“This is the future of the NHL—all the teams with small forwards and slick forwards are gone, the big bullies are now playing, the guys that are 6’3, 6’4 . . . those are the guys scoring the goals, those are the guys that are checking.”

—Barry Melrose (on the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals)

This quote, pulled from a recent episode of ESPN’s Pardon The Interruption, started a bit of a twitter spat the last couple of days, reigniting the philosophical war over building an NHL roster based on size versus finesse/speed.

It’s a valid argument—and one that really needs to be broken down and discussed objectively—especially during the Stanley Cup Finals and with the draft and free agency right around the corner.

First of all, it’s kind of dumb to say it’s simply about size. There are good and bad big players and the same applies to small players.

Another quote to consider here (author unknown): “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight. It’s the size of the fight in the dog.” Hold that thought. We’ll come back to it.

The responses to the Melrose quote, in the twitter thread I read, were quick to point out how Alex DeBrincat and Cam Atkinson, both small players, scored 40 goals a piece last year. But then someone else chimed in that they amassed those totals in the regular season—a different brand of hockey versus the playoffs.

This is an important distinction, especially for Hawks fans who, in 2016 and 2017, had all kinds of confidence about their team’s playoff chances based on regular season performance, and then watched them get beaten in the first round by the Blues in 2016, and absolutely flattened by the Predators in 2017.

There’s the rub: is it about how many points you amass, or how many goals you score in the regular season, or about how far you go in the playoffs and winning a Cup?

Let’s work with the assumption that the “goal” is to win in the playoffs. If you disagree, you should probably stop reading.

In the NHL, regular season hockey and playoff hockey are different styles of hockey, without question. Setting aside the more subjective things like how the game is officiated before and after April 10, there are some hard facts that can’t be denied:

First, regular season games don’t start to become really meaningful until after, say, Christmas. The St. Louis Blues, for example, were one of the league’s worst teams before Christmas this past season—and its best after that point. And it’s turned out well for them. Point is, in the playoffs, there’s simply a lot more at stake game to game. And game after game. You can’t stink for the first half of the playoffs, then win the Cup. Doesn’t work that way.

Add to that the fairly widely accepted “fact” that the refs tend to swallow the whistles in the playoffs.

So then you have a lot at stake in each game, along with much more permissive officiating—and what you end up with are much more physical games. Again, game after game.

But that’s not all. There’s no 3-on-3 overtime in the playoffs, or a shootout. Games are decided by 5-on-5 hockey. Sometimes, in a given game, or over the course of a series, a lot of 5-on-5 hockey.

That last bit doesn’t necessarily favor big players over small players, or vice versa. It becomes more about endurance and will.

And all that said, because the style of play is so much more physical, the frequency of injury in the playoffs is higher game to game. Yet players tend to play through injuries in the playoffs (or try to). Because, unlike the regular season, where you can take a few weeks off and come back and help your team—in the playoffs, they might be eliminated by then.

Pretty passing and stickhandling plays and players moving the puck uninterrupted through the neutral zone—while not totally uncommon in the playoffs—seem to happen less. And a relatively higher percentage of the goals are of the “greasy” variety.

And this is where things like size—without dismissing compete level (regardless of size)—become very important.

The net conclusion here is fairly obvious, and proven by the teams that actually win the Cup year after year: teams that have players with the will to play physical hockey, and the talent to produce while playing that brand of hockey, win the Cup year after year.

Last year, it was the Washington Capitals. This year, either of the teams in the finals fits that description.

Going back over the years, you can point at the Penguins’ Cup teams and those of the Blackhawks’ since 2009 as examples of highly talented teams that won Cups. But those were teams that could and did match up physically, and dealt out as much or more punishment than they took. Go back to just 2015, when the Hawks could roll a “fourth line” of Andrew Shaw, Marcus Kruger and Andrew Desjardins. They didn’t score (much), but they dominated offensive zone possession and drove opponents nuts. And it’s important to point out, none of those players are what you’d call “big.” But all of them “played big.”

Conversely, remember when the Vancouver Canucks won the Cup in 2011? Wait, no, that’s right, a “high finesse” team that was the presumptive favorite to win the Cup that year, the Canucks ran into the brick wall known as the Boston Bruins, got epicly “bi— slapped” and took a physical and humiliating Cup Final loss.

Just this year, the “electric” Tampa Bay Lightning were on the high-flying express train to the Finals when they got destroyed in the first round by a Columbus team that outhit them and outworked them. Then, Columbus ran into a team that upped the stakes on physicality and intimidation, and now Boston finds themselves in yet another Cup Final.

