Everything Else

I Ain’t No Extra Player, I’m a Leadin’ Man

By John Pullega 3660 0

One thing you might have noticed over the past two or three games is an increase in atta boys, video montages, and overall praise for Gustav Forsling. Nowhere was it more present (and well-deserved) than last Wednesday against the Rangers. You may remember Forsling saving a game-tying goal after Rutta lost his ass and Crawford got caught hemmed onto the near post in the 3rd period.

If you’re like me, you probably assumed that the love Forsling was receiving was just an overzealous welcome back party after his brief brown-brain shelving. Between Eddie O., Mike Milbury and the rack of ribs he keeps tied to the roof of his foot-propelled rock car, and whichever other good ol’ boy NBC had covering the game, all of the praise sounded like the yearning of people who peaked in high school talking about the reunion they’re looking forward to going back to. And it makes sense: The Hawks blue line still has more questions than answers, and with Forsling coming back, it would seem that at least some regularity would reign. But you and I know better: Forsling isn’t actually that good, so having him back isn’t THAT big of a deal.

Right?

I decided to test this hypothesis and found out that for all the shit I like to give Forsling, he might actually be the future of the Hawks blue line. Look at some of the things I found.

His Ice Time Has Spiked Since Returning

Prior to turning out the lights and trying to stay awake, Forsling averaged 17:45 at evens through 11 games. Since coming back, he’s averaged a full four minutes more (21:55) through five. And it’s not like he’s padding the stats in the 3-on-3 gigglefest. In the only game that went to OT (Carolina), Forsling played 20, maybe 30, seconds in OT, tallying the secondary assist on Saad’s screamer from Kitten Mittons. The rise in ice time coincides with a fairly large drop in Seabrook’s ice time: In the past five games, Seabrook has eclipsed 20 minutes just once, and that was the first game Forsling came back. In fact, he’s played under 17 minutes in his last two, splitting respective 59+ and 43+ CF%s against the Rangers and Penguins.

“But ice time isn’t indicative of success,” you might say. “Look at TVR.” Generally, you’d be right. You may even be right in particular. But I’ve got good news if you’re optimistic.

His CF% Has Been at Least 50 Since Returning

He’s had CF%s of 57.58, 56.52, 54.55, 50.00, and 58.06 at evens over the last five. In three of those games (the first, second, and fourth in that list), he started no more than 45% of his time in the offensive zone. He spent 64% in the oZ against the Devils and 50% against the Penguins. So while Forsling’s been billed as an offensive threat with holes in his defense, those numbers look good. In fact, if you toss out the five minutes he played (and got domed) in Colorado, he’s a fly’s asshair above 50 for CF% on the year. So hovering around 50 CF% at evens while taking about 60% of his draws in the defensive zone certainly qualifies as promising at least.

He’s Doing This Despite Playing With Seabrook More Than Ever

I didn’t believe it either, but Forsling has played almost eight minutes more with Seabrook at evens in the last five games than he had in his first 11. He’s played just about as much time with Seabrook on the PK (4v5) in the last five as he did in the first 11 as well. What made it seem like much, much more was that in just 4:45 of ice time on the PK with Seabrook through the first 11, that pairing gave up two goals. This isn’t a call for Forsling to play with Seabrook more. Keeping Forsling away from Seabrook needs to be Initiatives 1, 2, and 3 going forward, but it’s nice to know he can sort of hold his own.

He Might Not Be as Bad on the PK as We Thought

The Hawks are currently killing penalties at an 85% clip, good for Top 5 in the league. They’ve given up just 11 goals in 74 opportunities, and Forsling has been on the ice for four of those goals in 44:33 of PK ice time. Two of those goals came with Seabrook, and the other two have come over nearly 30 minutes with Rutta. That puts him in the same neighborhood as Brandon Saad (four goals, 44:37) and Jonathan Toews (four goals, 39:13), and not too terribly far from Duncan Keith (seven goals, 64:18). And he’s doing this at 21 years old. Whereas we like to bitch about Q not giving young players a shot, it looks like Forsling is being thrown into the defensive end whenever he has the chance. The optimistic side of me thinks this is a trial by fire of seeing what he might be defensively, and so far, it hasn’t been nearly as terrible as it looked like it would be early on. It’s the old drumbeat of if he can stay away from Seabrook, he might have more room to blossom.

