Whenever the Hawks hit a rough patch these days, a big debate rages whether it’s just midseason boredom/malaise/market correction, or genuine flaws being exposed that need addressing. The answer is almost always both, and tonight was a pretty prime example of all of that.
vs. 
FACEOFF: 6pm
TV/RADIO: WGN for both
EXES THAT LIVE IN TEXAS: Defending Big D
The Hawks have one last chore before embarking on the annual Circus Trip, which feels like it might be a little more definitive than we thought it would be or it should be. Either way, heading into it with a win that washes out the taste of Friday’s vomit-belch is probably a good idea. Luckily, they’ll get a crack at a Stars team that is struggling and played yesterday, so it’s all right there for them.
vs.
FACEOFF: 7:30 PM Central
TV/RADIO: CSN, WGN Radio 720
YEE HAW!: Defending Big D
Here we go. The curtain raiser on the sometimes confusing, sometimes frustrating, sometimes slog, 82-game story of the 2014-2015 season. And while the Hawks certainly have some new parts to show and some questions to answer, the excitement will mostly be contained on the other side of the ice.
vs. 
FACEOFF: 7:30 PM Central
TV/RADIO: CSN, WGN Radio 720
YEE HAW!: Defending Big D
Here we go. The curtain raiser on the sometimes confusing, sometimes frustrating, sometimes slog, 82-game story of the 2014-2015 season. And while the Hawks certainly have some new parts to show and some questions to answer, the excitement will mostly be contained on the other side of the ice.
Moving along in our look around the Central, it’s time we get to everyone’s new favorite darling (mine as well. I think it’s the jerseys), the Dallas Stars. They’ve gotten so much attention that now everyone hates them, so think of them as last year’s Avalanche. Except they’ll probably be a better possession team than last year’s, or this year’s, Avs, though probably won’t come close to that point total.
Forwards: Clearly, this is where the big splash came for the Stars, trading Alex Chiasson for Jason Spezza (essentially) while signing Ales Hemsky,. While everyone focuses the 1-2 of Seguin-Spezza, to me the real story is that it slots The Ginger Ninja Cody Eakin, who I just love to an irrational degree, onto the 3rd line which is what he really is. A checking line of Roussel-Eakin-Garbutt/Sceviour is going to be one of the most annoying around. If Peverley can return, and that’s obviously a huge if, it gets better. The Stars are one move away from having just about as good of a top 9 as there is in this division. And that one move could be as simple as calling up Brett Ritchie at some point.
Moving along in our look around the Central, it’s time we get to everyone’s new favorite darling (mine as well. I think it’s the jerseys), the Dallas Stars. They’ve gotten so much attention that now everyone hates them, so think of them as last year’s Avalanche. Except they’ll probably be a better possession team than last year’s, or this year’s, Avs, though probably won’t come close to that point total.
Forwards: Clearly, this is where the big splash came for the Stars, trading Alex Chiasson for Jason Spezza (essentially) while signing Ales Hemsky,. While everyone focuses the 1-2 of Seguin-Spezza, to me the real story is that it slots The Ginger Ninja Cody Eakin, who I just love to an irrational degree, onto the 3rd line which is what he really is. A checking line of Roussel-Eakin-Garbutt/Sceviour is going to be one of the most annoying around. If Peverley can return, and that’s obviously a huge if, it gets better. The Stars are one move away from having just about as good of a top 9 as there is in this division. And that one move could be as simple as calling up Brett Ritchie at some point.
When the Stars look back on what will likely be a missed playoff spot, it might be this night that they point to. Before the night they probably counted on the Penguins doing them a favor and perhaps sneak a point or two off a still sleepy Hawks team. The Hawks weren’t all that sleepy, the Pens probably were, and the Hawks walked away with two points and the Starts with a three-point gap to the last wild card.
It’s still kind of startling how the Hawks can exert just enough to not only swing a game but pretty much dominate it. The shot-board says 42-27, and there were definitely stretches where the Hawks pinned the Stars in. But this wasn’t an all-out assault we’ve seen before. It was more pure control, not letting anything get out of the bottle (except for Garbutt’s two goals). Containment rather that domination. It’s still quite effective, and doesn’t take everything out of the legs.
So let’s get to it.
Antoine Roussel will probably learn that when you’re a team like Dallas, it’s better to stay under the Hawks’ radar than to do anything to get them excited to play you.
Oh, and screw Killion.
We should all be aware of this now. This isn’t the last game the Hawks will loose in truly goofy circumstances. Maybe the Avalanche loss kind of falls into this category, but not nearly as deeply as tonight. When you outshoot a team 50-18, and keep the play in their end for seemingly 7-8 minute blocks, I don’t know what else you can do. That’s not to say the Hawks were perfect, but obviously these are Kari Lehtonen’s two points.
While watching this one I couldn’t help but think of the phrase “drunk on power.” Because that’s what it felt like the Hawks were. In some ways that’s a good thing. They didn’t intentionally fall down three goals, but they certainly never looked like they thought they couldn’t pull it back instantly. I feel like all the revivals on the road trip have the Hawks feeling like there’s nothing they can’t overcome, which is good. But it also feels like that’s allowing them to be sloppy for stretches. Was there a d-man tonight not guilty of a boneheaded mistake? Maybe Keith. And yet they can always light a team up in a hurry when they need it, or it feels like that.
You can’t win them all. Sometimes the other team gets the bounces when you need and you don’t. Nothing to see here. Move on to the bullets.
We should all be aware of this now. This isn’t the last game the Hawks will loose in truly goofy circumstances. Maybe the Avalanche loss kind of falls into this category, but not nearly as deeply as tonight. When you outshoot a team 50-18, and keep the play in their end for seemingly 7-8 minute blocks, I don’t know what else you can do. That’s not to say the Hawks were perfect, but obviously these are Kari Lehtonen’s two points.
While watching this one I couldn’t help but think of the phrase “drunk on power.” Because that’s what it felt like the Hawks were. In some ways that’s a good thing. They didn’t intentionally fall down three goals, but they certainly never looked like they thought they couldn’t pull it back instantly. I feel like all the revivals on the road trip have the Hawks feeling like there’s nothing they can’t overcome, which is good. But it also feels like that’s allowing them to be sloppy for stretches. Was there a d-man tonight not guilty of a boneheaded mistake? Maybe Keith. And yet they can always light a team up in a hurry when they need it, or it feels like that.
You can’t win them all. Sometimes the other team gets the bounces when you need and you don’t. Nothing to see here. Move on to the bullets.
