Chicago Sun-Times: All posts by Ben Pope

Blackhawks notes: Jason Dickinson’s leadership recognized with ‘A’

2023-12-14T16:53:02.397-06:00

Jason Dickinson’s jersey has added an “A” on this road trip during Seth Jones’ absence.

Michael Reaves/Getty Images

SEATTLE — With Seth Jones absent for the Blackhawks’ two-game road trip, forward Jason Dickinson donned an “A” on his jersey instead, temporarily joining Nick Foligno and Connor Murphy as the three alternate captains.

“It’s a huge honor that they trust me to wear it,” Dickinson said. “I don’t think it changes anything in my approach. I try to be a leader without the letter. There’s a number of guys in this room that could’ve worn it. But it’s a great honor. I’m appreciative they recognize the leadership that I bring.”

Added coach Luke Richardson: “He’s shown that he deserves it [based on] the way he’s played and his leadership, talking on the bench [during] the timeouts.”

Dickinson’s intelligence is an asset in the locker room, where he has established a clear niche in his 1½ years since coming over from Vancouver. Foligno recently mentioned him as somebody who has stepped up leadership-wise since Corey Perry’s departure.

He’s enjoying a career year on the ice, too. Entering Thursday’s game against the Kraken, he had already tied his career high of nine goals — with two-thirds of the season left. Those nine goals ranked second on the team, behind Connor Bedard (12) and ahead of Philipp Kurashev and Tyler Johnson (six each).

It’s the defensive zone where Dickinson typically makes his biggest impacts, though. Linemate Joey Anderson recently raved about his defensive responsibility.

“I don’t think people understand how many small things he picks up on out there,” Anderson said. “If anything breaks down, he picks up on it. He covers up a lot of mistakes. Things could get bad really quick if he wasn’t on top of everything.

“[It’s remarkable] the way he navigates the ice and the way he adapts to plays, and he does it at such a rapid speed. . . . He sees things at game pace, if not faster than that, and he’s on top of it before it happens.”

Vlasic’s big workload

Young defenseman Alex Vlasic led the Hawks with 24:58 of ice time Tuesday against the Oilers, falling just a few seconds short of the career high he set Dec. 5. That increased his season ice-time average above the 20-minute threshold.

With Jones, Kevin Korchinski and Jarred Tinordi all out again Thursday, Vlasic continued operating as the team’s No. 1 defenseman, even quarterbacking the top power-play unit.

Despite Vlasic’s inexperience, Richardson feels comfortable giving him such a big workload because he trusts him to speak up when he’s too tired.

“At the end of the second period [Tuesday] on the penalty kill, [assistant coach Kevin Dean] asked him if he was OK [to go back out],” Richardson said. “He was honest; he said no. Some players will just go back out there, but then you’re putting your team in detriment. So he’s smart enough to know when to say he needs a rest.”

Aviation adventure

The Hawks were scheduled to practice Wednesday, and they were looking forward to it. It was to be just their fourth practice in a 20-day span because of the frequency of games.

Things went awry, however, when their plane from Edmonton was forced to divert to Portland, Oregon, at 2 a.m. because of foggy conditions in Seattle.

The international nature of the flight complicated things further, preventing the team from disembarking in Portland. After hours on the tarmac, they were eventually able to fly and land in Seattle around 7 a.m., at which point everyone was far too exhausted to practice.

Blackhawks’ Joey Anderson cementing NHL roster spot with strong play

2023-12-13T18:21:05.57-06:00

Blackhawks forward Joey Anderson has earned a full-time NHL spot with his strong play.

AP Photos

SEATTLE — Blackhawks forward Joey Anderson has played so well that he can be safely labeled a full-time member of the Hawks’ NHL roster, rather than a mere injury replacement, at this point.

The Hawks’ decision to send Boris Katchouk through waivers and eventually to Rockford is proof of that. Anderson, originally one of the Hawks’ final cuts at the end of training camp, has clearly leapt over Katchouk, who had previously been a healthy scratch in four straight games, on the depth chart.

Anderson, 25, has also surpassed Reese Johnson, who has been a healthy scratch in three of the last five games, and probably MacKenzie Entwistle, too. And if he keeps playing the way he has the past few weeks — while tallying four points in 11 NHL games so far this season — he’ll only continue ascending.

“[Joey brings] an incredible work ethic,” forward Jason Dickinson said Tuesday. “He’s playing simple, he’s not trying to do too much and he’s working extremely hard.

“He’s getting above pucks, he’s always recovering to the middle, he’s making sure he’s not getting beat on his one-on-one battles and he’s coming out of the corners with pucks very often. It’s going to translate to a very good hockey game if he’s doing all that.”

In a roundabout way, the fact Anderson was sent down to Rockford to start the year ended up benefiting him.

Having already bounced frequently between the NHL and AHL over the past five years in the Devils’ and Maple Leafs’ organizations, he wasn’t discouraged by the demotion. That mindset helped him dominate in Rockford, recording 16 points in 14 games while shouldering big power-play and penalty-kill roles.

