John Jaeckel: A Tragedy of Errors

So glad I missed the game.
I'll be tuning in tonight to see what the Oil's speed does to our D.

I did catch the radio commentary after the game was over though.
And I heard the boys in the booth talking about Seabrook's -4.
I don't know if I can recall him ever being that far under-water in a game.

What's the old saying? You're never as good as you think you are at the "height" of your success and never as bad when you're at the bottom of the barrel. I don't think they can play much worse or be as uninterested. I'm giving things til mid-season and if we see this type of play more often than not, it would not surprise me to see players moved or a change behind the bench. Doubt McD will allow Stan to let this continue.

So glad I missed the game.
I'll be tuning in tonight to see what the Oil's speed does to our D.

I did catch the radio commentary after the game was over though.
And I heard the boys in the booth talking about Seabrook's -4.
I don't know if I can recall him ever being that far under-water in a game.
- savvyone-1

Ya, good news is, not sure he will be that bad or worse again. Hope not anyway. But there were plenty of culprits last night. Only d-men I can say had decent games overall were Murphy and Keith. Kempny was meh. Rutta, same. Forsling . . . ugh . . . Forsling.

JJ, Nice objective article. It may well be a long season. The fluke of the first two games is now being clearly overshadowed. For all the ADB cheerleaders that contribute to this fine site, its clear the kid needs a tour of duty at the Rock before a 6'4" forward pancakes his head into the boards. The kid has tremendous upside - only if he is not in concussion protocol.

JJ, Nice objective article. It may well be a long season. The fluke of the first two games is now being clearly overshadowed. For all the ADB cheerleaders that contribute to this fine site, its clear the kid needs a tour of duty at the Rock before a 6'4" forward pancakes his head into the boards. The kid has tremendous upside - only if he is not in concussion protocol.
- riozzo

I agree here. The turnovers will go away the more he plays.

The vulnerability to big hits and repeatedly getting destroyed along the wall is going to either turn him into Teuvo Alligator Arms or his brain to mush.

So glad I missed the game.
I'll be tuning in tonight to see what the Oil's speed does to our D.

I did catch the radio commentary after the game was over though.
And I heard the boys in the booth talking about Seabrook's -4.
I don't know if I can recall him ever being that far under-water in a game.
- savvyone-1

Pinpointing one player for last night's debacle is silly, the whole team stunk, it was just a matter of to what degree individually.

As much as I hate the word 'structure' in hockey when assessing how a team plays, its clear the Chicago Blackhawks are badly in need of some. And that's 100% on the coaching staff.

Pinpointing one player for last night's debacle is silly, the whole team stunk, it was just a matter of to what degree individually.

As much as I hate the word 'structure' in hockey when assessing how a team plays, its clear the Chicago Blackhawks are badly in need of some. And that's 100% on the coaching staff.
- RickJ

Yep. As always, bang on, Rick.

Ya, good news is, not sure he will be that bad or worse again. Hope not anyway. But there were plenty of culprits last night. Only d-men I can say had decent games overall were Murphy and Keith. Kempny was meh. Rutta, same. Forsling . . . ugh . . . Forsling.
- John Jaeckel

That's good to hear John, especially for #2. Seems to me he's finally recovered from his knee surgery and if the Hawks are going to go anywhere, he's got to be near 100%. There isn't another guy on the D lineup with his foot speed/quickness and ability to jump plays.

Murphy needs to do some serious work on his skating mechanics IMO. Obviously won't happen in-season and presuming he's still around next year, I would hope the staff pushes him to do that work. For all the chatter about what a good skater he is, he's got a long way to go. His pivots/transitions in particular are not good and for the long legs, he doesn't get much out of that stride. Still, if he can overcome Q's head-games (always a challenge) with him in/out of the lineup, my hope is he can be a solid contributor.

Ya, good news is, not sure he will be that bad or worse again. Hope not anyway. But there were plenty of culprits last night. Only d-men I can say had decent games overall were Murphy and Keith. Kempny was meh. Rutta, same. Forsling . . . ugh . . . Forsling.
- John Jaeckel

He (like many others) was bad last night. It seems to me a good time to get Oesterle on the ice, and maybe let Forsling sit and watch a game.

That's good to hear John, especially for #2. Seems to me he's finally recovered from his knee surgery and if the Hawks are going to go anywhere, he's got to be near 100%. There isn't another guy on the D lineup with his foot speed/quickness and ability to jump plays.

