Monday’s Three Stars: Huet Solid, The Power Play Drought Ends

Jim Neveau, PIB Co-conspirator

The Chicago Blackhawks, after getting a much needed win on Saturday night against Nashville, looked to continue their solid play, this time against the Minnesota Wild.The crew from Minny came in with backs to the wall, having lost all seven of their road games thus far in the early going. It was pretty clear looking at those facts who was going to win the game.

The Hawks ended up victorious in the game, notching a 3-1 win in front of another sold out crowd at the United Center. Cristobal Huet made 20 saves in the win, and Patrick Kane, Dave Bolland, and Troy Brouwer netted the goals.

The main story of the night, however, was the return of Martin Havlat to the Madhouse on Madison. He didn’t exactly sparkle in the game, however, notching a -2 with only one shot on goal.

“We had some chances and didn’t score,” Havlat told the Chicago Tribune. “Huet played well and had a great game.”

The loss put the Wild in an even more precarious position, which sees them in 15th in the conference, and with only six points to their credit in the early going.

With the win, the Hawks move to 7-3-1 on the year, and 5-2 on United Center ice. They also finally scored a power play goal in the game, ending a lengthy drought with the man advantage. Considering they came into the game 2-for-24 at home on the power play, that goal certainly felt good.

Jake Dowell also got into a pretty good scrap in the game as well, dueling with Shane Hnidy.

Before we get to the Three Stars, you should check out this article from the Tribune about a conversation that Patrick Kane and Havlat had recently about video games. It is definitely worth a read.

With that, let’s get to the Three Stars

Third Star: Cristobal Huet (20 saves)

In his last 120 minutes of hockey, Monsieur Huet has given up one goal, and that tally can pretty much be tacked on PIB Blackhawks Report Card goat Brent Sopel, who stood approximately two centimeters from Huet’s face, which was enough to cause Cris to not be able to find the puck and to allow Andrew Brunette to knock it home.

Outside of that unfortunate miscue involving a defenseman who lost his way, Huet looked pretty good this evening, making some solid saves, and also controlling rebounds better than he had early in the season.

With tonight’s performance, and Saturday’s against Nashville, it looks like Huet might finally be starting to turn the corner. With what will likely be a full week off coming up, look for Huet to get the start Thursday against Nashville to see if he can keep his positive mojo going.

Second Star: Dave Bolland (1 goal)

Dave Bolland continues to impress in the absence of Jonathan Toews. He is making plays when he needs to, sacrificing his body for the good of the team, and he is winning face-offs at important moments.

Bolland’s goal tonight was a perfect illustration of the type of attack that has been working so well for the Blackhawks in recent games. Bolland parked himself right in front of Niklas Backstrom, managed to find the rebound off a scorching shot from Andrew Ladd, and popped it into the back of the net to stake Huet to an early lead.

Bad back and all, Bolland is playing like a man on a mission this season. Whether it’s an attempt to try to live up to the five year contract the Hawks signed him to, or just his way of contributing, it’s working out very well in the Hawks’ favor, and if it continues, then it could be a good sign of things to come for this franchise.

First Star: Patrick Kane (1 sick goal)

Patrick Kane’s sick goal in the third period (watch it here) in the third period of the hockey game is a testament to how good of a young offensive dynamo he truly is. The timing of the goal was also important, as the team was only up one at the time, and needed a spark followed by the Sopel/Huet fiasco. Kane provided it with this flashy goal, and as you know, the Hawks went on to win the game.

The Hawks’ next game is Thursday night in Nashville, starting at 7pm CDT. It can be seen in Chicago on Comcast SportsNet.

Tags: Andrew Ladd, Chicago Blackhawks, Cristobal Huet, Dave Bolland, Jake Dowell, Jonathan Toews, martin havlat, Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, Patrick Kane, Troy Brouwer