The Blackhawks host the Maple Leafs tonight. I expect the press box to be an interesting collection of scouts, and we’re now into the home stretch before the trade deadline so ice time and healthy scratches could get interesting.
My understanding is that the conversation(s) between Pat Brisson’s clients and the Blackhawks’ front office will happen tomorrow. It’s coming folks… the clock doesn’t stop ticking for anyone or anything.
For your Sunday morning update on the tank standings I MEAN Battle for Bedard Sweepstakes rankings, the Anaheim Ducks have sprinted right past both Columbus and Chicago into dead last this weekend. The Blackhawks are now in third, but do have two games in-hand on last and second-to-last.
Michigan and Ohio State played outdoors in Cleveland yesterday afternoon. The Buckeyes won 4-2 in a game that had a number of delays because the ice was awful; they ended the second period five minutes early because they had to replace a pothole after already having a lengthy break for another one in the middle period.
Jake Wise was probably the best player in the game. He had the power play goal below and two assists for a three-point afternoon. Wise, originally the 69th overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, is having a terrific fifth collegiate season with Ohio State. He’s up to 28 points in 32 games this season, tying his career high set last season. He’s also been one of the top faceoff guys in the country this year. He’ll turn 23 on Feb. 28.
Frank Nazar had this assist for Michigan:
Aidan Thompson celebrated his 21st birthday on the ice for Denver last night. He had an assist, extending his personal point streak to six games. Thompson is up to 25 points in 24 games after starting his freshman season a little late because of an injury.
Thompson celebrated playing against Minnesota-Duluth, including two other Blackhawks prospects — Wyatt Kaiser and Dominic James. Kaiser scored his fourth goal of the season last night.
Ben Pope at the Chicago Sun-Times shared a lovely conversation he had with Sam Savoie on Saturday. Pope writes about how Savoie is self aware enough to know he probably isn’t sprinting to the NHL in a couple months, but remains focused on getting there as quickly as possible. In the story, Pope shares a couple quotes that I absolutely love, one from Savoie about things he learned from Max Domi during the preseason and another from Domi about Savoie. Here’s what Savoie had to say about soaking up as much as he could during preseason:
‘‘I took some tools from [the pro players] and some little things they do and how they act,’’ Savoie said. ‘‘It’s the tiny things all those pros did: They stretch, they take care of their body, they’re in the cold bath, they’re in the hot tub, they’re eating well. All that kind of stuff is really important for me, especially the way I play.
‘‘I play super-competitive with an edge, and I need a lot of fuel and energy. So to see a guy like Max Domi, the way he treats himself, [was influential]. He also needs that energy, and he has been doing great. That kind of stuff he was doing, I try to bring to my game.’’
And here’s what Domi said about Savoie and his game:
‘‘I loved that kid,’’ Domi said. ‘‘He worked so hard every shift. I really enjoyed getting to know him. . . . He’s pretty fearless out there, and he can shoot a puck, too. He’s going to have a great career.’’
Finally, if you love following players and prospects on the social medias like me, one of the Cubs’ top prospects jumped into the Twitter game.
NEWSLETTER