His Power Play Time Has Shot Up Since His Return

Prior to his injury, Forsling averaged about 20 seconds of ice time on the power play, most of which I assume was by accident. Since returning, he’s averaged 1:42 of PP TOI, with almost all of it coming while playing with Keith. While I won’t go so far as to say having Forsling on the PP is what fixed it, it’s an interesting coincidence that since his return and placement on the PP in the last three games (he played fewer than 10 seconds of PP time in his first two games back), he’s scored a PP goal himself and has been on the ice for two of the five goals the Hawks have scored on the PP (for whatever that’s worth). Again, Forsling may not be the primary cause for the PP’s outburst, but I can’t help but connect his addition to it and the outpouring of goals we’ve seen from it. Cautious optimism for now.

Forsling is not Duncan Keith. It’s unlikely he’ll ever come close to being that. But for the time being, he’s pushed out strong CF%s under increasing ice time, including on the PP and PK. While many of us thought Murphy would be the linchpin to success, it looks like the tide might be shifting a bit toward Forsling.

It’s a long season, he’s still very young and green, and we’re comparing 11 games to five games, both of which are little more than streaks. But if the past five games are indicative of what we might have in Forsling—and he can keep posting strong shot shares despite starting primarily in the defensive zone—the future, both near and far, may not be as grim as we expect.

(All stats compiled using Natural Stat Trick and Hockey-Reference. If you want to see the spreadsheet with the numbers I found, email us at thecommittedindian@gmail.com.)

Everything Else

Tonight I’m Gonna Rock You Tonight – November 20th

By Sam Fels 1563 0

First Screen Viewing

Jets vs. Predators – 7pm

Central Division clash tops the viewing tonight. The Jets have seemingly performed the miracle of converting their abundance of talent into actual points. Risky I know but let’s see where they’re going with this. Strangely for the Jets, unlike past years their underlying numbers are pretty abysmal but they’re getting goaltending and just about everything is going in the net. This is a team that always should have been able to outshoot and out-finish some of its peripherals if only the goaltending would cooperate. Thanks to Connor Hellebuyck, it has. The Predators have certainly been a show since Kyle Turris showed up, going 3-1 with 34 combined goals in those four games. The Preds themselves have put up 19 of those, and you might just want to prepare yourself for their charge to the top of the division now. It’s clearly coming, unless Ol’ Shit Hip goes Shit Hip.

Second Screen Viewing

Ducks vs. Sharks – 9:30

I don’t know if either of these teams are any good, especially with Getzlaf nursing a broken face and Ryan Kesler eating small woodland creatures away from the rink. Cam Fowler should return soon. The Sharks are going to spend the whole season about five minutes away from a rebuild and never quite get there. That’s ok though, Brent Burns and his no goals are signed until Doomsday. These games are always a touch on the salty side though, and make for half-decent TV.

Other Games

Blue Jackets vs. Sabres – 6pm

Coyotes vs. Maple Leafs – 6pm

Flames vs. Capitals – 6pm

Devils vs. Wild – 7pm

 

Everything Else

High On The Hog: Hinostroza’s Hot Hand

By Jon Fromi 3442 0

You’ve likely heard this several times from a number of sources, but here goes; Vinnie Hinostroza’s play is screaming for a call-up to the Chicago Blackhawks.

Whether there is a place for him on the Hawks roster or not, the young forward has played his tail off down in Rockford. He’s done just about all one could expect from a prospect looking to make an impression with the parent club.

The IceHogs took two of three games this week. Both wins were punctuated with highlight-reel shootout attempts from Hinostroza. Against Grand Rapids Saturday night and Chicago Sunday afternoon, Hinostroza confidently bewildered his opposition in net on the way to winning both affairs.

Oh, yeah. Hinostroza also opened the scoring Sunday with a great individual effort, deftly weaving his way around a trio of Wolves before beating C.J. Motte in front of the net.

Hinostroza maintained his point-a-game pace this weekend and leads Rockford with eight goals and nine assists on the season. He has either the game-winning goal or shootout winner in each of the Hogs last three victories.

When a player is sent down to the AHL, all they can control is their attitude and performance. After Sunday’s win, Hinostroza was asked by Chris Block of thethirdmanin.com about keeping focused on his game while in Rockford. His response:

I’m still pretty young. I’m here right now; I want to come here and work hard every day. I know in the end it will pay off. (There’s) a lot more hockey to play.

So far this season, Hinostroza is a textbook example of how to deal with the situation; he has been a dominant player for the IceHogs.

 

Never Forget Your First Time

After pointing out that Alexandre Fortin hadn’t been very noticeable on the ice early this season, the rookie forward had himself a solid week. Fortin potted his first AHL goal Wednesday morning on a nice bit of skating across the Iowa crease. In Sunday’s win, Fortin picked up a pair of assists on two goals by Luke Johnson.

