ST. LOUIS — It’s an interesting relationship here in this Central Division semifinal, between Blues coach Ken Hitchcock and Blackhawks players Duncan Keith and Jonathan Toews. They’ve all been crucial parts of Canadian Olympic teams, but have to cut those bonds as Chicago and St. Louis go at it in the only First round series featuring two top-five NHL clubs.
“At the last Olympics, me and Sharpie (Patrick Sharp) were always trying to talk hockey with (Hitchcock), and get some wisdom with him,” Keith recalls. “I remember on the flight back after the tournament, I asked him if he wanted to talk hockey. He said, ‘Not anymore. We’re enemies again.’ I’ve got a lot of respect for him.”
Asked after Game 1 what it meant for the Blackhawks to get Keith back from suspension for Game 2, Hitchcock called him “just another player.” The next day, Hitchcock admitted, “He’s not just another player, but if I start ooh-ing and ahh-ing about the opposition, that’s a big mistake.
“If you start spending all this time talking about opposition players, it freezes up your team. He’s another good player that they’ve got. We’ve got good players too. He’s a number and a name that goes on the board. We’re certainly not going to talk about what he does well. We’re going to see if we can exploit some things.”
So, is Hitchcock better served to coach against Keith and Toews – to exploit their flaws – because he’s coached them so often?
“Yes,” Hitchcock said. “I know (Keith) and that (No.) 19 pretty well. What people don’t realize is, we’ve been together in the world championships too. This will be four (teams) with Duncan, and four with Toews. That’s quite a bit for a guy who’s never played for you.”
ST. ALBERT’S FINEST
One name I had on my all-star rookie ballot was defenceman Colton Parayko. If you’re wondering how the Blues are any different from previous teams that have bowed out in the First Round, he’s one element they never had before.
“You add a 6-foot-6 guy who’s chiseled, who’s a true professional, and humble and does all the little things, wants to learn…,” said captain David Backes. “He lets his instincts play, he skates really well and he’s got the big shot that a lot of us in here wishes he’d use a little more. And you saw him get his first fight under his belt (against Gabriel Landeskog) in Colorado.
“The future is very bright for him, being a solid piece of the defensive core here for a decade to come. Seeing he’s just a pup.”
THE BIG MISS
A great example of how a GM should listen to every educated opinion he can find comes in St. Louis, where the Blues could likely have had phenom winger Artemi Panarin had they listened to one of their own players – Vladimir Tarasenko.
“Instead of giving him eight million (to score goals) we should have hired him as a scout,” said Ken Hitchcock, shaking his head. “He told us the day he got here (in 2013), at least once a month about Panarin. They’re best buds and they’ve played in the world junior and on lines together and everybody looked around and said, ‘Ah, he’s a pretty small guy.’
“We all look a little dumb right now.”
SUBBAN NOT MOVING
Something to keep in mind when talking about the Montreal Canadiens trading P.K. Subban: Remember two summers ago when negotiations between the Subban camp and the Habs were ongoing, and the always-active Montreal media was raising the possibility that a deal might not get done?
Well, it was believed then that the drama ended when owner Geoff Molson stepped in and said, “Get this deal done. This is a player who shall remain a Canadien.” As far as we know, Molson still owns the team and Subban is still a revered civic figure in Montreal.
Now, it is clear by head coach Michel Therrien’s comments during the season that Subban’s individual style – likely on and off the ice – has not endeared him to everyone in the organization. But you don’t see an investment in a player like that by ownership get altered within two years because a coach or GM wants a change.
I’ll bet Subban outlasts Therrien in Montreal.
PLAYED LIKE A FIDDLE
Hitchcock gave the media a talking point on the off day between Games 1 and 2 when he said in his post-game address that he wanted to see his team get to 70 hits. It’s an unattainable number, and if the Blues did register 70 hits, as Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said, “That would mean we’d have the puck all night.”
On Friday, Hitchcock had a laugh at the media’s expense.
“It’s fun on the off days watching you guys chase your tail. It really was,” he chortled. “We’ll have 71 and they’ll have 71 in this game and tomorrow you guys can chase the tail again. We (coaches) have to have fun too, watching you guys work – especially you lazy Edmonton guys – instead of just partying. It was fun watching you guys, all the way up to NBC.”
PRONGER ON SAKIC
We wrote yesterday about the Blues plan to hit Keith every chance they got, working him through the series like “choppin’ down the tree.” Sometimes however, it’s the hitter that suffers more.
“I remember playing against Joe Sakic the year Colorado won the Cup, in ’01,” said then-St. Louis defenceman Chris Pronger. “Apparently he had a separated shoulder. I had a broken wrist. So, you’re trying to pound on him, and I hit him a bunch of times. Well, apparently it wasn’t sore, because he didn’t even flinch. I had a busted wrist, and every time I hit him my arm’s killing me. Sometimes it can go against you. You get so focused in on trying to punish a guy, you’re playing the game you need to play.”
GAGNER TO POST-SEASON
It was nice to see Sam Gagner finally get in a playoff game Thursday night for the Philadelphia Flyers, after he’d played 615 regular season games over 10 NHL seasons.
St. Louis defenceman Jay Bouwmeester was watching. Except for 18 AHL playoff games in 2005, Bouwmeester went from 1988-89 with the Medicine Hat Tigers until 2011-12 with the Calgary Flames and missed the playoffs every year.
“A bit of it is, some guys go to a good team and you’re into the playoffs the first year. In other cases, (the team’s) a work in progress, or you get moved around,” he said. “Sometimes you’re just a product of your environment.”
That last statement fits Gagner, who was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers sixth overall in ’07, the season after the Oilers had gone to the ’06 Cup against Carolina. The Oilers haven’t played a playoff game since.
The irony for Bouwmeester is that, where he used to simply want to play a playoff game, now the Blues won’t be satisfied until they get to a Stanley Cup Final.
“There are five or six or eight teams with a legit chance,” he said. “But with us, in the division we’re in, you have to go through two of them.”
•••
Thanks Folks.
This is the final West Coast Bias for the season. Thanks for reading every week, and to @NewAmsterdam Vodka folks for being a part of the column.
We’ll see you all next year.
