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CHICAGO -- The Chicago Blackhawks officially turned the page on their 2013 Stanley Cup championship season on Tuesday.

The Blackhawks soaked in every second of the nearly 30-minute banner-raising ceremony before Tuesday's game against the Washington Capitals, but then quickly got down to the business of the new season.

As special as winning the Stanley Cup was and all of the celebration that followed, Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa was happy for the team's concentration to be on something else finally.

"We had so many things around the Stanley Cup, so many presentations with the Cup, the rings, raising the banner," Hossa said after the Blackhawks' 6-4 win. "Now it's over. Now we can focus about a new beginning. Everything was great, but now we can just focus on game, which is great, too."

Blackhawks defenseman Johnny Oduya had a similar feeling.

"I think it's been a tremendous summer where you have some memories that you'll never forget," Oduya said. "It's a good way to kind of finish it off and start the new year."

Blackhawks forward Brandon Bollig held onto the 2013 season until the banner reached its destination.

"You kind of watch it go up the entire time," Bollig said. "You don’t take your eyes off it. That was an unbelievable feeling knowing [what we did]. The type of year we had last season was a storybook year.

"With seeing the Cup and then seeing your name engraved on the Cup for the first time in person and then getting the rings and then finally seeing the banner going up in the rafters and knowing it'll be up there forever and you're a part of it, it was an amazing feeling. A lot of emotions run through your head. Obviously we had to switch the emotions off and get ready for the first period. Luckily, we came out hot."

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CHICAGO -- Here's a quick look at the Chicago Blackhawks' 6-4 win over the Washington Capitals in the season opener at the United Center on Tuesday.

How it happened: If a banner-raising ceremony wasn't enough entertainment on opening night in Chicago, the Blackhawks and Capitals followed that up with an offensive display on the ice. After squandering a 3-2 lead in the third period and going down 4-3, the Blackhawks answered with three goals in the final 13 minutes. Blackhawks forward Brandon Saad tied the score off a pass from Michal Handzus at 7:55 of the third period, and Johnny Oduya put the Blackhawks ahead at 13:53. Marian Hossa added an empty-net goal in the final minute. Brandon Bollig, Patrick Kane and Brent Seabrook also scored for the Blackhawks. Mikhail Grabovski scored three goals for the Capitals. Alex Ovechkin had the other goal. The Capitals scored three times on the power play. Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford had 28 saves.

What it means: The Blackhawks became only the second team in the past six years to win on their banner-raising night. The Blackhawks' penalty kill was a strength all of last season but that unit struggled Tuesday. The Hawks didn't allow their third power-play goal of the season until the 11th game last season.

Player of the game: Oduya scored the winner and had a plus-4 rating in the win.

What's next: The Blackhawks get three days off before their second game of the season. They host the Tampa Bay Lightning at the United Center on Saturday.

The Chicago Blackhawks will move on from their 2013 Stanley Cup season after their championship banner is raised on Tuesday night.

Before they do that, a number of the Blackhawks shared their favorite memories from their day with the Stanley Cup this past summer.

Bryan Bickell
"For me, my passion in the offseason is fishing. So a friend of mine has his own TV show; it's called 'Facts of Fishing,' and his name is David Mercer. It's a big TV show in Canada. I had the opportunity to bring the Cup on the show and fish with the Cup, which was special because I know all the guys around the room would say if I wasn't playing hockey I'd be fishing. There were two parts. The first day we caught fish, but there weren't any with size. We had a Part 2 the next day, and we got big ones."

Brandon Bollig
"I think being from St. Louis and taking it back there and having the Blues being a big rival with the Blackhawks, people were on the fence as to whether to come out. I got a lot of tweets from people that they weren't going to come see it until the Blues won. Then again, you get a lot people saying that's awesome, and they're going to support someone from their hometown and come. I had a lot of people with Blues jerseys and shirts at my public event. It was cool. It was all in good fun. I understand. I'd probably do the same if I was in their position."

Corey Crawford
"I think just spending it with my family. It was special to me because I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for them. They pretty much gave up their lives not only for me, but for me and my brother both so we could play hockey and do that. My parents, they pretty much paid the way for me. Not just me, but my brother and sister have been really supportive throughout my career. It was pretty special."

