Blackhawks rout Sharks in Hossa's debut
The long-awaited debut of Marian Hossa did not disappoint as the Chicago Blackhawks trounced the San Jose Sharks 7-2 Wednesday at the HP Pavilion. Hossa scored twice and the Hawks tied a franchise record by tallying three shorthanded goals. The red-hot Hawks have won the the first four games of their "circus road trip" and eight straight overall.
The final score may not be a true indicator, but tonight's Blackhawks victory was a result of a dominating defensive effort against the top offense in the NHL. The entire Blackhawks unit bought into the gameplan and kept the Sharks offensive attack out of sync for a majority of the contest. The Hawks combined active sticks, an aggressive forecheck and backcheck, and solid positioning to disrupt any threats posed by San Jose. At the 14 minute mark of the second period, the Blackhawks had outshot the Sharks 26-6 for the game. At that point, the Hawks owned a 4-0 lead thanks to a trio of shorthanded goals to start the night's scoring.
After Troy Brouwer helped the Hawks grab a 1-0 first period lead with a shorthanded wrist shot that sailed over San Jose goaltender Evgeni Nabokov's glove, Hossa gave Hawks fans a taste of the future. With Brouwer in the penalty box for boarding, Hossa forced a turnover at the top of the Sharks' offensive zone and then netted his first career Blackhawks goal after a feed from Jonathan Toews led to the breakaway attempt. Hossa's first of the season gave the Hawks a 2-0 lead at 4:57 of the second period. As has been forecast, the former 40-goal scorer has the defensive ability to create turnovers as well.
With Brouwer still in the box, Patrick Sharp took advantage of a blowout at center ice by the Sharks Jason Demers to gain another shorthanded breakaway for the Hawks. Sharp faked to his backhand then lifted a roof shot over the fallen Nabokov to give the Hawks a 3-0 lead 28 seconds after the Hossa strike. Three shorthanded goals in a row against a dangerous Sharks team that leads the NHL in powerplay goals. Entering the much anticipated matchup of the two Western Conference powerhouses, the last place the Hawks wanted to be was down a man against the Sharks. After two periods, Sharks fans didn't want to see their team on the powerplay anymore.
Down by three with just over five minutes gone in the second period, the Sharks attempted to regroup with a timeout. Instead of cooling off the Hawks, it only allowed them to catch their breath. Dustin Byfuglien won a net battle and punched in a rebound off of a Cam Barker point shot that gave the Blackhawks a commanding 4-0 lead entering the third period. The rout was on.
San Jose pulled Nabokov and the little used Thomas Greiss became the sacrificial lamb in the Sharks' net at the start of the third period. Brent Seabrook, John Madden and Hossa all scored even strength goals in the third as the Hawks built a 7-0 lead. Hossa's second of the night was set-up by a brilliant pass from Brent Sopel. I never thought I'd write that about a Sopel pass, but it was that good. He must be taking lessons from Patrick Kane after practice.
The Sharks spoiled Cristobal Huet's shutout bid with Dan Boyle's goal at 16:17 of the third period while San Jose enjoyed a 2-man advantage. The Sharks Joe Pavelski followed with another goal less than two minutes later much to the excitement of the few San Jose fans left in the quiet HP Pavilion. Huet was rarely tested early, but he did make a key stop on a Sharks powerplay near the end of the second period to preserve the Hawks' 4-0 lead. He was also up to the challenge making a few tough saves in the opening minutes of the third. However, Huet spent most of the night watching his team skate the other way with the puck.
The Blackhawks defensive domination was a team effort. Niklas Hjalmarsson deserves credit for his blocked shots. Duncan Keith and Seabrook deserve credit for shutting down the Sharks' potent Heatley-Thornton-Marleau line. But, overall, Blackhawks' head coach Joel Quenneville and his staff deserve credit for designing a defensive system that all the players have been able to execute. It's a simple plan, really. Win board battles, don't allow teams to set-up below the goal line, clear the front of the net, block shots and keep sticks active in the passing zones. It was enough to make the mighty Sharks look like fish out of water.
Hawks fans can also be pleased with the much-anticipated debut of Hossa. The winger spent over 16 minutes on the ice which was third on the team among Hawks forwards trailing only Toews and Sharp. At times, the Kane-Toews-Hossa line dominated the puck possession on the offensive end. However, the trio did have occassional spacing issues that will be addressed as they spend more time together. Kane will also need time to adjust to the left wing. He spent most of the first period in the right half of the offensive zone. Most importantly, given time to adapt to Hossa, there was enough evidence to suggest that the trio can develop into the top line in the NHL.
The Hawks outcoached and outplayed one of the best teams in the NHL and embarrassed them on their home ice. In the grand scheme, the win is two road points in Novemeber. Yet, it is awfully satisfying to see a team live up to their expectations. Especially a professional team from Chicago. We don't get to see that very often.
Share this entry
Recommended for you
5 Comments
iplagitr said:
Watching this game was one of my proudest moments as a 25-year Hawk fan. Seeing the Hawks dismantle the entire Sharks game in the 2nd period and leaving every player in a teal jersey with his head spinning was the most satisfying holiday treat. It's been a long time coming. If there was any doubt before this, there is none now -- the Hawks have fully arrived and they are the top team in the NHL right now. Let's hope they can keep building and stay healthy and hungry.
nklhd12 said:
Great recap. The seventh paragraph says it all for me and those changes were what I was praying the team would come up with last year in the playoffs. All game, they never gave up on plays, had awesome stick work and truly did dismantle the sharks in every way.
Nitpicky things aside, there isn't anything to dislike about that game. We whipped (not beat) the first place team to give them their first regulation loss of the year in their house. No doubt we are going to catch a whipping like that at some point, but for today, man it's great to be a Hawks fan!
Dave Morris said:
Mark, well put. As you say, while it may be momentarily satisfying to have speargunned the Sharks, it's just another two points.
The Blackhawks are playing to the level of their ability, and combining it with intelligence and discipline.
That said, they can be even better.
And they'll need to be.
The good news: Mr. Hossa is as advertised. Money well spent.
Perhaps now, Blackhawks fans can stop trying to trade Tom, Dick and Harry over the Web...and enjoy this team.
Here Come The Hawks.
Alligator Derski said:
I felt like I was dreaming. Pat Foley said at one point that the Kane, Toews, Hossa line looked like the Harlem Globetrotters against the Generals, and he was right.
Winning the battles in the corners and on the boards was huge, and the Hawks played such good defense Huet could have taken a siesta.
I'm giving thanks for the Hawks this year...
FearlessFreep said:
As you said Mark, it's only two points - but it was a statement. This wasn't a close, hard-fought game. It was men against boys. A couple of things stood out for me (besides Hossa) - one, Hawks pressured SJ throughout the game, pounced on those turnovers and put up a ton of scoring chances; second, the backchecking was incredible tonight. The blueliners were terriffic.
Reading some of the after-game commentary, I found it rather humorous that many Shark followers were adament that their team lost because they had a bad night, and that the Hawks got 'em on a good night. True, maybe, but seems like the Hawks are playing a lot of teams on "bad nights". SJ is a much better team than they showed last night - but their not showing up last night makes you question their character and grit maybe just a bit. Good teams may not win the marquis matchups all the time, but they generally make a good showing.
Leave a Comment?
What your comment will look like:
said: