It’s time to take down the big top. The six-game circus road trip is over, and the Blackhawks attained nine of the possible twelve points (4-1-1) on the trip. Losing to the Ducks in regulation and to the Kings in a shootout wasn’t the ideal way to end the trip, but we should all feel great about the November this team had. Don’t let anyone else convince you otherwise.
The other day I wrote how the line combinations will see some stability now that Marian Hossa is in the lineup. Well, Coach Quenneville made me look stupid again by moving Patrick Kane off the first line with Hossa and Jonathan Toews in the third period. The idea of having Kane, Toews and Hossa on one line is nice, but it is more like Quenneville to spread out the top talent among a few lines. Opponents will have to resort to more than the tactic of using their checking line against the Blackhawks’ first line.
On his blog yesterday, Tim Sassone reported that the changes we saw in Saturday’s game in Los Angeles should keep – at least at the start of tonight’s game at home vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets. Patrick Sharp will join Hossa and Toews on the first line, and Kane will return to the right side on the second line with Dustin Byfuglien and Kris Versteeg.
How long these combinations will last is obviously up to Quenneville. I like that he is open to change, and is willing to see what works and doesn’t work with the group of players on the roster. Any tinkering will solely take place among the six players on the first two lines. Quenneville is content with the checking line of Andrew Ladd, John Madden and Troy Brouwer, and will keep the three together as long as he can. The Blackhawks’ fourth line is set as well.
Alternative Jersey
In net tonight will be Cristobal Huet. At this point it should be a given that any game that isn’t played on back-to-back nights Huet will start. His 2.12 goals-against average ranks fourth in the league with goalies that have twenty or more starts on the season. I’m still not Huet’s biggest fan, but he has been what the Blackhawks need him to be – have the ability to stop enough of the 24.2 (lowest average in the league) shots-on-goal-against to keep the team in the game. Huet has done it well.
Tonight the Blackhawks will debut their new alternative jersey. It’s a variation of the Winter Classic sweater, which I never really liked. White lacing that is all the rage in NHL jersey fashion will replace the black at the base of the v-neck, and the shoulder crests are rather stylized in red, white and a little bit of black. The shoulder crest doesn’t do much for me. They should have stuck with the crests they have on the home and away jerseys.
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