Game Recap: Hawks 5 - Avalanche 2
The Hawks beat the Avs and looked good doing it.
Sometimes the Hawks win a game against a better team that they shouldn’t have won. You know the ones.
Petr Mrazek saves the team from a loss. The Hawks manage to somehow hang on by the skin of their teeth. A clearly better team is frustrated.
Except, Monday night was not one of those wins. The Hawks looked good.
While I would have understood Lukas Reichel being demoted to the third line, I wasn’t happy with him being on the 4th line, at least initially. I ended up liking him down there playing center between Pat Maroon and Craig Anderson. Despite that line having a 43.75 Corsi, they looked good. And hey, a goals a goal, right Reichel? Take it when you can.
The third line, by the way, shouldn’t be broken up anyway. What Ilya Mikheyev, Jason Dickinson, and Ryan Donato have going on right now is good. Hard to argue with a 64.29 Corsi. Dickinson played a solid defensive game against some elite players, spending the majority of his ice time against the likes of Mikko Rantanen, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Devon Toews. When he was on the ice, the Hawks shut down Mackinnon to 2 shot attempts while generating 6. That’s impressive.
Speaking of MacKinnon… you are high if you are blaming Seth Jones for that goal. People’s reaction to Jones was more frustrating than the goal itself.
Good ol’ r/hawks A not-so-bright spot is TJ Brodie. I don’t think we should even wait for Alec Martinez to heal up. Scratch this dude and have Nolan Allan play the right side. Either way, Isaak Phillips was called up today. Brodie’s numbers were horrendous. He posted a 26.09 Corsi and a 39.15 xG%.
Connor Bedard’s line was pretty quiet. They had an even 50 Corsi, with 7 shot attempts and 7 against, as well as a 67.06 xG%.
How about Phillip Kurashev’s goal? While that was an absolute beauty of a shot, the real sexiness comes with Alex Vlasic setting up the play. Vlasic is such a fun defenseman to watch, and it’s easy to forget about him because he does everything well.
Another young defenseman who had a solid game was Wyatt Kaiser. The kid had an 80 Corsi at 5v5 and an xG% of 98.70. Against the Avalanche.
And just to reiterate. When Martinez is healthy again, I am going to be upset if younger players are scratched in favor of Brodie. Very. Upset.
If I find a way to easily add game data to chart, I’d like to show the numbers from Natural Stat Trick. We’ll see.
The Hawks head over to San Jose on Thursday. The Sharks, by the way, just won their first game. So good for them.
Trash Bin
If you’re here only for Hawks-related stuff, best for you to just turn around now.
EVERY BUDDY IN - Plus Skateshop
Skateshop vids are fun. It’s like looking at a microcosm of a specific regions skate culture. Plus put out a solid video a little over 35 minutes and what looks to be filmed with a Sony VX. I love the vibe this video has and it brings me back to the 2000s. Some highlights include this nasty fakie big flip.
The song selection is great too. Chris Blake’s part in particular had great editing that went well with the song. Blake’s part also showcased some of the fun spots these guys skated, like this wallride crook pop to bank.
Plus is based out of Orlando but you can check them out at their website here. Oh, and Bert Wootton’s part rips as well.
Out.