Hawks look to solve home struggles

It's still relatively early in the NHL season, but at some point it's going to start getting late for the Blackhawks if they don't solve some of their issues defensively.

The Hawks are 8-8-1, but more concerning is their 4-6 record at the United Center. They've lost twice to Edmonton, when the Oilers have come to town last in the Western Conference, and once to New Jersey, the bottom team in the East.

In 5 of the 6 losses on home ice the Hawks have either led or been tied in the third period. The Hawks are 5-6 for the season when either leading after the second period or tied.

“That's been our sore spot, our inability to close teams out or win at home,” Hawks coach Joel Quenneville said.

The Hawks aren't far behind any of the West leaders in terms of points, but that's only because they have played the most games in the league at 17.

The St. Louis Blues lead the Central Division with 20 points, 3 more than the Hawks, but have played five fewer games.

“There's a lot of hockey to be played,” Quenneville said. “I know we've played a lot of hockey, but we've got to make sure we find a way to get points.

“Every game has been tied in the third period and you can look back and there's a lot of meat we've left on the table. We want to make sure we cash in when it's time.”

Quenneville has had a problem with his team's defensive play basically since opening night in Colorado a 4-3 loss in overtime but the constant messages being delivered by the coach aren't getting through to all the players.

“We should be making progress as we go along here,” Quenneville said. “I know we've had a busy schedule, but we should be learning and grasping the importance of critical shifts and getting the job done defensively.”

And these aren't only the newcomers making mistakes. Patrick Sharp is minus-11, while Tomas Kopecky and Niklas Hjalmarsson each are minus-8. Even Norris Trophy winner Duncan Keith is minus-5.

“We're not looking for blame,” Quenneville said. “We have to look for solutions.”

The Hawks have talked about playing harder and smarter, and with more desperation. There's little doubt the energy level hasn't be as high as it should be.

“It's getting a little old,” defenseman Brian Campbell said. “We've got to get a little mad in this locker room and go out and win some more individual battles.

“I don't know if it's something where we think it's going to come easy for this hockey team. You've got to work hard to earn points in this league and right now we're not working hard enough.”

And it all starts on the defensive end.

“The one thing we want to continue to stress is how we play defensively,” Quenneville said. “That's something we can build on. That's what we're going to continue to reinforce and stabilize our game.

“When we do that well everything comes from that. There's a lot of offense here, enough to go around, and our power play has been effective. If we basically work off that, that's what we're trying to nail.”

ŸThe Hawks made a roster move Monday that was somewhat of a surprise, sending rookie winger Jeremy Morin back to Rockford.

It's possible it was a salary-cap-related move, or it could mean center Dave Bolland is about to come off injured reserve.