The Blackhawks' Third Quarter: Time's a-wastin'

For the short while I've been doing these quarterly updates, all four of the Bs have ended up making the postseason. And while I suppose it was inevitable that the ending to one team's regular season would really mean the end of the entire year for them, I never would have imagined it might be the Blackhawks—just one year removed from having won the Stanley Cup, no less.

And sure, while the 'Hawks are sitting in second place in their division at the moment I type this (and have also won four in a row), it's that time of the year when the newspaper begins publishing the standings according to the conference rankings that would determine playoff seedings. And today, the Blackhawks would currently be in ninth—on spot short of qualifying.

Now admittedly, only five points separate the No. 4 Phoenix Coyotes from the No. 11 Anaheim Ducks, so there's certainly the possibility that a strong fourth quarter to the season could catapult the Blackhawks considerably higher in the playoffs.

But at the same time, it's also feasible that with three-quarters of the season having gone by with often mediocre hockey, the defending champions might be hanging up their skates after the 82nd game and not playing again until next year's campaign begins.

RECORD FOR THE QUARTER: 12-6-3 (33-23-6 OVERALL) — While it admittedly has been another improvement from the record in the previous quarter, it's equally hard to deny that the mood has oftentimes been more pessimistic than optimistic about the team's play. If that sounds similar to what I was saying following the conclusion of the second quarter of the season, then it shouldn't be that surprising that what I felt were the best win and worst loss this past quarter came against the same opponents as that last update.

BEST WIN: January 22 (Blackhawks 4, Red Wings 1) — On the eve of the Bears hosting the Packers for the NFC Championship in Chicago, the Blackhawks went into the Motor City and knocked off their own biggest rivals. The 'Hawks going into a prevent in the third period makes the final numbers on the stat sheet look a lot closer than the game actually was for the first two periods, after which the Wings were down 3-1. While Detroit certainly has had to deal with its own share of injuries this season, the Blackhawks played smart (Dowell got two minutes for flipping the puck over the glass and Hjalmarsson was called for hooking when the game was pretty much over) and their top line effectively dominated the first two periods. Name a star from Chicago's skaters and they pretty much ended up on the scoresheet: Toews, Hossa, Kane and Sharp all got a point while Keith, Brouwer, Bolland and Kopecky each had two. And Corey Crawford rarely gave the Red Wings any rebound opportunities, stopping 36 of 37 shots. Any win over Detroit always puts a little more spring in any 'Hawks fan's step, and this one was the sort that rejuvenated hopes about what was possible if there are playoffs for this team.

WORST LOSS: February 7 (Flames 7, Blackhawks 2) — Following a frustrating one-goal loss that Friday in Vancouver, in which the 'Hawks not only appeared to have a goal taken from them but had the Canucks apparently score after a non-call, there was still comfort in the effort displayed in that contest. But all of that inflated hope quickly came rushing out once again in Calgary when the Flames appeared to be the only team giving a shit that night. Oh sure, the game was tied at one after the first two periods, but just as has been the story in so many a game this season, an opponent outworked the Blackhawks in the third and the result was another loss in which a Western Conference foe skates away with two points while Chicago ends up with zero. Brent Seabrook's two-minute penalty for jawing at the ref with less than two minutes left in the game—whether his anger was justified or not—was largely representative of how this team has seemingly conducted themselves in so many losing efforts this season: barking about not being handed a victory they seem to think they're entitled to. After this loss, the 'Hawks were sitting at 11th in the conference and it seemed to be the first time in the season when the doubts about making the playoffs outweighed the hopes.

MVP: Jonathan Toews — I originally put Dave Bolland here after a couple multiple-game spans he had with point streaks, but it would be a total disservice to my memory of this season to ignore what Captain Serious has done this past February.

Of the dozen games the 'Hawks have played up until tonight, Toews has appeared on the scoresheet in all but two—and seven were multi-point efforts. That's 18 points in 12 games this month, including a six-game point streak that went from the Jan. 25 loss to the Wild until the Feb. 11 overtime loss to Dallas. A week later, he started yet another streak in the 4-3 loss to Columbus that is still going as of this posting.