Also picking up his first goal of the season was Andreas Martinsen, who opened the scoring in Friday’s win over Grand Rapids. The primary helper on that goal was by Robin Norell; it was his first point of the season.

 

Powerless Play

One trend that continued this week was the lack of goals on the man advantage. The IceHogs have now gone five straight games without a power play goal. In fact, they are in a 1-for-35 slump over their last eight contests.

To make matters worse, Rockford gave up shorthanded goals against Iowa Wednesday and Chicago Sunday. The one scored by the Wild cost the IceHogs at least a point; the Wolves picked up a point when they tied Sunday’s game late in regulation.

Before embarking on this dubious streak, Rockford used three power play strikes to pull off a come-from-behind victory against Grand Rapids October 28. At times, the passing has looked impressive, though that also leaves the Hogs open to turnovers.

The last time a Rockford power play was successful was in Iowa back on November 9. It’s definitely an area of concern right now.

 

Roster Stuff

Anthony Louis has been a scratch for the last four games. Following Sunday’s win, Hogs coach Jeremy Colliton revealed that both Louis and Darren Raddysh, who sat out the weekend,were nursing injuries. I would guess that neither was serious, as no players have been brought up from the Hogs ECHL affiliate in Indy.

Laurent Dauphin returned to action on Wednesday after being out for a couple of games after a big hit in Iowa November 9. At this time, the Hogs have just 12 healthy forwards and six defensemen on the roster. If Louis or Raddysh is going to be out much longer, I’d look for someone to come up this week.

That player could possibly be Alex Wideman, who has 11 points (6 G, 5 A) for the Fuel in 14 games. Nathan Noel, on an NHL entry deal with Chicago, had a pair of goals against Kalamazoo Friday night. Maybe the Hogs feel he’s ready to get into a game for Rockford. Perhaps Robin Press is recalled is Raddysh isn’t ready to roll by Wednesday.

 

Recaps

Wednesday, November 15-Iowa 2, Rockford 1

For the second time in six days, the Hogs were on the short end of a specially-timed school day special. Wednesday, it was a young BMO audience that witnessed an Iowa triumph.

The IceHogs took a 1-0 lead midway through the opening frame immediately following a faceoff at the right circle. David Kampf won the draw, with Fortin scooping up the loose puck and skating right to left across the goal mouth. Fortin reached the left post ahead of Wild goalie Niklas Svedberg and cued the horn at 11:27 of the first period.

A Landon Ferraro tripping infraction gave Rockford a shot to stretch the advantage. Unfortunately, some sloppy play in their own end cost the Hogs the lead.

The power play started with some decent puck movement. However, Zack Mitchell was able to swipe possession from Matthew Highmore along the half boards and break out the other way with Colton Beck. Mitchell’s shot was stopped by J.F. Berube, but neither Highmore, Vinnie Hinostroza or Luke Johnson were able to control the puck and end the Iowa scoring threat.

Instead, Beck was able to beat three Rockford skaters to the loose puck and slide it to the waiting stick of Mitchell, who had looped behind the net to the left post after Hinostroza vacated the area. Berube never had a chance; Mitchell tied the score at the 16:43 mark.

The score remained 1-1 until halfway through the third period. Rockford was just finishing killing a Graham Knott tripping penalty. As the penalty expeired, Iowa’s Brennan Menell threw a puck wide of the goal that bounced off the end boards. The puck came to the blade of Sam Anas, who found Justin Kloos at the back door. Before Knott could even get on the ice, Kloos had given the Wild the eventual game-winner at 8:36.

Lines (Starters in italics)

Vinnie Hinostroza-Matthew Highmore-Luke Johnson (A)

Tomas Jurco-David Kampf-Alexandre Fortin

Andreas Martinsen-Laurent Dauphin (A)-William Pelletier

Tyler Sikura-Graham Knott

Erik Gustafsson-Darren Raddysh

Viktor Svedberg-Ville Pokka (A)

Carl Dahlstrom-Robin Norell

Luc Snuggerud

Jean-Francois Berube

Scratches-Matheson Iacopelli, Anthony Louis

Power Play (0-5 allowed shorthanded goal)

Highmore-Hinostroza-Johnson-Dauphin-Pokka

Jurco-Martinsen-Kampf-Gustafsson-Raddysh

Penalty Kill (Iowa was 0-4)

Dauphin-Johnson-Dahlstrom-Norell

Hinostroza-Highmore-Svedberg-Pokka

Martinsen-Sikura-Snuggerud-Gustafsson

 

Saturday, November 18-Rockford 3, Grand Rapids 2 (SO)

The Hogs attack wasn’t razor sharp, but a strong performance by Jeff Glass made the difference for Rockford as they came out on top of the Griffins via shootout for the second time this season.