Fact is, although interwebz experts keep proclaiming that “the game has changed,” typically as part of a rationale for drafting 165 pound defensemen, or in support of teams that get a disproportionate amount of regular season production in 3-on-3 OT and on the perimeter at 5-on-5 (like the Hawks of the last few years), the Stanley Cup playoffs keep proving, year in and year out, that the games played in May and June really haven’t changed that much.

Again, it’s not just about the size of the player, as proven by the likes of Brad Marchand, but it really is about how willing and able your players are to go in between the circles and to the front of the net, win along the wall, and take and deliver punishment every other night for a couple of months.

Size, skill and speed—especially when a player has all three—check important boxes. But definitely, what seems just as (if not more) important is the size of the heart and willingness to pay a physical price to win.

All I have for now. Comment below.

The post The age-old debate: size versus finesse in the NHL appeared first on The Rink.

The Blackhawks starting lines were:
Brandon Saad – Jonathan Toews – Patrick Kane
Alex DeBrincat – Nick Schmaltz – John Hayden
Tomas Jurco – Artem Anisimov – Matthew Highmore
Patrick Sharp – David Kampf – Vinnie Hinostroza

Duncan Keith – Connor Murphy
Erik Gustafsson – Brent Seabrook
Jordan Oesterle – Jan Rutta

Special guests not in the lineup, but in attendance, were Olympic gold medalists Kendall Coyne and Alex Rigsby to drop the ceremonial opening faceoff.

CHICAGO, IL – MARCH 11: Olympic gold medalists Kendall Coyne #26 and Alex Rigsby #33 of the US women’s national hockey team skate on the ice to participate in the ceremonial puck drop prior to the game between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Boston Bruins at the United Center on March 11, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Chase Agnello-Dean/NHLI via Getty Images)

For the first time in quite a while the Blackhawks made a team pay for taking stupid penalties, in the first period, Sunday. The first Blackhawks goal was a redirect off the stick of Artem Anisimov, following a Tim Schaller roughing infraction against David Kampf.

Patrick Kane fed a quick pass to Erik Gustafsson, who immediately pushed the puck over to Jonathan Toews. Toews ripped a one-timer towards Khudobin, who was also screened by Zdeno Chara, that Artem Anisimov tipped over the Boston goaltender for a 1-0 Blackhawks lead.

This was the only goal in the first period, while the Blackhawks out shot the visiting Bruins 12-10 in the opening period.

Even though the Bruins peppered the Blackhawks with 14 second period shots, they were not able to put a dent in the Blackhawks narrow one goal lead. The Hawks threw 11 shots at Anton Khudobin, as well, and were not able to extend their lead, though.

With no goals and no penalties the, still groggy, United Center fans probably needed a “wake-up” call in the third period, and that is just what they got.

Almost halfway through the third period the Bruins finally tied the game up. Trailing defenseman Zdeno Chara took a feed right between the circles and snapped a rocket of a wrist shot past Anton Forsberg. This, though, would be the only time the Bruins could solve the Blackhawks netminder.

Just over five minutes after Chara tied the game, Patrick Kane gave the Blackhawks back a lead that they would never again relinquish. Kane’s goal was also on the power play, which was a St. Patrick’s day miracle in and of itself. Not only were they on a power play, but a four minute high-sticking double minor from Zdeno Chara on Brandon Saad.

It took Patrick Kane only sixteen seconds to make the Bruins pay for the infraction. Red hot defensemen Erik Gustafsson fed Kane from the point.  Kane took a stride, locked, loaded and let a nasty shot go from the circle. His perfect shot over Khudobin’s shoulder went post and in.

That Blackhawks held onto the lead until there was 1:05 left in the game, when a Brent Seabrook half clapper went off the stick of Bruins forward Noel Acciari and beat the Bruins goaltender. Icing on top of a St. Patrick’s day celebration cake.  A Blackhawks win worth celebrating.

Pluses

• I said it in the previous night’s recap and I stand by it. Do not expect this crazy offensive output from Erik Gustafsson to continue, but enjoy it while it is going on.
• I was really glad to see Anton Forsberg have a rock solid, whistle to whistle, home performance. His 31 saves kept the Blackhawks as close as possible, until they could bust the door down.
• The Blackhawks won 61% of their faceoffs, which certainly helps put them in a better position.
• Jonathan Toews seems to be heating up. He has now had six points in his last five games.
• Matthew Highmore joined Patrick Kane and Artem Anisimov with five shots on net each. Glad to see the kid not hesitating and firing the puck.

