Brian Campbell
Sharp, Niemi Help Blackhawks Even Series with Dominant 3-0 Win
Friday, April 23rd, 2010 | Chicago Blackhawks, Nashville Predators, NHL, Sports | 1 Comment
The Chicago Blackhawks came out on a mission on Thursday night and it showed in their 3-0 shutout of the Predators in Nashville. Antti Niemi was solid in net and Patrick Sharp put the Hawks on the board 1st with a power play goal halfway through the 1st period. But the biggest moment of the night came when Tomas Kopecky and Dave Bolland of the Blackhawks committed 2 stupid penalties which gave the Predators a 5-3 advanatge for 1:51 seconds of critical ice time. Somehow the Hawks defense buckled down and kept the Predators from scoring a game-tying goal, and that seemed to take the life out of the Preds and their raucous fans.
When goals by Jonathan Toews and Sharp in the 2nd period extended the Hawks lead to 3-0, you could tell that the game was over. Although the Predators out-shot the Blackhawks for a 2nd straight game (33-30), Antti Niemi rose to the occasion with a sensational performance. He stopped all 33 shots on goal and he was successful in killing all 6 power plays for the Nashville squad. Both of Niemi’s wins in the series have been shutouts.
What a night for the Hawks. With their backs against the walls, the team came together to put forth one of the best efforts of the year. It was great to have Brian Campbell back on defense (he logged 14 important minutes) and the team looks forward to taking the lead for the 1st time in the series when the 2 teams resume play on Saturday afternoon at the United Center. Can’t wait…
Big Night for Chicago Bulls & Blackhawks
Thursday, April 22nd, 2010 | Chicago Blackhawks, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron James, Nashville Predators, NBA, NHL, Sports | 2 Comments
It is a big night tonight for Chicago sports teams as the Chicago Bulls and the Chicago Blackhawks face “must-win” games in their respective playoff series.
The Bulls find themselves in a 2-0 hole in their 1st round NBA series against the #1 seed Cleveland Cavaliers. Lebron James of the Cavs torched the Bulls for 40 points in Monday’s contest. Another loss tonight will all but end the series – can’t see the Bulls coming back from a 3-0 deficit. While Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah have had great performances in both games, the Bulls are going to need more consistent play out of Luol Deng, Kirk Hinrich and Taj Gibson if they expect to contain Lebron tonight and pull of the win. Tip off is 6PM Chicago time and the game will be televised on TNT.
The Blackhawks, meanwhile, find themselves in a 2-1 hole in Nashville. After a horrible, lifeless performance in Tuesday night’s 4-1 loss to the Predators, the Blackhawks must play with more urgency tonight. Brian Campbell – who was injured in a vicious hit about 40 days in which he suffered a broken clavicle and broken ribs – is expected to make his return on the ice tonight. Brian Bickell and Adam Burrish will also return to the line action. Could the return of these 3 players be the energetic injection that will propel the Hawks to victory?
After out-shooting the Predators in Games 1 and 2 of the series, the Predators out-shot the Hawks in Game 3 at home. The Blackhawks will need to apply more constant pressure in tonight’s game and they will have to move the puck around instead of trying to skate past the stingy Nashville defenders. The Hawks will also need a better performance out of goalie Antti Niemi. He was so good in the 1st 2 games, but will need to rebound from a sub-par showing in Game 3. It is do-or-die for the Blackhawks tonight in Nashville. Let’s hope they can put together a solid game like they did on Sunday at the United Center. If they can win tonight and even the series at 2 games apiece, I like the Blackhawks chances of advancing to round 2 and avoiding the upset. Tonight’s puck-drop is scheduled at 7:30 Chicago time in Nashville and the game will be televised on TSN2.
Blackhawks Lead Central Division; Gearing up for Circus Road Trip
Thursday, November 19th, 2009 | Chicago Blackhawks, NHL, Sports | No Comments
The Chicago Blackhawks are in a great position to start the 2009-2010 NHL schedule. So far so good for the up-and-coming beast of the West. With 26 points (12-5-2), the Blackhawks lead the Central Division of the Western Conference. The Blackhawks like the way they have started, but also know that they have a tough task at hand in the very difficult Western Conference. All but 3 teams in the conference already have at least 21 points – that means night in and night out, the Blackhawks will have to play at the highest level if they want to reach the Conference Finals for a 2nd consecutive year.
Patrick Kane has put his off-the-ice issues behind him (he was arrested over the summer in Buffalo for an altercation with a cab driver) and leads the teams in scoring with 7 goals and 12 assists. Patrick Sharp is 2nd on the team with 16 points (6 goals and 10 assists), while Duncan Keith is 3rd with 15 points (5 goals and 10 assists). Jonathan Toews has played at a high level as well – 2 goals and 7 assists – but needs to play a little more consistently as the season progresses. Kris Versteeg (4 goals and 8 assists), Troy Brouwer (5 goals and 4 assists) Brian Campbell (1 goal and 8 assists) and Brent Seabrook (team leader with a +/- of 9 with 2 goals and 7 assists), have all been key contributors for the Blackhawks early success this season.
Cristobal Huet and Antti Niemi have shared the goal-tending duties for the Blackhawks in 2009. Huet has started 15 games, going 9-4-1 with a 2.25 goals against average. Huet has saved 90.2% of the shots on goal while he has been in the net. Huet overcame a rough start to the season losing 3 of his 1st 6 starts – he allowed at least 3 goals in 5 of those starts. He is on a hot streak – winning 5 of his last 6 starts – and he looks to keep it going on the upcoming trip.
Niemi has played in 5 games this season, going 3-1-1. He has a 2.22 goals against average and has saved 90% of the shots taken against him.
The Blackhawks expect to get their big free agent acquisition – Marian Hossa – back on the ice at some point during the upcoming Circus road trip. That should help the Blackhawks continue their strong play even away from the friendly confines of the United Center.
The “Circus Road Trip” (the United Center is being used for the annual Circus tour for the next 2 weeks) won’t be easy. With games at the Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Vancouver Canucks, San Jose Sharks, Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings over the next 10 days, the Blackhawks will have their work cut out for them. The Sharks, Kings and Flames each have at least the same number of points as the Blackhawks and the Ducks are the only team on the trip with a losing record. If the Blackhawks can somehow manage to win half of their games on the trip, Coach Quinneville and his staff should consider that a huge success.
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