Sources: Chicago Sun-Times, Daily Herald, NBC Sports Chicago, The Athletic Chicago, WGN Sports
Derek King racked up his first career NHL head coaching win as the Blackhawks beat the division rival Predators 2-1 in overtime. Despite some rough edges still with clearing the zone, breaking out, and passing, the game seemed to flow much smoother and calmer.
What stood out the most in King's debut behind the bench was how much better the Hawks were in patrolling the slot, locking it down in the high danger areas, and showing composure to weather offensive onslaughts by the Predators and not cave in so easily.
As noted below, this is just the beginning of King's refining and even remaking of the team in terms of their collective confidence, trust in each other and in him, and strategies at both ends of the ice. His likeability and NHL pedigree buy him time to not rush.
Soundbytes
Below is an overview of key soundbytes from yesterday's press conference featuring King and interim general manager Kyle Davidson.
* King: "Yeah, I was in shock. I was just like, 'Wow. OK. Sure, I'll do it. Why not, right?' But, yeah, I'm nervous. I'm a little scared, I'm anxious, I'm excited. There's a lot of emotions going right now."
* King: "I'll be nervous, but I think on the bench before the game starts I think I'll step back, take it all in. [Marc Crawford has] been around this game a long time...He's a huge support and I told him, 'I'm going to lean on you a lot and we're going to work well together.'"
* King: "I want these guys to feel relaxed. They’re tight. It’s just time to go back to playing some good, solid, hard hockey."
* King: "Letting [Toews and Kane] have a voice is key."
* King: "If you don't play hard and aren't accountable you're going to hear from me."
* Davidson: "I quickly recognized the need for a change and took my concerns to Danny and Rocky."
* Davidson: "The losses aren't the issue. It's how you lose."
* Davidson: "The messaging to the players was something I was satisfied [with]. The translation of message to response was not something I was satisfied with. That’s where it’s on me to step in."
* Davidson: "We were making mistakes that were correctable that weren’t being corrected."
* Davidson: "I like to have...an open relationship with [staff]. I’m not someone who has to be the 'The Boss.' I’ll make the tough decisions when they need to be made, but I’m approachable and I think I’ll be someone that everyone will enjoy working for."
* Davidson: "I just want to get it right. There's no style points here."
* Davidson: "I’m not Stan [Bowman]. I’m a different person. With that comes philosophical differences."
* Davidson: "You find out if you’re a playoff team in April, and let’s be honest, the math is not in our favor on that."
Additional Notes
* Davidson stated that a permanent head coach will be hired during the offseason alluding to waiting for more candidates to be available once all teams are done playing.
* Also, Davidson mentioned that he does intend to add another assistant coach to the staff.
* When asked why Marc Crawford wasn't appointed to be the interim head coach and if allegations of abuse in his past was a factor, Davidson claimed it was critical to have a new voice rather than someone already "entrenched" in the organization.
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Blackhawks: Game Summary
Starting Lineup
DeBrincat - Dach - Kane
Kubalik - Toews - Hagel
Hardman - Strome - Entwistle
Khaira - Carpenter - Kurashev
Stillman - S Jones
McCabe - Murphy
de Haan - Gustafsson
Lankinen
Fleury
Scratches:
Borgstrom, Gaudette
Scoring Recap
1st Goal (1-0): Hagel (S Jones, Toews)
2nd Goal (1-1): Carrier (unassisted)
3rd Goal (2-1): DeBrincat (Kane, Lankinen) OT
SOG For/Against: 32/21
PP: 0-for-3
PK: 2-for-2
Faceoffs Won: 46%
Thoughts & Notes
* The team defense was more suffocating and prioritized net protection which led to shot suppression holding the Predators to 5 shots in the opening frame and single digits through half the game.
* It's great to see the physicality with hits, jolts, and rub outs especially by the blueliners led by Riley Stillman in particular who's a throwback to a rough-and-tumble style of hockey.
* Calvin de Haan laid a nice hit on Alexandre Carrier late in the 3rd as he was driving to the net but where was that hit when Carrier barreled past de Haan to score in the 2nd?
* Dominik Kubalik was snakebitten all game as he couldn't convert on a multitude of prime scoring chances.
* At time of print, it's unknown whether Brandon Hagel's arm injury after crashing hard on it on the ice is severe enough to warrant time on injured reserve.
* In the event that Hagel is out of commission for a period of time, there's no need to call up anyone from Rockford as either Henrik Borgstrom or Adam Gaudette can easily suit up and take his spot.
* With the assist on the OT-GWG by Alex DeBrincat, Patrick Kane notched his 1,100th career point in his 1,038th game.
* It would be nice, though, if teammates stop deferring to Kane so much as force feeding him passes kills momentum or even leads to immediate turnovers.
Highlights
Goal by Brandon Hagel
Goal by Alex DeBrincat
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IceHogs: Game Summary
Starting Lineup
Slavin - Reichel - Connolly
Nylander - McLaughlin - Altybarmakian
Barratt - Johnson - Gicewicz
Morrison - G Mitchell - Busdeker
Beaudin - I Mitchell
Stanton - Galvas
Watson - Krys
Subban
Soderblom
Scoring Recap
1st Goal (1-0): Reichel (Connolly, Slavin)
2nd Goal (2-0): G Mitchell (Stanton, Morrison)
3rd Goal (3-0): Reichel (Slavin)
4th Goal (3-1): Malott (Perfetti, Suess)
5th Goal (4-1): Reichel (Beaudin)
6th Goal (4-2): Heinola (Kovacevic, Gustafsson)
7th Goal (4-3): Polei (Heinola, Poganski)
SOG For/Against: 21/37
PP: 0-for-3
PK: 2-for-2
Thoughts & Notes
* Lukas Reichel bagged his first hat trick as a pro in North America generating his own chances on all 3 tallies including a bank play from behind the goal line and a pair of breakaways.
* Kristian Reichel, cousin of Lukas, played on the opposite side as a winger and alternate captain for the Moose.
* Anders Sorensen collected his first career AHL head coaching win as he also began his tenure last night on an interim basis for the IceHogs.
Highlights
Lukas Reichel
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Native American Heritage & Homage
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