someone else... played like they suddenly had some life to them and began to take control of the game. Once Patrick Kane's penalty ended and the Hawks had the man advantage, it didn't take long to gain the lead they'd keep for the rest of the game. Duncan Keith controlled a puck along the blue line, brought it towards center ice and fired a shot that somehow found a way in, it may have hit a stick along the way..

The second goal was a bit of karmic justice - Patrick Sharp laid out Justin Abdelkader behind the Hawks net. Afrogator took exception to the hit and came after Shooter along the boards. It looked like a clear roughing penalty on the Wings, but somehow Sharp was the only player sent to feel shame for two minutes. No idea how that wasn't at least coincidental penalties but the Hawks killed off the Scum's attack. About 4 minutes after the bullshit penalty, Sharp grabbed the puck in the neutral zone and was left alone by the Wings defense along the boards just long enough to find Brian Campbell charging into the zone. Soupy's brought the puck into the faceoff circle and shot it from the dot - it hits Osgood's pads but bounces over and in.

The final goal of the game was probably the most ridiculous and softest we've seen in a while. Buff took a shot about 60 feet away from the net and oddly it beat Osgood past his skate and in - we'll take it. Not Ozzy's best game, but we never see those in December anyway.

UPDATE: I forgot to mention this... but fuck Jim Belushi. You may have noticed that while George Wendt was signing copies of his new book and shooting the puck during the second intermission, he wasn't around to drop the ceremonial first puck. According to a friend who knows things, that's because after Belushi acted like a jagoff the other night, the NHL sent a warning to the Blackhawks, saying they could no longer have celebrities dropping the puck, as it potentially delayed the game start times. Now, I normally wouldn't have a problem with getting rid of this sideshow before the games, but Wendt, a Chicago native, has based his career on being a guy hanging out in bars drinking and watching sports, is it any surprise we like him? Belushi has once again fucked up something for everyone else... You sir, can eat a bag of dicks.

Random Thoughts

It took over 13 minutes for the Red Wings to finally register a shot on goal. I noticed this about 10 minutes in and mentioned it to my friend - I wasn't sure if the Hawks were playing that well or if the United Center's scoreboards were just malfunctioning again... I never should have doubted the Hawks.
Following that - yeah, this defense is good. Cristobal played well and made a few great saves, but it's pretty easy to rack up wins when the players in front of you never allow the other team to take shots.
I don't know how it seemed on TV - but the crowd tonight seemed pretty quiet, especially for Detroit's first appearance in Chicago this season.
Marian Hossa didn't get a shot on goal tonight but had a couple of pretty passes - including one that led to the breakaway for Toews and the subsequent hooking penalty/power play goal.
The only major stat category the Wings had the advantage in was hits - everything else the Hawks dominated... well the Wings blocked more shots but that's simply because the Hawks didn't allow the Wings to take shots.
Datsyuk was only 38% on the draw... Sharp, Toews and Madden were all over 60%.
Three shutouts in 4 games - second in a row for Cristobal Huet... just sayin'
The Red Wings won't have to wait long to get their revenge - next time the Blackhawks will be the ones on the second leg of a back-to-back. I went to the Whirlaway after the game for a Christmas party and Maria said they'll have a nice little spread out for us... you should really plan on being there.

Player of the Game

Yeah - for the second game in a row we're giving the honor to Brian Campbell. Campbell's really playing the best hockey of his time here in Chicago and man it is fun to watch. Soupy led the team in ice time tonight and while his goal won't end up on a highlight reel, it gets the job done. This is also a bit of a thumb in the eye to the guy sitting behind me, who while mostly decent, was one of the many morons claiming Campbell sucks seemingly just because it's the thing to do nowadays I guess... also, Sam said I'd be banned for a week if I didn't give Campbell the spot. Duncan Keith easily could have been the player of the game though with both a goal and an assist, plus plenty of his brilliant stick work.

This Is What I Know About Being Gigantic - Hawks 5, Bruins 4 (SO - Hawks win shirtless slap fight)

McClure — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 16:09:48 -0000

More photos » by Charles Rex Arbogast - AP

Hey! Is that a ninja up there?

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The biggest United Center crowd of the year got to see the Hawks' most entertaining game of the year, outside of the obvious asterisk that the Calgary comeback ever shall be.

