The Chicago Blackhawks (12-6-3) will play the perennial Western Conference contending San Jose Sharks (12-5-1) on Wednesday night after a two day rehabilitation trip to Sin City. After the way the Hawks played in the last two games, one would hope the Hawks drank themselves into oblivion and forgot how to play the way they did during those dreadful performances. The Hawks were flat out pathetic Friday and Saturday night getting outscored 14-4 by the Flames and Oilers. The Hawks road record now stands at a pedestrian 5-5-1 and one would think to be President’s Trophy, Central Division, and Stanley Cup contenders that a record above .500 on the road would be in order. The Sharks come in winners of three straight. However, only 5 of their 12 wins have come on home ice. The Hawks will look to regain the form they showed in the Shark Tank in the 2010 Western Conference Finals in which they went 2-0 in San Jose and swept the Sharks en route to the Stanley Cup Finals and the 2010 Stanley Cup Championship. Joe Thornton leads the way for the Sharks with 20 points and Joe Pavelski has a team high 11 goals. Former Hawks net minder Antti Niemi comes in with an 8-2-1 record with a 2.52 GAA and .915 save percentage. The Hawks were just 1-2-1 against the Sharks last season and were 0-1-1 in the Tank. Defense, goaltending, and staying out of the penalty box will be key as the Hawks weren’t good at any of that the last two games. The Sharks come in as the league’s 4th best power play unit. The Hawks have fallen to the 2nd worst penalty killing unit. It will be a battle of Western Conference heavy weights and two teams with serious Cup aspirations. Which Hawks team will show up the one that smoked Vancouver or the one
massacred by the Oilers 9-2?
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