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Exit Interviews: Sheldon Brookbank

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Regular Season: 48 games, 2 goals, 5 assists, 7 points, +2, -0.16 Behind The Net, 3.28 Corsi/60 (-10.1 Corsi Relative). 

Quick note for those somewhat new here. Behind The Net Rating is the difference in the team’s goals-for and goals-against for every 60 minutes the player in on the ice versus every 60 he’s off.  Corsi Relative is the player’s Corsi number relative to the team’s overall rate. 

Playoffs: 7 games, 2 assists, 2 points, +3, o.21 Behind The Net Rating, -4.98 Corsi (-7.5 Corsi Relative)

What We Liked: When talking about your 6-7 d-man, it’s not so much what you liked as what you didn’t hate.  And for the most part, Brookbank didn’t provide much to hate. In a lot of ways and for a lot of the season he was more effective than Rozsvial, though he didn’t play as regularly and was perhaps as screwed as anyone by the insistence on eight defensemen for reasons we’ve yet to hear. Brookbank was solid enough. He wasn’t fast but didn’t get chased down as much as he did the year before. His work with the puck, especially in the playoffs, was far more assured. His play during Seabrook’s suspension in the first round was a real surprise when we were hiding behind the couch. Didn’t do anything spectacular or even great, but considering what he is I didn’t think there was anything that bad.

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Inside Dr. Weird's Island

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Now that we’re a little separated from last night, I want to try and be as even-handed about Q’s decisions (in this series and in the past) as I can be. It won’t be easy, but if we all work together I think we can get through it.

While Q scratched Nick Leddy for Sheldon Brookbank last night, it didn’t end up working out as a straight swap. As you’ll see from last night’s Extra Skater, Brookbank hardly played with Leddy’s usual partner in Rozsival at all. Brookbank took most of his shifts with Duncan Keith, and like they were in the St. Louis series they were highly effective, at least in terms of possession. Brookbank and Keith were both over 70% in Corsi-percentage, a full 18% above the team-rate for the game. Brookbank didn’t see the highest level of competition either when on the ice, as he mostly saw Brodziak and Niederreiter but there wasn’t a specific matchup either coach was chasing.

Rozsival spent most of his night skating with Johnny Oduya, and they weren’t so lucky. While Rozsvial was above water in overall Corsi, he was below the team-rate. Meanwhile Oduya was completely buried. As far as forwards these two saw it was basically spread out all over the map, as Q couldn’t chase matchups and Yeo didn’t seem too interested when they were on the ice.

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Inside Dr. Weird’s Island

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Now that we’re a little separated from last night, I want to try and be as even-handed about Q’s decisions (in this series and in the past) as I can be. It won’t be easy, but if we all work together I think we can get through it.

While Q scratched Nick Leddy for Sheldon Brookbank last night, it didn’t end up working out as a straight swap. As you’ll see from last night’s Extra Skater, Brookbank hardly played with Leddy’s usual partner in Rozsival at all. Brookbank took most of his shifts with Duncan Keith, and like they were in the St. Louis series they were highly effective, at least in terms of possession. Brookbank and Keith were both over 70% in Corsi-percentage, a full 18% above the team-rate for the game. Brookbank didn’t see the highest level of competition either when on the ice, as he mostly saw Brodziak and Niederreiter but there wasn’t a specific matchup either coach was chasing.

Rozsival spent most of his night skating with Johnny Oduya, and they weren’t so lucky. While Rozsvial was above water in overall Corsi, he was below the team-rate. Meanwhile Oduya was completely buried. As far as forwards these two saw it was basically spread out all over the map, as Q couldn’t chase matchups and Yeo didn’t seem too interested when they were on the ice.

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Hauntingly Familiar: Hawks at Blues Game 5 Preview/Pregame Thread/Swingin' Party

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oldschool vs. blue

FACEOFF: 7pm Central

TV/RADIO: CSN, NBCSN, CBC, 87.7 FM

THOSE WHO CAN’T WRITE FOR THOSE WHO CAN’T READ: St. Louis Gametime

Despite what the Blues and their fans might say, I have to imagine there’s at least a small feeling of deja vu (all over again) creeping up from places they don’t talk about at parties today. St. Louis was in this exact position last year, up 2-0 on the defending champs before closely losing both on the road. The Kings went on to take Game 5 in OT when Brian Elliot let in Slava Voynov’s apologetic shot after Barret Jackman got caught on a dumb pinch (sound familiar?). I’m praying the Hawks won’t need OT tonight, but obviously in this series we can’t rule it out by a damn sight.