The Hawks' lineup looked quite a bit different on Friday, with Antti Niemi starting in net, Niklas Hjalmarsson sitting out because of feeling under the weather (rumor has it he hurt his knee in the Peterborough game), and Ben Eager sitting out presumably because he's a steakhead. Personally, I would have sat Tomas Kopecky again in favor of Eager, but I'm not the guy with the mustache...YET. Both teams traded chances in the opening minutes of the first, with the Hawks once again moving the puck very well, but only seemed to be able to manufacture shots from the perimeter against Tim Thomas, who appeared to be on in the early going with his Hasek-esque style. In their own zone, however, the Hawks were an adventure. Joel Quenneville very quickly into the game rearranged his defensemen, pairing Jordan Hendry with Brian Campbell in order to keep two pairs consistent in Hammer's absence- a result which paid dividends. It did not prevent David Krejci from opening the scoring, however, as Niemi failed to smother a dump in with his catch glove (which was suspect all evening), and the puck came to Krejci out front to poke home.

Early in the second, Kris Versteeg potted the Hawks' equalizer off of a careless pass from Andrew Ference which VERSTEEG! alertly snapped past Thomas. The ice then began to tilt in the Hawks favor, as Patrick Sharp gave the Hawks the lead banging home a rebound crashing the left post. After having some issues with the referee in the corner at the other end of the ice Brent Sopel (at his Sopel-est tonight), coughed up a turnover that led to Daniel Paille tying the game at two. However, in the waning moments of the second, Troy Brouwer threw a goal line pass from the corner to Jonathan Toews, who harpooned the puck between Thomas' legs to give the Hawks the lead after 40. All three Hawks' goal scorers in the period potted their tenth goals of the year.

The Hawks' assault on Thomas continued into the third, but Boston once again drew even, as Johnny Boychuk slapped a cross ice feed undereath Niemi's right arm. Less than two minutes later, Andrew Ladd received credit for redirecting a Brian Campbell point blast into the net after some fine perimeter puck movement by Campbell, Hendry, and Sharp. It would not be a lead the Hawks would hold onto. With less than three minutes remaining, the Bruins found themselves on a 3-on-2, with both Sharp and Marian Hossa late to return on their backchecks, which let Krejci pot his second of the night to tie the game up. After relatively uneventful OT, the contest needed to be decided with a couple rounds of rochambeau, with Q deciding to let the B's shoot first. Patrice Bergeron ran out of room on Niemi, and Toews made him pay with the now trademark snapper at the other end. Blake Wheeler got Niemi down and out but drew iron, which made Patrick Kane's backhader at the other end hold up as the winner. Hawks win.

Observations

Outside of Sharp and Hossa's lackadaisical backcheck, Niemi's glove, and Sopel being Sopel, I found very little to complain about from anyone else. No passengers for this game whatsoever. Even Tomas Kopecky's general invisibility was not for lack of effort.
I was very impressed with Jordan Hendry's ability to step in and play with Brian Campbell, one of the more difficult defenseman in the league to partner with, arguably the most. Credit to Quenneville as well for realizing very quickly that Cam Barker simply does not have the foot speed to recover in time to be paired with Soup at even strength, and making the change. As Sam said, why screw up two pairs with Hammer out?
The Hawks dominated in shots in the second and third, and give credit to the Bruins for capitalizing on the opportunities they got. This game could have been a case of water finding its own level with Antti Niemi, who did make some very good saves when they counted, but a couple of the B's goals - Krejci's first and Boychuck's - could and should have been stopped.
Apologies for the obtuse headline. I know it's a reach, but please bear with me. See what I did there?
I know the Hawks have two games in hand, but how the fuck are they only two points ahead of goddamn Nashville? That Barry Trotz really is something.
Credit the Hawks for not shying away from the monster that is Zdeno Chara. I witnessed Kane, Toews and VERSTEEG! initiate contact with that pituitary case, with Toews retaliating a bit on Versteeg's behalf at one point near the benches, and at one point Troy Brouwer and Chara came to within a hair on my sack from scrapping. It would have been a fight that Our Boy Troy would have been destroyed in, but the courage is admirable.
All eight goals came at even strength. For the top two PK units in the league, I know that's a shock.
Thanks to you, the reader, who now seems to understand that if there's a game on a weekend evening, it's pretty well implied that the wrap isn't coming until the following morning due to this blog's propensity for getting itself banged up before, during, and after games. The fact that the weekday games are now a coin-flip as well could be cause for concern, however. Knowing us, though, we'd make the inevitable intervention an open invite event at the Whirlaway.