Andreas Martinsen got the IceHogs on the scoreboard in opportunistic fashion late in the opening period. Robin Norell got a puck past Grand Rapids goalie Tom McCullom from just inside the blue line. The offering clanged off the left post and came right out to Martinsen at the bottom of the left circle. The back-door chance found the back of the cage for Martinsen’s first of the season and a 1-0 Rockford lead at the 16:33 mark.

Some loose play in the neutral zone led to Grand Rapids taking a 2-1 lead early in the second period. Tomas Jurco lost the handle on the puck as he was approaching the red line, allowing the Griffins Eric Tangradi to drive into Hogs territory and score 1:52 into the period.

Minutes later, a Jurco clearing pass went unclaimed by Rockford. Some quick passing by Grand Rapids allowed Dominic Turgeon to skate to the right post and roof a backhand over Glass. Just 4:28 into the middle frame, the Hogs found themselves down a goal.

Rockford evened things up in the ninth minute after Luke Johnson won an offensive draw at the right dot. Vinnie Hinostroza collected the puck, did a quick back and forth with Ville Pokka, then sent a shot toward the Griffins net.

The puck never arrived, either striking Matthew Highmore or Grand Rapids defenseman Dan Renouf. Highmore collected the loose puck and fired over the glove of McCullom at 8:23.

That was it for the scoring in regulation, as both Glass and McCullom denied several excellent scoring chances. Neither team could find cord in Gus Macker Time. In fact, only Hinostroza was able to parlay some razzle-dazzle with the biscuit into a shootout tally. Glass had to stop three Griffins shooters to claim the win for the Hogs and that’s just what he did.

Lines (Starters in italics)

Graham Knott-Tyler Sikura-William Pelletier

Vinnie Hinostroza-Matthew Highmore-Luke Johnson (A)

Tomas Jurco-David Kampf-Alexandre Fortin

Andreas Martinsen-Laurent Dauphin (A)-Matheson Iacopelli

Luc Snuggerud-Ville Pokka

Eric Gustafsson-Viktor Svedberg

Carl Dahlstrom-Robin Norell

Jeff Glass

Scratches-Darren Raddysh, Anthony Louis

Power Play (0-5)

Highmore-Johnson-Dauphin-Pokka-Snuggerud

Jurco-Martinsen-Kampf-Hinostroza-Gustafsson

Penalty Kill (Griffins were 0-2)

Dauphin-Johnson-Dahlstrom-Norell

Hinostroza-Highmore-Svedberg-Pokka

Martinsen-Sikura-Snuggerud-Gustafsson

 

Sunday, November 19-Rockford 4, Chicago 3 (SO)

Rockford nearly dropped this one after surrendering a two-goal lead in the final minutes. They did, however, rally to take the shootout from the Wolves for their second-straight win.

Vinnie Hinostroza opened the scoring with a spectacular bit of skating midway through the first period. Taking a pass from Tomas Jurco out of the Rockford zone, Hinostroza skated up the right side into Wolves territory.

The IceHogs leading scorer slid into the high slot, then masterfully wove around three Wolves defenders to the doorstep of the Chicago net. Hinostroza flipped home the lamp-lighter over the glove of C.J. Motte to put Rockford up 1-0 11:21 into the opening frame.

The Wolves tied the score four minutes later when a shot by Paul Thompson slid under the pads of Hogs goalie Jeff Glass and settled right on the goal line. Ivan Barbashev tapped it across before Glass could locate the puck.

Rockford was able to take a 2-1 lead into the first intermission with a late tally. The play got started in the left corner of the Chicago zone, where Luc Snuggerud dug out the puck and found Alexandre Fortin open at the left point. Fortin’s shot was redirected by Luke Johnson past Motte and into the goal with just 29 seconds remaining in the first.

Following a scoreless second period, the IceHogs got a second goal from Johnson. Knocking in a nice pass from Fortin from the right post, Johnson made it 3-1 Rockford 5:39 into the third period.

As the final stanza wore on, that score held up and it appeared that the IceHogs were in control of what was a pretty even game up until that point. However, the Wolves mounted a late charge and forced Gus Macker Time with a pair of goals in the final 6:07 of the contest.

