Crawford continues to save the day for Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks will be shooting for their sixth straight victory when they take the ice Thursday at Dallas, thanks in large part to Corey Crawford.
After sitting three games with a lower-body injury, Crawford has allowed just 7 goals and owns a .956 save percentage during the Hawks' five-game winning streak. He also is 9-0-2 in his last 11 starts.
"It's tough to ignore the fact that when he comes into our lineup after missing some time we start finding success again," defenseman Cody Franson said. "There's no secret to that.
"He's a high-quality goalie. He plays the puck very well. He's sound positionally. Doesn't give up a lot of rebounds. He's loud back there for defensemen, so when we're retrieving pucks, we can hear him. There's not much more you can really look for."
Among goalies with at least 10 starts, Crawford leads the league in save percentage (.935) and goals-against average (2.11). Those numbers would easily beat his career bests of .924 and 2.26 in a full 82-game season.
Not yet halfway through the season, Crawford still has to be an early favorite to win the Vezina Trophy as the league's best goaltender.
But does he ever think about it?
"No," Crawford said Wednesday after practice. "It's not that I don't care. It's a long year. You don't want to start getting stuff in your head. You start thinking about stuff, then you kind of get off track a little bit."
Sharp update:
Patrick Sharp remained outside the top 12 forwards at practice. Barring injury or sickness, he will be scratched at Dallas on Thursday, and Richard Panik will draw back into the lineup after sitting three games. Panik skated on the third line with Vinnie Hinostroza and Ryan Hartman.
Slap shots:
If Duncan Keith doesn't score Thursday, it will be his second-longest goal-less stretch to start a season at 34 games. … The Hawks are 2-for-39 on the power play over the last 10 games. … Former Hawks goalie Scott Darling allowed 8 goals on 36 shots in Carolina's 8-1 loss to Toronto on Tuesday.