When the Hawks called him up on Thanksgiving — in the wake of Taylor Hall’s season-ending injury and Corey Perry’s departure — his rhythm translated seamlessly.

“That’s probably been the most confident I’ve been, coming into the NHL, as far as holding onto pucks and making plays,” Anderson said.

Joey Anderson knows how to get to the dirty areas around the net.

Getty Images

His checking line with Dickinson and Nick Foligno has been by far the Hawks’ best lately. They’ve been effective defensively against opponents’ top trios while producing plenty of offense themselves.

Since Thanksgiving, the Hawks have outscored opponents 9-3 with a plus-15 shot-on-goal differential during Anderson’s five-on-five ice time. When he hasn’t been on the ice, they’ve been outscored 19-9 with a minus-69 shot-on-goal differential. The difference is enormous.

“That line is our staple right now of how we want to play,” coach Luke Richardson said.

Anderson’s ice time has increased to 13:53 per game, well above his 9:35 average in 14 appearances last season with the Leafs and also higher than his 12:56 average in 24 appearances last season with the Hawks (following his inclusion in the Jake McCabe/Sam Lafferty trade).

He has never been an agile skater by NHL standards, but his high hockey IQ nicely complements Dickinson. He knows precisely how to be pesky on the forecheck and get to dirty areas around the crease, creating tips and rebounds.

“It’s [about] making sure you’re picking your spots and not wasting energy chasing the game, doing things you don’t need to do,” Anderson said. “When I see a spot to dive in and go, I have to make it count.”

In an otherwise bland Hawks loss Tuesday, Anderson was a bright spot yet again. He nearly deflected in an Alex Vlasic shot on the game’s first shift and drew a holding penalty in the third period. The Hawks outshot the Oilers 8-5 during his ice time.

“[I’m] trying my best to not be comfortable but still play like I am, if that makes sense,” he said.

It’s a wise mindset indeed. But considering how things have sorted out, he can probably afford to get slightly more comfortable now.

Blackhawks lose to Connor McDavid’s Oilers despite Connor Bedard’s highlight goal

2023-12-13T00:40:54.361-06:00

Connor Bedard’s goal wasn’t enough to help the Blackhawks avoid a 4-1 loss Tuesday.

Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP

EDMONTON, Alberta — Connor Bedard won the Connor battle but the Blackhawks lost the scoreboard battle in a 4-1 defeat Tuesday against the Oilers.

Bedard scored the Hawks’ lone goal, another highlight-worthy snipe in which he maneuvered the puck around Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm’s outstretched stick before picking a corner above goalie Stuart Skinner.

CONNOR IN EDMONTON pic.twitter.com/JSFgElwuOr
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 13, 2023

The Hawks did keep Bedard’s even-more-famous Edmonton namesake, Connor McDavid, out of the net, yet McDavid added two assists to help the Oilers pull away for their eighth straight win. The Hawks incurred their seventh straight road loss.

It was an unsurprising result given the state of the Hawks’ Seth Jones-lacking defensive corps. Alex Vlasic logged a team-high 24:58 of ice time while Connor Murphy and Isaak Phillips also exceeded 21 minutes out of necessity.

A fluky own-goal by Nikita Zaitsev, who played 18:43, put the Hawks in a 3-1 hole in the second period out of which their equally weak offense was unable to dig. The Oilers finished with a 40-19 advantage in scoring chances.

“It sucks because it stings losing, and losing 4-1, it seems like we might’ve gotten dominated,” forward Jason Dickinson said. “But I really didn’t feel like we were.”

Added coach Luke Richardson: “I thought we did a pretty good job. If you take out the goal that went off Zaitsev’s stick and then [the Oilers’] power-play goal, we were right in that game.”

The Oilers pulled away for a 4-1 win.

Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP

Connor vs. Connor

Nearly every Hawks game during the first few months of the season has featured Bedard facing some notable individual opponent for the first time.

Bedard has experienced his first meeting with Sidney Crosby, with Auston Matthews, with Nathan MacKinnon, with Nikita Kucherov, with No. 2 pick Leo Carlsson and — just Sunday — with Alex Ovechkin. Every matchup is interesting, but the frequency does diminish the specialness.

“Every night [when] you’re going in, you can pick a few players on each team that you’re pretty excited to play,” Bedard said Tuesday.

Indeed, Bedard might be tired of the recycled storylines at this point, and understandably so. He has discussed becoming less starstruck over time and instead focusing on being more assertive on the ice around such larger-than-life figures.

But Tuesday’s matchup against McDavid — the very best player in the NHL right now, the player to whom Bedard is most often compared and the non-Hawks player who has mentored Bedard the most — did feel especially significant.

They’ve known each other for a couple years now and worked closely together during a BioSteel-sponsored camp in August, during which McDavid imparted some advice on Bedard.

