Red-hot Lightning will offer early test for Blackhawks
Over the course the six-month marathon that is the NHL schedule, the games tend to blend together into a monotonous, endless, mind-numbing stretch.
But some contests - like the one the Blackhawks will play Wednesday in Tampa Bay - get the juices flowing to a different level, even for a veteran like Jonathan Toews.
That's because the stacked, deep and dangerous Lightning owns a best-in-the-league 15-3-2 record and will no doubt be the Hawks' stiffest test of the season.
"Couple of lines that are just on fire that will give us everything we can handle defensively, so we'll have to be ready," Toews said. "And at the end of the day, it's a rematch of the last team we played in the Cup Final (in 2015). There's a lot of good memories in that building.
"I think both teams are really going to get up for this game."
This isn't exactly a statement game for the Hawks, but it will show them if they can match up with the likes of Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov, Ondrej Palat, Viktor Hedman, Anton Stralman and plenty of other high-end talent.
"Seems like they've got a lot of their players from when we played them in 2015," said Hawks D-man Duncan Keith. "You go down the list, they've got so many high-end players and depth on their team. We've got our work cut out for us. … It's going to be a tough one."
Since the Lightning lost its second game of the season to the Panthers, only the Ducks and Islanders have beaten coach Jon Cooper's squad in regulation.
So why is this team so powerful? Here's the Cliffs Notes version:
• The return of Steven Stamkos - who missed 65 games last season with a knee injury - has rejuvenated Tampa Bay. Stamkos (35 points) and Nikita Kucherov (33) are 1-2 in the NHL in scoring, with Kucherov leading the league in goals (17). Vladislav Namestnikov is the "other" guy on Tampa Bay's top line and all he's done is score nine times and dish out 11 assists.
"You have to be aware of every shift tomorrow night, but that's the one that let's make an emphasis when they're out there," said coach Joel Quenneville.
Stamkos, Kucherov and Namestnikov have a combined 88 points; the Hawks' best line - Patrick Kane (19), Artem Anisimov (12) and Nick Schmaltz (11) - has 42.
• It's not just the top line that's fueling Tampa Bay's success. Four other players have at least 5 goals and Tyler Johnson, who has 4, has averaged 21.5 goals the past four seasons.
"You can talk about every single line," Quenneville said. "They've got a young group on the second line and they've got some experienced guys on the fourth line. I (don't) even think you can say it's a fourth line."
• Tampa Bay's sizzling power play is No. 1 in the NHL with a 28-percent success rate. That's 5 points better than fourth-place Pittsburgh and 12 better than the Hawks.
• Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy ranks fourth in the league with a .928 save percentage and sixth with a 2.34 goals-against average.
Tampa Bay didn't exactly fall apart without Stamkos last season, going 42-30-10 and missing the playoffs by just 1 point. The year before, the Lightning reached the Western Conference final, where it was eliminated in seven games by the Penguins.
This year, Cooper's team looks like the one to beat in the East … and perhaps in the league.
"It's our toughest test to date," Quenneville said. "You look at the balance they have and the threat to score off all lines, it's going to be a real good test knowing every shift is going to be a challenge."
Scouting report
Blackhawks vs. Tampa Bay Lightning, 6:30 p.m. Wednesday
TV: NBCSN Radio: 720-AM
The skinny: Tampa Bay (15-3-2) lost for just the third time in regulation when the Islanders - who built a 4-0 lead - prevailed 5-3 on Saturday. After their other 2 regulation losses, the Lightning responded by going 8-0-1 and 6-0-1. ... Nikita Kucherov leads the league with 17 goals. He scored in 10 of the first 11 games. ... Jonathan Toews has 2 goals (1 an empty-netter) in the past 15 games. ... Patrick Kane has points in 12 of the past 15 games. He is also on a four-game points streak. ... Richard Panik scored 5 goals in the first nine contests, but he has none in the last 11. ... For the second straight season, Duncan Keith has zero goals on 47 SOG through 20 games. ... Hawks defensemen have 4 goals in the past five games. ... Corey Crawford starts in net for the Hawks. He is third in save percentage (.933) and fourth in goals-against (2.19).
Next: Florida Panthers at BB&T Center, 6 p.m. Saturday
- John Dietz