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Here are 10 things to know about the Chicago Blackhawks before they raise the banner Tuesday night and begin the 2013-14 NHL season:

1. The Blackhawks won't discuss a Stanley Cup repeat, but they have constantly emphasized getting off to a positive start to the season. The previous time the Blackhawks tried to defend the Cup, their season was derailed by some early woes. They aren't likely to match last season's 24-game points streak to begin the season, but they would like to do better than the 9-9-2 record they had after 20 games in the 2010-11 season. The Blackhawks do have the advantage this time around of returning nearly everyone from last season's team.

2. The Blackhawks found magic in a top line of Bryan Bickell-Jonathan Toews-Patrick Kane in the playoffs last season, and Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville will be rolling that out again to start this season. The major change that occurred since the trio last played in a real game together is that Bickell is now making about $3.4 million more than he was last season. With that money comes higher expectations, and Bickell understands that. The line only played together once in the preseason, but it looked dangerous.

3. The other Blackhawks' lines likely will be Patrick Sharp-Michal Handzus-Marian Hossa; Brandon Saad-Andrew Shaw-Jimmy Hayes; and Brandon Bollig-Marcus Kruger-Joakim Nordstrom. Ben Smith likely will rotate in on the third and fourth lines.

Just some quick notes on the lines: Sharp stood out in the preseason. Playing on the third line should take some pressure off Saad. Hayes was impressive offensively with his size and quickness at times. Bollig had a solid preseason, but he needs to be more than an enforcer to keep his spot.

4. The defensive pairings likely will be Duncan Keith-Brent Seabrook; Johnny Oduya-Niklas Hjalmarsson; and Nick Leddy-Michal Rozsival. Michael Kostka and Sheldon Brookbank likely will rotate with Rozsival throughout the season. Having an eighth defenseman will allow Quenneville to sit players when they need some time off or are consistently struggling.

5. You can always hold a special place in your heart for Dave Bolland, Michael Frolik and Viktor Stalberg because they helped win last season's Stanley Cup, but they were role players and replaceable. Hayes, Nordstrom and Smith should have no trouble filling in those spots. Nordstrom is expected to replace Frolik on the penalty kill.

6. The Blackhawks didn't really answer the second-line center issue in the preseason. The plan to use Saad barely got off the ground. Brandon Pirri was the second option, but an injury set him back, and he never got a chance to show off his game. That brought Quenneville to his backup option, Handzus. Handzus was recovering from his offseason surgeries during training camp and was held out of all six preseason games. It will be interesting to see how his body holds up over 82 games, especially in such a vital role. As a side note, the Blackhawks' power play didn't look any better in the preseason, either.

7. Hossa also didn't play in any preseason games, and there has to be some concern about his health. Hossa looked great while at Notre Dame to start training camp, but he apparently aggravated his back injury sometime in that first week and has been dealing with some issues again. Hossa missed a Stanley Cup finals game due a back problem and wasn't the same player in the last three games of the season. If he's affected again by it early, it might be in the Blackhawks' best interests to sit him for an extended period to get him healthy. As of now, he said he's fine and will play in the season opener.

8. The NHL has re-aligned its conferences and is back to two divisions per conference. That means the Blackhawks are now joined in the Central Division by the Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets. The Detroit Red Wings and Columbus Blue Jackets are now in the Eastern Conference. The new playoff format will include the top three teams from each division receiving spots and then two wild cards. The first two rounds will be within the division, but with the possibility of the final wild-card team having to cross over divisions to play.

9. Nikolai Khabibulin is back with the Blackhawks and has looked reliable enough in the preseason. If Khabibulin's age (40) catches up to him, the Blackhawks will probably turn to Antti Raanta to be Corey Crawford's backup. Raanta, who is from Finland, is getting accustomed to the smaller North American rink in AHL Rockford to start the season. Either way, Crawford will see a bulk of the workload.

10. Oddsmakers have made the Blackhawks the favorites to win the 2014 Stanley Cup. Most have them at 5-1 or 6-1. They're followed by the Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins, Los Angeles Kings, Blues, Red Wings and Vancouver Canucks. The Penguins were favored by most to win the Cup last season.

CHICAGO -- Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford and forwards Marian Hossa and Michal Handzus will play in the season opener on Tuesday after being held out of the final preseason game for precautionary reasons, Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said on Monday.

Crawford missed the final preseason game on Saturday due to lower-body stiffness after playing in two preseason games. Hossa (upper body) and Handzus (lower body) did not appear in any preseason games.

