Hawks send Olesz down, call up Smith
Ben Smith was on his way to making the Blackhawks’ opening night roster when he was sidelined by a concussion late in the preseason on a hit from Detroit defenseman Brendan Smith, who was suspended for eight games.
After a strong start at Rockford, Ben Smith was recalled by the Hawks on Thursday and will be in the lineup Friday night at Calgary.
Smith takes over the roster spot of veteran Rostislav Olesz, who was assigned to Rockford on Thursday after clearing NHL waivers.
The Hawks still must pay Olesz his $3.4 million salary, but the $3.125 salary cap hit comes off the books.
The 23-year-old Smith had 6 goals and 4 assists in nine games at Rockford, 4 of those goals on the power play. He’ll likely play on the third line with Michael Frolik questionable after suffering an upper body injury in Wednesday’s 5-1 win at Calgary.
While Frolik likely won’t play, coach Joel Quenneville said defenseman Brent Seabrook would miss his second straight game.
“He’s progressing, but he’s out for (Friday),” Quenneville told reporters after practice Thursday in Calgary.
Quenneville wouldn’t get specific when asked where Smith would play.
“There are some options,” said Quenneville, who ruled out Smith playing with either Patrick Kane or Jonathan Toews.
“Kaner’s line and Johnny’s line are stable,” Quenneville said. “I don’t think we want to mix that up right now.”
If Frolik can play against the Flames, Bryan Bickell would be the likely scratch. The struggling winger played only eight minutes at Vancouver.
Upon further review:There was a lot to like in the win at Vancouver, when the Hawks scored 3 goals in the third period to bust open a tight game.In addition to going without a penalty and keeping the Canucks#146; power play off the ice, the Hawks blocked 23 shots, led by Niklas Hjalmarsson#146;s 6.#147;We did a lot of good things in all areas of the game,#148; Joel Quenneville said. #147;We were strong in the third period and stayed out of the box.#148;The Hawks also scored 2 power-play goals and now have 6 in the last four games.#147;The last three or four games it#146;s crawling, it#146;s slowly coming back,#148; Andrew Brunette said. #147;It#146;s been a point of frustration for everybody here. It#146;s nice to get a couple and hopefully the snowball is rolling downhill and we#146;ll pick up a little momentum here.#148;Flame out:Calgary has the NHL#146;s worst power play at home. It#146;s 2-for-40 for the year and scoreless in its last 17 chances.#147;We#146;re all struggling at the same time,#148; Flames center Alex Tanguay told the Calgary Herald.The 7-9-1 Flames are 13th in the Western Conference and 28th in the league in scoring.Ÿ Follow Tim#146;s Hawks reports on Twitter @TimSassone. 100150Rostislav Olesz