“I don’t want to annoy him too much,” Bedard said. “But if I can throw a couple of questions in there, [I will]. And he was great with me this summer. He was always giving me little things. It was really cool to see such a nice, humble guy, and it was pretty cool for me to get to spend some time with him.”

Added McDavid: “Obviously his shot is really what jumps off [the page], but I was impressed by just how smart he was, how skilled he is and how good he is with the puck.”

McDavid’s career arc establishes the best-case scenario for Bedard long-term, but it’s going to take years to determine if Bedard could viably reach McDavid’s level.

The Oilers superstar tallied 153 points last season, the most productive season by anyone in nearly three decades, and sports 38 points in 24 games this season. Bedard’s 24 points in 28 games are very impressive for a rookie but pale in comparison.

Reichel vs. Draisaitl, too

Tuesday also marked Hawks forward Lukas Reichel’s first-ever game against Oilers star Leon Draisaitl, whom he idolized as a teenager.

“He’s the best player ever in Germany, and he’s going to be like that for I don’t know how long — maybe ever,” Reichel said.

They aren’t friends like Bedard and McDavid are — at least not yet. Reichel said Draisaitl texted him on his draft night in 2020, but they haven’t talked since. And they play very different styles due to their body sizes: Draisaitl is 6-2, 210 pounds whereas Reichel is 6-0, 185 pounds.

But watching how deadly Draisaitl can be shooting from tight angles along the goal line has inspired Reichel, during the Hawks’ end-of-practice one-timer shooting sessions, to usually position himself at the bottom of the umbrella, too.

“He always scores from there, so I try to make it hard for myself,” Reichel said.

While Bedard clicked Tuesday, however, Reichel struggled. He misread his responsibility when defending a rush in the first period, leading to an easy Ryan Nugent-Hopkins goal for the Oilers, and ultimately received a team-low 10:14 of ice time.

“He’s got to have more fight in him,” Richardson said. “He’s just down on himself. It’s pretty hard for a coach to give a player confidence. All we can do is just try to show them some pointers.”

Seth Jones’ injury, Kevin Korchinski’s absence leave Blackhawks with skeleton defense

2023-12-12T16:07:36.638-06:00

Without Seth Jones, Alex Vlasic has become essentially the Blackhawks’ top defenseman.

Michael Reaves/Getty Images

EDMONTON, Alberta — During the Rockford IceHogs’ brief playoff run last season, Alex Vlasic, Isaak Phillips, Louis Crevier and Filip Roos formed two-thirds of their defensive corps.

On Tuesday against the Oilers, that foursome formed two-thirds of the Blackhawks’ defensive corps.

With Seth Jones sidelined by an upper-body injury while Kevin Korchinski remains away from the team (attending to a family matter) and Jarred Tinordi recovers from a concussion, the Hawks are essentially rolling with the 2022-23 Rockford defense as their own.

Connor Murphy and Nikita Zaitsev are the only two healthy veterans, and both have endured their own struggles this season.

Coach Luke Richardson’s main advice for his shorthanded unit was simply to “play from the inside out.”

Jones seemingly injured his shoulder Sunday against the Capitals when he took a hit from forward Nicolas Aube-Kubel late in the third period. After the game, he was spotted walking into the X-ray room, but Richardson later said he was “only sore” and would “absolutely” travel to Edmonton.

Seth Jones appeared to injure his shoulder on this hit from Nicolas Aube-Kubel on Sunday, shortly before the Capitals' 4th goal: pic.twitter.com/RohB4Lw0fF
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) December 12, 2023

On Tuesday, however, Jones was not present. Richardson said he stayed in Chicago for further evaluation.

Roos was called up from the AHL for his 18th career NHL appearance (and his first since March). Phillips, who was in the AHL as recently as last week, made his 32nd career appearance. Crevier, who was in the AHL two weeks ago, made his fifth career appearance. And Vlasic, making his 47th career appearance, took over quarterbacking the top power-play unit.

Jones’ oversized contract has made him a lightning rod for criticism, but he’s the most important part of the Hawks’ defense and a much better player than some fans realize. When he missed 10 games in November 2022 with a thumb injury, the Hawks felt his absence, going 2-6-2 during that stretch.

Richardson went out of his way recently to demonstrate why much of the criticism of Jones is unfair.

He mentioned a play Dec. 2 against the Jets in which Vlasic and Taylor Raddysh were beaten along the wall on a Winnipeg rush. Jones scrambled over but was unable to prevent a goal.

“So we all point fingers at [Jones] because it looks like he’s not doing his job at the end of the play, but he does a lot of good things right,” Richardson said.

Jones ranks fourth in the NHL (entering Tuesday) in ice time, averaging 25:25 per game — trailing only Philadelphia’s Travis Sanheim, Los Angeles’ Drew Doughty and Washington’s John Carlson. He ranked 12th last season at 24:27 per game.

