Archive for the ‘Analysis’ Category

Niemi Has The Opportunity To Take Charge

March 10th, 2010 by Leigh Michael Dengis

Antti Niemi will get the nod tonight at home against the Los Angeles Kings. There has been a lot written about the Blackhawk goalie situation in- and outside of the realm of Chicago beat writers and bloggers – virtually none of which I wasted my time on. Not going to lie, you probably shouldn’t waste your time reading mine. This post should be titled, “My Goaltending Rant”.  We are at the point in the season where it won’t do any good to whine about it. There is no questioning the fact, however, that goaltending must be better, and that means less Cristobal Huet.

All season long the Blackhawks have played possession hockey, which has led to the slew of lopsided shots-on-goal totals for the ‘Hawks in almost every game. The Blackhawks lead the league in shots-for per game (34.0) and have the fewest shots-against per game (24.2). That is one reason why the Blackhawks have the third highest point total in the league with seventeen games left in the season. Most goalies would thrive seeing that many shots per game, but not Huet.

The team has had its share of defensive lapses since the mid-point of the season – every skater a culprit. The defense really needs to tighten up, but being the last line of defense, the goalie needs to make the stop when there is a defensive breakdown. Huet doesn’t seem to be all that effective when that happens. He panics. I said that at the start of the season about Huet, and the same thing can be said now.

I’ve tried to be a good blogger and remain diplomatic regarding the goalie situation, but man do I ever dislike Huet. My objection to the francophone stems from the very day he joined the Blackhawks as a free agent. Never thought we needed Huet, let alone shell out big money for the guy. There is nothing I would love more than to see Niemi take the reins once and for all from Huet, and he has an opportunity to take charge tonight against the Kings.

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Another Road Trip In The Books

January 31st, 2010 by Leigh Michael Dengis

The eight-game road trip is over that took the Blackhawks from one coast to the other and back again. It ended with a 4-2 loss at the hands of the resurgent Carolina Hurricanes, and it is games like these that remind me why some game reviews are impossible to write when nursing the Sunday hangover. This one could have gone the way of the ‘Hawks, but like most other squads finishing a long road trip the team let up in the last game.

The Blackhawks won five games of the eight games on the trip, and tallied ten points out of a possible sixteen. Anytime a team can go .500 or above on a long road trip is impressive. So don’t let anyone of Barry Rozner’s ilk tell you otherwise.

Anyway, the Blackhawks have three days until they host the lovable Blues at the United Center. The ‘Hawks won the two games played between the two central division foes this season. The trio of Barrett Jackman, B.J. Crombeen and Cam Janssen will likely take their shots at Chicago’s stars once again – it will become apparent early that they can’t keep up the better Blackhawk team.

The Blackhawks have today and tomorrow off, and as we’ve learned this year – especially one night in Vancouver for three Blackhawks – idleness has been the root of mischief for this team. So what will Coach Quenneville do to keep his player’s hands from being tools for the devil? Guitar lessons from Adam Burish, maybe? For the record I could care less what players do off the ice.

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The Penalty Kill

January 28th, 2010 by Leigh Michael Dengis

Everybody should know by now that the Blackhawks have one of the best penalty-killing units in the league. They currently rank fourth (85.6%), and have held the top spot at one point. Tonight’s opponent, the San Jose Sharks, has the best penalty kill in the league with percentage of 87.9. I don’t think it takes a rocket scientist to realize that there is a correlation between either team’s ability to keep opponents from scoring with the man-advantage and winning games.

In the case of the Blackhawks, as many dumb penalties it seems the team takes they have had the third fewest shorthanded instances (174) in the league. Combine that with their penalty-kill percentage and they have only allowed twenty-five power-play goals this season – third fewest in the league.

There is no questioning the value of a goalie to the penalty kill, but it has to be one of the most overused hockey clichés. If a team has piss poor defense, the goalie has no shot of seeing any amount of success on the kill. If the Blackhawks weren’t able to control the puck like they do at even strength or while shorthanded the level of success on the penalty kill would be significantly less. Not only does that keep the other team from setting up shop in the Blackhawks’ zone on the kill, they have scored eight shorthanded goals this season – leading the league, and one ahead of the Sharks.

