Chicago Blackhawks Notes, Preview vs. Flyers

Aaron Johnson is Back!

When you lose a guy who was fifth in the NHL in plus-minus at the time of his injury, you feel that loss on every defensive shift. Fortunately for the Hawks, they went 8-2-1 without him, and now they get Aaron Johnson back from IR tonight against the Philadelphia Flyers.

So far this season, he has already matched his career high in goals (three), and has a +13 in his 18 games that he has played. He will be a welcome addition to the defensive corps, who also got James Wisniewski back in recent weeks.

Talk about the rich getting richer.

Autograph Signing Tonight at the UC

For those of you who are going to the United Center tonight for the game against the Flyers, make sure you stop by the alumni signing that will be occurring outside of section 101. Blackhawks legend Stan Mikita will be signing autographs before the game, and also after the first and second periods.

All-Star Voting Update

After some interesting computer adjustments by the NHL (taking away a bunch of votes from the three Ducks representatives), Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews are currently running first and second among the forwards on the Western Conference All-Star ballot.

Kane has the lead with about 648,000 votes, and Toews is in second with 552,470 votes. He is clear of third place Ryan Getzlaf by nearly 60,000 votes. Marian Hossa is fourth with 371,194 votes, making the possibility of both Kane and Toews starting the All-Star Game very real.

On the defensive side of the puck, Brian Campbell is currently in the lead with 538,637 votes, and Detroit legend Nicklas Lidstrom is in second about 32,000 votes behind. Dion Phaneuf is in third, 70,000 votes behind Lidstrom, also making it appear likely that Campbell will also start the All-Star Game.

If all three of the Blackhawks ballot representatives end up starting the game, it is very likely that the Hawks will only get one more All-Star into the game. There are three very deserving candidates to choose from.

Patrick Sharp is fifth in the NHL in goals with 18, Duncan Keith was an All-Star last year and is putting up even better numbers this year (second behind Campbell for most points by a defense man, and a +17 to lead the team), and Nikolai Khabibulin has lost only one regulation game out of the 15 that he has started, going 10-1-4 with a GAA of 2.44 and a .922 save percentage. He also has two assists.

Adam Burish Itching to Return, but Return Isn’t Imminent

With the excellent play of late by the Blackhawks, Adam Burish is looking like he’s the odd man out.

He is second on the team with 49 penalty minutes, but his return is being hampered by the success of the team.

According to coach Joel Quenneville, Burish has been “really flying in practice”, and “I’m sure he’s chomping at the bit to get back in the lineup.”

He has been working out aggressively back home in Madison, WI during the Blackhawks’ long Christmas break, and hopes to be back in the lineup by the time the Winter Classic rolls around in just six short days.

Game Preview (vs. Flyers 12/26)

These Blackhawks have not had a lot of luck against the Broad Street Bullies. In their last 13 games against them, they are 1-12-0. In fact, the Hawks have scored only nine goals in their last six games against the Flyers.

In addition to this hideous mark in recent years against the Philly boys, there is also the cold reality that the Flyers are playing lights-out hockey of late. They are 4-0-1 in their last five games, and have used the goal-scoring prowess of Jeff Carter (10 goals in 11 games) to their advantage. Oh yeah, Jeff has eight assists in those games too.

Joffery Lupul and Scott Hartnell are also red-hot, with each getting three goals and four assists in their last three games.

The Hawks counter with a couple of young stars who are turning it on lately as well. Patrick Kane has scored goals in three straight games, and leads the team with 39 points. Patrick Sharp, who the Flyers dealt to the Hawks, has scored 18 this season and 89 with the club overall since the trade.

In the month of December, Jonathan Toews has also been red-hot, scoring five goals and adding five assists in the team’s nine games. He also has a +6, and is averaging around 17:00 a game in ice time. His face-off percentage has also improved, with percentages of 61.5, 46.7, 70,6, and 58.8 in his last four games.

Winter Classic Run-up Experiencing Odd Weather

The NHL will have no problem keeping the ice frozen at Wrigley Field, but the weather leading up to the event is going to be anything but typical for a Chicago winter.

With temperatures in the 40’s on the Monday and Tuesday prior to the game, all of the snow will likely be gone from around the Friendly Confines, making the field look like an ice rink over an infield (think the pic of the boards outline from July).

The weather on the day of the Classic has not been easy to forecast. Earlier in the week, partly sunny and 28 was the forecast, but as of 4:30pm today, the forecast calls for a high temp of about 30, with possible snow showers in the forecast.

Work will also be difficult tomorrow, with the forecast calling for heavy rains and temperatures near 60 degrees on Saturday, followed by a quick cold snap and windy conditions on Sunday.

This chaotic weather is quintessential Chicago, and hopefully it doesn’t interfere a lot with the construction of the rink.

Tonight’s game will be telecast on Comcast SportsNet at 7:30pm, with the game also being aired on WGN-Radio (720 AM in Chicago).