And although his 43.3% five-on-five scoring-chance ratio doesn’t look particularly pretty, only Korchinski (46.7%) and Phillips (45.7%) have better ratios, and Jones faces much tougher matchups than they do. Jones is at 48.2% in his last 14 games, too.

For him, the most frustrating thing has been his lack of scoring. He remains stuck on zero goals after scoring 12 last season.

He’s shooting more frequently than he has in any season since 2017-18, and his scoring-chance-per-minute rate is the highest of his career. But pucks just aren’t going in. He entered Tuesday with the most shots on goal (60) of any NHL player without a goal.

“It’s a struggle,” Jones said last week. “We’re not a big rush team, so there’s not a lot of chances that come from there. I’ve got to find a way to be a little bit more involved without being careless and overaggressive and giving up chances the other way.”

Korchinski’s absence is also problematic, considering he has accounted for 19:31 of ice time per game and had been — along with Vlasic — one of the Hawks’ two most reliable young defensemen.

It’s unclear how long Korchinski and Jones will be out.

Blackhawks finally earn consecutive wins after Petr Mrazek stifles Blues

2023-12-09T22:36:27.628-06:00

Petr Mrazek helped the Blackhawks beat the Blues on Saturday.

Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Just when it seemed like Petr Mrazek’s goaltending had fallen back to earth, the Blackhawks veteran rediscovered his top form this week.

Mrazek stopped 38 of 39 shots Saturday, guiding the Hawks to a 3-1 victory against the Blues only two days after getting his first shutout in three years.

“I just saw the puck really well, especially early,” Mrazek said. “I [saved] the breakaway in the first minute in the first period, and that gets you going. And like I said two days ago, when you see the puck early, it makes the game a little easier.”

Nikita Zaitsev’s two assists, Anthony Beauvillier’s first goal since the trade and Mrazek’s efforts helped the Hawks earn consecutive wins for the first time all season.

“It’s been a long time coming,” coach Luke Richardson said.

They also improved to 4-1-1 in their last six home games and snapped a four-game home losing streak against the rival Blues.

Mrazek had allowed three or more goals in seven consecutive starts entering the week, dropping his save percentage back to normal after an excellent October. He hadn’t been a team weakness by any means, but he hadn’t been able to overcome the regularly shoddy defense in front of him, either.

Starting halfway through a blowout loss Sunday against the Wild, however, something flipped. He stopped the last 10 shots he faced in that game, then all 37 shots he faced Thursday in a 1-0 win over the Ducks before staying locked-in Saturday. Richardson mentioned how his active puck-playing neutralized the Blues’ forecheck, too.

His season save percentage now stands at .912 — an impressive number on this Hawks team.

Korchinski has family matter

The Hawks moved rookie defenseman Kevin Korchinski onto the non-roster list because he’s away from the team to attend to a family matter, Richardson said. Isaak Phillips was recalled from Rockford and slotted alongside Seth Jones.

Korchinski’s absence is unrelated to the world junior championships, which start Dec. 26 in Sweden.

“He’s just starting to scratch the surface of his ability,” Richardson said. “Definitely we’re going to miss him, but we wish him all the best.”

The 19-year-old native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, nearly produced the biggest highlight of his career Thursday, racing down the right wing and cutting to the net for a high-danger scoring chance that was barely thwarted.

“We want to promote that for him when it’s his chance to go,” Richardson said. “It’s the best part of his game, his skating ability and [ability to] create offense. He’s shown a couple of those this year. And it would be great to add [chances like that] once a period — or maybe twice a period, if it presents itself like it did there — and not be so eager to pass off and bail out.”

Korchinski has two goals and five assists in 25 games, but he has focused most of his attention on improving in the defensive zone, where his game needs a lot more refining. The Hawks remain confident he’ll eventually evolve into a high-end offensive defenseman.

Vlasic more active, too

Fellow rookie defenseman Alex Vlasic also has been more active jumping into rushes and getting involved offensively recently.

Richardson reviewed some video clips with Vlasic in which he skated 180 feet or so — the length of the ice — to get involved in a rush, but then made a poor decision with the puck at the last moment, negating his positive impact.

On one play Tuesday against the Predators, however, Vlasic jumped into the rush, executed a give-and-go with Nick Foligno and circled around the net with the puck — a play that eventually led to a goal by Dickinson.

“I haven’t been perfect, but I’ve impressed myself,” Vlasic said Saturday.

Amid Blackhawks’ losing malaise, Louis Crevier provides an injection of joy

2023-12-09T06:30:00-06:00

Rookie defenseman Louis Crevier has brought an upbeat attitude to the Blackhawks.

David Berding/Getty Images

Defenseman Louis Crevier is truly thrilled to be on the Blackhawks.

His happiness is evident in his expression, in his demeanor and in his words at all times. Since getting called up to the NHL roster last weekend, Crevier, 22, has felt like he’s on top of the world — in the humblest, most endearing kind of way.

