Nov. 12--In Joel Quenneville's defense-first system of hockey, full-throttle, end-to-end action can be detrimental to the Blackhawks coach's head.
"I think he pulls out his hair when it happens," Hawks winger Bryan Bickell said.
With the offensive-minded Lightning in town Tuesday night at the United Center, many of the Hawks practically were salivating at the thought of temporarily abandoning the taffy-pull play that the Western Conference is known for and adopting the often high-flying ways of the East.
"It's always a fun feeling when you know you're facing an Eastern Conference team that is very offensive," said Hawks winger Patrick Kane, who scored the game-winner in the shootout to give the Hawks a 3-2 victory. "You know you're probably going to have a little bit more time and space. Maybe some more chances to score too. It's a little bit different when you're playing a team like Toronto compared to San Jose. Not to say one is better than the other or one is worse than the other, it's just a different style."
It was a style the teams fell into early as they raced up and down the ice during an exciting first period before everything fell into slow motion as a parade to the penalty box created a time warp until the overtime hit.
"The first period was really fun," Kane said. "I thought it was going to be a wide-open game. A lot of penalties kind of stopped the flow. They like to go, a lot of offensive players, a lot of guys who can produce."
The goalie matchup was terrific with Corey Crawford outdueling Ben Bishop to earn the victory and help the Hawks to their second consecutive victory and third in four games.
"Our game has been better," Hawks coach Joel Quenneville said. "We're steadily getting more consistent throughout. Our game is getting close to becoming complete."
The Hawks gave the Lightning a little taste of the West as they clamped down defensively on the team that entered the game second in the NHL with 3.80 goals per game, and they outshot the visitors 39-27.
"They have a lot of speed and some guys who can (score)," Hawks defenseman Duncan Keith said. "We did a pretty good job with them, limited their chances off the rush. Crawford was there when we needed him."
The Lightning had their six-game winning streak snapped but left town with the most points in the league at 23.
"It was a big win for us on home ice against a really good team," Crawford said.
Closing in: Daniel Carcillo skated with Hawks teammates during the morning skate and is nearing a return from a right knee injury suffered Oct. 25 against the Blues. The injury was another in series that have kept Carcillo from establishing himself as a regular in the NHL the last couple of seasons -- including major knee surgery in 2012 -- but the veteran winger isn't questioning why he is snake bit.
"We play a fast game, man," Carcillo said. "Nobody's exempt from injuries. Just because I got hurt two years ago doesn't mean I'm not going to get hurt this year or someone else isn't going to get hurt. That's just the way it goes."
Quenneville didn't rule out Carcillo returning to the lineup as soon as Sunday against the Stars at the United Center.
The return: Tuesday marked the one-year anniversary of Steven Stamkos suffering a gruesome broken leg. One of the NHL's brightest stars, Stamkos was injured during a game against the Bruins and taken off the ice on a stretcher. He entered Tuesday's game tied for third in the NHL with 10 goals and also had six assists to help the Lightning to their strong start.
"I still don't think I'm at the level that I was before," Stamkos said. "It's going to take some time. But it has been exciting to come back and play this year."
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