The Blackhawks beat the Anaheim Ducks in virtually every aspect of the game last night at the United Center. New Rink Writer Jake Martin breaks it all down for you here.
DA BEARS.
DA BULLS.
DEBRINCAT.
Strange winter hats reminiscent of World War II Russian Snipers rained down onto the ice tonight as Alex DeBrincat potted the finishing touch on his first career hat trick. Also noteworthy was the fact that Patrick Sharp, despite his best efforts to make John Gibson (and all three goalposts) look like all stars, found the net himself—ending a long schnide.
I jokingly sent the-rink writers’ group a text halfway through the game that the recap was practically writing itself—and truthfully it did just about that.
Let’s break this down a little further.
The first note I have here is from the ‘Hawks’ first power play. I thought they managed the puck excellently. I actually took note of DeBrincat at this point in the game. He looked very comfortable on the left side along the half-wall. He seemed to be aware of his outlets and he was very deliberate in his finding them. I thought, strangely enough, Gus Forsling looked solid here too. He was able to drop at times below the hash-marks without leaving a giant vacuum at the point. The chemistry and subsequent on-ice communication on this team is improving. The Blackhawks didn’t play a whole lot in their own zone tonight, but when they did, I thought Richard Panik and Duncan Keith played textbook defense. Panik showed a willingness to step in front of shots without leaving himself in no-man’s land, and he was always giving himself space to be an ideal outlet pass.
Now I’m a bit biased, because he’s my favorite of all time, but Duncan Keith’s edge work in the corners behind Corey Crawford is second to none. Tonight he made space where there wasn’t any, all with his head up and finding the open man for a clean escape.
Finally, the Blackhawks looked at times tonight like they’ve had a massive revelation. Scoring in this league is not rocket science, it takes players who are willing to win battles in the tough areas of the ice, areas that aren’t fun to go to and where highlight reel plays aren’t necessarily made.
The Blackhawks on their first three goals set up plays from behind the goal line. Names like Schmaltz and Hartman utilized the Olcyzk patented “take a hit to make a play” mentality and it paid dividends.
This team showed improvement tonight. It was refreshing to see them spending extended periods of time in the offensive zone. It’s funny how names like Murphy, Forsling and company don’t come up as often in wins like this, because they aren’t forced to defend quite as much. Tonight was also Hockey Fights Cancer Night. I think this is worth mentioning. There was a pretty tear-jerking ceremony before the game that included Edzo, who we’re certainly all pulling for.
All for now, go check out the preview of tonight’s game in Nashville at Center Ice on the-rink. We’ll recap that game tomorrow.