Three Blackhawks make positive impression in preseason 5-1 win
With so few roster spots up for grabs, impressing in preseason games is crucial for Blackhawks players on the bubble if they are to have any chance of making the team.
Three players who helped their cause Friday in a 5-1 win in Montreal were forwards Kyle Baun, Garret Ross and Daniel Paille.
Baun and Ross each registered a goal and an assist in the first 14 minutes of the first period as the Hawks dominated play and jumped out to a 3-0 lead.
Baun, who added another goal early in the second period, was in the middle of a bang-bang-bang play that led to Ross' goal at 10:20 of the first period. Baun took a pass from Andrew Desjardins, then quickly fed Ross, who easily beat Canadiens goalie Carey Price in close.
Just over three minutes later, after Desjardins did a good job dumping the puck into the Montreal zone, Baun fed defenseman Trevor Daley at the point and Daley let one fly. The puck got caught in traffic, but Baun collected it and whipped it past Price at 13:48.
Baun, who spent the last three seasons playing for Colgate and got into the Hawks' last three games of the 2014-15 regular season, also scored in the preseason opener, a 5-4 OT win over Detroit.
Ross is a 23-year-old winger who has played well in Rockford the last two seasons (36G, 41A) but has yet to crack the Hawks roster. He was credited with an assist on Baun's goal.
Paille, in camp on a professional tryout basis, has impressed all preseason and it was more of the same during this blowout victory. The 31-year-old forward had numerous scoring chances and was solid with the puck all night. He finished with 5 shots on goal, 3 hits and also saved a puck from going in during the third period with Scott Darling (22 saves) out of position.
Ryan Garbutt had the Hawks' other first-period goal, while Jan Hejda added an empty-netter with 51 seconds remaining. Desjardins and Daley finished with 2 assists.
Most of the Hawks regulars, including Duncan Keith, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Brent Seabrook, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa, did not play.
Updates:
Coach Joel Quenneville told reporters that Marcus Kruger practiced in Chicago on Friday and should play in the final two preseason games. Kruger was unable to join the team until a visa issue was cleared up. … Artemi Panarin (upper body) did not play in Friday's game.
Roster moves:
The Hawks on Friday assigned forward Mike Liambas and defensemen Mathieu Brisebois, Dillon Fournier, Dennis Robertson and Nolan Valleau to the AHL's Rockford IceHogs. They also released forwards Daniel Ciampini, Jake Dowell and Dane Walters, and defensemen Sam Jardine and Nick Mattson from training camp.
The Hawks' active roster now has 28 forwards, 15 defensemen and five goalies.