Player of the Game

While this award could have gone a number of ways, I'll give it to everyone's, including seemingly Q's, favorite $7 million dollar whipping boy. Even with his Swedish security blanket out of the lineup, Brian Campbell managed to be a +1 with an assist during nearly 28:00 minutes of ice time in a back and forth game. Campbell created opportunities in the offensive zone, had an assist on a redirected slap shot, and was solid in his own end.

Run Run Rudolph, Santa's Gotta Make It To Whirlaway

SamFels — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:10:01 -0000

Another holiday, another big road game for the Hawks, which means it must be time for the Three Amigos to host a road watch. So, we invite you on Dec. 23rd to join Killion, McClure, and myself at Whirlaway (Fullerton at Kedzie) for the Dec. 23rd tilt against Scum. It's at 6:30, so just head straight from the office and avoid even more time with your family. Just look for a tall doofus with the shit-eating grin, the Irish-looking motherfucker in the Toews jersey, and the bald, Scott Ian-looking moron with the look of desperation in his eyes.

Few thoughts from last night:

-Brian Campbell had his best game of the season last night, and it wasn't just the goal. He was flying into the Blues' zone, and was pretty damn fair in his own end. Andy Murray was quoted after the game as saying the difference between this year's Hawks and last year's in 51 Phantom is playing well. That's definitely part of it, as the Hawks have a d-man capable of quick transition for at least 40 minutes a game (combined with Keith). Though his numbers don't look all that impressive (due to inexplicably having his PP time cut), Hjalmarsson has brought the best out of Soupy. The best play of the night didn't result in a goal, but Campbell's rush up the left boards and blind pass to Hossa, who then faked Conklin out of his gord but contrived to not score, was a treat to watch. Two sublimely talented players displaying it to the hilt.

-The encouraging thing about Troy Brouwer's goal was the way he drifted into a scoring area by stopping to lose his check. That displays instincts that we know Troy has always had, something that would be awesome to pass to Buff.

-That said, since Buff has been skating with Madden, he's been a presence, and a very physical one at that. Whether he scores or not, as long as this continues, I won't complain.

- The Blues are a mess. They didn't put forth any sort of energy until down three, and I can only imagine a fear of embarrassment was the main factor. The only two players I noticed all night were David Perron and Erik Johnson.

I think that's it for now.

Scumbag Blues - Hawks 3, Blues 0

McClure — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:31:36 -0000

More photos » by Paul Beaty - AP

That's what you get for switching from Graf skates, McDonald.

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Wanna hear one of my favorite jokes, as originally told to me by a college roommate?

"What would you call Chicago if it sucked?"

"St. Louis."

That pretty much sums up my sentiment regarding the Hawks' division rivals after watching last night's game. The Hawks were all over the Blues from the get-go. Troy Brouwer finally dented the twine after one-timing a pass off of a cycle from Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane from the top of the left circle. Shortly thereafter Brian Campbell scored his first goal on North American soil on the power play, blasting a slapshot far-side past St. Louis goaltender Ty Conklin.

Even though during the second period the Blues mounted at least a half-assed attempt to get back into the game forcing Cristobal Huet to make some timely saves, the Hawks managed to extend the lead fresh after killing a penalty when the Unholy Alliance that is Kane-Toews-Hossa got thrown out there once the penalty had been killed. Hossa broke into the zone, and once again a low cycle ensued which somehow left Hossa alone between the hash marks to receive a pass from Toews which he buried.

From there on out, things got quite chippy, as cuntrags Barrett Jackman, BJ Crombeen, and Cam Janssens decided it was time to exact their pound of flesh since they clearly couldn't skate with the Hawks. Credit the Hawks for standing up for one another, as once again Kris Versteeg took on a much larger opponent in Jackman during one of the many extended sessions of slap-dick in the third. While it may earn him much respect in the dressing room, personally, I'd rather not have VERSTEEG!'s skillful hands be pounded to cinders on someone's face, or have his own face re-arranged should he be taking on anyone other than Kyle Turris. Cristobal Huet even nearly got into the act, as he skated out to the blue line and subtly motioned to Ty Conklin during a 5-on-5 dogpile that was the result of Janssens getting in Huet's grill. While I don't need fights to enjoy a game, a goalie battle would have certainly endeared Huet to the fans, and it would be one more thing I could check off my list of things I've seen live. Oh yeah, Hawks win again in shutout fashion.