The Blackhawks had all 23 roster players participate in practice at the Johnny’s IceHouse West on Monday.

“Everybody who was on the ice is able to play,” Quenneville said. “[Crawford] is starting. Handzus and Hossa are ready to play.”

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Here are six observations from the Chicago Blackhawks' training camp and preseason games:

1. The durability of the Blackhawks’ older players has to be a concern. Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville has been very cautious with players’ injuries in the preseason. There is no reason to risk anything. Yet, the fact 34-year-old Marian Hossa and 36-year-old Michal Handzus didn’t play in a single preseason game and haven’t been 100 percent healthy in the preseason has to be somewhat alarming. Both players are getting up in age, and both are coming off a season where they suffered severe injuries. With Hossa, there’s a lot at stake for the present, but even more so for the future. Back injuries aren’t anything to mess with, and the Blackhawks are depending on Hossa for years to come. As for Handzus, his injury wouldn’t be as much of an immediate concern if Brandon Saad or Brandon Pirri had worked out at the second-line center. But with Handzus being that option now, the Blackhawks are looking for him to duplicate what he did in the playoffs.

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CHICAGO -- Chicago Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa returned to the ice Thursday after sitting out about a week with an upper-body injury, and he could play in the season opener, Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said on Thursday.

Hossa has not played in any of the Blackhawks’ five preseason games after aggravating a previous injury last week. Quenneville said Hossa will not play in the final preseason game on Saturday. The Blackhawks’ season opener is on Tuesday.

“He skated about 40 minutes,” Quenneville said after Thursday’s practice at Johnny’s IceHouse West. “He did pretty well. Hopefully, he’ll join our practice [Friday,] but he’ll skate anyway. But he felt good; he’s good.

“He’s not going to play Saturday, but we expect him, we’re hoping that he’s going to be playing on Tuesday.”

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CHICAGO -- Chicago Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa is expected to return to the ice Thursday after sitting out practice Wednesday because of an upper-body injury, Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said.

Hossa has not played in any of the Blackhawks’ five preseason games. Quenneville said on Sept. 19 that Hossa had aggravated an injury and would miss the team’s last four preseason games. Hossa could still play in the team’s final preseason game Saturday. The Blackhawks’ season opener is on Oct. 1.

“He’s likely to get on the ice [Thursday],” Quenneville said after practice at Johnny’s IceHouse West on Wednesday. “He’s feeling better every day, so we like the progress. He’s excited about getting on the ice.”

Blackhawks forwards Andrew Shaw and Michal Handzus participated in Wednesday's practice. Neither has played in the preseason.

Hossa suffered a back injury during the Stanley Cup finals last season. He said one of the discs in his back was shooting into his nerves and he couldn't feel his right foot. He was scratched from Game 3 of the Stanley Cup finals and returned for the remainder of the series, but he wasn’t as effective in the final three games. Hossa said surgery was a possibility after the season, but he was able to avoid it.

Hossa said on Sept. 12 that his back was feeling better. He played in three days of scrimmages at Notre Dame but hasn’t played since Sept. 15.

Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman said last week he wasn’t concerned that Hossa’s injury would be a lingering problem.

“I think injuries are part of the game,” Bowman said. “Marian’s been a very durable player over the years. Things come up now and then, but I’m not worried long term for that.”

Hossa has dealt with a variety of injuries since joining the Blackhawks in 2009. He had lower-body injuries in the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons, suffered a severe head injury during the 2012 playoffs and missed time with upper- and lower-body injuries last season.

Hossa had 17 goals and 14 assists in 40 regular-season games and seven goals and nine assists in 22 playoff games last season.

CHICAGO -- Chicago Blackhawks forward Ben Smith left the University of Notre Dame after four days of training camp disappointed in his play.

Smith understood he was being considered for one of just a few open roster spots, and he felt he hadn't done anything to impress Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville.

But Smith didn't dwell on that. He returned to Chicago and looked at the team's preseason games as another opportunity to show he's worthy of a spot.

Smith hasn't failed to capitalize on that second chance.

After scoring in the first preseason game Tuesday, Smith followed that up with a goal, an assist, a plus-2 rating, three takeaways and two blocked shots in the Blackhawks' 4-3 shootout loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday.

Quenneville took notice.

"I thought Benny had his best game of the camp," Quenneville said. "Obviously, he scored a goal to get us back into the game -- huge short-handed goal. I thought the puck was more friendly with him tonight. I thought he had a real direct game and a real purpose to his game."

