The Chicago Blackhawks are about to embark on one of their toughest stretches of the regular season, the annual November circus trip. They’re currently in fifth place in the Central Division, and this trip to Canada and California has the potential to be one of the most pivotal two-week stretches of the season, no matter how early on it still is in the season.
The Hawks have had a number of issues so far this season, many of which were not expected. The goaltending hasn’t been awful, but both Corey Crawford and Scott Darling have had struggles early on. The defense was unsurprisingly lacking without Duncan Keith to keep them regimented, but his return has seen encouraging improvements already. But among the most notable problems so far this season is the constant carousel of players they’ve featured on the top line at left wing.
Several players have tried to flank Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa, and many have struggled to help that top line produce. Teuvo Teravainen, Marko Dano, Artemi Panarin, Andrew Shaw, Viktor Tikhonov, Ryan Garbutt, and Bryan Bickell have all played on the first line at different times this year, all to varying degrees of success. Toews still has just four points at 5v5 this season, and Hossa has just three. Suffice it to say, a solution has yet to present itself.
Playing alongside Toews and Hossa is probably among one of the most demanding roles in the NHL. The Blackhawks’ top line duo have played together for most of the last four seasons and developed an incredible chemistry. They like to play a fast cycle game in the offensive zone that some players just can’t keep up with. There’s not too much thinking involved, but positioning is everything. Brandon Saad found so much success with Toews and Hossa during his time in Chicago due to his willingness to go hard to the net and establish position. Thus far, the Blackhawks haven’t found their new Saad.
This begs the question of whether the Blackhawks’ solution to the top line left wing spot is currently on the roster, or if they’ll have to outsource to find a worthy linemate for Toews and Hossa. Here are some options that the Blackhawks could explore, both in house and from elsewhere.
In house options
Marko Dano
During the summer, many fans figured that Dano was the likely candidate to play with Toews and Hossa because his game was very similar to Saad’s. However, Dano started the year in Rockford, and while he has shown a lot of promise since being called up to the NHL, he hasn’t spent much time with Toews and Hossa. He was on a line with them on Sunday night, and while he had some scoring chances, he couldn’t find the back of the net and missed a few shots that seemed like they should’ve been goals.
One hindrance to this idea is that Dano played most of his hockey career until now on the right wing. While the switch from right to left may seem simple enough, in reality, it is a major change. It requires a player to re-learn the game from the opposite side of the ice. While many of the duties are the same, it’s still counter-intuitive to what you’ve learned your whole career, similar to defensemen playing on their offside.
If he can adjust well to the left side, Dano may very well be the first-line left wing of the future. However, that’s the future, and the Blackhawks might not have the time to let Dano adjust by playing the 1LW role this season. Unless Dano can flip that switch soon, he’s probably best used on the third line for the time being.
Artemi Panarin
Probably the most exciting Blackhawk so far this season is Panarin. Sure, Patrick Kane is leading the NHL in scoring, but it doesn’t exactly come as a shock that Kane is playing well. Panarin, on the other hand, was a bit of a question mark heading into the season. Coming over from Russia’s KHL, we knew he was extremely skilled, but we weren’t sure if that skill would translate to immediate success. It has.
In a vacuum, Panarin is the best fit for the top line left wing. He is the best player the Blackhawks have at the position, and arguably the best they’ve had there in a few years. However, the success he’s found on a line with Kane and Artem Anisimov cannot be discounted, and a lot of it has to do with Anisimov being a fellow Russian. Panarin still does not speak English well, so Anisimov serves as a translator and communicator for Panarin on the bench and the ice. When Panarin spent that short stint with Toews on the top line while Hossa was injured, Panarin publicly voiced concern about communicating with the Chicago captain, so unless that barrier can be overcome, it might not be a good fit.
More than just the language barrier though, the Panarin-Anisimov-Kane line has arguably been one of the best in the NHL all season long. Kane leads the NHL in points with 28, and the trio are the Blackhawks’ top three leading scorers for forwards this season. Breaking up a line that’s had that kind of success seems silly unless they start to slow down, so don’t count on seeing Panarin with Toews and Hossa any time soon.
Teuvo Teravainen
Teravainen started the year flanking Toews and Hossa before being changed to the third line after just one game. Apparently Joel Quenneville didn’t like what he saw out of that line in the first game. The Finnish youngster has made a few reappearances on the top line since then, but hasn’t really stuck on any line for most of this season.
He’s played on lines with Anisimov and Kane, Dano and Tanner Kero, and (regretfully) Vincent Hinostroza and Ryan Hartman. In spite of the inconsistency in his linemates this season, Teuvo has still produced nine points, with five of them coming at 5v5. He has played significantly better when he has good linemates, which should come as a shock to no one.
When he was playing with Hinostroza and Harman, people were concerned about his play on the left wing, stating he did not look comfortable on that side. He, like Dano, prefers the right wing, so it wouldn’t be surprising that he faced some difficulty in the transition to left wing. But playing the left side wasn’t the problem — his linemates were. When Panarin played on the top line with Toews and Garbutt in Hossa’s absence, Teuvo played extremely well on a line with Anisimov and Kane.
Personally, I think this is the solution. Teuvo isn’t Brandon Saad, but that is perfectly fine. His defensive game is strong enough to stick with Toews and Hossa, he has the instincts to keep up with them in the offensive zone, and having two of the best players in the NHL on his line will help him find space to make plays and get open shots. Quenneville needs to give this combination a bit more time before scrapping it all together.
Trade options
Patrick Marleau
And here’s the long shot, wild card, “it just might be crazy enough to work” option.
Long time San Jose Sharks forward Patrick Marleau is reportedly being shopped by the Sharks on the trade market. He has a complete no-movement clause, and there was a report last week that he would only approve a trade to three teams. The Blackhawks were not one of those teams, although speculation put them on the fringes of the rumors. Regardless, his name belongs on this list. Even at 36 years old, he is a top line caliber left wing, a former team captain and he would fit in quite well alongside Toews and Hossa. It’s an unlikely one dream scenario but one that would be delightful.
However, in addition to Marleau’s full NMC, he carries a rather large cap hit of $6.67 million through next season, way more than the Blackhawks could realistically consider adding. In order to make this deal possible Stan Bowman would likely have to convince the Sharks to eat some of Marleau’s contract, take Bryan Bickell back or some other combination of factors that would make the money work. In short, it would be an incredible challenge to overcome.
Elliotte Friedman wrote in last week’s 30 Thoughts that one discussed Marleau deal with Anaheim involved Patrick Maroon and other pieces. With that knowledge, maybe a package of Bickell, Andrew Shaw and a first-round pick at least gets Chicago in the mix if Marleau is open to waiving his NMC. It’s a bit of a long shot, but not entirely outside the realm of possibilities.
* * *
The Blackhawks are certainly in a bit of a bind with the lack of consistent production from the top line. Toews and Hossa starting to click will almost certainly be key to the Blackhawks making a run in the division and solidifying a higher playoff seed rather than hanging in a wild card position. And getting that line going is going to require a bit more skill and stability on their left wing.
There are plenty of options, both internally and externally, and the solution to this issue may not be a quick one. But among the issues that Blackhawks have, this is among the most important to fix and could be the easiest as well. More stability on Toews’ left flank is likely to increase scoring no matter who the winger is. Teravainen is the best bet, with Dano not far behind.
Adam Hess is the creator and editor of Feathers in the Hat, and a staff writer at Second City Hockey. You can follow him on Twitter at @FeathersInDaHat.