Shaw comes back for Blackhawks' Game 6 with full power
When Patrick Kane scored the winning goal in double overtime of Game 5 on Thursday in St. Louis, Andrew Shaw and the six other Blackhawks scratches had quite a moment in the visiting team locker room.
"It was just a big huddle," said Shaw, who was suspended for using a gay slur near the end of Game 4. "The boys all just jumped in. Everyone was excited, obviously.
"I wouldn't be able to tell you who I high-fived first."
Watching it - especially the overtimes - wasn't easy for the 24-year-old winger who scored goals in Games 2 and 4.
"It was one of those games, the nerves get the best of you," Shaw said. "You're sitting in there sweating, worried. It's more nerve-racking to watch the game than to be a part of it."
Shaw took a ton of heat for his actions and said the last couple of days were "tough."
"But that kind of stuff makes a man stronger," he said, "and you move on from it, and obviously you don't forget it and you learn from it."
Shaw has been one of the most versatile Hawks this season, moving up and down the lineup with ease. He showed that Saturday as he began the Hawks' Game 6 victory on the top line with Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, then found himself on the fourth line with Dale Weise and Andrew Desjardins.
He scored a huge power-play goal with 3:07 to go in the game to give the Blackhawks a 5-3 lead.
Saturday's game could have been Shaw's last as a member of the Hawks as he will be a restricted free agent when the season is over.
"I never think that," he said. "I just have to take it game by game, go out and work and do what I can to help this team win."
Another chance:
Coach Joel Quenneville went with the same six defensemen he played during Game 5 in Saturday's Game 6 at the United Center. That meant David Rundblad, who didn't play a single second in either overtime of the Hawks' 4-3 win Thursday, saw action for a second straight game.
Dale Weise, who played well Thursday, got another start and skated with Richard Panik and Andrew Desjardins on the fourth line. Winger Tomas Fleischmann and defenseman Michal Rozsival were among the healthy scratches.
Slap shots:
St. Louis scored on 3 of its first 7 shots Saturday night. ... Through five games, the Blackhawks-Blues series was tied 94.5 percent of the time, according to Elias. ... The Blackhawks are 14-1 in Game 6s under Joel Quenneville. The only loss came at Arizona in 2012, a series the Coyotes won in six games.
He said it:
"I don't care when we win. I just want to win. ... It doesn't matter when, if, where. We'll play em on the street if they want. We just want to win the series."
Blues coach Ken Hitchcock when asked if eliminating the Hawks at the United Center would feel extra special