Smith was happy with how he played on Thursday, but he wasn't allowing himself to be too joyful now, just as he didn't allow himself to be too down after his poor showing at Notre Dame.

"It feels good," Smith said. "It's one game. You know one game isn't going to make this team. As I said Tuesday, it's a step forward."

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CHICAGO -- Chicago Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa will miss the next four preseason games due to an upper-body injury, coach Joel Quenneville said on Thursday.

"He aggravated an injury there," Quenneville said after Thursday's morning skate. "We're going to keep him off. I wouldn't expect him in the next four games here in the next five nights. We'll see how he progresses after that."

Quenneville said Hossa could play in the final preseason game on Sept. 28 and is expected to play in the season opener on Oct. 1.

"Whether we're talking seriousness of it or not, we feel he'll be back and he'll be fine," Quenneville said.

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CHICAGO -- The Chicago Blackhawks completed a 3-1 series comeback and eliminated the Detroit Red Wings on an overtime game-winner in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup conference semifinals when the teams last met at the United Center.

Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane expected that to be on players’ minds when the two teams face each other again in a preseason game at the United Center on Tuesday.

“I haven’t seen their lineup, but I’m sure they have some players who were here last year that aren’t too happy with the way things went down, so they’ll probably be trying to get a little revenge,” Kane said. “I’m sure memories will fly if they have the same lineup as last year. …. I’m sure they’ll be thinking about the last time they were here and what happened in that Game 7.”

Last season’s playoffs and the fact it’s the Red Wings may add some flare to the Blackhawks’ preseason opener, but Chicago coach Joel Quenneville was more concerned about his players getting off to a good start and continuing to evaluate players.

“Guys like playing,” Quenneville said. “Whether it’s the first exhibition game, first regular-season game, I think there’s always that excitement in the air. I think the guys get a little nervous going into these type of games. I look forward to it. Detroit, I’m sure they’re excited about playing in it as well. It’ll be a good measuring stick for some guys as well. It’ll be a good part of our evaluation process watching a number of guys tonight.”

After four days of scrimmages, Kane was looking forward to playing against someone who wasn’t wearing a Blackhawks jersey, too.

“Just play the right way to start,” Kane said. “The big thing is you want to get used back to that game pace, especially you play some scrimmages and get used to it a little bit. Now you play some preseason games, so it’ll be ramped up a little bit more. You know you’re playing different players than on your own team. It’ll be fun.

"I think it’s always a fun game when you’re playing against Detroit, no matter the time of year. It’ll be nice to get back out in front of the ice in front of the United Center, get the season under way.”

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CHICAGO -- Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews is improving, but he will sit out a scrimmage on Monday and the first preseason game on Tuesday due to a lower-body injury, Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said on Monday.

Quenneville said Toews skated at the United Center on Monday, and Toews gave him encouraging news afterward.

“He said he felt great,” Quenneville said. “That’s a good sign. No aggravation.”

Toews was kept out of the team’s scrimmages on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Notre Dame. Quenneville said Friday that Toews’ injury was minor and it was something he suffered prior to the training camp.

Quenneville said Toews would participate in future preseason games. The Blackhawks have six preseason games before their season opener on Oct. 1.

“He’ll definitely be playing in preseason games,” Quenneville said. “We’ll be keeping an eye on him this week.”

Michal Handzus, Michal Rozsival and Brandon Pirri will also not play in Monday’s scrimmage due to injuries. Quenneville described Pirri as being “OK,” and he said Handzus and Rozsival were improving.

“Handzus and [Rozsival] have been skating a lot over the past few days,” Quenneville said. “They’re both progressing well. We see them both being ready to start the season.”

Quenneville said Marian Hossa will sit out Monday’s scrimmage to give other players more ice time.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Here are some observations from the four days of the Chicago Blackhawks training camp at Notre Dame:

Brandon Saad looked more comfortable playing center as the week went along. Early in the week he often glided to the left side of the rink and was getting ahead of the play. By Sunday he was waiting for the puck and skating down the middle of the ice. He’s also looking to distribute more and had a couple impressive passes. Faceoffs will be a work in progress for him, and he has to get more repetitions in.

