The Chicago Blackhawks ended the first month of their title defense in an intriguing scenario.
They’ve played the most games in the NHL (13), winning seven of them and have dealt with a number of injuries already. Based on gross points, the Hawks are in first place in the Central Division.
And yet, most fans feel like the sky is falling.
New starting goalie Marty Turco was pulled from a game after allowing four goals in the first period, Brian Campbell hasn’t played in a game yet and a handful of the team’s top players have missed action.
Injuries are nothing new for this organization, though. Last year’s team was without Marian Hossa for all of October, while this year’s team has obviously missed Campbell. Dave Bolland was struggling with a back injury that would eventually require major surgery last year, and he is again banged up this year.
But many fans forget that Jonathan Toews missed four games because of a concussion early on last year and the Hawks' roster experiments in October included names like Andrew Ebbett, Radek Smolenak, Jack Skille, Jake Dowell and Bryan Bickell.
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Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by TAB BAMFORD
Chicago Blackhawks: Placing the First Month in Proper Context
November 1st, 2010 by TAB BAMFORD Leave a reply »
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