Brandon Saad scored on his just his fourth shift of the Blackhawks’ game Saturday in Toronto, offering early proof that his month-long absence recovering from an ankle injury hadn’t disrupted his dominant pre-injury run.
“I wanted to keep it simple and play good hockey early on,” Saad said. “For me to get a goal out of the way too, it always gives you that confidence.”
“[I’m] playing with some good players out there too, so that always helps.”
Saad was slotted in alongside Patrick Kane and center Ryan Carpenter, bumping struggling Alex Nylander down to the fourth line, and the trio produced a fantastic outing.
In a little over 14 minutes together at 5-on-5, they enjoyed 16-10 shot attempt, 10-1 shot on goal and 12-8 scoring chance differentials.
“That line was really good last game,” coach Jeremy Colliton said Sunday. “Obviously the [Jonathan] Toews line, they were the one scoring all the goals, but I thought the Carpenter line had almost as many scoring opportunities.”
Saad looked every bit the consistent possession-driving, chance-generating power forward that he was throughout the autumn. The only difference was actually the goal: despite his autumn dominance, he failed to convert most of his golden opportunities in the season’s opening months.
Perhaps the time off will prove to have reversed that trend.
Sikura sent down
Dylan Sikura was sent down to Rockford on Sunday — before the Hawks’ game against the Jets — after tallying one goal and two assists in nine appearances.
Colliton provided a relatively transparent explanation for the decision.
“Other guys have kind of outplayed him in those depth positions,” the coach said. “I talked to him yesterday. I’m not unhappy with his play. He showed he can play in the league definitely, and he’s part of the group we have going forward. But he hasn’t played [much] lately either, and I see other guys playing ahead of him for now.”
With Matthew Highmore earning a nightly spot on the fourth line and Brandon Saad now back from injury, the need for Sikura to be on the NHL roster has certainly declined. The Hawks also have Brandon Hagel up from the AHL right now for the first time in his career, even though he’s yet to get into a game.
Sikura’s 42-day stint with the Hawks contained some bright spots — his two-assist game in Calgary was impressive, and his first career goal last week against the Red Wings was an unforgettably joyous moment — but also a lot of inactivity. He was scratched for 11 of 20 games total, and three of the last five.
The demotion marks another opportunity missed for Sikura, and even when recalled in early December, it was clear his window to become a full-time NHL forward was tightening. It’s not encouraging news for his career moving forward.
Lengthy break approaching
After Tuesday’s home game against the Panthers — Joel Quenneville’s long-awaited return to Chicago — the Hawks won’t play again until Feb. 1 in Arizona.
The lengthy break from team activities is because of the NHL All-Star Game this coming weekend in St. Louis, followed by the Hawks’ bye week. Half of the league’s teams are enjoying their bye weeks this week; the other half will do so at the same time as the Hawks.
“Selfishly, you’d love to practice a little more, but it’s the same for all the teams,” Colliton said Saturday. “For the players, it is nice to get away. For coaches, too, to just be able to turn your brain off for a few days.”