Observations

In spite of Campbell's goal, the power play is still fucking clown shoes.
Kerry Fraser = Hockey Hochuli
Hossa's backchecking has to be seen live to be believed. One cannot fathom the distance on the ice he covers in such short order to retrieve the puck from his own zone.
Did I mention that Barret Jackman is a fuckhole?

Player of the Game

With the tinted visor he becomes Darth Kaner, harnessing the power of the Dark Side to the tune of three assists.

Game Preview: Chicago Blackhawks @ Buffalo Sabres

Rafal Ladysz — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 18:03:54 -0000

More photos » by Don Heupel - AP

12 days ago: Washington Captials left winger Alex Ovechkin, of Russia, bottom left, misses an open net as Buffalo Sabres goalie Ryan Miller is caught out of position during the first period of the NHL hockey game in Buffalo, N.Y., Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2009. Sabres defenseman Steve Montador, right, watches the play. (AP Photo/Don Heupel)

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You've got to be lucky to be good and good to be lucky. The Buffalo Sabres were a little of both Wednesday becoming the first team in 11 months to shutout the Washington Capitals. While they did an excellent job of keeping Alexander Ovechkin and company outside of the perimeter, Buffalo was fortunate on a few chances that Washington sent wide of an empty net. And Ryan Miller was there to snag the great opportunities that did head on goal.

All in all, it was the type of win that solidifies a squad as a contender with shot blocking, active sticks and back-checking doing the job. Chicago brings their own brand of firepower into HSBC Arena as the schedule hasn't gotten easier. Substitute Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Nicklas Backstrom and Mike Green with Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Marian Hossa and Duncan Keith.

The Blackhawks defeated Buffalo last year by a 4-1 scoreline but the Sabres have won three of the past four get-togethers. Chicago is 5-0-1 against Eastern Conference oppositions thus far and Buffalo is 5-0 facing the West. This should be an interesting match-up, not to mention very exciting.

Five thoughts on each team below.

Patrick Lalime and Cristobal Huet are your starting netminders. It was assumed Miller would be in for this one giving the back-up tomorrow's showdown in New York. I can see why Lalime is eager to get his first win of the year against his former team but the Sabres will have to play similar to their shutdown format against Washington. Motivation for the goaltender means nothing if he's hung out to dry.
Chicago has really taken it to another level since the return of Toews and introduction of Hossa. They are 11-2-1 with their captain back in the line-up and the Slovakian has seven points in as many games. By the way, Toews also has 13 points in 14 matches.
Paul Gaustad has begun skating with the team showing progression but there's no timetable for his return. Regardless, this is a great sign as the Sabres have struggled in the face-off circle without Goose. Mike Grier is expected back possibly Saturday after visiting his mother. In practice yesterday, Tim Connolly felt hip pain and wasn't able to withstand the whole session. Lindy Ruff suspects it's nothing serious and that the center should play. Who knows with Connolly though?
Overpaid defenseman Brian Campbell is back for the first time in a different jersey. Last year's contest between these franchises was in Chicago so it'll be his only visit since abandoning Buffalo. Expect tons of boo-birds for Campbell and I'm sure Blackhawks fans aren't happy either with the dollars-to-points ratio.
A goal and an assist were earned by Nathan Gerbe in his first call-up from the AHL. It was only a matter of time before someone got the go-ahead from Portland. As he was instructed to, Gerbe crashed the net despite his lack of size and threw the puck on it from down low for his first career NHL goal. We'll see what he has up his sleeve this time.
Cristobal Huet owns a 14-6-2 record with a .907 save percentage and 2.18 GAA. Known as somewhat of an enigma, Buffalo would be wise to get pucks at him from various angles and positions. Put the puck on net and good things will happen. The Sabres can't waste time attempting pretty plays and cute ideas.
In response to a third period benching Monday, Derek Roy sprung a pair of assists and tenacious two-way efforts against Washington. Leading the team in points, the 26-year-old needs to bring that intensity and skill routinely.
Buffalo native Patrick Kane has his sights on a career campaign with 28 points already in 29 games. He's played the Sabres twice registering one goal. Kane said he expects to get booed in reference to the cab driver incident from the summer.
Ranked third and sixth in penalty killing, it'll be intriguing to see if either can break through with the man-advantage. Thomas Vanek has four powerplay goals while Toews is up to five. Today would be a good time for Vanek to end his scoring slump. Please?
Yet to win with Miller on the bench, Buffalo is in for a fight with these Blackhawks who can beat a goaltender in bunches. I hope Lalime is ready because it could be a long evening if he's even a little rusty and the Sabres play the first frame laid back.