“It’s never a bad day when you’re up here,” Crevier said Thursday, beaming ear to ear.

As the Hawks struggle to shoulder the piling-up emotional weight of their many losses this season — and last season, and the season before — the injections of joy provided by stories and personalities such as Crevier’s can be invaluable.

Crevier, who picked up his first NHL point (an assist) Saturday, may or may not end up making a difference on the ice this season — he has played in only three games — but his mood certainly makes a difference regardless.

“He burst out in a big smile when we told him [last Sunday he would be] playing his first game,” coach Luke Richardson said. “Even [on Tuesday] when I said, ‘Maybe grab warmups just to get the feeling in the building,’ he was smiling.”

Smiles like that were ubiquitous around Fifth Third Arena back in training camp, when Connor Bedard and the legion of rookies brought all sorts of excitement into the locker room, but they’ve become harder to find lately.

Returning players from last season’s team expected at least some moderate improvement, even if they weren’t thinking playoffs, and the lack of success has been disappointing. The Hawks entered the game against the Blues in last place in the NHL and on pace for 56 points — three fewer than last season.

Nobody is losing faith or patience in the long-term plan, but when — unlike in a video game — you can’t simulate through the interim years, the cycle of putting in so much effort and preparation for every game, then losing most of those games is draining.

“I don’t think people understand how much it weighs on you when you lose,” veteran defenseman Seth Jones said. “We do this for a living, and guys get paid a lot of money to do this, but [when] you go home, it’s all you’re thinking about. It sucks. You come in here and what are we, [9-16-1] this year? It’s not fun. We want to try to turn that around as quick as we can, but we understand this is a rebuild. These things take time.”

It’s amid that malaise that even secondhand joy for guys such as Crevier can provide a breath of fresh air. The IceHogs had just lost a tough game against Manitoba last Friday when they were told he was getting called up; the congratulations for one of their most popular teammates lasted the rest of the night.

Crevier’s hockey journey is inspiring. The towering 6-8, 238-pound Canadian went undrafted in 2019, his first year eligible, before the Hawks nabbed him in the seventh round in 2020.

His NHL odds were still infinitesimal at that point, but he remembers asking, “Why not?”

He spent two more years playing junior hockey in Quebec, reaching overage status before moving on to the AHL. He logged 78 total games for Rockford this season and last, making huge strides with his strength, physicality and confidence — strides that finally put him more firmly on the Hawks’ radar. He’s one of only five guys from the 2020 seventh round who have reached the NHL.

“I’m just enjoying it as much as possible right now,” he said. “For sure, it’s an adjustment, but [when you’re defending] a two-on-one against Bedard and [Lukas] Reichel, it makes you better, you know? As the days go by, I’ll figure it out and all that stuff. But I’ve got to stick to what I did well in Rockford and [do the] same here.”

Corey Perry fallout: How Blackhawks’ locker room has adjusted without him

2023-12-08T17:04:52.766-06:00

Blackhawks alternate captains Nick Foligno (left) and Seth Jones (right) have helped the team regroup following Corey Perry’s departure.

Michael Reaves/Getty Images

It was back in June when Seth Jones received his first call from Nick Foligno about the Blackhawks.

Weeks before the Hawks officially signed Foligno, the then-Bruins veteran reached out to Jones — his former Blue Jackets teammate of six years — to get the scoop on the situation he might be walking into in Chicago.

“I tried to tell him as much as I could,” Jones said. “Obviously, it wasn’t all fun and games, what I was telling him. I said, ‘It’s going to be a challenge. You’re going to have your work cut out for you. We’re still trying to develop that culture with the Blackhawks that we had in Columbus.’”

Around the same time last summer, Hawks coach Luke Richardson and general manager Kyle Davidson sat down with then-Lighting veteran Corey Perry for about 40 minutes. They presented him with a Chicago sales pitch that covered, as Perry later described it, “everything from under the sun...from family to hockey to schooling.”

Their pitch to Perry was probably rosier than the one Jones gave Foligno, but ultimately, both well-respected, well-traveled veterans — incentivized even more by matching $4 million contracts — signed up for the jobs.

Now, less than halfway through the season, the Hawks have lost half of their haul of veteran mercenaries — arguably two-thirds, if Taylor Hall is included in the equation. The fact Perry’s departure involved such messy, controversial, drawn-out circumstances made it even more disruptive, too.

Blackhawks terminating Corey Perry’s contract after investigating workplace misconduct

That saga has finally quieted down, but even more pressure and responsibilities have now been shifted onto Foligno, Jones and Connor Murphy — the Hawks’ three remaining alternate captains — as they seek to provide a roster in transition the guidance it needs.

So, how have they adjusted? The short answer is they’ve adopted more of a by-committee leadership approach.

During training camp, the Hawks collectively brainstormed and wrote down a few “core values” for their group. “Brotherhood” was one of them, Jones said. It took a couple weeks to rediscover that brotherhood within this new dynamic, but this week back in Chicago has helped.

