Hinostroza makes best of benching
Without question, Blackhawks rookie forward Vinnie Hinostroza has NHL speed. It’s what he does with it that matters.
And through his first four games, he wasn’t doing much with it.
‘‘ I was just chipping [ the puck] away and trying to chase it,’’ Hinostroza said. ‘‘ I was doing a lot of chasing. The Hawks, we play a big control game. We like to have the puck a lot. I think that fits intomy game, but I was kind of fighting it early on.’’
Through those first four games, Hinostroza managed only one shot on goal and was largely a non- factor. That earned him a fourgame benching, one that coach Joel Quenneville admitted Tuesday was ‘‘ probably a little too long.’’
But Hinostroza made the best of being scratched, watching the games from above and putting in extra work after practices and morning skates. And when he returned to the lineup Sunday as a fourth- liner against the Kings, he was more aggressive and more patient with the puck.
‘‘ Four games is a long time,’’ Hinostroza said. ‘‘ But it was a learning experience. I was watching all our players during the games, and I was working with the coaches after practice on things I needed to work on.’’
The American Hockey League, where Hinostroza spent last season, is a chip and-chase league, thanks largely to the drop- off in talent after the top couple of lines on each team. But in the NHL, particularly for a puck- possession team such as the Hawks, chip and-chase needs to be a last resort, not a first choice.
‘‘ It’s not hard; that’s how I’ve played my whole life,’’ Hinostroza said of carrying the puck through the neutral zone and into the offensive zone. ‘‘ It’s just a little bit faster.
‘‘ All these guys have been in the league for so long, so they know what plays are going to work and what plays aren’t going to work. So I think for us [ rookies], it’s just a learning experience. And sitting out those games and watching and working after practice, it helped me realize what’s going to work.’’
Forsling in
Rookie defenseman Gustav Forsling returned to the lineup after missing two games with an upperbody injury suffered when the Flames’ Lance Bouma hit him face- first into the glass last week.
‘‘ You always want to play every day and go full,’’ Forsling said. ‘‘ But I think this has been good for me. I’ve been thinking a lot how it went earlier and re- evaluating myself. Of course, it’s been tough, but I see the good in it.’’
With Forsling back in, Michal Kempny— not Michal Rozsival— was scratched. That’s partly because Forsling and Kempny both play the left side. But it’s also because Quenneville has been pleased with Rozsival’s play in the last three games, his first games of the season.
‘‘[ Rozsival’s] minutes or his games played will probably be down a little bit this year, but I still like theway he’s come in and played,’’ Quenneville said. ‘‘ That’s why we’re keeping him in the lineup right now. He’s coming off real solid games, and he’s got a little bite to his game, as well.’’
Desjardins close
Quenneville said forward Andrew Desjardins, who suffered an apparent foot injury in the preseason finale, might return Sunday against the Stars.