Duncan Keith appeared to have some aggression to get out the past few days. He went all out on Ben Smith in a fight on Saturday. He was on the verge of another fight with Jimmy Hayes on Sunday. He knocked Hayes in the face wearing his glove, and the two had to be separated. Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville downplayed both incidents, but they did seem out of the ordinary.

Hayes had to put himself in a good position for a roster spot with his play over the last three days. He’s got a big frame, but he also has a lot of speed and quickness. He was often around the puck and created a number of scoring chances. He scored goals on Saturday and Sunday.

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SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Chicago Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa wanted to test his back during the two scrimmages at Notre Dame on Friday.

Two goals and one assist later, Hossa and his back appeared to be doing just fine.

"I liked him," Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said of Hossa. "He did some nice things. He had the puck a lot. He looked all right. I didn't hear any complaints [about the contact on his back.]"

Hossa suffered a back injury in the Stanley Cup finals last season, and it caused numbness in his right leg. He avoided surgery in the offseason and said Thursday his back felt stronger.

Sharp on faceoffs: Quenneville said utilizing forward Patrick Sharp more on faceoffs could be an option this season. Sharp has only been used occasionally on faceoffs in recent seasons, but he does have a lot of experience there and has had some success.

Sharp has won 2,016 of 4,159 faceoffs during his career with the Blackhawks. He was 40-of-62 in the regular season and 32-of-60 in the playoffs last season.

"He can always jump in," Quenneville said of Sharp. "If the guy who is taking them is having a tough night or is on his wrong side, we don't mind Sharpie taking faceoffs anywhere around the ice. It's not a bad option to have knowing you got three guys up front who can take faceoffs. We don't mind that flexibility."

Roster cuts and season-opening roster: Quenneville said he'd likely make his first round of cuts prior to Tuesday's preseason opener against the Detroit Red Wings, and he was unsure whether they'd keep 21, 22 or 23 players for the season.

"We haven't had that discussion yet," Quenneville said about the roster. "I think a lot of that, I'm sure, is going to be determined by salary-cap numbers."

Spot for Bollig: Quenneville believes there is a place on the Blackhawks' roster for Brandon Bollig, one of the team's more physical players.

The 6-foot-2, 223-pound Bollig played in 25 regular season games and five playoff games for the Blackhawks last season.

"I think in today's game I think he's that guy that can play, and he has that element of toughness that everyone is looking for," Quenneville said. "That one-dimensional tough guy, that role, is evaporating from our game. You got to be able to play. You got to play against good players. You got to be comfortable and predictably with the puck. I thought his game last year filled that niche for us real well."

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Chicago Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa described his back as “much stronger” and “better” following the first day of training camp at Notre Dame on Thursday, but he thought Friday’s scrimmage would be the true test.

Hossa suffered a back injury during the Stanley Cup finals last season. He said one of the discs in his back was shooting into his nerves, and he couldn’t feel his right foot. He was scratched from Game 3 of the Stanley Cup finals and returned for Game 4, but he wasn’t as effective the last three games. Hossa was able to avoid surgery in the offseason.

Hossa participated fully in Thursday’s practice and was hopeful he’d be cleared to participate in Friday’s scrimmage.

“I would like to be,” Hossa said. “I got to talk to the coaches and staff, but I believe I will be. I really want to be because I want to test myself whether it’s OK or not.”

Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said later Thursday that Hossa would play in the scrimmage. Quenneville also said Michal Rozsival and Michal Handzus will be held out of scrimmages for a few days, but they will participate in practices.

Hossa, who will turn 35 in January, said he’s learned how to take care of his body better after a variety of injuries over the years. He played in 40 games last season (not counting playoffs) and had 31 points.

“What I found is everybody’s body is a little bit different,” Hossa said. “But for myself, you have to take the time to really heal yourself. I think that’s really important. I know the summer wasn’t too long, but I had lots of time off, and I started slowly again. Like when I had the concussion, I took my time. So I feel like on the ice my back is much, much stronger and better. For me, that’s the key. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be skating or having contact if I had a little doubt in my head.”

Quenneville also thought he may have to watch Hossa's minutes.

“I think that’s something we’re always aware of -- health and in different situations and backing off guys, whether it’d being practice days, ice time in games,” Quenneville said. “Hossa, I don’t want to say he’s getting older, but if you’re not ready to play, you’re not ready to play. I think that’s something we’ll watch. It’s nice to see he’s started here and he’s ready to go. But that … works itself out. We have a pretty good feel on our training staff, doctors, players and coach.”