“There was a little bit of a lull on that road trip, when the dust settled and you realized [Corey is] really not coming back,” Foligno said. “You could tell the energy he brings...was missing. You mourn that loss, and then you realize, ‘Alright, it’s not changing, so what are we going to do to get the energy back?’ We realized other guys have to step up.

“Now you’re starting to see guys think, ‘I learned, even in the short time, what [Corey] meant and why he was so effective in his role.’ You’re starting to see that from guys. Tyler Johnson has been a big example of that. [He’s] understanding, ‘Alright, I’ve got to do a little bit more here, talking to guys and being more vocal on the bench.’ Murphy has done a great job of being more vocal. Jones, as well — he’s not mostly like that, but he’s understanding [he needs] to drive that energy in practice.”

Corey Perry’s departure created a void in the Blackhawks’ locker room at first.

Michael Reaves/Getty Images

During Perry’s two months in the Hawks’ locker room, he didn’t actually speak often, but the way everyone quieted down to hear his message whenever he did made him influential. After 18 seasons in the NHL, during which he made the playoffs 15 times and went to the Stanley Cup Final four times, he had a lot of wisdom to share.

That’s why Johnson is particularly well-suited to step up and help the Hawks fill Perry’s void. He’s also somewhat soft-spoken, but he’s in his 12th NHL season and has gone to three Cup Finals.

Foligno mentioned Jason Dickinson as another guy who has embraced more responsibilities. Dickinson has always thought like a general manager, is one of the most intelligent players in the league and is playing very well this season, too.

Plus, Connor Bedard — the presumptive heir to the Hawks’ captaincy at some future point — and the Hawks’ other rookies have gained confidence over the course of the 25 games so far this season.

“Our young guys are getting a little older,” Foligno said. “They’re realizing there are right and wrong ways to play. [They’re learning], ‘If there’s a turnover here or I don’t make this play here, it’s going to cost us.’ You’re starting to see some maturity there.”

Foligno’s tradition of regularly inviting those young guys over to his house for dinners — he started doing that during camp and has continued doing so every week or two since — has helped accelerate their acclimation periods.

His wife cooks the meal, his rambunctious kids lighten the mood and everyone in attendance shares more of their vulnerable side. The most recent one was Wednesday, to give a sense of the regularity. It’s a brilliant idea, and he deserves a lot of credit for organizing it.

“It’s eight of us sitting around a table, laughing,” Foligno said. “We’re not in a restaurant; we’re in a private atmosphere. You break down barriers that way. A younger guy is more willing to speak up and more comfortable in a home environment. You get to chat with them more about their lives. Little things come out of those dinners that help the bonding experience.”

Foligno’s social skills and outgoing personality have indeed proven extremely valuable for the Hawks. He has become their de facto captain, especially in situations where one person must speak on behalf of — or to — the team.

But loudness isn’t the only form of leadership, and Jones and Murphy’s by-example approaches also matter.

Murphy mentioned how Patrick Kane’s “actions spoke so much higher than any words” in previous seasons, for example. Now, Murphy — as by far the longest-tenured Hawk left — fills some of that Kane role.

“I come from some experience of just being here, having some comfort with the staff and team, and knowing what we’ve been through and what doesn’t work,” Murphy said. “Knowing [my way] around can help with anyone who’s either uncomfortable or seems like they’re trying to find themselves in a new organization.”

And Jones has focused his leadership more toward on-the-ice accountability, ensuring everyone is executing — or at least trying to execute — the plays, strategies and skills they’ve heard from the coaches and worked on in practice.

“We want to make sure everyone’s doing the little things,” Jones said. “We’ve been hit-or-miss...when it comes to little shot blocks, little backchecks and things like that. Once you get those little things dialed in, the game becomes a lot easier.

“We’ve had a lot of young [defensemen] and young forwards in our lineup that are still learning the game. When you’re young, it’s hard to find that consistency every night. ... We all knew that was going to happen coming into this year, and we’re just trying to find a way to battle through it.”

That battling isn’t easy, especially without Perry and Hall. Although the Hawks have adjusted in terms of leadership, there’s a limit to how competitive they can possibly be on the ice with such a shorthanded lineup. They’re 32nd in the NHL standings right now for a reason.

But circling back to that Jones-Foligno conversation in June, neither of them had the illusion this would be easy. And after navigating some serious adversity and instability during the Perry saga, the Hawks believe they’re back on the correct long-term track.

“Sometimes on teams that have had rough years, you get some guys that are a little selfish or caught in that losing mentality,” Foligno said. “In here, there’s a lot of guys that just want to get better.

“Yeah, there’s going to be growing pains. Our record is what it is. But it’s a group that cares. When you come in here in this environment, you know at least there’s a process in place.”

