Hawks strong out of the gate in second half

Anyone who simply looked at the final score of the Chicago Blackhawks' 2-1 victory over Colorado on Tuesday wouldn't have the slightest clue as to how thoroughly dominant coach Joel Quenneville's squad was in the Mile High city.

The Hawks controlled the action from the outset and racked up a 29-8 shots-on-goal advantage after two periods. They had more energy, more pace and more determination than in any of the four games leading up to the all-star break.

“We had good puck possession down in their zone with some cycles,” Duncan Keith told reporters afterward. “Guys were guarding the puck, protecting the puck well. We didn't really give them too many odd-man rushes.”

And they did it all without captain Jonathan Toews. Here are a few observations after the Hawks' 34th victory:

Turbo time:

Teuvo Teravainen has just 1 goal in his last 21 games (and that being an empty-netter), but the young Finn centered the top line with aplomb against the Avs. He had 2 shots on goal in 18:15 of ice time, a figure he surpassed just six times before Tuesday.

“We like that versatility and having multiple roles enhances your ice time and the quality of your ice time,” Quenneville said before the game. “He's absorbing some penalty-killing situations and now with Johnny being out, he gets a little more (time) right off the bat.”

Svedberg strong:

It had been nearly three months since Viktor Svedberg played in an NHL game, but it sure didn't look like it.

The 6-foot-8, 238-pound defenseman assisted on the Hawks' first goal, took 5 shots (3 on goal) and blocked a Matt Duchene shot that easily could have tied the game with 2:40 remaining.

Svedberg has looked fairly comfortable in his 16 appearances this season, a tribute to the depth that the Hawks have on the back end. He may soon be headed back to Rockford, though, because Michal Rozsival (lower body) will be back for Thursday's game in Arizona.

Panning out:

Richard Panik, who scored the Hawks' first goal against the Avs, showed off his versatility and willingness to go to the net Tuesday, earning solid praise from Quenneville after the Hawks' victory.

“He did a lot of good things,” Quenneville said. “Scoring is nice, but I thought he had jump and I liked his thought process in the game.”

That's high praise for a player who has been with the team for just nine games.

Panik skated on the top line for much of the first period, then resumed his third-line duties the rest of the game. He took 3 shots on goal and saw 13:35 of ice time, his most since coming over in a trade from Toronto last month.

Slap shots:

Marian Hossa was another Hawk who looked re-energized Tuesday, finishing with 5 shots on goal. He had just 6 SOG in the Hawks' previous five games. … Phillip Danault won 10 of 14 faceoffs (71.4 percent) against the Avs. … After giving up 3 or more goals in nine of his first 20 starts, Corey Crawford has held opponents to 2 or fewer in 18 of his last 23.

He said it:

“We stayed off the black diamonds, that's for sure.”

Andrew Shaw, to Comcast SportsNet, talking about skiing at Breckenridge over the all-star break.