Coach Quenneville’s use of capable two-way forwards such as Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp, and Marian Hossa on the kill has attributed to the offense along with solid defense while shorthanded. Of the eight shorthanded goals, three were scored in the 7-2 victory over the Sharks in San Jose – one each from Hossa, Sharp and Troy Brouwer. The seasonal breakdown is Hossa leading with three, Kris Versteeg with two and Brouwer, Sharp and Duncan Keith with one.

An interesting stat – Cristobal Huet has been in net for every one of the Blackhawks’ shorties.

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Blackhawks 3, Blue Jackets 0

January 15th, 2010 by Leigh Michael Dengis

Cristobal Huet rebounded from his performance in Minnesota by shutting out the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-0. Per usual, the Blackhawks controlled the puck all night, and made the Huet’s night manageable allowing only twenty-four shots on Huet. He did make some great saves at close range, and played with a determined demeanor that seems to elude the francophone often.

The ‘checking line’ of Kris Versteeg, John Madden, and Dustin Byfuglien line had a great night. They put pressure on the Blue Jackets in their zone, and put two goals on the scoreboard. In the first period Versteeg assisted on Brian Campbell’s snipe past Mathieu Garon just above the hash marks. On a second period rush, Madden saw a ready Byfuglien to his left who fired a one-timer for his twelfth on the year.

There have been a few consistently elements to the Blackhawks this season – puck possession, an effective penalty-kill unit and production from the third line. The constant to the third line has been Madden. No matter who is lined up on either side of the center, the third line continues to be effective on both ends of the ice. Madden deserves all the credit he can get.

Early in the season Madden was paired with Andrew Ladd and my boy Troy Brouwer. It resembled a prototypical ‘checking line’ more so then the current version, but they were productive in the opponent’s zone as well as their own. I didn’t think Coach Quenneville would touch this line due to the on-ice chemistry they had, but Quenneville shuffled the lineup in mid-December to promote scoring. As a result Versteeg and Byfuglien were moved to the third line with Madden. In twenty games after joining the third line (December 5th) Byfuglien has scored four goals and nine assists in twenty games, and Versteeg – who joined a week later (December 13th) – has four goals and ten assists in fifteen games on the Madden line.

Since arriving in Chicago, Quenneville has had a laisser-faire approach to the style of play of the thirty-six year old veteran. In Madden’s career with the Devils, he was restricted to the defensive style of play that has long been associated with New Jersey. In Chicago he has aided in the offensive production of his linemates even if his contribution doesn’t show up on the scoresheet – see Versteeg and Byfuglien stats above.

Anyway, the Blackhawks remained dominant in the third period. Duncan Keith scored his tenth goal of the season – the eighth ‘Hawks to reach double digits in goals. Marian Hossa (and Patrick Sharp) assisted on Keith’s goal, and played like his groin wasn’t an issue.

Next up, the Blackhawks will play in Columbus on Saturday for the second half of the home-and-home series with the Blue Jackets. It also marks the first game of an eight game road trip that will encompass the rest of the month.

Chris Kuc is already reporting that Huet will start in net in Columbus, and Cam Barker is ‘likely’ to return as well. This will serve as my pre-game lineup notes post. I plan to attend happy hour tonight, and will ‘likely’ be nursing a hangover tomorrow.

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Blackhawks Get First Crack At Blues In The Payne Era

January 2nd, 2010 by Leigh Michael Dengis

The last time the Blackhawks played the Blues head coach Andy Murray let things get a little dirty. St. Louis was on the loosing end of a 3-0 shutout, and Murray unleashed Barrett Jackman and company on the ‘Hawks. Tonight’s game should be different in that the Blues brass canned Murray this morning, and Davis Payne will take over behind the bench as interim head coach.

He is a virtual unknown to the general hockey fan, but Payne has an ECHL Championship (2006) on his resume. He was previously the head coach of their AHL affiliate the Peoria Rivermen (19-13-1-2). The Blackhawks should be licking their lips at the opportunity to face the Blues in the first game of the Payne era.

