Gritty win over Kings just what the doctor ordered
The Blackhawks posed for the first of two team pictures they hope to take this season on Thursday.
They'd like the next one to be snapped in June on the ice gathered around the Stanley Cup.
The Hawks would like to believe they took a step in the right direction toward putting on their playoff face with Wednesday's gritty 3-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings in overtime.
It was a low-scoring, 1-goal win over a quality opponent - in other words, just what the Hawks needed after a stretch of sloppy defensive play.
"That's kind of what you're going to see come playoff time," Hawks coach Joel Quenneville said. "Teams check well and don't give up a lot. Positionally they play a very sound team game and you have to fight for your space and be willing to get to the front of the net and pay a price. I thought we did that."
Getting their defensive game in order is a top priority for the Hawks coming down the stretch.
"It's just been sloppy play and that's what we want to get rid of," defenseman Duncan Keith said. "It's being smarter and being more disciplined in how we're playing and not getting lackadaisical."
It's only going to get tougher for the Hawks over the next stretch of games. They go to Philadelphia on Saturday to play a Flyers team that was 7-2-1 in its last 10 games prior to meeting Boston on Thursday, then host the highest scoring team in the NHL in Washington on Sunday at the United Center.
Next week, the Hawks go West for three games to Anaheim, Los Angeles and Phoenix.
"It's going to be a good test for us," defenseman Brian Campbell said. "We liked the way we played (Wednesday) night against L.A., so I think it's going to roll over for us.
"I thought we played a much better defensive game all around from defense to forwards. We're going to find a way to score goals so it's not the biggest concern we have."
The Hawks got a huge lift against the Kings from Adam Burish returning to the lineup. The fourth-line sparkplug had an assist and a fight on his first shift after missing the first 65 games of the season because of knee surgery.
"He had good pace to his game, good energy and the crowd fed off his energy as well," Quenneville said. "It got us into the game and gave us what we're looking for from him."
Burish's teammates certainly felt his energy.
"He brings an edge to the team," Campbell said. "He brings excitement. He won't let anybody get down on the bench. He keeps it alive. He's going to be key for us and he was great for us last year in the playoffs. For us to be our best team we do need Adam's support."
• With back-to-back afternoon games Saturday at Philadelphia and Sunday against Washington at the UC, Joel Quenneville said Antti Niemi and Cristobal Huet would start one each.