Minuses

• The Brandon Saad shot in the yap certainly was not good, but he returned to the game. Also, he had a partial break-a-way that he failed on. He is getting the chances, just not finishing. If they were to trade this guy at the draft or in the summer, they will regret it deeply. He will rebound in a big way. Maybe not this season, but I predict a huge season next year.

The post Chicago Blackhawks vs Boston Bruins Game Recap appeared first on The Rink.

11:30 Central

RADIO: WGN 720

NBC

PROJECTED GOALIES:

Chicago:
Anton Forsberg (8-14-3 W-L | 3.02 GAA | 0.906 SV% | 0 SO)

Boston:
Anton Khudobin (15-4-4 W-L | 2.45 GAA | 0.918 SV% | 1 SO)

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS:

Chicago

Saad-Toews-Kane
DeBrincat-Schmaltz-Hinostroza
Jurco-Anisimov-Highmore
Sharp-Kampf-Hayden

Keith-Murphy
Gustafsson-Seabrook
Oesterle-Rutta

Boston

Marchand-Riley Nash-Pastrnak
Debrusk-Krejci-Rick Nash
Heinen-Wingels-Gionta
Schaller-Kuraly-Acciari

Chara-Carlo
Krug-McQuaid
Grzelcyk-Miller

STATISTICAL COMPARISONS:

Power play:
Chicago 15.4% (28th)
Boston 22.1% (4th)

Penalty kill:
Chicago 80.3% (16th)
Boston 83.0% (5th)

Corsi For % (5-on-5):
Chicago 53.02% (3rd)
Boston 54.17% (1st)

Faceoffs:
Chicago 49.7% (18th)
Boston 51.1% (10th)

The post Chicago Blackhawks vs Boston Bruins Preview & Game Thread appeared first on The Rink.

Jean-Francois Berube played his third game in a row for Hawks coach Joel Quenneville.

These were the Blackhawks starting lines:
Brandon Saad – Jonathan Toews – Patrick Kane
Alex DeBrincat – Nick Schmaltz – John Hayden
Tomas Jurco – Artem Anisimov – Matthew Highmore
Patrick Sharp – David Kampf – Anthony Duclair

Duncan Keith – Connor Murphy
Erik Gustafsson – Brent Seabrook
Jordan Oesterle – Jan Rutta

The game was not a defensive struggle at all, right out of the gate. The Bruins took a 2-0 lead on a power play and a shorthanded goal, before the Blackhawks were able to claw back.

Before the Bruins broke onto the scoreboard, Bruins rat-faced-fink Brad Marchand clotheslined an unsuspecting Anthony Duclair. Unfortunately, Duclair was not prepared to be absolutely mugged, and got his leg caught underneath his body falling to the ice. He was helped off the ice and never returned.

BOSTON, MA – MARCH 10: Anthony Duclair #91 of the Chicago Blackhawks gets helped off the ice after a play against the Boston Bruins at the TD Garden on March 10, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Steve Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Bruins first goal was scored during the Blackhawks resulting Marchand power play, on a turnover at the Bruins blue line. Sean Kuraly, who had already had a spirited fight with John Hayden earlier in the game, had a shorthanded break-a-way on JF Berube. The Blackhawks goaltender made the initial save, but the rebound was not cleared by the Hawks defense and ended up turning into a pretty easy goal for trailing forward Noel Acciari.

About three minutes after the Bruins took the lead, they were able to take advantage of some mental Blackhawks mistakes and increase their lead to 2-0. Duncan Keith left the front of the net in anticipation of a puck going behind the net, but the puck never made it. David Krejci parked himself right in front of JF Berube in the spot Keith vacated. With no forwards back to help cover the rotation, Berube was hung out to dry. When the puck found its way to Krejci, he easily beat Berube and the Bruins led 2-0.

Seventeen seconds (remember that, Bruins fans?) after the Bruins grabbed that 2-0 lead, the Blackhawks came right back and cut the lead in half. Erik Gustafsson was left, pretty much, alone and unloaded a clapper towards the Bruins net. Jonathan Toews redirected the puck, which Tuuka Rask was not able to see.

Twenty nine seconds after the Toews goal, Erik Gustafsson was involved in an offensive play and scored the game tying goal. In and innocent enough play Nick Schmaltz set the puck on a platter for Gustafsson, and Gus blew it by Rask with a nicely placed shot.

