Teammates provide support for embattled Huet

One thing is certain through Cristobal Huet's struggles in goal for the Blackhawks.

His teammates have his back and are standing with him as he endures these tough times and the booing from the home fans.

"It's pretty unfair," captain Jonathan Toews said. "There's way more pressure on him than there should be. We all know he's a key player on our team and we win as a team and lose as a team.

"It's not only frustrating for him, but for us sometimes when we hear the jeers during a game. As a team we're going to pull through moments like that and we're going to help him out. He's battling just as hard, if not harder, than anyone in this locker room and it's up to us to give a better effort in front of him. He's trying so hard and that's all we can ask from him."

Veteran center John Madden thinks Huet is having some tough luck, such as the bouncing goal Dallas defenseman Stephane Robidas scored off the glass Saturday from just inside the red line.

"He's not getting any breaks," Madden said. "Pucks seems to find a way. We've got to play better in front of him. We just tell him to keep kicking, we'll get some goals, make some saves and we'll be fine."

One more time: Winger Jack Skille was assigned to Rockford on Sunday for the fourth time since Oct. 11 because of salary-cap reasons.

It'll be interesting to see if the Hawks recall Skille for Wednesday's game against Vancouver after acquiring center Andrew Ebbett on waivers from Anaheim on Saturday.

Ebbett's cap hit is just $487,000 compared to Skille's $1.275 hit when he is with the team.

Sigh of relief: Overlooked in Saturday's disappointing loss to Dallas was Jonathan Toews' first goal of the season. It took Toews eight games to net his first goal, four fewer than last season when he eventually went on to score a team-leading 34.

Hawks coach Joel Quenneville thinks the line of Toews, Patrick Sharp and Andrew Ladd is coming together the way he hoped.

"I think Ladd, since he's been up there with Sharp and Johnny, that line has been dangerous," Quenneville said after Saturday's loss. "But we didn't have with our four lines the same synergy that we had in the last two games or maybe the first seven games."