Red Wings at Blackhawks
THE STORY: Throughout the better part of the season,
the Chicago Blackhawks have been treated to the cheers from the United
Center faithful. Following Friday's 4-0 lackluster loss to the Colorado
Avalanche, the Blackhawks were booed off the ice by their home fans. "We
didn't deserve anything," Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said. "We got
what we deserved." The setback was the third straight for Chicago, which
is now staring up at the first-place St. Louis Blues in the Central
Division. The Blackhawks will look to right the ship on Sunday when they
host the division-rival Detroit Red Wings. The Red Wings have not
travelled well this season as they have collected 12 of their 15 losses
this season on the road. G Jimmy Howard was denied his league-best 25th
victory of the season and 100th career win after permitting three
first-period goals in Saturday's eventual 4-3 loss to the Toronto Maple
Leafs. Considering that Howard has been in goal for 31 of the team's
last 33 games, it's a good bet that he will make an appearance during
the second contest between the Original Six rivals this season. Chicago
won the first encounter by a 3-2 score on Dec. 30.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, NBCS, TSN2
ABOUT THE RED WINGS (25-14-1): Coach Mike Babcock
wasn't thrilled with his charges' effort in Toronto. "That was un-Red
Wing-like," Babcock said. "You can't win every night in the league
playing like that." LW Jiri Hudler netted his fourth goal in three games
to tie the score at 3-3 before Joffrey Lupul lowered the boom after
taking advantage of a turnover by Henrik Zetterberg. Considering
Detroit's road woes, Babcock and company will be happy to host the
Blackhawks next Saturday.
ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS (24-13-4): Chicago has seen its
inconsistent power play take a decided downturn. The Blackhawks have
converted just one of their last 23 opportunities with the man
advantage. Taken a step further, they received just one power-play
chance in their last two games. The Blackhawks will receive a boost on
Sunday as D Steve Montador is expected to play after being sidelined for
two contests with an upper body injury.
OVERTIME:
1. With a win on Sunday, Howard will become the ninth netminder in Red Wings history to reach the 100-win plateau.
2. The Blackhawks sent rookie D Dylan Olsen back to Rockford of the
American Hockey League after playing in two games in the NHL. Olsen
responded by notching two assists for the IceHogs for his first career
multi-point game.