Blackhawks shut out Ducks in Connor Bedard’s first matchup against Leo Carlsson

2023-12-07T22:59:48.851-06:00

Petr Mrazek’s 37 saves helped the Blackhawks beat the Ducks 1-0 on Thursday.

Michael Reaves/Getty Images

In the first meeting Thursday night between the Nos. 1 and 2 picks in this year’s NHL draft, Hawks forward Connor Bedard assisted on the only goal of the game as the Blackhawks edged forward Leo Carlsson and the Ducks 1-0 at the United Center.

Hawks goalie Petr Mrazek was the star, however, earning his first shutout in three seasons with a 37-save masterpiece.

“It’s been a long time,” Mrazek said. “I don’t remember the last time when I had one. It feels good.”

Bedard set up forward Philipp Kurashev for a power-play strike halfway through the second period, and Mrazek handled things the rest of the way, making a huge save against Ducks star Frank Vatrano late in the second period and another against Ryan Strome with three minutes left in the third.

Blackhawks could use another December surge from Ryan Donato

Carlsson, whom the Ducks selected ahead of Blue Jackets center Adam Fantilli in June, right after the Hawks nabbed Bedard, was largely held in check.

“We were only out there [together] for one shift against each other,” Bedard said. “I asked him what he thought of the anthem. He said it was pretty cool.”

Bedard, from Vancouver, and Carlsson, from Karlstad, Sweden, are friends for now, but they may well evolve into friendly rivals — in the mold of Alex Ovechkin vs. Evgeni Malkin, the top two picks of 2004, for example.

They got to know each other during the draft lead-up and briefly met up again Wednesday to discuss “all the great players we have to play against every night,” as Carlsson put it.

Ducks rookie Leo Carlsson was held in check Thursday.

Michael Reaves/Getty Images

The Ducks have handled their star rookie significantly differently than the Hawks have handled theirs. Carlsson has been put on what coach Greg Cronin called a “load-management program” to limit his workload while he gains strength. He has been a healthy scratch eight times and entered Thursday averaging 18:15 of ice time in his 17 games, about 75 seconds less than Bedard.

Carlsson now has 13 points in 18 games, compared to Bedard’s 21 points in 25 games.

“He’s shifty, and he’s surveying the ice,” Cronin said. “He does those things you can see naturally talented players do consistently. When he continues to fill out physically, he’s going to be a dominant force in this league.”

Tinordi concussed

Jarred Tinordi’s return to the Hawks’ lineup didn’t last long. After missing a month with an oblique injury, the veteran defenseman played just three more games before suffering a concussion Tuesday while delivering a hit on Predators forward Juuso Parssinen in the third period.

“I’m sure he’s frustrated,” coach Luke Richardson said. “Hopefully he’s not too bad. Sometimes [concussion symptoms] linger, and sometimes people respond well to them. Coming out right away, [at least] there’s no secondary hits.”

The Hawks elected not to call up anyone from Rockford and instead shifted right-handed Connor Murphy over to play the left side Thursday while rookie Louis Crevier made his second NHL appearance.

Andreas Athanasiou’s injury absence continues to get longer, too. The speedy forward hurt his groin Nov. 9 and was initially deemed week-to-week, but he’s going to end up missing well over a month. He has been doing work in the gym but still hasn’t resumed skating on his own, although that sounds like it’ll happen soon.

Homebodies

Despite the NHL expanding its number and variety of international games (in Europe and now Australia) seemingly every year, the Hawks don’t anticipate traveling abroad next season or the season after, according to a source.

Blackhawks could use another December surge from Ryan Donato

2023-12-07T06:30:00-06:00

Blackhawks forward Ryan Donato has historically dominated December, but he hasn’t yet this year.

Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Sipping coffee in Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, before the Blackhawks-Wild game Sunday, Hawks forward Ryan Donato learned something new: Historically, he has been dominant in December.

“I didn’t know that, but that’s a good thing to hear right now,” he said, his expression reflecting equal amounts of confusion and encouragement.

It’s true: The 27-year-old Massachusetts native, now in his seventh NHL season with his fifth team, is something of a wunderkind during the holiday season. Consider his career stats by month, entering the Hawks-Ducks game Thursday: six goals in October, eight in November, then 19 in December before dropping back to normal with 10 in January and seven in February. The trend doesn’t stem from any differences in sample size; he has played between 46 and 50 games in each of those five months.

Digging deeper, Donato’s goals-per-game rate in December (0.38) is just a hair below former Hawks star Patrick Kane’s career rate and well above Jonathan Toews’.

“I just prepare the same way — [I] say a prayer before the game,” Donato said. “Sometimes [my shots] go in, and sometimes they don’t. But for me, I just try to prepare the same way. I don’t know if I’m lucky in December or what, but hope-fully I can continue that.”

Entering Thursday, he hadn’t yet continued it this season with the Hawks, having been held without a point in each of their first three games this month — a struggle that’s in step with the offense overall. But Donato also had no points through his first four games of December last season with the Kraken before he erupted for five goals in a six-game span. So, there’s still time.