Normally, you'd hope to get a lighter match after taking on the Washington Capitals. However, this is a huge opening for the Buffalo Sabres. What better way to prove themselves as a threat than beating both Washington and Chicago in succession?

Coming To Chicago This Summer: Cap Reality

The Falconer — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 14:48:43 -0000

More photos » by Larry Macdougal - AP

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For those of you who don't pay much attention to the Western Conference the big news this week was that the Chicago Blackhawks managed to get three of their young stars resigned this week. Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane both signed for 6.3 million per year and Duncan Keith for 5.5 per year. Blackhawk fans were falling all over themselves in self congratulation with the news.

However, the team is going to have to perform "roster reduction surgery" to clear away the foolishness that former GM Tallon committed in the Summer of 2008. This coming summer the Blackhawks are going to have to move a lot of salary just to field a roster of 21 players for the 2010-2011 season. Below is 21 man roster chart of players currently under contract with Chicago and their cap salaries (or Qualifying Offers for RFAs this summer).

A couple of technical notes. RFAs who make under 1 million must be offered a 10% raise in their qualifying offers (which they don't have to sign). Young players on Entry Level Contracts (ELC) will have all bonus money count against the cap next year because it is the final year of the CBA. I have used a 21 man roster instead of the NHL minimum 20 man roster because it is virtually impossible to go with just 20 players. If a guy is out a few days, he doesn't quality for Long Term Injury Replacement, but someone has to to dress--so I budgeted for 21 roster spots. The minimum NHL salary is half a million dollars currently.

OK and now for the really ugly part. If we assume that all of the current Blackhawks RFAs were to simply accept their qualifying offers and no trades were made, then I have Chicago sitting at $66 million in cap hits with a salary cap expected to remain largely unchanged (currently $56.7 million). The team is projected to be over by $8-10 million depending on where the cap is set next season.

SALARY	FORWARDS
6.300	Toews
6.300	Kane
5.275	Hossa
3.900	Sharp
3.375	Bolland
3.083	Versteeg
3.000	Byfuglien
1.550	Ladd	RFA Qualifying Offer
1.200	Kopecky	ELC
1.070	Eager	RFA Qualifying Offer
1.025	Brouwer
0.770	Fraser	RFA Qualifying Offer
	DEFENSE
7.142	Campbell
5.500	Keith
3.500	Seakbook
3.083	Barker
2.333	Sopel
0.700	Hjalmarsson	RFA Qualifying Offer
	GOAL
5.625	Huet
0.800	Crawford
0.500	Bench Player
66.031	2010 TOTAL
56.700	Current Cap Max
9.331	Difference

Ch-ch-changes

The good news for Blackhawk fans is that their young core players were signed last week. The bad news is that several current members of a Cup-contending squad will have to be traded this summer. Let's play amateur GM and see how this works out.

The non-Campbell, non-Huet Scenario

Let's assume that both the Campbell and Huet contracts are too costly to move. In this situation the Hawks need to deal away 4 guys making some serious coin. If they moved Cam Barker ($3.08 million), Dave Bolland ($3.375) and Dustin Byfuglien ($3.0) and replaced them with three players averaging just $0.700 a piece that still leaves the team $2 million over the current cap. Assuming the cap doesn't rise, they would need to a) move either Versteeg or Sharp; or b) exchange their entire checking group (Kopecky, Eager, Brouwer and Fraser) for 4 guys making the NHL minimum. This scenario involves the most carnage for the existing lineup of skaters, as it would essentially gut the team's depth.

The Campbell Traded Scenario

The two most egregious contracts are those given to Brian Campbell (7.142 million) and Christobal Huet (5.625 million). To move either of this contracts Chicago would probably have to include either a 1st round pick or a top prospect to make another team swallow either of them. Let's suppose that Chicago was able to swing Campbell + 1st round pick to Dallas for a pick or prospect. If Cam Barker moves into the top 4 D for Chicago, and a journeyman making .6 million fills Campbell's roster spot, that still leaves them $2.8 over the cap. To clear that much more salary they would have to swap a player making $3.3 million for a guy making the league minimum or basically Dave Bolland or Patrick Sharp.

