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1. BANNER MEN (DID IT AGAIN)
The Blackhawks will kick off the 2015-16 National Hockey League season with their Stanley Cup banner-raising ceremony before taking the ice against the New York Rangers. Aside from enjoying the spectacle and celebratory atmosphere, Chicago’s objective on Wednesday is to start the season off with a win at the United Center, and they’ll likely need all of their firepower to get past Alain Vigneaut’s Presidents’ Trophy-winning squad. The two teams split last season’s series, each side winning 1-0 on enemy ice as goalies took center stage. Corey Crawford, Wednesday’s probable starter, was the hard-luck loser on March 8 at the United Center, when he stopped the first 35 shots he faced, but allowed Derick Brassard’s game-winner in overtime.
2. MONSTER NASH
The Rangers are one of the few teams in the NHL that has returned their same top line from 2014-15. Brassard, Rick Nash and Mats Zuccarello combined for 173 points last season, but their future was a question mark due to Zuccarello suffering a brain contusion and skull fracture during the playoffs. With the speedy Norwegian seemingly recovered from his injury, the trio should reunite and continue producing for the Rangers, who were runners-up to Tampa Bay for the Eastern Conference title last year. Nash contributed a team-high 69 points in 2014-15, which included a career-best 42 goals, and he has been a thorn in the Blackhawks’ side throughout his 12-year career, with 52 points (25G, 27A) in 59 career matchups dating back to his days with Columbus in the Central Division.
3. KING OF NEW YORK
Although the Blackhawks did not face Henrik Lundqvist at all last season (both tilts featured Cam Talbot), the team is well aware of how difficult it is to put the puck behind the Rangers’ longtime starter. Lundqvist finished the 2014-15 campaign with a 30-13-3 record, 2.25 goals-against average (ranking eighth in the NHL) and .922 save percentage (sharing 10th); he also finished the campaign with a .928 SV% and 2.11 GAA in 19 playoff outings. Last season was the first 82-game schedule in which Lundqvist did not appear in at least 50 games, and there is some worry that the 33-year-old could be nearing a decline after years of dominance. But in the season opener, the Blackhawks will need to get Lundqvist, who plays very deep in his net and covers the bottom half of the cage well, moving around his crease and out of his comfort zone.
4. SEABS CHANGE
The Blackhawks had a leadership role to fill after the trade of longtime forward Patrick Sharp to Dallas, and at the beginning of training camp, Quenneville appointed Brent Seabrook the team’s new alternate captain. The 30-year-old followed up that announcement by signing an eight-year contract extension, keeping him a part of the team’s core through the end of the 2023-24 NHL season. Seabrook showed his worth during the 2015 postseason, playing shutdown defense as well as providing clutch scoring. He tallied seven goals in 23 games to set a franchise record among club defensemen and added four assists for 11 points.
5. NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
One of the most exciting parts of any season opener is welcoming new faces into the fold. Fans have caught glimpses of puck-moving defenseman Trevor Daley as well as forwards Artemi Panarin, Artem Anisimov, Ryan Garbutt and Viktor Tikhonov, but Wednesday will be the first chance for the team to put it all together in a fully competitive environment. Daley, who can quarterback the power play, should provide additional firepower from the blue line, and Anisimov brings size and two-way awareness to the Blackhawks’ new-look second line. Panarin, in particular, has impressed many despite appearing in only one preseason tilt. His stickhandling and playmaking skills have looked right at home on the second line alongside Anisimov and Patrick Kane, and Head Coach Joel Quenneville is hoping his retooled forward group can contribute as much offense as last season’s corps.
After practice on Tuesday, the Blackhawks expressed their desire to turn the page on their championship season in order to focus on defending their title, and an Original Six tilt against the Rangers should be motivation enough to come out strong in Wednesday’s season opener. New York boasts a physical yet skilled group of forwards to go along with a veteran defense, as well as one of the best goaltenders in the league in Lundqvist, so getting two points won’t be an easy task for the hosts. But before the puck drops on the 2015-16 campaign, they’ll take one last moment to enjoy the fruits of last season’s labor when they raise their sixth Stanley Cup banner to the rafters of the United Center.