Coach Quenneville has turned the team’s scoring woes around since the demotion of Kris Versteeg to the third line on December 13th. The ‘Hawks have only scored less then three goals in the ten games after the lines were shuffled only one time – with an 8-2-0 record. Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews have seen their point production rise significantly since my boy Troy Brouwer joined the two on the first line – replacing Versteeg.

The recent success with the man-advantage can also be attributed to the increase in overall scoring. In the last five games the ‘Hawks have scored with the man-advantage at least once a game, thus bringing the power play unit’s percentage is up to 20.3.

Lineup notes – Niklas Hjalmarsson didn’t make the trip to St. Louis, so Jordan Hendry should be paired with Brian Campbell.

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A Couple Bright Spots In Last Night’s 5-4 Loss To Dallas

December 30th, 2009 by Leigh Michael Dengis

Antti Niemi couldn’t stop the bleeding when he was brought into the game to replacing Cristobal Huet after he let in his fourth goal – a bad bounce off Troy Brouwer’s skate – early in the second period. It’s almost laughable how bad of a night it was for Huet. He needs to put this performance behind him, and drown any memories of this game in the bottle of cognac he keeps in his equipment bag.

The 5-4 loss can’t be blamed solely on Huet. There were some costly turnovers, and shoddy defense – see a stationary Brent Sopel getting beat by Steve Ott on his way to scoring the game winning goal. As a result the Blackhawks penalty kill took a hit last night when Dallas went two of five with the man-advantage. They fell to 86.5% (from 87.5%) on the kill, and are tied with San Jose for second in the league.

A few good things took place in last night’s loss to Dallas. The Blackhawks were dominant offensively in the first period out shooting the Stars twenty-one to eight. They were able to escape the period leading 3-2 because of the great play in offensive zone. The ‘Hawks player movement, puck movement and presence in front of the net was exciting to watch.

Coach Quenneville can look at that and the power play as bright spots from last night. The power play unit went two of four, and with the man-advantage the Blackhawks have scored five times in the last four games.

Next up, the Blackhawks will face the New Jersey Devils at home. Puck movement will be key, as Jacques Lemaire will deploy the trap to stymie the ‘Hawks fast paced offense.

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Looking For Answers – Blackhawks 1, Sabres 2

December 12th, 2009 by Leigh Michael Dengis

Patrick Lalime was prepared for the Blackhawks. He saved thirty-nine of the forty shots faced, and earned his first win of the season. It was poised to be the game the Blackhawks would break out of their scoring funk when the Sabres opted to go with Lalime over Ryan Miller, but as we know now that wasn’t the case. If you are a Cubs’ fan it’s a similar feeling – watching the Cubs’ hitters make a rookie pitcher, fresh out of AA, look like a Cy Young winner. The Blackhawks offense made the Sabres’ backup look great in net.

Forty shots on net is a nice stat to look at, but the shot quality has to get better. Looking at last night’s shot chart a majority of the Blackhawks’ shot came from above the circles. Too many times a defenseman shoots aimlessly from the blue line with little or no traffic in front of the net, and goalies see the puck clearly since it left the defenseman’s stick.

It’s not just the lack of quality scoring chances that has stymied the Blackhawks’ offense. Individual players and teams have stepped up their efforts against the Blackhawks, and that trend continued in Buffalo. Coach Quenneville is searching for answers, and in the short-term he has resorted to shuffling lines.

According to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers, Quenneville was at it again playing with his line combinations at today’s practice. So don’t be surprised if you see Kris Versteeg on the third line, or Patrick Kane reunited with Jonathan Toews on the first line without Marian Hossa on the other wing. I like that Quenneville is being proactive, but lines used in the last two games (Versteeg – Toews – Hossa; Brouwer – Sharp – Kane; Byfuglien – Madden – Ladd; Eager – Fraser – Kopecky) were ideal for me.

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Should We Expect More Of Byfuglien?

