Toews gets crash course in NHL penalties
Welcome to the NHL, kid.
In his NHL debut Wednesday, Blackhawks rookie center Jonathan Toews went from the high of scoring his first goal to the low of sitting in the penalty box while the San Jose Sharks scored 1 of their 2 power-play goals in a 2-1 win at the United Center.
Toews took 2 stick penalties in the loss, both infractions that might not have been called on the college level last season when he played at the University of North Dakota.
"For him, they don't call it as tight (in college)," said Hawks coach Denis Savard. "It's a habit of bringing your stick down. You have to keep your stick on the ice, stick on puck, and he's going to learn that.
"At the same time if you lose position on the player, the first thing you should get in your mind is move your feet. We have a tendency (not to), and that's why we're in trouble."
Savard wants to see his offensive players work harder at drawing penalties. In the first three games, the Hawks have only 10 power plays.
"We have to draw more penalties," Savard said. "We didn't deserve any power plays (Wednesday) because we didn't work to the tough areas enough to get those."
Fifth opinion: Injured winger Martin Havlat had a fifth doctor examine his injured shoulder Thursday. As soon as that result is in, the Hawks will decide as an organization the next step of treatment.
"We're not sure if he's going to be back in two or three weeks, or if he's going to be back in five or six months," Denis Savard said.
General manager Dale Tallon wouldn't reveal the findings of the first doctors to look at Havlat.
"He's had five opinions and we're waiting to hear from two of them," Tallon said Thursday. "The more the merrier, I say. Then we'll decide if it's rehab or surgery. We're hoping it's rehab."
Disappearing fans: Whether the NHL wants to admit it or not, it has an attendance problem.
In Detroit, the Red Wings have had three non-sellouts in their first three games with two crowds of fewer than 17,000 at Joe Louis Arena, which seats 20,066.
Hawks center and ex-Red Wing Robert Lang said he was "absolutely" surprised that his former team wasn't selling out regularly like in the past. The Wings had 396 consecutive sellouts through last season.
"It was awesome all the years I was there, so it's definitely surprising and something you don't want to see," Lang said.
The Hawks drew only 10,122 for Wednesday's game against San Jose after more than 18,000 turned out for the home opener Saturday against Detroit.
"It was fun the first night, and yesterday you come in there and it's like a ghost town," Lang said. "You just want to hope that we can put a couple together and the people start coming in."
Tip-ins: Adam Burish will play right wing on the first line with Robert Lang and Sergei Samsonov tonight in Detroit to add energy. … Rehabbing defenseman Nicklas Hjalmarsson (wrist) was sent to Rockford. … Minor-league winger Pierre Parenteau was traded to the New York Rangers for a conditional 2008 draft pick.
Scouting report
Blackhawks vs. Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena, 6:30 p.m.
TV: Comcast SportsNet
Radio: WSCR 670-AM
The skinny: The Red Wings are 3-0-1, losing only to the Hawks on Saturday, 4-3 in a shootout. Dominik Hasek, who sat out Wednesday's win over Calgary with a bruise above his knee, will start in goal. Winger Johan Franzen sits with a sprained knee suffered against the Hawks. The Detroit power play is 7-for-22 (31.8 percent) and ranked first in the NHL. The Hawks are 0-for-10 on the power play in three games. Nikolai Khabibulin starts in goal for the Hawks with Patrick Lalime getting the nod Saturday at home against Dallas.
Player to watch: Henrik Zetterberg. The Red Wings' winger already has 2 goals (both on the power play) and 6 assists in 4 games.
Next: Saturday vs. the Dallas Stars at the United Center, 7:30 p.m.
-- Tim Sassone