1. BANNER MEN (DID IT AGAIN)
The Blackhawks will kick off the 2015-16 National Hockey League season with their Stanley Cup banner-raising ceremony before taking the ice against the New York Rangers. Aside from enjoying the spectacle and celebratory atmosphere, Chicago’s objective on Wednesday is to start the season off with a win at the United Center, and they’ll likely need all of their firepower to get past Alain Vigneaut’s Presidents’ Trophy-winning squad. The two teams split last season’s series, each side winning 1-0 on enemy ice as goalies took center stage. Corey Crawford, Wednesday’s probable starter, was the hard-luck loser on March 8 at the United Center, when he stopped the first 35 shots he faced, but allowed Derick Brassard’s game-winner in overtime.
2. MONSTER NASH
The Rangers are one of the few teams in the NHL that has returned their same top line from 2014-15. Brassard, Rick Nash and Mats Zuccarello combined for 173 points last season, but their future was a question mark due to Zuccarello suffering a brain contusion and skull fracture during the playoffs. With the speedy Norwegian seemingly recovered from his injury, the trio should reunite and continue producing for the Rangers, who were runners-up to Tampa Bay for the Eastern Conference title last year. Nash contributed a team-high 69 points in 2014-15, which included a career-best 42 goals, and he has been a thorn in the Blackhawks’ side throughout his 12-year career, with 52 points (25G, 27A) in 59 career matchups dating back to his days with Columbus in the Central Division.
3. KING OF NEW YORK
Although the Blackhawks did not face Henrik Lundqvist at all last season (both tilts featured Cam Talbot), the team is well aware of how difficult it is to put the puck behind the Rangers’ longtime starter. Lundqvist finished the 2014-15 campaign with a 30-13-3 record, 2.25 goals-against average (ranking eighth in the NHL) and .922 save percentage (sharing 10th); he also finished the campaign with a .928 SV% and 2.11 GAA in 19 playoff outings. Last season was the first 82-game schedule in which Lundqvist did not appear in at least 50 games, and there is some worry that the 33-year-old could be nearing a decline after years of dominance. But in the season opener, the Blackhawks will need to get Lundqvist, who plays very deep in his net and covers the bottom half of the cage well, moving around his crease and out of his comfort zone.
4. SEABS CHANGE
The Blackhawks had a leadership role to fill after the trade of longtime forward Patrick Sharp to Dallas, and at the beginning of training camp, Quenneville appointed Brent Seabrook the team’s new alternate captain. The 30-year-old followed up that announcement by signing an eight-year contract extension, keeping him a part of the team’s core through the end of the 2023-24 NHL season. Seabrook showed his worth during the 2015 postseason, playing shutdown defense as well as providing clutch scoring. He tallied seven goals in 23 games to set a franchise record among club defensemen and added four assists for 11 points.
5. NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
One of the most exciting parts of any season opener is welcoming new faces into the fold. Fans have caught glimpses of puck-moving defenseman Trevor Daley as well as forwards Artemi Panarin, Artem Anisimov, Ryan Garbutt and Viktor Tikhonov, but Wednesday will be the first chance for the team to put it all together in a fully competitive environment. Daley, who can quarterback the power play, should provide additional firepower from the blue line, and Anisimov brings size and two-way awareness to the Blackhawks’ new-look second line. Panarin, in particular, has impressed many despite appearing in only one preseason tilt. His stickhandling and playmaking skills have looked right at home on the second line alongside Anisimov and Patrick Kane, and Head Coach Joel Quenneville is hoping his retooled forward group can contribute as much offense as last season’s corps.
After practice on Tuesday, the Blackhawks expressed their desire to turn the page on their championship season in order to focus on defending their title, and an Original Six tilt against the Rangers should be motivation enough to come out strong in Wednesday’s season opener. New York boasts a physical yet skilled group of forwards to go along with a veteran defense, as well as one of the best goaltenders in the league in Lundqvist, so getting two points won’t be an easy task for the hosts. But before the puck drops on the 2015-16 campaign, they’ll take one last moment to enjoy the fruits of last season’s labor when they raise their sixth Stanley Cup banner to the rafters of the United Center.