Jake Walman got a slap shot through after a clean Wolves faceoff win to close the gap to 3-2 at 13:53. A few minutes later, Rockford had a power play opportunity to slam the door on the Wolves. Instead, Ville Pokka’s cross-ice pass to Snuggerud was picked off, leading to a 2-on-0 shorthanded rush that ended with Thompson beating Glass glove side at 16:53.

It looked as if the game had gotten away from the Hogs, more so when Erik Gustafsson was called for interference in the extra session. Chicago had 1:25 of 4-on-3 to finish the comeback. Instead, Glass held firm and Rockford weathered the storm.

Jurco was denied by Motte in the opening round of the shootout before Hinostroza stick-handled his way into the net in the second-round attempt. Glass stopped Teemu Pulkkinen and Brandon Pirri before David Kampf ended the game with a successful attempt.

Lines (Starters in italics)

Alexandre Fortin-David Kampf-Tomas Jurco

Vinne Hinostroza-Matthew Highmore-Luke Johnson (A)

Matheson Iacopelli-Laurent Dauphin (A)-Andreas Martinsen

Graham Knott-Tyler Sikura-William Pelletier

Erik Gustafsson-Carl Dahlstrom

Luc Snuggerud-Ville Pokka

Viktor Svedberg-Robin Norell

Jeff Glass

Scratches-Darren Raddysh, Anthony Louis

Power Play (0-4, allowed shorthanded goal)

Highmore-Johnson-Dauphin-Pokka-Snuggerud

Jurco-Martinsen-Kampf-Hinostroza-Gustafsson

Penalty Kill (Wolves were 0-3)

Dauphin-Johnson-Dahlstrom-Norell

Hinostroza-Highmore-Svedberg-Pokka

Martinsen-Sikura-Snuggerud-Gustafsson

 

Previewing This Week

After winning their first two games with Iowa this season, the IceHogs dropped a pair of morning games with the Wild. Rockford will get two shots at that squad at the BMO Harris Bank Center this week. The Hogs host Iowa on Wednesday and Friday nights.

The Wild, who are right behind Rockford in the AHL’s Central Division standings, are paced by Zack Mitchell, who has 16 points (5 G, 11 A). Longtime AHL vet Pat Cannone is also a player that has victimized the Hogs in the past, mostly with the Chicago Wolves. Cannone and Colton Beck each have six goals and five helpers on the season.

Iowa has been effective in slowing the IceHogs attack in recent games. The Wild are capable of putting some bigger bodies on the ice and forcing Rockford away from scoring areas. Things could get a bit chippy with Iowa with two games in three days.

Rockford closes out next week’s action in Chicago. The Wolves gave the Hogs fits in Allstate Arena last season; Rockford was 1-4-1 in that building in 2016-17. Chicago in an uncharacteristic 4-9-1-1 and at the bottom of the Central Division. However, Sunday’s clash showed that the Wolves can turn momentum quickly.

Follow me @JonFromi for thoughts on the prospects in Rockford all season long.

Everything Else

Tonight I’m Gonna Rock You Tonight – November 19th

By Sam Fels 1510 0

First Screen Viewing

Islanders vs. Hurricanes – 4pm

You wouldn’t think at first this is worth your time, but along with the presence of Our Special Boy, these two teams put on a barnburner earlier this week. It ended 6-4, with Boychuk getting the winner late in the 3rd. The Isles have been spiky lately, even getting one over the Lightning in Tampa. Matthew Barzal appears to be the truth, and Anders Lee and John Tavares are setting the Earth off its axis so far this year. Should be a good one in BBQ country.

Second Screen Viewing

Kings vs. Knights? – 7pm

It’s not much of a slate otherwise. These two are the surprises of the West so far.

Other Games

Avalanche vs. Red Wings – 5pm

Senators vs. Rangers – 6pm

Panthers vs. Ducks – 7pm

Everything Else

Game #20 But it was Saturday Night, I Guess That Makes it Alright – Hawks 2, Penguins 1

By Rose Rankin 3770 0

Box Score

Hockey Stats

Natural Stat Trick

It feels like I should have some exciting takeaway or some great insight for you from this match-up of two perennial Stanley Cup contenders…but I don’t. It was an entertaining game to be sure, but it was also a midseason game (well, one-quarter-season to be exact), and it was a workaday performance turned in by the Hawks. Remember when they kicked the shit out of the Penguins to open the season? This game was not that, by any stretch of the imagination. To the bullets!

