The Hawks are looking to put the last game behind them as they get their shot at redemption as they take on the LA Kings for an afternoon matchup. After Thursday's loss, players spoke to the media as if they just got eliminated in game seven of the Cup Final. On the plus side, it's great to see them realizing they messed up by not taking advantage of the weaker San Jose team. On the other hand, it doesn’t matter how they react to these losses or what they say postgame; the only thing that matters is how they respond in the next game. They will have to step up big as the Kings are a team that is starting to heat up and sit just one point behind the Knights for first in the Pacific. They have a well-balanced attack, with Captain Anze Kopitar leading the way with 12 points. One player that will be fun to keep an eye on tonight is their 21-year-old defenseman, Brandt Clarke. This should be his first full NHL season, and he is off to a great start, averaging a point per game (1-10) and making absolutely slick plays.
I know gushing over other players is annoying, but as a fan of the game, it's so entertaining to watch and to see how far the game is coming in terms of skills. While there hasn’t been confirmation at the time of writing, I anticipate Darcy Kuemper to get the start on this one. Kuemper came to LA in the one-for-one trade that sent locker room cancer PLD to the Capitals. In 5 stars this year, Kuemper holds a 3-0-2 record and a.895 save percentage. He will have to be better if the Kings want to have a legitimate shot at a deep playoff run, but if they keep playing the way they are, they can get by while he finds his game.
Projected Line Ups
Blackhawks lines in practice Kurashev-Bedard-Donato Hall-Foligno-Bertuzzi Mikheyev-Dickinson-Teräväinen/Anderson Maroon-Reichel-Smith
Ryan Donato gets a much-deserved jump to the 1st line and was even skating with the top power play unit at practice yesterday. He has had four goals in his last three games and is really playing a good overall game. If this does end up being the lines for today's game, it is interesting to see Teräväinen drop to the third line. He has cooled off a bit after a great start to the season, and it's unfortunate because I had hoped he and Bedard would be given all the time to stay together and build that chemistry.
Isaak Phillips replaces TJ Brodie in the Blackhawks’ lineup today.
Richardson said Brodie has indeed gotten caught in the DZ too long in recent games, but it’s more about finally getting Phillips in a game.
A move that is being made for this one that I am all for is TJ Brodie will be a healthy scratch and Isaac Phillips will be making his season debut. Listen, I have made it clear my feelings about Brodies play and the need to get him out of the lineup, but I don’t wish failure on the guy. Hopefully he can take this as motivation to play better because even on this team, what he was producing out there wasn’t good enough, and that's saying a lot.
Petr Mrazek will get his 6th straight start today, and despite the direction this team is going, he isn’t to blame. As long as he keeps up what he is doing, he’s fine, and he will have a nice break after tonight as they will turn to Soderblom tomorrow and then will not play again until Wednesday.
Thats going to be it from me; puck drop is set for 3 p.m. central time. As always, Let's Go Hawks!
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