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Hauntingly Familiar: Hawks at Blues Game 5 Preview/Pregame Thread/Swingin’ Party

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oldschool vs. blue

FACEOFF: 7pm Central

TV/RADIO: CSN, NBCSN, CBC, 87.7 FM

THOSE WHO CAN’T WRITE FOR THOSE WHO CAN’T READ: St. Louis Gametime

Despite what the Blues and their fans might say, I have to imagine there’s at least a small feeling of deja vu (all over again) creeping up from places they don’t talk about at parties today. St. Louis was in this exact position last year, up 2-0 on the defending champs before closely losing both on the road. The Kings went on to take Game 5 in OT when Brian Elliot let in Slava Voynov’s apologetic shot after Barret Jackman got caught on a dumb pinch (sound familiar?). I’m praying the Hawks won’t need OT tonight, but obviously in this series we can’t rule it out by a damn sight.

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Whatever: Wild 2 – Hawks 2 (Hawks win Cowboys And Indians)

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Box Score

Event Summary

Extra Skater

Well they won’t box up the video of this one and send it off to Toronto for safe keeping. This one looked every bit like two teams missing some key players who really don’t have much on the line just getting through the schedule. But I suppose when you’re missing two of the five best players in the league and then are stripped of one of your top four, you’ll take the points however they get there. So it goes.

And in reality, I liked the Hawks’ structure tonight for the most part. They were hitting the line with five, they were coming all the way back to be available, and when they do that they really keep the other team from getting sustained pressure. The Wild had their moments, but I don’t feel like Crawford ever had to be a poltergeist to keep the puck out of the net. Sure, he still looked behind him twice but those were results of some fluky bounces and deflections.

Of course, a deviation from that structure is what caused the tying goal, but we’ll get to that.

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Straighten Up And Fly Right – Blue Jackets vs Hawks Preview, Pregame Thread, Industry Expo

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Chief_Blue_Meanie vs oldschool

Game Time: 7:00PM Central
TV/Radio: CSN, WGN-AM 720
BROHIO!: The Cannon

Now that the Great Trade Deadline of Aught-14 has come and gone, it appears that as usual, Stan Bowman and the Hawks like their people and will move forward for the most part with what brought them here, despite a pretty obviously glaring need for some kind of center capable of pivoting a scoring line other than Jonathan Toews. But it’s never been a concern they’ve seriously addressed in five years, so why start now. The final iteration of the 2013-2014 Hawks will take the ice for the first time this year against former division opponent Columbus for their only trip to the UC this season.

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And Here Come The Pretzels: Blackhawks 5 – Devils 3

By Matthew Killion 952 0

Box Score
Event Summary
Extra Skater

This kind of explosion in the third period is exactly what makes this team so much damn fun to watch. While there were chances on both sides of the ice in the first, it remained a pretty even and quiet game. There were shifts where both teams threatened but neither goalie or defense was going to give anything up. So after the first remained scoreless with relatively few shots and the second period ended tied at one it seemed like it could end up being a “next goal wins” scenario. Then the third started and the goals flooded in 3 of them in about 4 minutes. It was a blink and you’ll miss it scene. When the Hawks can smell blood in the water, they can usually capitalize. It’s just where they left off last year when they scored those two goals in 17 seconds. It doesn’t happen every game (like most games against the Blues this year unfortunately) but the Hawks can make good teams look very silly and they can make mediocre teams look worse. While the Devils were able to claw their way back into this one. After Hossa’s wrister you could easily have put it in the books.

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Steers And Queers/They Don’t Grow In The Desert: Hawks 1 – Stars 1 (Hawks win Jenga)/Hawks at Yotes Preview

By Sam Fels 919 0

With the Hawks doing a rare Friday-Saturday night double, we’re going to combine our wrap and preview on the pivot. Hopefully we don’t pull a muscle.

There’s not too much to say about last night’s “win.” Though the Hawks have gotten smacked by Colorado and Nashville recently, yesterday’s game certainly felt like the sloppiest they’ve played. I waited for the Hawks to be able to connect on three straight passes at any point. I’m still waiting. Two seemed a struggle. Luckily for the Hawks, the Stars weren’t any better. Everything was kind of frantic and chances basically came out of whatever team was able to rugby-scrum their way toward the other team’s net. This game would have caused Herb Brooks to break out his “monkeys humping a football” line.

Everything Else

Steers And Queers/They Don't Grow In The Desert: Hawks 1 – Stars 1 (Hawks win Jenga)/Hawks at Yotes Preview

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With the Hawks doing a rare Friday-Saturday night double, we’re going to combine our wrap and preview on the pivot. Hopefully we don’t pull a muscle.

There’s not too much to say about last night’s “win.” Though the Hawks have gotten smacked by Colorado and Nashville recently, yesterday’s game certainly felt like the sloppiest they’ve played. I waited for the Hawks to be able to connect on three straight passes at any point. I’m still waiting. Two seemed a struggle. Luckily for the Hawks, the Stars weren’t any better. Everything was kind of frantic and chances basically came out of whatever team was able to rugby-scrum their way toward the other team’s net. This game would have caused Herb Brooks to break out his “monkeys humping a football” line.