The Era of Good Feelings continues in Chicago, with the Hawks going into the Christmas break at 19-14-3 and definitely on the upswing, coming off their third straight home victory against a playoff team from last year.

This mini-run, that began with a convincing victory over Detroit, the first place team in the West, has been marked by the following:

- backchecking
- protecting the front of the net
- secondary scoring
- Brian Campbell leading the team in TOI (at 24:00 last night)

Last night was no different. In addition to tallies from Dave Bolland and Bryan Bickell, Jack Skille had his second 2-goal night of the season and his second such night against Nashville, a team that has otherwise been the Hawks' bane this year.

I thought, going into the game, Nashville might be the best test for the Hawks' renewed commitment to defense and patience with the puck. And the Hawks, even minus Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa, looked better against Nashville (albeit minus Matthew Lombardi) than they have all season.

I wouldn't call the Hawks dominant. Its hard to be dominant against a team like Nashville. But I would say that they controlled the play most of the night and seemed to be able to turn the tide fairly quickly when the Preds were starting to come on.

There were times, especially in the first period, where I thought I might doze off with all the neutral zone traffic and bad angle shots both teams were forcing. And I thought to myself, as Ed Olczyk later articulated on the CSN Chicago broadcast, the Hawks needed to be careful about getting frustrated with Nashville's style and trying to force things.

They didn't. And they won again.

As far as individual performances, there were a lot of good ones. While the top line of Troy Brouwer, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Sharp didn't score, they were very strong all night, focusing tons of pressure on Anders Lindback. Brouwer registered 7 hits again, many of them board rattlers. The defense was outstanding pretty much all night. Jassen Cullimore (Jassen Cullimore!), as I blogged the other day, has not played this well in years.

The Hawks first goal was generated off the forecheck with Fernando Pisani and Dave Bolland beginning to show some nasty (some would say 'nice') third line chemistry. Bolland also put a nice goal mouth move on Lindback, effectively faking the behemoth Swede netminder out of his, ahem, athletic supporter. Bolland's line was very effective shutting down the top Nashville line all night.

Skille's two goals were needed and timely. He was first star and he deserved it.

One of the worst things about Skille is also one of the best things: he puts a lot of pucks on net. His shot choices are often questionable at best. And although his shooting percentage, as Tim Sassone points out this morning in the Daily Herald, is very low, his number came up last night. On the second goal, Skille was helped by a complete screen from a Nashville defender— but sometimes you make your own luck, too.

Skille, it seems, is becoming this year's Cristobal Huet, with camps coalescing around opposing points of view on his ability. And predictably, there is a bit of a Skille Fest going on this morning in some corners of Blackhawk Nation.

I'm not biting.

He has six goals, on pace for about 14. For a player who shoots as much as he does, he should have more. Yes, shots generate rebounds but just as often, they give possession of the puck to the other team. Sometimes—a lot of times—a pass is better than a shot.

And at 215 pounds, Skille should make more of an impact physically. He does register "hits" but as I've pointed out in the past, some hits are only measured on the scoresheet; some are measured in the pain and resulting timidity of your opponent.

Bickell and Brouwer by comparison, both drafted the year before Skille (and Bickell with slightly less NHL experience), have more goals and impact the game more physically. Where you notice Skille is on the break. Where you don't is in his own end, along the boards and in the corners.

Here's the bottom line and why many observers remain skeptical: Skille is fast, but not good enough with the puck (he is not Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp or even Kris Versteeg and probably never will be) to outweigh his deficiencies without it. Which is why he remains a third line player, more likely fourth when the team comes to full health.

But kudos to him— last night, a couple of his shots found the twine and helped the Hawks to another big win. And lately, he is definitely helping the team more than hurting it.

The Hawks enter a three day break now, with the presents of a healthy Viktor Stalberg (at least) awaiting them, and (possibly) Marian Hossa and/or Kane as stocking stuffers.

The news on the Hawks is almost all good for the first time since June. And rightfully so, many observers, myself included, are wondering if the returns of the aforementioned offensive contributors will disrupt or alter the Hawks' newfound commitment to defense first.

I don't think so. Defense first is, in fact, Hossa's game. And Kane and Stalberg can backcheck when they commit themselves to it. But, most importantly, the Hawks themselves clearly seem to realize what's winning games for them now.

Back tomorrow with JJ's Christmas List.

Thanks for reading

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