Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

That Full 60

December 19, 2018, 9:49 AM ET [650 Comments]
Tyler Cameron
Chicago Blackhawks Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT


It was that full 60-minute performance that Jeremy Colliton has been dreaming about every night since he took over as the Blackhawks head coach.

The Hawks played Nashville to a 2-1 victory last night and were really solid up-and-down the lineup. There play in all zones was as good as it's been all year or at least during Colliton's 21 game stint.

Carl Dahlstrom led all Hawks in ice time with 22+ mins. No, that last sentence was not a typo. Colliton really spread out the playing time for all and the big Swede came out on top as he plays a solid game. There's nothing flashy about him but he's making a case to stay in the lineup for good. Could he and Murphy be that shutdown pair that the Hawks have needed since Hammer/Oduya left town?

Also, the Hawks forwards must have been reading my work. Toews (2), Kampf (2), Kane (1), DeBrincat (1) and Hayden (1) all registering blocks last night. I mentioned a few blogs ago that the Hawks forwards needed to get better to getting in lanes to block those shots from the point.

Lastly, how good was Cam Ward? This is why he was signed and I think Colin Delia is going to have to wait his turn to get in there. Ward stepped up huge and was the 1st star of the game with his 30 save performance.

So, slowly but surely, Jeremy Colliton appears to be getting his way with the roster and is looking like he's closer to finding some consistency with lines.

I've heard that Stan Bowman has enjoyed a fresh set of eyes/opinions through Colliton, Smith and Granato. Keep in mind, Joel Quenneville was all he knew. Now, he has a young coach in Colliton who he's hoping makes him look good. Also, with Quenneville gone, Barry Smith is able to influence this roster a little more as well.

This is also a good time for Stan to correct some mistakes. He can mask some of these moves with the "direction of the new coach". I put that last line in "air quotes" but I do believe that Stan is actually listening to the new coach and his team.

How much of these moves and strategies have been Colliton and/or Smith? Or is Stan just cleaning up his own misses?

* Nick Schmaltz (traded)
* Carl Dalhstrom (recalled)
* David Kampf (bigger role)
* Colin Delia (not Anton Forsberg recalled)
* Dylan Sikura (recalled)
* Hayden & Martinsen (very limited Chris Kunitz)
* Jan Rutta (bye)
* Brandon Manning (limiting his games)

I would like to think that the Rockford influence has obviously been Colliton.

We knew this would be a long process and maybe we start to see it pay off in 2019 as JC continues to get the right mixture of players.

I will end with some bad news, followed by some good news. The Hawks is that Marcus Kruger has suffered a concussion and will not be traveling with the team on this 2-game road trip. It doesn't sound like they will be recalling anyone.

The better WJHC news is that Mackenzie Entwhistle has officially made Team Canada. Good for him and looking forward to him and Ian Mitchell in the red and white. We also all saw that Henri Jokiharju will be loaned to Team Finland for the tournament. He will miss a total of 8 NHL games. It will be a good chance for him to regain some confidence. I will have a full breakdown of which CHI players made the cut closer to the start of the tournament, which begins December 26th.

See ya out there!

JL
Join the Discussion: » 650 Comments » Post New Comment
More from Tyler Cameron
» Farewell
» My Favourite Blackhawks Team
» What's the future in net for the Blackhawks?
» What could the Blackhawks look like next year?
» Mailbag - Blackhawks Postmortem Edition