– Corey Crawford is a more worthwhile human than you or me. You probably already knew that—I know I did—but it bears repeating. He got domed by Evgeni Malkin in the first period, who was being the piece of shit that he is, then he went off for the quickest concussion protocol ever, and proceeded to give up just one goal and hold a .972 SV%. Yes, this got helped out by the second goal for the Pens getting called back for interference, which it was, but Crow battled through a lot of bullshit tonight including a bunch of shots at the end. The Hawks wouldn’t have won without his performance tonight, not like that is any kind of surprise. (And kudos to Anton Forsberg for covering those three minutes competently…not even being sarcastic, I mean it).

– Gustav Forsling scored on the power play. Did you ever think you would read such a ridiculous sentence? Yeah, I didn’t think I would ever write it either. Ready for another one? Both Hawks goals came on the power play. Wait, wait, I got another one: Artem Anisimov has 10 goals. Can you believe all this? After how terrible the power play has been I’m downright delighted to see this shit. Forsling finished with a 56.8 CF% tonight, so fine, whatever, if Kempny is going to get marooned in the press box forever you better fucking do something, asshole. And Anisimov with double-digit goals? Fine as well…if Toews is going to continue to fail at finishing, we need some center to do something. Have at it, pal.

– Nick Schmaltz continued his general awesomeness. He had speed all over the ice, some great breakaways in the first period, and somehow someway this second line is working. Schmaltz’s possession numbers with Anisimov and Kane at evens was over 50%. And the assholes on the Penguins were targeting him right up until the end of the game, when it was clear they weren’t going to do anything other than inflict pain and fuck him up, so that has to tell you something about this guy’s effectiveness.

– Look, I know in my rational mind that Phil Kessel is a very talented hockey player, but can we all just agree on something: this guy looks like he’s an insurance adjuster from Scranton and he’s playing men’s league on a Tuesday night just for fun. Seriously, this guy does NOT look like he should be in the NHL. I just, I just can’t get past it…I’ve never been able to get past it. Wherever he goes, I’m just flummoxed by this doughy dipshit-looking guy, who fortunately couldn’t get anything past Crawford tonight.

– Adam Burish can talk on TV? Who knew? I’ve actively tuned him out when he’s on the intermission desk-in-the-midst-of-obnoxious-assholes. So I never bothered to listen, but in the isolation of a studio I noticed he put rational thoughts together with the camera right on him…well done.

When it’s all said and done, the Hawks needed this win as they need every point they can get right now. And two PP goals? Love it. Their next game is against the fucking Lightning so I honestly expect an embarrassment…at least they’re walking away with this win. Onward and upward…

Everything Else

Game #20 – Hawks vs. Penguins Preview/Ropes Course: High Voltage

By Sam Fels 3069 0

Sky Point Malcolm.

 vs. 

RECORDS: Hawks 9-8-2   Penguins 11-7-3

PUCK DROP: 6pm

TV: WGN, NHL Network for those outside the 606

DOOBIEDOOBIEDOO….: Pensburgh

As if Penguins-Hawks games didn’t have enough narrative with the two apples of Canada’s eyes lining up against each other, tonight everyone can throw in the 10-1 thrashing from Opening Night on top. The Penguins have probably long forgotten about it, at least they should have, and certainly the Hawks have because it didn’t really portend to what was to come. Both teams are having weird and high-action seasons.

For the Penguins, well, I can’t really sum it up any better than this chart:

The Penguins can’t stop the puck right now, and they can’t really score it either. And yet they’ve been able to ground out enough wins to at least hover around the top of the Metro. Some of this is skewed by the Perfect Ten the Hawks put up in October and a gaggle of 7-1 defeats they’ve also suffered. When the Penguins have been bad, DEY BEEN REEL BAD (or maybe just Antti Niemi was. Your pick).

The Penguins underlying numbers aren’t all that impressive either, but then again they weren’t really all that impressive last year and they relied on their superior finishing talent to basically out-finish the chances they created. And it’s essentially the same roster back, so at some point they’re going to revert to that. They are missing a #3 center as Nick Bonino shuffled off to Nasvhille, and the Penguins haven’t replaced him. They traded Scott Wilson for Riley Sheahan to somewhat remedy this. The only problem is that Riley Sheahan blows chunks. So they’re going to have the same problems.

The defense should be better than it’s been. Letang and Dumoulin have been their usual excellent selves, but Justin Schultz hasn’t really hit the heights of years past and Olli Maatta continues to be flaccid. Ian Cole and Chad Ruhwedel round this out by being there. Until Schultz puts it together again, the Penguins lack a little drive from the back.

The big problems have been in goal, where Niemi was nothing short of Chernobyl as the backup, Murray had to play too much and hasn’t been all that good when he has. Tristan Jarry, which apparently is a real name and a real person, has settled the backup role a touch. Still, Murray’s .906 isn’t going to get it done in the long-term.

