Blackhawks
Toews returned to Blackhawks morning skate Tuesday — two months to the day since his last game — and will try to make a few appearances before the season ends April 13. But he has battled through immense pain and fatigue to get to this point.
The Hawks have dropped into a nearly dead heat with the Sharks and Blue Jackets for last place in the NHL — and the best draft-lottery odds — with nine games to go. But the coaches and players still believe they have things to prove during the stretch run.
The Hawks are the latest NHL team to get in the middle of a controversy around Pride jerseys.
Toews, who hasn’t played since Jan. 28 because of symptoms of long COVID and chronic immune response syndrome, is in a race against time to return this season.
Johnson suffered the concussion Feb. 14 but then played three more games afterward, unsure if his symptoms indicated a concussion. Once he did tell medical staffers, he missed 16 games before rejoining the Hawks’ lineup Saturday.
Athanasiou’s unexpected position change snapped him out of a funk with “one of his strongest games all year.” But the Wild took the lead with 1:11 left and beat the Hawks 3-1, marking their eighth straight win in the rivalry series.
Pride Night is scheduled for Sunday at the United Center, where the Blackhawks will skate against the Canucks.
On Sunday, Richardson will turn 54 and also coach his 73rd Hawks game — a sign of his debut season nearing its end. He’s proud of the team culture he has helped build in it, although learning how to manage his time has been challenging.
Buddy Robinson and brother Eric, a Blue Jackets forward, crossed paths in Washington before consecutive matchups against the Capitals. But Buddy’s Hawks struggled mightily Thursday in a 6-1 loss.
Murphy, Seth Jones and coach Luke Richardson commented Thursday on the Hawks’ organizational decision not to wear Pride jerseys on Pride Night on Sunday.
The Hawks have three players born or with family in Russia, where a law was passed in December banning “gay propaganda.” Conversations with security officials prompted an organizational decision to scrap the jersey plans, sources say.
Johnson has gone 11 consecutive games without scoring despite recording 43 shots and 30 scoring chances over the same time period. He has been particularly snakebitten during the Hawks’ last two losses in Arizona and Colorado.
Mitchell was exploited on three Avalanche goals as the Hawks lost 5-0 on Monday. Plus, Jack Johnson describes his trade process and coach Luke Richardson gives some injury updates.
After struggling for most of the season, Katchouk has struck gold recently on a line with Joey Anderson and Jujhar Khaira. He has doubled his season point total in just six games.
Caleb Jones scored and the Hawks’ power-play units produced a season-high 21 shots Saturday. Considering their 11.6% conversion rate since Dec. 4 ranks last in the NHL, they need that to build momentum.
After visiting Feb. 28 and returning Saturday, the Hawks understand why the Coyotes’ and Arizona State’s new shared home — with a capacity of just 4,600 fans — has been such a hot discussion topic around the NHL.
Kaiser played fairly well in 16:11 of ice time, but the Hawks conceded three goals in the third period to fall 4-2 and split the season series against Arizona.
The brothers have been paired together since late February and have played well. A play Thursday against the Predators exemplified how they use their skating abilities to their advantage.
Philipp Kurashev, MacKenzie Entwistle and Jujhar Khaira have moved from wing to center out of necessity during the second half of the season. That means they shoulder more responsibility in Luke Richardson’s zone coverage scheme.
Stalock made 35 saves and became the first goalie in NHL history to save a penalty shot in three consecutive games as the Hawks won 2-1 in Nashville on Thursday.
Most active players insist they don’t care about draft picks. Dickinson, conversely, realizes they’re the most effective way to build a team. After his playing career, he admits he would love to “try to take my perspective into things and see if it works.”
Finishing 32nd in the final NHL standings and guaranteeing a top-three pick in the draft lottery — now scheduled for May 8 — would benefit the organization long-term. But that’s not on this team’s mind, and they’re significantly overachieving right now.
Katchouk erupted with his best performance as a Hawk, Taylor Raddysh produced a third-period hat trick and the Hawks overcame another Petr Mrazek injury to shock the league-leading Bruins 6-3 on Tuesday.
The Hawks had kept an eye on Anderson for a while before acquiring him from the Maple Leafs, and assistant coach Derek Plante — who has known Anderson for years — has helped him acclimate. But now he must prove he deserves another contract.
Guttman was shut down Monday for the rest of the season, allowing him to get the surgery early enough to fully recover before training camp next fall. He finishes with six points in 14 NHL games and 30 points in 39 AHL games, having made a big impression at both levels.
Both teams have since doubled down on their respective strategies, with the Hawks continuing to convert all valuable players into draft picks and the Lightning continuing to do the opposite. And Hagel has fully lived up to expectations in Tampa, while Taylor Raddysh has flourished a bit in Chicago.
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