Chicago Blackhawks Back Home after Successful 5-3 Road Trip
Monday, February 1st, 2010 | Chicago Blackhawks, NHL, Sports
Although it ended with a loss to the NHL’s 2nd worst team (the Carolina Hurricanes), the Blackhawks could not have been happier with their 5-3 eight-game road trip away from the United Center in Chicago. The Hawks started it off with wins over division rivals – the Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings. After a hiccup in Ottawa with a loss to the Senators, the Blackhawks soundly defeated the playoff-caliber Flames in Calgary. After another bump in the road with a bad loss to the Vancouver Canucks, the Blackhawks took it to the lowly Oilers in Edmonton and then showed why they are considered a Stanley Cup title contender with a big win over the Western Conference points-leader Sharks in San Jose in overtime. Although the Hawks blew a 1st period 3-0 lead, the team never lost hope as regulation ended, striking with Troy Brouwer’s game-winning goal just a minute and a half into the overtime period. This team is built to win, and they proved it will a big road victory over the Sharks.
After playing 7 games in a 13-day stretch, you couldn’t really fault the Blackhawks for dropping Saturday night’s game in Carolina. Knowing they would be heading back home after that contest, it’s not surprising that they laid an egg against one of the worst teams in the NHL (who have been playing better as of late). On the bright side – they rallied to tie the game at 2 in the 3rd period and they outshot the Hurricanes 41-24. Huet didn’t play his best game – stopping 20 of 24 of the shots on goal.
Now it’s time to finish strong over the next 6 games before the Olympics start. The Blackhawks play 4 of 6 games at home at the United Center where they are 21-5-1. The play the St. Louis Blues twice, the Dallas Stars and the Columbus Blue Jackets – 3 teams towards the bottom of the Western Conference. With 2 other home games against the Phoenix Coyote and the Atlanta Thrashers – 2 potential playoff teams – the schedule is set up nicely for the Blackhawks. Winning 4 or 5 of these games is a must for the Blackhawks. Then it’s a sprint to the finish with 15 games in March and 7 games in April before the playoffs start.
Patrick Kane still leads the club with 60 points (21 goals). Duncan Keith (11 goals, 38 assists); Jonathan Toews (18 goals, 26 assists) and Patrick Sharp (16 goals, 27 assists) aren’t too far behind. The Hawks are primed to try to steal the #1 West seed from the Sharks. They trail by only 3 points and would love to be able to get home ice throughout the entire playoffs. That makes each of these games so important – even the “easy” ones. Coach Queneville will have his club ready for this next 6-game stretch – look for the Blackhawks to get off to solid start with a big win over the Blues on Wednesday night…