For the Hawks, they’ll roll out the same lineup as Wednesday, even though a lot of it doesn’t make any damn sense. And with the plodding Franson having to deal with either Crosby or Malkin, you might want to duck for cover. Corey Crawford will get the start.

These are two of the higher-event teams in the league. They take a bunch of shots, and they give up a ton of shots. This one will not be short of happenings, you can be sure. And if either Crawford or Murray aren’t sharp, at least one team is going to put up a crooked number on the scoreboard. It’s going to be a whole thing.

 

Game #20 Preview

Preview

Spotlight

Q&A

Douchebag Du Jour

I Make A Lot Of Graphs

Lineups

Everything Else

Game #20 – Hawks vs. Penguins: Spotlight – Conor Sheary, The Power Of Sid, And The Proper Way To Reload

By Sam Fels 2705 0

The cynical way to approach it would be to joke that if Conor Sheary had come up through the Hawks’ system, they would have already traded him to make room for Artem Anisimov’s or Brent Seabrook’s extension. That’s how the Penguins ended up with two straight banners seven years after their first one with Sidney Crosby. But Sheary represents more than that.

Sheary was never a big time scorer as he came up. He spent three years at UMass, never amassing (see what I did there?) more than 12 goals in an NCAA season. After that he spent one full season in the AHL, scoring 20 goals in 58 games with Wilkes-Barre. The motivation to play well there is huge of course, because no one wants to spend one more minute in Wilkes-Barre than they have to. The following season saw Sheary bounce between the AHL and NHL team, with 14 goals in 74 games between the two.

Last year, Sheary was up full-time, and on Sidney Crosby’s wing full-time. The result was 23 goals in just 61 games. His 21 ES goals was in the top-20 in the league. The pace hasn’t dropped this year, with eight goals in 20 games.

All of it makes that theory of a few years ago that “Not everyone can play with Sid” seem downright laughable now. That theory got Chris Kunitz an Olympic spot and gold medal, and Chris Kunitz is basically a dude. The theory basically stemmed from Dan Bylsma just forcing Pascal Dupuis onto Sid’s line for years, and Pascal Dupuis was borderline The Suck. Patric Hornqvist spent one year as a winger for Sid, and he had the best goals-per-game rate of his career. Sheary comes up at 23 and is a 20+ goal scorer. It’s just that simple.

Sheary is also an example of how you remain a contender with high-priced starts being paid like it, and one the Hawks might be too late to get to. Sheary, Wilson, Rust, and Maatta and Kuhnackl on the blue line all came up and provided the floor for the Penguins roster for their two Cups. And none of them are expensive. Of course, Sheary got paid after last year and is now $3 million player. But that’s how it has to be done when you’re paying Fleury, Letang, Crosby and Malkin.

Meanwhile on the other side of the coin, the Hawks have traded all their young, cheap talent for a couple years and are trying to get on the right side with Schmaltz, ADB, Hartman. It might be too late.

The reckoning might not be coming for the Penguins like you would guess. Patric Hornqvist comes off the books after the season when Rust and Kunahckl need new paper, but neither are going to break the bank. They’ll lose Ian Cole’s contract of $2 million as well. Two years from now Carl  Hagelin’s $4 million comes off the books, with only Jake Guenztel coming up for a new deal. They could do this for a few years more yet if they maintain health.

It seems pretty simple, no? Wish more could do it.

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Game #20 – Hawks vs. Penguins: Q&A With Mike Darnay

By Sam Fels 2011 0

Mike Darnay is the editor-in-chief of Pensburgh.com. You can follow him on Twitter @MikeDarnay.

 