After a wild first period, the teams went into the break tied at two goals each, and the Bruins led in shots 13-12.

With six and a half minutes away in the second period, John “#BigJohnStudd” Hayden picked up a Bruins turnover at their blue line and raced in on Tuuka Rask. Hayden used Patrick Sharp as a decoy and snapped a great shot past the Bruins goalie to celebrate his call-up. With Duclair expected to miss 1-2 weeks expect Hayden to stay with the Blackhawks.

David Krejci scored his second goal of the game, on a Bruins powerplay, at the halfway point of the first period. Youngster Jake Debrusk picked up a Blackhawks turnover and fed Krejci, who was wide open on the back door once again, and the game was tied.

With four minutes remaining in the second period, Blackhawks rookie Matthew Highmore put them ahead 4-3, with his first NHL goal. Erik Gustafsson, who had a goal and assist already, fed Highmore with a nice cross ice pass. Highmore hesitated for a second, which might have thrown off Tuuka Rask slightly, and then snapped the puck into the net.

That was how the middle frame ended. The Blackhawks were up 4-3 while getting out shot 12-7.

The game remained tied until the six and a half minute mark of the third period. David Pasternak found a loose puck in the Blackhawks crease after a Brad Marchand rush up Berube’s right side and swept the puck past the Blackhawks goalie and Gustafsson.

Shortly after the Bruins tied the game, Patrick Kane took a sloppy high sticking penalty which gave the Bruins a four minute powerplay. On the resulting double minor power play the Bruins scored, not one but, two power play goals to take a solid lead they would never relinquish with half the third period still left to play. Brian Gionta and Rick Nash had the power play goals for the home team.

Minus an empty net goal, this was how the game ended. The Blackhawks were not able to keep up with the pace of the Boston team, and showed that they just aren’t a great team.

Pluses

• Matthew Highmore looked good for most of the game and was rewarded with his first NHL goal.
• While I don’t expect it to last (and neither should you), Erik Gustafsson has been an offensive juggernaut since signing his two-year extension.
• Patrick Kane’s late, lazy, double minor penalty was a killer.  Team leaders need to be smarter than that.

Minuses

• When your opponent goes 4/6 on the power play, you generally lose.
• When you get out shot 40/27, you generally lose.

The post Chicago Blackhawks vs Boston Bruins Game Recap appeared first on The Rink.

Noon Central

RADIO: WGN 720

NBC Sports Chicago, NESN

PROJECTED GOALIES:

Chicago:

JF Berube (2-2-0, 3.11 GAA, .911 SV%)

Boston:

Tuukka Rask (27-11-4, 2.27 GAA, .920 save%)

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS:

Chicago

Saad-Toews-Kane

DeBrincat-Schmaltz-Hinostroza

Jurco-Anisimov-Highmore

Sharp-Kampf-Duclair

Keith-Murphy

Gustafsson-Seabrook

Oesterle-Rutta

Boston

Marchand-Riley Nash-Pastrnak

Debrusk-Krejci-Rick Nash

Heinen-Wingels-Gionta

Schaller-Kuraly-Acciari

Chara-Carlo

Krug-McQuaid

Grzelcyk-Miller

STATISTICAL COMPARISONS:

Power play:

Chicago 15.5% (28^th)

Boston 20.8% (12^th)

Penalty kill:

Chicago 81.7% (13^th)

Boston 82.8% (6^th)

Corsi For % (5-on-5):

Chicago 53.1% (3rd)

Boston 54.0% (2nd)

Faceoffs:

Chicago 49.6% (18^th)

Boston 51.1% (9^th)

SUMMARY:

The Hawks begin a weekend home and home, facing off today (and tomorrow) against longtime Original Six rival Boston, and recent former (and perhaps soon to be again) teammate Tommy Wingels.

Boston will be looking to fortify its playoff standing, while the Hawks are slowly, painfully winding out their worst season in a decade.

It is easy to assume that the front office and coaching staff are trying to learn some things about individual players—yet GM Stan Bowman seems to have jumped the gun slightly on signing two defensemen (Erik Gustafsson and Jan Rutta), neither of whom would be considered vital to (actual) Hawks’ success next year. So we can likely take Bowman at his word: next year’s team will look a lot like this year’s.

Excited yet?

I’ll be posting an article later this weekend on a few relatively easily-accomplished on-ice strategies to make the Hawks a better team next year.

Untii then, can the Hawks’ awesome and (and evidently absolutely vital to retain) defense hold the Bruins to under 40 shots (something they typically fail to accomplish against even bad teams)?

