Gretzky happy to see Hawks' resurgence with Toews, Kane

When Wayne Gretzky talks people listen, because it matters what the Great One thinks.

So when Gretzky, perhaps the greatest player and ambassador in the history of the sport, praises Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane and talks of how the revival of the Blackhawks and hockey in Chicago is good for the NHL, it carries some significant weight.

"It's great to see for hockey," Gretzky said at the United Center on Thursday after working out the Phoenix Coyotes team he now coaches ahead of tonight's game against the Hawks. "This is one of the great franchises and great sports cities in North America.

"(Red Wings general manager) Kenny Holland said it best, that you've got to work hard and you've got to be good at what you do, and then every now and then you've got to get a little bit lucky," Gretzky said.

"And they got a little bit lucky getting the No. 1 pick and they got the best player in the draft (in Kane), and he's a good hockey player and it's something that is a positive that this franchise deserved. They've gone through some tough times."

Gretzky sees what everyone else does in Kane and Toews, the league's two top rookie scorers. Kane leads all first-year players with 25 points, including 18 assists, while Toews' 9 goals tops all rookies.

"If you've got a passion to play the game and you love the game, you can become good at it," Gretzky said. "You watch guys like Kane play and guys like Toews play, and our guys like (Martin) Hanzal and (Peter) Mueller, they love to play and they love to compete. If you show up every day and compete, you're going to go a long way.

"You're going to have a lot of bad games. Everybody has bad days and bad nights, but you can't replace passion for the game. If you look at guys like Gordie Howe and Bobby Orr and Bobby Hull, they had a passion for the game, which is why over time and longevity they were successful.

"It's good to see young guys come in that have sort of that same passion. You watch Kane and Toews play and they're fun to watch. They're good for the game and good for the city of Chicago."

Kane easily could have been dressing for Gretzky and the Coyotes tonight. Philadelphia, Chicago and Phoenix had the three worst records in the NHL last season, but it was the Hawks winning the draft lottery -- a bounce of the pingpong balls that now helped alter the course of the franchise.

The Hawks took Kane No. 1, James vanRiemsdyk went second to the Flyers and Kyle Turris third to the Coyotes.

"It would be better for hockey if Phoenix had got Kane, but, no, I'm just kidding," joked Gretzky. "We're thrilled with our guy and think he's going to be a good player, too.

"It was one of those years where you knew if you were going to get in the top three, you were going to get a good player."

Gretzky seconds what Hawks coach Denis Savard has been saying since the start of training camp about Kane and Toews being more than two rookies with talent.

"They're both similar in they see the ice very well, but I've said this many times this year: It doesn't matter how talented you are, if you don't work hard it doesn't go a long way," Gretzky said. "I think the good players sometimes don't get enough credit for their work ethic.

"If you watch (Henrik) Zetterberg every night, (Joe) Thornton every night, (Vinny) Lecavalier every night, (Sidney) Crosby every game -- they're skill level is really special, but they work hard every game. They're always on the puck; they're always contributing to their team.

"So when you get an 18-year-old like Kane and a 19-year-old like Toews doing that, it goes a long way for an organization and a franchise. When your best players and most talented players are the most hard-working, it makes it really special."

Tonight's faceoff

Blackhawks vs. Phoenix Coyotes at the United Center, 7:30 p.m.

TV: Comcast SportsNet

Radio: WSCR 670-AM

The skinny: The Coyotes (11-11-0) are coming off a 3-1 loss Wednesday at Minnesota, which snapped a four-game winning streak. It also was the first loss in five starts for goalie Ilya Bryzgalov since being claimed on waivers from Anaheim. Bryzgalov starts against Nikolai Khabibulin. Former Hawk Radim Vrbata leads the Coyotes in goals with 9. The Coyotes won three of the four games in last year's season series, two of them in shootouts. Patrick Sharp had 3 goals in the four games.

Player to watch: Martin Havlat. Hawks winger had 2 goals in Wednesday's 5-1 win over Tampa Bay in his first game off the injury list.

Next: Saturday vs. the St. Louis Blues at Scottrade Center, 7:30 p.m.

-- Tim Sassone