December 10th, 2009 by Leigh Michael Dengis

Dustin Byfuglien’s over-time goal last night was good. He sped past Rangers defenseman Matt Gilroy (who happened to be demoted to the AHL today) and cut in front of the net to beat Henrik Lundqvist through the five-hole. I didn’t know Byfuglien could skate that fast and had the ability to put together an athletic move to put the puck in the net, seriously. That goal was almost too good for Byfuglien.

We have seen blips of what Byfuglien is capable in his tenure as a Blackhawk. Last night’s game winning goal showed everyone the skill-level he can play at when he wants, and that is exactly why he has become fodder to fans, bloggers and journalists alike. Byfuglien gives off the impression that he is unwilling to live up to any expectations, and plays without passion. He is nothing more then a body on the ice the majority of his playing time, but yesterday proved he could be something more. Would it be too much to expect anything less out of the big guy now?

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Rangers Visit For Original Six Match-Up

December 9th, 2009 by Leigh Michael Dengis

The Rangers don’t have much going for then right now outside of Marian Gaborik and Henrik Lundqvist – my favorite goalie in the league. Original Six match-ups are always awesome, but this game doesn’t carry as much weight as it would if the Blackhawks played the Red Wings or Bruins – this season at least – as the Rangers have fallen fast after a quick start to the season.

Coming out of one of the most intense games of the season, everything is not all gravy for the Blackhawks. In their last five games, not one game was won in regulation. The problem is that the Blackhawks aren’t scoring goals at the rate they should be. In those five games, the Blackhawks have only eight goals. During this stretch only five of the possible ten points have been earned.

The absence of Dave Bolland from the lineup has become apparent, and could directly have something to do with offensive regression. Coach Quenneville has been deliberately searching for a replacement as the second-line center since Bolland opted for surgery. Right now that man Patrick Sharp. Kris Versteeg did okay in the role, but is better suited as a playmaking winger.

In Pittsburgh, Quenneville skated Versteeg on the same line as Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa. He will flirt tonight with the brilliant idea of demoting the useless Dustin Byfuglien to the checking line, and replacing him with Troy Brouwer on the second line with Sharp and Patrick Kane. Those are two top lines I can get behind.

A couple other lineup notes for tonight’s game is that Cristobal Huet will start in net and Tomas Kopecky will return to the fourth line.

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The Value Of Antti Niemi

December 7th, 2009 by Leigh Michael Dengis

Let me start off this post by stating that I am not calling for Antti Niemi to take starts away from Cristobal Huet. I’ve let it be known that I’m not a big fan of Cristo’s, but I know he is the best goalie on the Blackhawks’ depth-chart. Niemi still has a long way to go. Yet, there will be those writers in the media and in the blog-o-sphere that will feed the meatheads their steak and potatoes by saying otherwise. A couple days both parties will forget all about the Fin.

Anyway, a busy off-season awaits Stan Bowman next summer. Contracts will be moved due to the organizations successful attempt to lock up the Big Three. Even a few remaining restricted free agents will have to go in order to create enough cap-space for next season’s payroll. Two players Bowman would be a fool to trade are Niklas Hjalmarsson and Niemi. Hjalmarsson gets enough love being an everyday player, but Niemi’s value to the team is only brought up when he wins a big game or when Huet struggles.

Niemi is 5-1-1 on the season with two shutouts. Granted seven games is a small sample size, but Niemi has the best goals-against average in the league (1.71) and fourth best save percentage (.931). The best part about those numbers is that they are this good when he is sitting on the bench for weeks between starts. In his role, Niemi has been as asset. Quenneville has alluded to idea that Niemi has earned more consistent playing time, but with Huet playing well this season he’ll be hard pressed to do give the Fin more opportunities to start. I still expect him to get around twenty-five starts on the season.

There is a lot that can happen between now and the end of the 2011-12 season when Huet’s contract is up, but in Niemi the Blackhawks found a solid backup going forward and possible goalie of the future – Corey Crawford is pretty much out of the picture these days. Niemi can be compared to some of the better backups around the league – Ty Conklin for example – minus the track record. Bowman could re-sign Niemi this off-season for two or three years with a slight raise to around $1.2M per-year.

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