Comment on today’s action in the comments section below.

Follow: @jaeckel

The post Chicago Blackhawks at Boston Bruins: Preview & Game Thread appeared first on The Rink.

As the dust settles on a fairly eventful day yesterday, let’s unpack what Stan Bowman did at this deadline, some of the back story, as well as what it all means going forward for a franchise in transition:

OUT

Michal Kempny

Ryan Hartman

Tommy Wingels*

A 2018 5th round pick

IN

2018 1st round pick (Nashville)

2018 3rd round pick (the higher of Washington’s 2 picks)

2018 4th round pick (Nashville)

2019 5th round pick (conditionally moves up to a 4th if Wingels re-signs with Boston or if Boston wins one playoff series)

C Viktor Ejdsell (HV 71 Sweden)

*- Wingels will likely re-sign in Chicago this summer

Trades are always hard to absorb at first, especially when you look at your current roster and the pieces don’t seem to fit. But there can be zero doubt, Stan Bowman’s eyes are now firmly on the 2018-19 season and beyond.

The big loss for Chicago is Hartman: a versatile lower line winger who can play all three forward positions, is physical and has some skill, plays an agitating style.

i would urge anyone who has not read our post of two days ago regarding the dilemma the Hawks were in regarding whether to keep or deal Hartman, I would suggest you do so now, here:

https://www.the-rink.com/2018/02/25/analysis-ryan-hartman/

In the end, Bowman had to move Hartman. Just after the deal yesterday, i heard from a team source that Hartman “wanted out.” Some may dispute that. But I think anyone who’s ever had a contentious relationship with a boss knows it can reach a point where at least some days, you’d really rather be somewhere else. The Hartman-Quenneville issues had reached  a low point, likely, with Hartman being benched early in Saturday’s game in Columbus. The writing was on the wall, for all concerned—including any team interested in acquiring Hartman.

This trade deadline, as so many are, was a seller’s market. But when a GM’s hand is forced on a player, it can undercut return. Bowman pulled the trigger on a deal to a bitter division foe—I heard, again, just after the deal yesterday—because Nashville, unlike other late suitors Winnipeg and Arizona, was willing to include a first round pick in the offer.

This will surely be a late first round pick, where the prospect of grabbing a surefire NHL player, much less impact player, is far from guaranteed. But this is a deep draft. And the pick gives Bowman a chip he can package with the Hawks’ much higher pick to possibly move up and pluck a true impact player in this draft. Bowman now also has extra mid round picks to work with as well.

The other key to this deal is Ejdsell, a fairly prolific scorer in the Allsvenskan, Sweden’s #2 league, last season, and a player the Hawks pursued last summer, before he signed with the Preds. You can go look at his “youtubes” and see a guy making  a lot of nice plays on wide open European ice, which doesn’t always translate to the smaller, highly contested ice of North American pro hockey. But—a nice quick shot, good hands around the net, decent speed and size are evident.

The Hawks need another productive NHL center. But we don’t know enough about Ejdsell this morning to say he can be that. How is he on faceoffs. I heard/read two widely varying reports yesterday. How will he adapt to the tighter checking of North America? The-Rink.com’s Martin Thörnqvist, who lives in Sweden and watches a lot of hockey there, told me late yesterday he believes Ejdsell will end up at wing in the NHL.

Overall it was a good deal for Bowman, how good pretty much rests on what he does with Nashville’s first rounder and what Ejdsell becomes.

The next big day for the Hawk franchise, possibly a huge day, will be the NHL draft lottery. At the top of this draft are a handful of potentially elite players, followed by anther handful of potentially very good NHL players. The Hawks presently look like a good bet to pick somewhere between 7th and 9th. But in the lottery, they could pick as high as first—if they get very lucky.

Personally, I think Hawk fans can celebrate if Bowman gets into the top 5—either through the lottery or a trade up. You want to get an impact player in this draft to help build the next ten years of this franchise—preferably a defenseman—along with the Debrincats and Schmaltzes.

All for now, please comment below.

The post Analysis: Blackhawk Trade Deadline Grade B+ appeared first on The Rink.

There has been much speculation that the Blackhawks will try and re-sign Wingels to a low dollar, low risk contract on July 1st.  As a noted Chicago area native, this would make sense.

Of course, the Blackhawks could not officially announce such a plan because it would be a punishable case of player tampering

This means that the Blackhawks acquired a free draft pick, which is always a good plan.  More to come!

The post Blackhawks Trade Tommy Wingels to Boston appeared first on The Rink.