Toews now leads the Blackhawks with 19 multi-point games on the season, and if there's any doubt regarding the weight of whatever words he's given his teammates during intermissions following subpar efforts, the dude's backed it all up with his play on the ice. He's welcome to talk the talk as long as he continues to walk the walk (Duncan Keith should make note of this), and the dude's been strutting his stuff like nobody's business this past month. If the team is indeed able to pull it together and get into the playoffs, their captain deserves an enormous share of the credit for shouldering a huge load of what got them there this past month. Every time any 'Hawks fan might be tempted to simply give up on this season, it seems as though just a few minutes of watching Toews at work can almost be enough to keep the faith.

LVP: Michael Frolik — OK, so he's only been in a Chicago uniform since being acquired from Florida on Feb. 9, but the idea was that he'd be a little bit more of a contributor. As of now, he has yet to show up on any scoresheet as a Blackhawk. Eight games, zero points, three times with negative efforts in regards to plus/minus. Any glowing numbers while on the Panthers had to be taken with a grain of salt since, after all, somebody has to do the scoring for that team. But if the idea was to help other 'Hawks in the scoring, well ... we're still waiting. And as the tone of this update—and most every update this season, really—has indicated, fans are running out of patience. I don't foresee giving up Jack Skille in the deal to get Frolik as a move that will come back to really haunt the Blackhawks, but that kid played with determination and it was hard not to like him. Frolik, to his credit, has showed himself to have some speed, but dammit ... we need results, and more of them—now.

THREE THINGS I'VE LIKED SO FAR:

1. STREAKING AT THE RIGHT TIME? — Again, the team is in the midst of a four-game winning streak at the moment as they go into Minnesota tonight. Whether it was jump-started by Quenneville's absence with an "upper-body injury" or something else entirely, the team's finally seemed to have gotten a groove going. Now they just need to keep it up.
2. THERE'S MORE UPSIDES TO WHAT REMAINS ON THE SCHEDULE — While a majority of the remaining games will be on the road, the 'Hawks only have one more contest out west (in Phoenix on March 20). Other than that, they'll stay fairly close to home and additionally, with nine of their games coming against Eastern Conference opponents, the team can feel more comfortable playing it safe late in games to secure a point without hurting themselves in the playoff standings.
3. THE POWER PLAY — Same story as the previous updates, and while the team's only a tenth of a percentage point better than the Canucks at the moment in this department, the 24.9 conversion percentage is still the best in the league.

THINGS I HAVEN'T:

1. THE PENALTY KILL — You might think that it's gotten better over the past 21 games, but as far as where the 'Hawks sit in terms of the entire league, they're actually a spot lower than last time at 26th (77.7%). It's impossible not to refer back to last year's success in this department, when the team only allowed 39 power play goals over the course of the entire year (third-best in the league) and led all teams with 13 shorthanded goals. This year, they've already allowed 45 (24th) power play goals and have only managed five shorthanded scores.
2. THE THIRD PERIOD DOLDRUMS — Another tired source of concern this year, the 'Hawks have let six contests turn into losses when leading after the first two periods. The .800 winning percentage in that category is 24th in the league. Additionally, they're tied for the fifth-most goals given up in the third period with 68 (consider they've given up 51 all year in the second, and 46 in the first), while only scoring 59 in that same frame (while they've scored 66 in both the first and second periods). If they're going to go anywhere in the playoffs—or get into the playoffs—the team needs to finish every game.
3. KANER'S ISSUES — A friend of mine who had spoke to Blackhawks color man Eddie O told me early in the season that Olczyk had expressed concern about nobody in the clubhouse being able to keep Patrick Kane in check. Apparently, it used to be something John Madden was capable of. But when Deadspin ran a story recently of Kaner having taken a couple days off possibly as a result of another bender, it indeed didn't seem too far-fetched. Sam Fels wrote a couple posts touching on why this latest story is indeed a reason for concern and something we should not allow for No. 88 to just sweep aside as "people make stuff up." I'll forever love the guy for scoring the goal that won the Stanley Cup for this team, but I'll also probably always carry a very real lingering worry in the back of my mind that the very same goal might have only allowed him to more recklessly risk his considerable talent with what, by now, most observers have deemed pretty problematic off-ice behavior.

25 WORDS OR LESS:

While it has been a far cry from last season, there's still time and still reason for hope——but the supply is short.