TGDT 12/5 - Blackhawks (20-5-4) @ Wild (16-8-5) 7:00PM NHLN

[Rex]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="bookjones" data-cid="216077" data-time="1386304322">
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Yup. Every day and twice on Sundays. Hawks score at just plain hockey so I don't have concerns about scoring and although I get as mega-frustrated as the next person at a futile PP considering the firepower the Hawks have on the roster and will mock it mercilessly as being Clown Shoes I would NEVER turn down having a Top 4 PK for top PP efficiency. Having the PK be crippled and balls-deep in suckitude was my greatest fear on Free Agency day when my boy Fro was so hastily discarded. People severely underestimated the importance of that boy's hustle and the cohesion he brought to the PK with Kruger. And seeing as they wound up picking up Versteeg's $2.2 mil I guess I wasn't so crazy in suggesting that all they had to do was fucking endure one more year of Fro's bad offense-oriented contract.</p>
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 </p>


Fro is on pace for 20 goals and 25 assists</p>

 

[mikita's helmet]

Q had to send Pirri down, he was a bad influence on the team, and his badness has left its mark since his departure.</p>


 </p>


We keep falling behind by two or three goals to start the game - Pirri's fault</p>


Lose or give up leads in the 3rd - Pirri's fault</p>


PK sucks - Pirri's fault</p>


Versteeg centering the 2nd line - Pirri's fault</p>


4th line has more offense than the 3rd, which is actually our second 4th line - Pirri's fault </p>

 

[Rex]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Mikita's Helmet" data-cid="216082" data-time="1386314348">
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Q had to send Pirri down, he was a bad influence on the team, and his badness has left its mark since his departure.</p>


 </p>


We keep falling behind by two or three goals to start the game - Pirri's fault</p>


Lose or give up leads in the 3rd - Pirri's fault</p>


PK sucks - Pirri's fault</p>


Versteeg centering the 2nd line - Pirri's fault</p>


4th line has more offense than the 3rd, which is actually our second 4th line - Pirri's fault </p>
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 </p>


 </p>


damn, we should have got rid of Pirri sooner!</p>

 

[bookjones]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Rex" data-cid="216080" data-time="1386311479">
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Fro is on pace for 20 goals and 25 assists</p>
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 </p>


In WPG now and that is exactly in-line with what FLA was anticipating when they gave him the contract but we all know that during his time in CHI it wasn't ultimately an "offensive" contract and from that vantage point it was a bad or overpayment. I'm happy for him because I think he wants to be a scorer. Look, I didn't have a problem with his coin here once it became obvious that he wasn't going to duplicate his early FLA numbers and because he became a defensive dynamo. It was of course an overpayment for his offensive output but paid for itself in many other ways. Really, it wound up just being like the Bolland contract to my mind which was based on 2C expectations but that just never successfully materialized but because he did other things so well at times I never got that there was much real fan pitchforks and torches outrage at his coin. I also never really cared about Bolland's contract leaving down the line either though because of my future Danault expectations or if the Hawks needed the cap space.</p>

 

[LordKOTL]

Ultimately I hang this loss on Q/Stan. </p>


 </p>


Nordstrom was a complete hot mess out there on the backend.  If their idea of getting more D was to replace Pirri with Nordstrom because Pirri's defensive game was bad, it just went to worse.</p>


 </p>


Morin obviously wanted to be there, and IMHO had a good game.  I think he was a servicable "replacement" for Shaw while Shaw is injured. But ultimately I don't see any real reason why they just didn't have the lines as:</p>


 </p>


Sharp/Toews/Hoss</p>


Saad/Pirri/Kane</p>


Morin/Steeg/Brookbank</p>


Smith/Kruger/Bollig</p>


 </p>


Would have made a lot more sense than what was iced.</p>


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I get it that they want to throw rookies at the wall and see what sitcks in Q's "Ideal" system, and that better to do it now rather than later, but I honestly think that it's hitting the point of ridiculousness.  Pirri and Morin work in the lineup.  No need to brink in an inexperienced Nordstrom who was proben, twice, that he's not there yet.</p>

 

[BigPete]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/hockey/blackhawks/ct-spt-1206-blackhawks-wild-chicago-20131206,0,5135587.story</p>


 </p>
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote">
<p style="color:rgb(41,39,39);font-family:Georgia, Times, serif;font-size:15px;background-color:rgb(250,250,250);">The Wild took a 2-0 lead on goals from Matt Cooke and Zach Parise. Crawford made 19 saves, and Quenneville was blunt in his evaluation of the goalie.</p>
<p style="color:rgb(41,39,39);font-family:Georgia, Times, serif;font-size:15px;background-color:rgb(250,250,250);">"He has to be better," Quenneville said.</p>
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Wow, the balls on that guy......</p>


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Oduya has to stop trying to block shots with an effective rate of 0% and a 'deflection into the goal' rate of 100%.  Seabrook and Keith need to stop standing up in front of Crow and providing a bigger screen than Byfuglien was to Luongo in the playoffs of 2010.</p>


 </p>


Or maybe Crow just needs to grow four more arms.</p>

 

[Ton]

Biggest difference between this years and last years PK is Crawford's save percentage. He has to find a way to be better. Period.</p>


 </p>


Hjalmarsson and Seabrook were also blocking more shots last year as well, but that's more due to the system they are playing, and they really miss someone like Frolik. No one on the PK this year is replicating Frolik's ability to take the puck away on the PK. It's not even close. Saad may be able to be that type of player, but he doesn't get enough time on the PK to really utilize his skill set. Maybe that's why they decided to change things up, but I don't know.</p>


 </p>


Those are the three biggest factors I can see in our PK. Crawford, not playing a box, missing Frolik's puck pressure (yes, I am literally being that specific).</p>


 </p>


I think Crawford will improve... Raanta is more than capable of giving Crawford a rest, which he didn't have much of earlier in the season. It looks like it's catching up to him now, but that should pass IMO.</p>


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Blocking shots is blocking shots, it's a matter of just doing it. If they went back to a box they'd find more success in that area.</p>


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Replacing Frolik, again my suggestion is already on the bench, put Saad out there with Kruger.</p>

 

[roshinaya]

Raanta should start a couple and let Crawford get his shit together. Not saying he's the only one to blame, but he among others need to tighten up. I wonder if the departure of Stephane Waite is a factor in this. But Crawford has so far had a tendency to follow a good year with a bad one.