Foley: Blackhawks' Big Guns Have Dried Up
For the 11th place Chicago Blackhawks it may not be time to hit the panic button just yet, but it's definitely time for their big guns to starting coming through.
In their last five games the Blackhawks have picked up just two of the 10 possible standings points, and have dropped out of the conference's top eight teams as well.
"Certainly when the 'Hawks were on a really good roll, they were doing a fabulous job of keeping the puck out of the net," Blackhawks TV announcer Pat Foley said on the Danny Mac Show. "That has not been a huge problem...but basically in the last eight games, there has only been one when you held the team to two goals or less."
LISTEN: Pat Foley On The Danny Mac Show
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And it hasn't been a result of poor goaltending, the defense in front of both Corey Crawford and Marty Turco hasn't been doing the goalies any favors.
However, the bigger concern might come at the other end of the ice.
"You've got some big guns that have dried up," Foley said. "Your second line hasn't produced anything. [Marian] Hossa, [Patrick] Sharp and [Tomas] Kopecky have been M.I.A. for the last little while."
Over the last eight games, those three players have combined for only 12 points. And after a great start to the season Hossa has only recorded five goals in his last 23 games, and for the season has 29 points (12G, 17A).
"Obviously you need your big guns to come through at critical times," Foley said. "And I'm going to go call this a critical time. This team is in trouble. And they better get the ship turned around here pretty quick."
