Hawks short on shots — and pay for it
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The Blackhawks have spent much of the early season maligning their own inability to create second chances on their offensive possessions.
For much of Tuesday night’s 4-2 loss to the Sharks, they seemed unable to create offensive possessions at all.
Despite a late push that briefly cut their deficit to one goal, the overall effort was again far from sufficient. From early in the first period to midway through the second, the Hawks went 27 minutes, 42 seconds with just one shot on goal. Through two periods, they had been out-attempted 44-17.
After trending in the right direction on this road trip — improving from a blowout loss in Nashville to an overtime loss in Los Angeles to an overtime win in Anaheim — the Hawks lost all semblance of efficiency and momentum.
Even on the defensive end, they weren’t great. Brent Seabrook lost a box-out on Patrick Marleau for the Sharks’ first goal early in the second period, Adam Boqvist looked paralyzed by a strange bounce that led to a shorthanded breakway goal by Evander Kane, and goalie Robin Lehner was uncharacteristically leaky on
Tomas Hertl’s third-period goal.
Winger Brandon Saad and defenseman Duncan Keith scored for the Hawks in the third period, giving them some temporary life, before an empty-netter by the Sharks’ Timo Meier sealed it.
“That just seems like how it’s been going for us all year,” winger
Patrick Kane said. “Take one step forward, two steps back a lot of the time. Just not consistent enough.”
Future core getting in sync
The Hawks have conveniently stashed four crucial members of their future core all in one place: the second power-play unit.
It’s not the most obvious or glamorous showcase for the future of a franchise, but it has been effective in jumpstarting the Hawks’ lackluster overall power play, not to mention its one older member. Kirby Dach, Alex Nylander, Adam Boqvist and Dominik Kubalik have provided a distinct “Gen Z” flair around Jonathan Toews, who centers the unit.
The group produced Saturday against the Kings, giving the Hawks their first power-play goal in eight games, then essentially scored again Sunday against the Ducks when Boqvist ripped his shot just three seconds after the man advantage expired.
“We’re just all kind of hungry,” Dach said Tuesday before the Sharks game. “I don’t think we really look at it as ‘We’re the
future’ like that, but we know what’s happening and what’s going on within the team dynamic.”
The four young players have spent time off the ice throughout this California road trip, dressing up for Halloween in Los Angeles and hanging out together again
Monday in San Jose.
“We’re all young guys going through the same things, and it’s good — we’re able to learn from each other and what guys have gone through in the past,” Dach said. “Each of us has kind of taken a different route to get here.”
Although the four are currently split up on different lines during normal 5-on-5 play, special teams has proven to be a convenient platform to unite the Hawks’ next generation. Coach Jeremy Colliton certainly is happy to see the chemistry developing.
“We’ve got some young players coming in who are extremely promising and getting better and better,” Colliton said. “They’re feeling confident they can play in the league and contribute to the team. How we’re going to, in the end, turn this around is that combination of the old guys still getting it done and the young guys taking more and more responsibility.”