Murphy needs to do some serious work on his skating mechanics IMO. Obviously won't happen in-season and presuming he's still around next year, I would hope the staff pushes him to do that work. For all the chatter about what a good skater he is, he's got a long way to go. His pivots/transitions in particular are not good and for the long legs, he doesn't get much out of that stride. Still, if he can overcome Q's head-games (always a challenge) with him in/out of the lineup, my hope is he can be a solid contributor.
- savvyone-1

Keith's looked pretty solid all season. Still going strong.

Pinpointing one player for last night's debacle is silly, the whole team stunk, it was just a matter of to what degree individually.

As much as I hate the word 'structure' in hockey when assessing how a team plays, its clear the Chicago Blackhawks are badly in need of some. And that's 100% on the coaching staff.
- RickJ

Could not agree with you more! +10000!

I didn't want to bring it up because I've given Q his due for the 3 Cups.
The inability of the staff to teach this lineup effective schemes for countering what the opponents throw at you in a given game is mind-boggling.

Q has always seemed to me to be that hard-headed guy, inflexible as far as game strategy goes. Going to play/win doing it one way, regardless of what's in front of you. Became glaringly clear during the 2nd CUP run against Detroit, needing 7 games to finish off the Wings because Q couldn't/wouldn't make any changes.

Anxious to see what's in store against the Oilers. Should be a fun tilt.

Agree with Rick. The whole team stunk. They looked unprepared and had zero hunger or desire. That's not only on the players but on the coaching staff. The D looked largely overwhelmed by the size and forecheck of the Blues. The fact that they had 7 shots on goal with 2:34 left in the SECOND PERIOD is an embarrassment. Where was the Hawks speed and the forecheck? It was a disgrace. Amazing they won't see this team until March and hopefully by then, the Hawks will be a different team between the guys who are there and anyone they acquire.

So far in the short 7 game sample, these seem to be some general trends:

1st line- Huge improvement over last year

2nd line- Too early to tell, but maybe not right combo to maximize Kane.

3rd line- Turning into a huge disappointment, and nowhere near as effective as 3rd line was in cup years.

4th line- Probably decent enough.

D pairings- Hopefully potential, but long wat to go...

Could not agree with you more! +10000!

I didn't want to bring it up because I've given Q his due for the 3 Cups.
The inability of the staff to teach this lineup effective schemes for countering what the opponents throw at you in a given game is mind-boggling.

Q has always seemed to me to be that hard-headed guy, inflexible as far as game strategy goes. Going to play/win doing it one way, regardless of what's in front of you. Became glaringly clear during the 2nd CUP run against Detroit, needing 7 games to finish off the Wings because Q couldn't/wouldn't make any changes.

Anxious to see what's in store against the Oilers. Should be a fun tilt.
- savvyone-1

Have to wonder if Q is spending too much time with Binny's. It may be time for a change, just because the team is changing.

Side note for my fellow hockey fans, I was in Detroit on Monday and took advantage of the opportunity to see the new Little Caesars Arena for the Wings/Lightning game. Beautiful arena. A lot of great food and beverage options and experiences and the sight lines are great. If you have the chance and are in the area, I encourage you to take a visit.

Good review JJ. And yes, I am sure Seabrook will have more games better than last night than he will games as bad as that one.

I think this is what we get the first 40-50 games....some good, some bad. Remember, the team has a lot of new faces playing prominent roles. Hartman, Forsling, Ruutu, Kemptny, Smaltz, DeBrincat...etc. ALL have had good moments, and all have had some issues. Add in Saad and Sharp coming back and we have piles of new guys that have to get use to each other.

If this team can continue this pace of close to it (9 points of possible 14 is solid)...and Stan beats the bushes to find a good way to add with his new-found Cap-space...I think we are still ok. NOT elite, but very good. The possible additions COULD make us a Cup contender if we gel and these young guys show they are here to stay.

After 7 games....B-. And so far, so....mmmm....pretty good...

Good review JJ. And yes, I am sure Seabrook will have more games better than last night than he will games as bad as that one.

I think this is what we get the first 40-50 games....some good, some bad. Remember, the team has a lot of new faces playing prominent roles. Hartman, Forsling, Ruutu, Kemptny, Smaltz, DeBrincat...etc. ALL have had good moments, and all have had some issues. Add in Saad and Sharp coming back and we have piles of new guys that have to get use to each other.

