To the surprise of no one, members of the Chicago Blackhawks awoke yesterday morning to find there was still life on earth. And because there was they were forced to drive to the rink and watch lowlights from their 5-1 loss to the Vancouver Canucks in Game 1.
We won't know until after Game 2 tonight what kind of students the Chicago players make. But certainly those Hawks marched in front of the media here yesterday were making the right sounds, which included admitting that perhaps they hadn't shown their Round 1 opponents the deference they deserved.
"Maybe there was a little bit of disrespect [for Vancouver]going into the series," coach Joel Quennville conceded.
There is not any more.
To a player - and a coach - the Blackhawks vowed to be better in their next outing, which isn't exactly news, I know. What is noteworthy, perhaps, is just how honest they all were about the nature of their problems in the series opener.
Defenceman Brent Sopel, who had such a strong series in Round 1 against Nashville but was dreadful on Saturday, conceded that the Hawks weren't ready for Vancouver's speed, which was a notch or two up from their Round 1 opponent Nashville.
Once players get caught flat-footed it can often produce a domino effect of other mistakes. Suddenly all five players on the ice are slightly out of position. And then, if a team gets behind early, it can compound its problems by over-compensating, or, as Sopel put it, trying too hard, which leads to more problems.
And that was Chicago on Saturday night. After an early push, which was repelled by Roberto Luongo, the air seemed to seep out of the Blackhawks' game. One of the most high-flying teams in the league stopped skating. Stopped battling in the corners. I don't know if anyone was keeping track of one-on-one battles but the Canucks had to have won two-thirds of them, certainly in the second and third periods.
Here's a theory: the Blackhawks were the third-highest-scoring team in the NHL this season. They have some of the flashiest scorers in the league, led by the always dangerous Patrick Kane. They are a team that manufactures some of the prettiest goals in the league. Suddenly, when they aren't scoring, and they fall behind, the Hawks get frustrated and stop competing because they are still a young team learning how to deal with these types of setbacks. At least it's a theory that might stand up to scrutiny against the backdrop of Saturday night's game.
The Hawks might also be a team that needs to score early in a game. Now, of course all teams like to score early.
But in Chicago it seems even more essential because of the way any game here starts - before the puck even drops.
The singing of the U.S. national anthem at the United Center is a bucket-list-worthy event. It can even make non-Americans quiver. By the end of it the crowd is usually in a frenzy, creating an energy from which the 'Hawks feed. But when they don't score early on, as was the case Saturday, the energy level in the arena drops off precipitously. And so does that of the home team.
Quenneville, meantime, was quick to douse the glowing embers of a goalie controversy.
"Antti's playing," he said in response to the first question he faced.
We'll see if he's still playing by game's end tonight.
While it would be unfair to hand Antti Niemi a disproportionate share of the blame for the opener's lopsided score, any time you let in five goals and get pulled there will be questions asked. There were questions hanging over his head to begin these playoffs, which, for the most part, he answered in Round 1. He'll have to respond with a strong effort in his next outing, if he's to prove he's playoff worthy and still capable of bouncing back after iffy performances as he did against the Nashville Predators.
The Canucks are certain to see a more committed, focused Blackhawks team tonight than they faced in the opener.
"We are all feeling the embarrassment of a score like that, especially in Game 1," Chicago captain Jonathan Toews said. "But there is no reason to go around moping and not talking to one another. We just have to be ready to get back at her."