Blackhawks shut out Ducks in Connor Bedard’s first matchup against Leo Carlsson

Despite being demoted from the first line with rookie Connor Bedard, where he began the season, to the third and fourth lines more recently, Donato has been a bright spot for an overall weak forward corps. The Hawks’ scoring-chance ratio during his five-on-five ice time entering Thursday was 48.3%, the best of any forward on the team, even though six others have started a larger percentage of shifts in the offensive zone. Donato also has 42 individual scoring chances to his name during five-on-five play, second-most on the team (behind Bedard with 61). And he’s on pace to finish this season with a career-high 34 points after finishing with 31 and 27 the last two years in Seattle.

“It’s a little disappointing to lose ice time for anybody, right?” Donato said. “But for me, the coaches know I’m willing to bear my head down and do the work to be in any position.

“Sometimes it calls to be on the first line. Sometimes it calls to be on the second, third or fourth. Whatever it may be, I usually prepare the same way, and I think that’s what the coaches expect of me.”

Hawks coach Luke Richardson and general manager Kyle Davidson signed Donato last summer with that versatility in mind. They had his shooting ability in mind, too, so Richardson wasn’t surprised to hear Wednesday that Donato ranks second on the team in scoring chances.

“You have to play to your strength, and that’s what his strength is — he’s a really good shooter,” Richardson said. “He shoots it hard and heavy . . . and he takes it to the net quite a bit. And

he’s not afraid to take a bit of a beating going there.”

For that reason, it also wouldn’t be surprising to see the Hawks move Donato back into the top six at some point in an attempt to create a spark — especially if his usual December bump repeats itself.

As Lukas Reichel resumes climbing Blackhawks’ lineup, he must ‘hold himself accountable’

2023-12-06T16:43:54.932-06:00

Lukas Reichel returned to the Blackhawks’ lineup Tuesday against the Predators.

AP Photo/Erin Hooley

During a second-period shift Tuesday, Blackhawks wing Lukas Reichel was doing exactly what coach Luke Richardson has been telling him to do: use his elite skating to be more tenacious, even without the puck.

Reichel helped the Hawks win a puck battle, allowing linemate Ryan Donato to clear the defensive zone with a high flip. He turned on the burners as a one-man forecheck, chasing down Predators defenseman Jeremy Lauzon and engaging him the moment they both reached the puck.

Then he was called for hooking — a negative end to a positive shift. On Wednesday, Reichel could only smile at the misfortune. That’s just how things have been going for him this season.

“When you play [in the] bottom six, then you’ve got to win those pucks, win those battles, play good defensively, have a good forecheck and, from that, you create your chances,” Reichel said.

“I don’t know if it was a good or bad call, but nothing’s going to change. I’m just going to try to do the same thing again.”

Richardson didn’t dock Reichel for the penalty, which the Hawks killed off. He liked that the often-contact-shy 21-year-old was at least trying to “get in there and be forceful and aggressive.”

That determination to make an impact in all areas has been missing from Reichel’s play far too often this season.

As he attempts to rally from the lowest, most adversity-laden time of his career — which peaked when he was made a healthy scratch Sunday — Reichel will need to embrace that trait.

The process starts off the ice. After Richardson called for him to respond to the scratch with some “fire,” it sounded like Reichel brought some to a meeting Wednesday morning.

“We gave our opinion, and he gave some really honest, fair opinions back,” Richardson said. “I [told] him, ‘I don’t want to just put your number on the board to be back in after one game. Do you really want to go after it? Or do you need more time to visualize and reset?’ He said, ‘Oh, no, I’m ready.’

“Now that’s him holding himself accountable. It’s not me holding him accountable. I think that [difference is] important for players to understand.”

On the ice, Richardson deployed Reichel on the fourth line next to Donato and MacKenzie Entwistle, making him work his way back up the depth chart. Reichel wasn’t exactly dominant — or even comparable to his 2022-23 form — in his 12:21 of ice time, but he was noticeable on several occasions, which is better than he has been.

Reichel was part of an early two-on-one rush when Donato shot and hit the post. In the third period, he helped the Hawks avoid a rush against with a responsible neutral-zone play, which Richardson praised.

Also in the third, he executed a give-and-go with Alex Vlasic, evaded Lauzon and cut to the net, creating another golden chance for Donato. Granted, the Predators finished with an 8-4 edge in scoring chances during Reichel’s ice time, but that’s the case for most Hawks on most nights.

“I want to go in there and try to win every battle and win every puck,” Reichel said. “It’s not going to happen, probably, but that’s how I want to get into the game.”

Once he settles into a rhythm again, the next step will be maintaining confidence.

Lagging confidence was arguably the biggest culprit behind Reichel’s disappointing October and November. Now he’s being fueled by the motivation to prove himself again. But over time, Sunday’s message will fade, and he’ll have to start mining that fuel within himself.