The Huet Traded Scenario

Most teams only have one starting goalie--there are only so many starting jobs around the NHL. Few teams can afford afford to lavish All-Star money on a non-All Star talent, which means that the Cristobal Huet contract is probably tougher to move than the Campbell contract. But let's suppose for a moment that Chicago can find a taker. Who would take Huet's place? That's a key question and one that is hard to predict. Almost any starter of any quality is going to have a cap hit of $3 million or more. The team might find a cheaper option such as Theodore, Biron or Emery on the UFA market, but those cheaper options come with a serious downside risk. Let's assume that the Blackhawks go very cheap at the goal position and only spend $2.5 on Huet's replacement. That still leaves them $6 million over the cap. Trading away Barker ($3.08), Sopel ($2.3) and one medium priced forward (perhaps Bolland $3.0) and replacing them with players making just $700,000 gets them under the cap with some money for a Hjalmarsson raise.

The Dream Scenario: Campbell and Huet Traded

The least disruptive solution to the Blackhawks depth would be to move both fat contracts next summer. The biggest question is whether they can find any suckers (call Bob Gainey?) or whether they are willing to part with high draft picks or top prospect Kyle Beach to purchase cap space. Assuming that they can make these two ugly contracts vanish and replace the D slot with a cheap defenseman, that would leave about $2-3 million for a starting goalie. This is easily the least disruptive scenario for the current roster--but presumably would come at the cost of future talent (picks and prospects).

Concluding Thoughts

Trying to game plan the future is always challenging. At this point, we have no idea what the final cap number will be (but attendance is flat and tickets are being discounted in many cities). We also have no way of knowing if RFAs like Ladd and Hjalmarsson will demand more money than their qualifying offers. Despite these "known unknowns" I've tried to get a sense of how things might play out this summer in the Windy City.

Blackhawks defeat Pens 2-1 in OT

Hooks Orpik — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 04:14:06 -0000

More photos » by Gene J. Puskar - AP

Niemi was in the zone and saw the puck all night long.

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Blackhawks vs Penguins coverage - SB Nation blog Second City Hockey

Sans Sidney Crosby, the Penguins had to dig deep when they faced a Chicago Blackhawks team that used much of the skill and style that Pittsburgh's gameplan.

Much of the night featured a lot of skating, a lot of fast-paced hockey going in both directions and stellar goaltending play by Marc-Andre Fleury (29 saves on 31 shots) and Blackhawks' backup Antti Niemi (32 saves on 33 shots). Old "friend" Marian Hossa opened the scoring when he went hard to the net, collected the puck and put it past Fleury.

The score would remain 1-0 Chicago for most of the game, neither team could solve the defenses of their opponent. Until Dan Bylsma called a timeout with about 1:40 left and let assistant coach Mike Yeo draw a play up. They pulled the goalie and stationed Jordan Staal all the way out against the far boards on the blueline, in an ominous lurking position. Recent call-up Mark Letestu won the faceoff, Evgeni Malkin wheeled the puck around and threw it to the net. Staal swooped in and beat Niemi on the second chance.

It wasn't to be for Pittsburgh on this night. In OT, Kris Versteeg got to a loose puck in the crease before Tyler Kennedy could neutralize him and ended it.

Without their leading scorer, Pittsburgh struggled to generate points, but it wasn't for a lack of effort or shots. 33 shots on goal were fired at Niemi, led by Bill Guerin's 6 and Kennedy's 5. While taking nothing away from Niemi, who was solid, a bunch of the Penguins shots were coming from low percentage angles and distances.
Minus Crosby (one of the top faceoff men in the league), the Penguins used nine different forwards for at least one faceoff. Out of all of them, only one had a better than 50% night.
And that was Crosby's lineup replacement of Mark Letestu. Letestu had a solid night, in addition to his clutch offensive zone faceoff win, he did win 56% of his 16 draws, he had 4 shot attempts (1 getting through, 1 hit a post) and a hit in 13:52 of ice-time. Acquitted himself very well on this night.
Speaking of, it showed some stones and intuition by the coaching staff to use a guy in his 3rd career NHL game in an important faceoff against old veteran John Madden, who's made a career out of doing things like winning defensive draws. Mike Yeo is an easy (and reasonable) punching bag for Penguins fans....But the unusual and creative play he drew up for the last moment worked exactly to perfection. So you have to tip your cap to him tonight.
Chicago also earned a cap tip for their hard fought win. They're a good young team with a lot of skill up front, but some of their defensemen shined tonight: Brent Seabrook has 9 hits and 2 blocked shots, Duncan Keith frustrated Pens all night and skated a game high 31:24. Brian Campbell had the primary assists on both goals.
For teams that don't see too much of one another, unpleasantries were exchanged early and often; highlighted by Keith getting a shot on Matt Cooke that upset Cooke. The hit was to the head, away from the play, and from behind; similiar to what just got Cooke suspended for two games. If the league is truly serious about policing shots to the head, they need to review this tape.

