Tales from the 300 Level - Home Cookin'

The Blackhawks finish off a 5 game home stand with two more games this weekend. So far, they have gone 2-0-1 in the first three games, including a rousing 6-5 Shoot-Out win against the league's best team, the San Jose Sharks. Coming off their worst slump of the season, it seems that Patrick Sharp has arrived just in time and by Sunday we should have the entire team in tact (Ben Eager was suspended for three games for this hit that came in the Edmonton game.)

It will be interesting to see who the odd man out is going to be. Dustin Byfuglien certainly has spent most of the season making the case for it to be him.

Coach Q mentioned in the press earlier this week that Big Buff might be getting benched relatively soon, but that was before the announcement of Eager's suspension. Since then, Buff has looked like a new man. I don't think it will be enough to save him, however. I would expect the following combinations when the team is finally all back together:

Sharp, Toews, Brouwer
Versteeg, Pahlsson, Kane
Havlat, Bolland, Ladd
Eager, Fraser, Burish

There is a chance that Q will want to reunite the STK (Sharp, Towes, Kane) line that was so successful last year but with Versteeg being such a scoring threat this year, and the third line playing like it has been (probably one of the best third lines in the game), the combinations above are going to leave teams scratching their heads over who to focus on. If Kane does move up to that first line then I would expect that Brouwer and Buff could be more interchangeable.

Regardless of all of that, getting the whole team back and healthy for the final 10 games up the playoffs really sets them up for success both in the remaining games and heading into the playoffs.

Here is the breakdown for the rest of the season:

10 Games Remaining - They currently have a two point lead over the Vancouver Canucks for the 4th seed in the playoffs which would give them home ice advantage in the first round

6 Home Games - The Hawks have been great at home over the course of the season going 20-8-7, but they have slowed a bit going 3-3-1 at home before their recent 2 game winning streak.

4 Away - The Hawks have been closer to .500 on the road going 19-14-4, but they have taken advantage of their longer road trips throughout the season and seem to thrive on the comradarie that comes with being on the road.

2 Non-Conference Games - The Hawks face-off against one of the best teams in the east tonight when the New Jersey Devils come to town. The Hawks dropped a game to the Devils earlier this month 3-2. The Hawks also will face the Montreal Canadiens as they celebrate their 100th season. The Habs haven't lived up to their own hype this year but can still be very dangerous, especially as they fight to hang on to the 8th and final playoff spot in the East.

7 Divisional Games - Divisional play has easily been the low-point of the season for the Hawks this year. The Hawks have gone just 4-7-6 this year against divisional foes. They will face the Blue Jackets (2-1-1), Predators (1-2-1), and Red Wings (0-2-2) two more times each this season (home and away) and will face the Blues (1-2-2) one more time. Now would be a great time for the Hawks to get this problem corrected especially as all of these teams are fighting for a playoff spot (except Detroit who clinched weeks ago).

That leaves the biggest game of the year so far coming up this Sunday. The Hawks will face the Canucks in a battle for the fourth seed. It won't make or break the race, but it certainly could have huge implications for tie breakers and could help the Hawks pull away a bit depending on how Vancouver plays Colorado tonight and how the Hawks do against New Jersey. Overall the Hawks have the edge over Vancouver so far this season going 2-1-0.

It should be an exciting finish, get your popcorn ready!