It’s been a weird start for the Penguins. They sit near the top of the Metro (though some of that is having played the most games), and yet they have a terrible goal-difference even without the 10 they gave up to the Hawks. Their analytic numbers aren’t very impressive either. Are the problems actually structural? Is this just fatigue/boredom? Combination thereof?
Weird doesn’t even start to describe it. They’re in a unique spot where their point totals are pretty much fine, all things considered, but everything else stinks. I guess a 10-1 loss will do that when compounded with a pair of 7-1 losses as well. It’s easy to chalk it up to those second legs of the back-to-back games on the road that Niemi played in, plus an NHL debut from Casey DeSmith in the other. Those three losses are enough to submarine any statistics. But I do think fatigue is a valid issue, given that they’ve played an extra 1/2 season more than some teams in the past two years.
Matt Murray has struggled to start the year for sure. Just a sophomore slump? Any worry about the amount fo games he’s been asked to play?
I don’t think so. I think he’ll be fine and get back to form. Not having a viable backup didn’t help him, as two of the games he was supposed to rest (Chicago and Winnipeg), he ended up having to come in for relief despite playing a full game the night before with travel in between cities. Now that Tristan Jarry has been called up and appears to be able to be a competent backup, it should help Murray get the rest he needs and give the Penguins a backup they can go to.
This sounds stupid, but 15 points in 20 games for Sidney Crosby isn’t up to his usual standards. In addition, his analytic numbers are below what we’ve come to expect. Anything serious going on here?
I don’t think it sounds stupid, because *everyone* has been talking about it. You could even focus on the fact that he scored 0 goals in 11 games and only logged 3 points in those 11 games, before scoring a goal and having an assist on Tuesday night. I think it’s a compounded issue, with the defense not being helped out much by forwards, so goals are going in Pittsburgh’s own net in bunches, and the fact that the whole team is in a spot right now where they aren’t finishing scoring chances and every opponent is.
Conor Sheary, 23 goals in just 61 games last year. Eight already this year. Genuine top line scorer or product of playing with Sid?
Honestly, I don’t know? Seeing as that the Penguins found Sheary out of UMass-Amherst and signed him as an undrafted free agent who spent some time in the AHL before coming up, no one has seen him play at the NHL level outside of the current role he’s in. Perhaps a little bit of both is the correct answer. Players who have a skillset combined with understanding the way Sidney Crosby thinks the game at the speed he thinks the game can set themselves up for success for a long time. I mean, Chris Kunitz was made an Olympian, and Pascal Dupuis extended his shelf life with a team about seven years longer than usual for him before he came to Pittsburgh.
The Metro has kind of come up flat. The Jackets are fine, we guess. The Caps are diluted. The Devils are likely to fade, you’d think. Even if it takes a while, is there any reason to think that the Penguins can’t take this division at a canter?
I don’t think there’s reason to doubt the Penguins right now. The past two years, they’ve shown that it’s not how you start. Once the holidays end and December and January are knocking on your door, that’s when it’s time to start putting together consistent results, and they still have time. Rutherford loves to make trades during December, and I wouldn’t be shocked at all if he does it yet again. To run through the Metro gauntlet here:
Blue Jackets: Probably will have another good regular season, but can they beat the Penguins in a 7-game series?
Devils: Seem to have rebuilt their team fairly quickly into a much different style but still think they need more time.
NY Islanders: I guess they’re still the Islanders? I haven’t seen much this year other than I know their line of Josh Bailey, John Tavares, and Anders Lee are lighting it up. After that, they don’t have much though, right?
Washington: A shell of their former selves, going through a cap-forced rebuild that usually happens to teams who win the Cup, forcing to let free agents walk and make trades to fit under the cap. Not pretty right now.
NY Rangers: Traded their #1 center this season to be able sign Kevin Shattenkirk?
Philadelphia: They can’t score goals right now.
Carolina: i expected them to be better this year but they did sign Justin Williams, so we can blame him for everything.
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Game #20 – Hawks vs. Penguins: Douchebag Du Jour: The Horn Shall Sound In The Crease

By Sam Fels 2048 0

We don’t always pick a goon, or someone who just kills the Hawks. Or a pest. Today, we go to a Ciccarelli-torch-carrier in Patric Hornqvist. Sometimes there’s a guy, and all he does is sit on your goalie, score goals from two feet away, and when he’s not doing that he’s running his mouth and gloving defensemen in the face after whistles. Hornqvist on the playground would have been the kid complaining that the kickball game wasn’t fair and every kid was just waiting for their chance to pelt him with the ball.

It’s not that Hornqvist isn’t effective. When healthy, he’s a good bet to put together his eighth-straight season of 20 goals or more. The only exception to that was the season-in-a-can, and he missed half of that through injury. The dude scores. And his 181 career goals have come from a combined 250 feet.

Somehow, Hornqvist doesn’t rack up too many penalty minutes, never eclipsing 47 in a year. You’d think he could rack more than that on unsportsmanlike penalties alone. There’s a scrap behind the net seemingly every shift. We’d imagine every NHL goalie has fantasies about ramming their goalie stick up into his nuts every game. If only to keep him from whining to the refs after the whistle.

Aren’t Swedes supposed to be docile? Has there been a more annoying Swede since Ulf Samuelsson, who probably should have ended up in jail anyway? By the way, Ulf leads all NHL Swedish players in penalty minutes in a career by 1000 minutes. It’s the Finns who never stop drinking and smoking to counter the darkness. Hornqvist is the darkness.

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