Chicago Blackhawks’ new journey opens with 5-1 reduction
Each and every lengthy journey — no make any difference the place somebody is headed — begins with a one action.
Then yet another.
And at some point — assuming they you should not get missing, bruised or battered together the way — their location is arrived at and some form of celebration is likely in order.
It truly is with all those feelings in thoughts that we provide you to the scene at Amalie Arena in Tampa Bay, the place the Blackhawks and Lightning clashed night to start the 2021 NHL period.
The readers arrived six many years taken out from their last Stanley Cup championship, which arrived very more than enough against mentor Jon Cooper’s staff in 2015. Right after years of continual decline, the Hawks are officially rebuilding, with that 1st newborn move coming Wednesday night time.
The household workforce understood its championship dream past September by defeating Dallas in the Stanley Cup Last and held a pregame ceremony to rejoice its prosperous quest in advance of trouncing the Hawks 5-1.

























Could there have been a greater place for coach Jeremy Colliton’s squad to kick off this campaign? All Alex DeBrincat, Dylan Strome, Dominik Kubalik, Connor Murphy, Ian Mitchell, Adam Boqvist and a host of other Hawks experienced to do was glance throughout the ice and believe, “Someday that’ll be us.”
“Get a psychological be aware,” Strome reported. “Which is where we want to be.”
Explained Colliton: “It should really have everyone’s interest that we’re actively playing the Stanley Cup champions. It is their evening to rejoice and it’s going to be a very little little bit different. …
“But we’ve acquired to be completely ready. It really is a extremely excellent crew about there. We have received to embrace that from puck drop. Be aggressive, be assertive and increase to the obstacle.”
That certainly failed to transpire in the opener as Tampa Bay raced to a 3- 1st-period of time guide and extended it to 4- right after two. The Hawks had important couple of scoring possibilities, with the finest coming from Patrick Kane, Lucas Wallmark, Andrew Shaw and Kubalik. Shaw was genuinely robbed by Andrei Vasilevskiy when the Lightning’s goalie barely obtained his remaining pad on an in-tight shot with a lot less than 20 seconds remaining in the next period of time.
Goaltender Malcolm Subban struggled mightily in his first commence for the Hawks, letting 4 ambitions on the Lightning’s 1st 20 photographs.
From a gain-loss standpoint, not much is anticipated from the Hawks through this 56-game season.
What is envisioned is progress. And tons of it as coaches anticipate to see:
• Boqvist and Mitchell produce into trustworthy D-adult males who will not back down versus the world’s ideal players.
• The 6-foot-6, 235-pound Nikita Zadorov turn into a regular drive.
• Other blue liners these as Nicolas Beaudin, Lucas Carlsson and Wyatt Kalynuk get benefit of possibilities when they come up.
• European import Pius Suter arise as a top rated scoring threat.
• Philipp Kurashev crack the lineup and confirm he belongs.
But that is not all. The Hawks also need to see founded gamers get their activity to an additional amount.
DeBrincat requires to rediscover his scoring contact. Strome should display he is a trusted prime-six centre. Kubalik can not have a sophomore slump. Even Andrew Shaw has a good deal to establish.
As for the goalies? Very good dilemma.
I imagine Kevin Lankinen could be the only a person who has true being electric power, but we are going to discover out for sure in the coming months and months.
So there you have it. The journey is under way.
Stan Bowman, Colliton and the full coaching workers should pick the path that starts a sluggish, continuous ascent. Do that and the mountain best can be attained all over again.
But select the wrong road — a person whole of players who really don’t achieve their possible and you should not have what it usually takes — and it very likely qualified prospects to the finish of this routine.