So in a somewhat disappointing fashion that the Penguins claw back into the contest with time running out, just to have Versteeg unleash the dagger in OT. First OT/shootout lose of the year as well. Against a goalie in a little bit of a groove -- Niemi was working on 150+ minute scoreless streak -- it's a night where you have to get out taking what you can get. It's only one point against a similiar team.

Two Pickets to Tittsburgh - Hawks 2, Pens 1 (OT)

McClure — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 03:38:38 -0000

More photos » by Gene J. Puskar - AP

It is written. I have spoken. So put this in your pipe And smoke it.

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This will be brief, as again, I have professional-grade drinking to do. Tonight's matchup lived up to the hype, and it definitely had a playoff type atmosphere. There was certainly a LOT of animosity between the two teams for only playing once a year, as exhibited by the exchange of pleasantries early on between Duncan Keith and Matt Cooke. Keith was lucky to only receive two minutes for his 200-foot charge, and Marian Hossa buried one of the few rebounds Marc-Andre Fleury (in top form) allowed all night on the ensuing four on four. Patrick Kane led the rush, and fought off two defenders along the boards to feed a late Brian Campbell, whose shot Hossa put home. That Kane, I tell ya- too soft, and lazy.

In the second, it once again became the Antti Niemi show, who had an answer for everything Pitt threw at him. There were no penalties after the early going, and the teams traded chances throughout. Last night's game appeared to be catching up with the Hawks. Pittsburgh finally drew even with the extra attacker when a puck kicked free to Jordan Staal who as all alone and had 6x4 to shoot at.

Into overtime, VERSTEEG! ended it by poking his own rebound past Fleury after a Brian Campbell-led rush. Hawks go home happy, 2-1.

Observations

Niemi was once again stellar. Let the goalie controversy begin anew.
While the Penguins did have a lot of quality chances, the Hawks did a nice job of clearing pucks from the middle of the ice
The ice seemed to be in even shittier condition than it usually is at the Igloo, as many pucks rolled off sticks for both teams
On the flipside, however, the Igloo does play some kickass jams during stoppages- note "3's and 7's" from Queens of the Stone Age during the second
Matt Cooke is a turd burglar. He burgles ALL the turds.

Player of the Game

Once again, Antti Niemi played an excellent game, stopping 31 shots, many of them in spectacular fashion.

Up next: Marian Hossa, Patrick Kane and the Chicago Blackhawks

FrankD — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 11:00:22 -0000

[SBN Chicago Blackhawks blog - Second City Hockey]

If you thought the Blackhawks went crazy this offseason when the front office signed Marian Hossa to a 12-year deal worth $62.8 million then I don't know what to tell ya about the recent extension dished out to defenseman Duncan Keith. In a deal that will go down as the biggest in Blackhawks history, Keith signed a 13-year contract worth $72 million. And interestingly enough, the Hawks didn't stop there.

Earlier this week Chicago also announced extensions to both Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, each five-year deals worth $31.5 million. While the offseason will likely find the Chicago front office dumping salaries left and right, it's not a focal point at the moment. With Toews, Kane, Keith, Hossa and Brian Campbell playing together for the next five years, Chicago will look to make the first serious Cup run since losing to the Pens in 1992.

November was a pretty solid run for the Hawks. Although the month kicked off with two-straight losses (one was in OT), Chicago put together an impressive eight-game streak to close out the month at 8-2-2. Getting a healthy Hossa back didn't exactly hurt either. The team's 37 points is good enough to put them at the top of the Central division, tying them with Calgary for second in the conference behind only San Jose.

But last night wasn't the sort of performance a team would expect in the wake of all these extensions. Nashville came to town and smacked Chicago around 4-1. Christobal Huet stopped 19 of 23 shots, while Brent Seabrook and Hossa connected with Toews for the only Chicago goal on the night.

