Chicago Blackhawks hit the road in a good place

It's that time of year again - time for the Chicago Blackhawks to hit the road.

Coach Joel Quenneville's first place-squad is set to embark on a seven-game trip that kicks off Tuesday in Winnipeg and runs through Nov. 26 with a game at Los Angeles.

It's a great time for players to bond, and that's especially the case for rookies Ryan Hartman, Nick Schmaltz, Vinnie Hinostroza, Michal Kempny and Gustav Forsling. Fellow rookie Tyler Motte (lower body) will not make the trip.

"We put ourselves in a good spot going into it," said Quenneville, whose 11-3-2 team is 6 points ahead of second-place Winnipeg. "We always say the process of trying to get better (is most important); play the right way. The trend is that.

"That's what we want to make sure that we keep building upon, knowing we've got some tough opponents in their buildings and they're going to be ready."

The Hawks have been wildly successful on this circus trip during Quenneville's tenure, going 25-9-3 since 2009.

Here's a closer look at the opponents:

Winnipeg (8-7-2) Tuesday:

The Jets are 3-0-1 in their last four, and that includes an 8-2 pasting of Dallas last Tuesday.

Patrick Laine, the 6-foot-5, 18-year-old rookie who was the second overall pick of last summer's draft, had a hat trick in that victory and leads the team with 11 goals.

"To me he's the real deal," said Troy Murray, former Blackhawks forward and current WGN 720-AM analyst. "When they got the lottery pick to be in that position, they knew exactly what they were going to do. This kid is going to be around for a lot of years and be a huge threat in the NHL."

Mark Scheifele is the team's leading scorer (10 goals, 10 assists). The Jets drafted him seventh overall in 2011, and the 6-3, 207-pound winger signed an eight-year extension during the off-season.

Winnipeg will be without injured forwards Mathieu Perreault and Bryan Little (21.3 goals last three seasons).

Calgary (5-10-1) Friday:

This already will be the third meeting between the Blackhawks and Flames. The Hawks lost in a shootout on Oct. 24 and won 5-1 thanks to 4 third-period goals that snapped a 1-1 tie.

The Flames have managed just 4 goals during a four-game losing streak.

Kris Versteeg (groin) likely will miss the game.

Vancouver (6-9-1) Saturday:

The Canucks won their first four games, then were shut out four times during a brutal 0-8-1 stretch. Vancouver has rebounded a bit with an impressive win at the Rangers last Tuesday and a 5-4 overtime triumph over Dallas on Sunday.

Only Henrik Sedin (5G, 5A) has double-digit points. Bo Horvart, Henrik and Daniel Sedin are the leading goal scorers with 5 each. The Hawks, by comparison, have five players with 6 or more goals.

Edmonton (9-6-1) Monday:

If there's one game you don't want to miss on this trip, it's this one.

Connor McDavid, who already has shown he is one of the best players in the league in just his second season, leads Edmonton with 19 points and figures to be flat-out jacked up to face the Blackhawks for the first time.

"(The Hawks) didn't see him last year," Murray said. "But you see enough of him on the highlights and you're just blown away by this kid's ability to make good hockey players - really good hockey players - look foolish with his speed and his skill.

"I mean I can't wait for the matchup."

The Oilers got off to a smokin' start but are just 2-5-1 in their last seven. Every loss was by 1 or 2 goals.

San Jose (9-6-0) Nov. 23:

The Sharks, last year's Western Conference champs, are another wildly inconsistent team. After starting at 3-3, San Jose won three straight, lost three straight and have won three straight again.

Brent Burns and Joe Pavelski are the leading scorers with 14 points each.

The Sharks will be just four days removed from a six-game road trip when the Hawks come to town.

Anaheim (7-6-3) Nov. 25:

The Ducks are having a bizarre season. Some nights they're on fire, beating teams 4-0, 5-1, 4-1 and 6-1. And other nights they're getting walloped 4-0 by Columbus, 5-1 by Pittsburgh and 5-0 by Nashville.

Ryan Kesler leads the way with 6 goals. The 31-year-old Ryan Getzlaf, though, has just 1 goal in 13 games after already seeing his totals drop from 31 to 25 to 13 over the last three seasons.

Los Angeles (7-8-1) Nov. 26:

Tanner Pearson, Jeff Carter and Tyler Toffoli have combined for 15 goals, but after that? Ten players are tied at 2 each.

With Jonathan Quick (groin) out until at least January, it's the goaltending of Peter Budaj (2.06 GAA, .914) that is keeping Los Angeles afloat.

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Scouting report

Blackhawks vs. Winnipeg Jets at MTS Center, 7 p.m. Tuesday

TV: Comcast SportsNet

Radio: WGN 720-AM

The skinny: The Hawks went 4-1 against Winnipeg last season, allowing the Jets just 8 goals in those five games. … Rookie Patrik Laine and Mark Scheifele scored in the shootout in Winnipeg's last game, a 3-2 win over Los Angeles. … Marko Dano, whom Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman sent to Winnipeg as part of the Andrew Ladd trade, has 3 goals in seven games. … Hawks winger Marian Hossa has a goal in four straight games. … After 16 games, Duncan Keith still is without a goal. In the last nine seasons, the only time he went longer than this to record his first came in 2013-14, when it took him 18 games.

Next: Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome, 8 p.m. Friday

- John Dietz