Hawks’ Bickell, Frolik might be feeling the heat

Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville continues to say he doesn’t know long impressive rookies Andrew Shaw and Jimmy Hayes will be around, but the longer they are here and playing well, it puts more pressure on the veteran forwards who are not producing.

Now you can add a third rookie to the mix again with Ben Smith being brought back from Rockford on Tuesday even though a recall wasn’t necessary for Wednesday’s game against Buffalo.

Shaw has 4 goals in seven games and Hayes 3 goals in nine games. Shaw was still skating on the second line at practice Tuesday and Hayes on the third.

“It’s internal competition,” Quenneville said.

If Bryan Bickell and Michael Frolik haven’t noticed how well Shaw and Hayes have played, they should. Both veterans skated on the fourth line in Sunday’s win over San Jose, and now that Smith is back, the next step could be healthy scratch.

Frolik hasn’t scored in 15 games and Bickell in 11. Bickell has 1 goal in his last 29 games.

With Patrick Sharp expected to miss another 2-3 weeks with a broken left wrist, the second-line left wing job is Shaw’s until he slips, if he slips.

“It’s been a great start for him,” Quenneville said. “He finds ways to get things done. Whether there are limitations people might find, he overcomes them with great determination.

“(Shaw and Hayes) are taking advantage of not only playing, but playing a little more.”

Sabres staggering:Time is running out for the Buffalo Sabres to get their act together in the Eastern Conference.The Sabres, who come to the United Center on Wednesday, were 11th in the East on Tuesday and 7 points out of a playoff spot after a 2-6-2 tailspin.Following Monday#146;s 5-0 loss at Detroit, owner Terry Pegula walked straight into the dressing room. Pegula spent big bucks on free agents Christian Ehrhoff and Ville Leino to try to make the Sabres contenders in the East.#147;Yeah, well, not good hockey,#148; goalie Ryan Miller said after the loss in Detroit. #147;It#146;s not good from top down.#148;Certain Sabres are starting to be mentioned in trade rumors with the deadline getting closer.#147;If it#146;s going to happen, it#146;s going to happen in the locker room,#148; Miller said. #147;Do you guys really think there#146;s any kind of trade made anywhere that#146;s going to affect this team anymore than we can affect it in this locker room?#147;You guys are just #133; I don#146;t know what to think, because there#146;s no such trade.#147;There#146;s never going to be a trade in the history of the NHL that#146;s going to affect anything like that. There#146;s no chance anybody comes into this team and just shakes it up or we can even move multiple players and get any kind of return.#147;You know, if you want to just destroy a team and just go out and be reckless and do something, yeah.#148;Health beat:Daniel Carcillo had successful left-knee surgery Tuesday to repair a torn ACL.#147;The procedure went very well and he will begin rehabilitation (Tuesday) afternoon,#148; said Hawks team physician Dr. Michael Terry. #147;We anticipate a full recovery with him returning to competitive hockey in six months.#148;The Hawks formally placed Carcillo on the injured reserve list Tuesday. He finished serving the seven-game suspension for the Jan. 2 hit on Edmonton#146;s Tom Gilbert on Sunday.tsassone@dailyherald.com