Many have already been mentioned, but here are the guys you want to keep your eye on: Patrick Kane (9g, 17a), Duncan Keith (5g, 18a), Patrick Sharp (8g, 14a) and Jonathan Toews (7g, 10a). Also worth mentioning is Marian Hossa, who in five games back has five points (2g, 3a).

Hard to say right now if Huet will get the start in the second half of the back to back, or if instead we'll see the likes of Antti Niemi, who's 4-1-1 on the season with two shutouts.

Last season in the only game between Pittsburgh and Chicago, the Pens held on to force OT and win 5-4 thanks to an Evgeni Malkin PP goal. Toews had a hat trick, with each goal coming on the power play. You may remember the collection of red Blackhawks helmets that came raining down on the ice. (Twice if I remember correctly, since I believe the first goal suspected of being his third was disallowed).

Puck and thread drop at 7:30. Come on by and chat it up.

Game 27 Preview: Jackets head to the Windy City to face the Hawks

Mike MacLean — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:03:19 -0000

by Jay LaPrete - AP

View full size photo »

After snapping a five game losing streak, the Jackets are in Chicago to take on the 'Hawks. On paper, this doesn't look good for the Jackets. It's the second game of a back-to-back, Rusty is out of the lineup with a groin tear (Mathieu Roy will play tonight, he's up from Syracuse on emergency recall), and tonight is the home debut of Hossa.

That said, the boys should still have some momentum from last night. It was a gutsy performance, and maybe the victory against the Blues was the tonic needed to get the Jackets back on track. Chicago is a great team from top to bottom. Their one question mark heading into the season-goaltending-seems to no longer be an issue with the strong play of Huet.

In my opinion, and likely many other share this opinion, the Hawks have the best defense in the NHL. It will be tough to score tonight, but the Jackets do have the weapons needed. Umby is playing his best hockey of the season, and Brass is looking better and better each game. If Voracek can build off of the strong game he had last night, look for that line to produce tonight. That would allow Nash and Juice to do their thing offensively-Huselius has been putting up serious points lately as well.

This is an imprtant game for the checking unit. I haven't seen much from Chimmer all season, and he needs to bring a physical element tonight. Mike Blunden hits everything that moves, and he'll need to continue doing that tonight against the 'Hawks potent forwards. Sammy was a Blackhawk for a brief period last season, and I look for him to have a strong game matching up against either Toews or Versteeg.

Fearless Prediction: Goal from a CBJ defenseman.

Game Time: 8:00pm ET

Opponent's Blog: Second City Hockey

Game Page: Blue Jackets vs Blackhawks Coverage

TSN Preview: Blue Jackets vs Blackhawks Preview

TV: FSN Ohio

Radio: WBNS-AM (1460); WWCD-FM (101.1)

More after the jump...

From the Columbus Dispatch:

The Blue Jackets snapped a five-game losing streak last night with a 5-2 win over the Blues. It should be a loud crowd tonight in United Center. The Blackhawks are back off a six-game trip, Marian Hossa makes his Chicago debut and coach Joel Quenneville goes for his 500th victory.

Jackets Links:

Columbus Blue Jackets / Columbus Blue Jackets Schedule

Columbus Blue Jackets Roster / Columbus Blue Jackets Stats

Here are the lineups for tonight's tilt:

Columbus Blue Jackets

Kristian Huselius	Antoine Vermette	Rick Nash
R.J. Umberger	Derick Brassard	Jakub Voracek
Jason Chimera	Samuel Pahlsson	Michael Blunden
Raffi Torres	Derek MacKenzie	Jared Boll

Fedor Tyutin	Anton Stralman
Mike Commodore	Jan Hejda
Kris Russell	Mathieu Roy

Steve Mason

Mathieu Garon

EXTRA: Alexandre Picard

INJURED: Fredrik Modin, Andrew Murray, Derek Dorsett, Rostislav Klesla, Marc Methot

Chicago Blackhawks

Patrik Sharp	Jonathan Toews	Marian Hossa
Dustin Byfuglien	Kris Versteeg	Patrick Kane
Andrew Ladd	John Madden	Troy Brouwer
Ben Eager	Colin Fraser	Tomas Kopecky

Duncan Keith	Brent Seabrook
Brian Campbell	Cam Barker
Niklas Hjalmarsson	Brent Sopel

Cristobal Huet

Antti Niemi