If this team can continue this pace of close to it (9 points of possible 14 is solid)...and Stan beats the bushes to find a good way to add with his new-found Cap-space...I think we are still ok. NOT elite, but very good. The possible additions COULD make us a Cup contender if we gel and these young guys show they are here to stay.

After 7 games....B-. And so far, so....mmmm....pretty good...
- hawk35

9 of 14 is OK but numbers within the Central Div. are much more important. They got zip against Minny and St.Louis and fortunately eked out 2 against Nashville. And Dallas will give them fits in those games. So if they can't play at least .500 in the Central, wild card spot is what's left.

So far in the short 7 game sample, these seem to be some general trends:

1st line- Huge improvement over last year

2nd line- Too early to tell, but maybe not right combo to maximize Kane.

3rd line- Turning into a huge disappointment, and nowhere near as effective as 3rd line was in cup years.

4th line- Probably decent enough.

D pairings- Hopefully potential, but long wat to go...
- RaleighHawk

I'd agree and add goaltending will not usually loose a game this season. NOt sure how many Cro can steal if we are under 4.0 GPG

I saw 20 fail to engage quite a bit last night as well. Overall, no excuse for an effort like that against your biggest rival to date. Especially when we wont see them again till mid March.....

So glad I missed the game.
I'll be tuning in tonight to see what the Oil's speed does to our D.

I did catch the radio commentary after the game was over though.
And I heard the boys in the booth talking about Seabrook's -4.
I don't know if I can recall him ever being that far under-water in a game.

What's the old saying? You're never as good as you think you are at the "height" of your success and never as bad when you're at the bottom of the barrel. I don't think they can play much worse or be as uninterested. I'm giving things til mid-season and if we see this type of play more often than not, it would not surprise me to see players moved or a change behind the bench. Doubt McD will allow Stan to let this continue.
- savvyone-1

it was one their classic bow-wows with 3 days rest...go figure...noticed over the last few years this team does not play very well after 2 plus days rest...don't get it...

none of those goals on craw...he got caught guessing on the 2nd...allen got em in a horsepoop change

Pinpointing one player for last night's debacle is silly, the whole team stunk, it was just a matter of to what degree individually.

As much as I hate the word 'structure' in hockey when assessing how a team plays, its clear the Chicago Blackhawks are badly in need of some. And that's 100% on the coaching staff.
- RickJ

notice how the teams with structure: blues, preds, wild give this team fits

Ya, good news is, not sure he will be that bad or worse again. Hope not anyway. But there were plenty of culprits last night. Only d-men I can say had decent games overall were Murphy and Keith. Kempny was meh. Rutta, same. Forsling . . . ugh . . . Forsling.
- John Jaeckel

Agreed JJ.

Might be time to switch up those D pairings.

Keith-Murphy was tried in the pre-season and then disappeared so not sure what happened there. But I would revisit that.

IMO the Hawks near-future (the rest of this season) and beyond really needs Connor Murphy to show that he's a Top-4 D. Playing him regularly... and with Keith could really benefit them.

I am also in favour of getting Oesterle in there as well to see what he's made of.

Could not agree with you more! +10000!

I didn't want to bring it up because I've given Q his due for the 3 Cups.
The inability of the staff to teach this lineup effective schemes for countering what the opponents throw at you in a given game is mind-boggling.

Q has always seemed to me to be that hard-headed guy, inflexible as far as game strategy goes. Going to play/win doing it one way, regardless of what's in front of you. Became glaringly clear during the 2nd CUP run against Detroit, needing 7 games to finish off the Wings because Q couldn't/wouldn't make any changes.

Anxious to see what's in store against the Oilers. Should be a fun tilt.
- savvyone-1

During the long play-off runs, we've always talked about how well the Hawks have adjusted so that by games 4-5-6, they're pretty much locked in on how to win.

Q and his staff (whoever they might be) are very good at adjusting between games in long series against the same team.

They aren't so good at adjusting within or between periods inside of individual games. If they start out slow and get going by the third period, it seems to be because the leaders - the Kanes, Toews, Keiths, even Seabrooks - have decided to start playing with some energy and desperation - not because the coaches figured out what the other team was trying to do and how to counter.

Nice write up JJ. It's early but this team looking like it will battle for third or wild card spot. Not thrilled with playing Edmonton. Think Mcjesus is due for a big game .

And I heard the boys in the booth talking about Seabrook's -4

Keith was also -4, Sharp, Hayden, Wingels all -3. Plenty of stink to go around.