ESPN

CHICAGO -- Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford couldn’t have begun the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs any worse.

The first shot the Minnesota Wild took on Crawford in Game 1 of their first-round series bypassed him and found the inside of the net on Tuesday. Crawford saw the play unfold and was in position to stop the puck, but somewhere between the Wild’s Cal Clutterbuck shooting it and the lamp being lit, Crawford lost sight of the puck.

Crawford’s focus was undoubtedly shaken.

“It was definitely a battle,” Crawford said. “It’s not the way you want to start a game. I can’t remember what time it was on the clock when I got that shot. I wasn’t getting any work. I just tried to get myself in the game after that. … I saw the release. I just kind of lost the puck halfway. Whatever, it’s over. It happened. I just tried to regroup as quick as possible.”

A season ago, the early goal might have foreshadowed a long, difficult game for Crawford. But this season, he learned to keep his focus and not let any one goal affect him. It stuck to that blueprint again on Tuesday.

Crawford bounced back after Clutterbuck’s goal and didn’t allow the Wild to beat him again over the game’s final 70-plus minutes. He stopped the Wild’s next 26 shots and helped the Blackhawks to a 2-1 overtime win in Game 1.

“I was able to regroup pretty good,” Crawford said. “The guys were behind me, encouraging me.”

The Blackhawks’ confidence in Crawford and his own confidence in himself appeared to grow as the game progressed. The Wild didn’t have as many shot attempts as the Blackhawks did (37-27), but the Wild compiled a lot of quality ones, and Crawford was there to deny each one.

In overtime, Wild forward Zach Parise had one of the game’s best attempts, a wide-open look from the slot. Crawford knocked the shot away with his blocker, and the puck skipped just past the left of the net.

“He’s got a quick release,” Crawford said. “I just tried to read it as good as I could and just barely got enough of it.”

Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville was impressed by the save and how Crawford handled the early adversity, but it was nothing Quenneville wasn’t accustomed to seeing in the regular season.

“I thought he stayed with it,” Quenneville said. “He had a key save right before our score. He made a big save with a guy in the slot. He seemed big and he got comfortable. I liked the response. That’s kind of the way he played all year.”

Here's what you need to know about the Chicago Blackhawks' first-round opponent, the Minnesota Wild:

• The Wild sputtered into the playoffs. They went 5-8-1 and were outscored 41-25 in April. They scored more than two goals just twice in the month, were shut out three times and allowed four or more goals five times. They fought off the Columbus Blue Jackets for the final playoff spot by winning two of their final three games. In between their two wins, the Wild lost 6-1 to the Edmonton Oilers.
  
  
• The Wild haven't appeared in the playoffs since the 2007-08 season. This will be their fourth playoff appearance in franchise history. They haven't advanced past the first round since the 2002-03 season.
  
  
• Wild goaltender Niklas Backstrom has been as inconsistent as his team. He was pulled from three games in April. He's allowed three or more goals in seven of his last 14 games. But he also held the Los Angeles Kings and Colorado Avalanche to one goal in two of his past three starts to help secure the playoff spot. He's been just as up-and-down against the Blackhawks this season. He replaced starting goaltender Josh Harding in the first period of the Wild's first meeting with the Blackhawks, and he stopped all 28 shots he faced in leading the Wild to a 3-2 shootout win. In their second game, Backstrom allowed four first-period goals and was pulled. In the final game of the series, he stopped 30 of 31 shots and the Wild lost, 1-0. He was 24-15-3 with a 2.48 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage on the season.
  
  
• The Wild are in the middle of the pack in most categories. They rank tied for 22nd in goals per game at 2.46, tied for 15th in goals-against per game at 2.60, 16th in power-play percentage at 17.9 and 18th in penalty-kill percentage at 80.7.
  
  
  [+] Enlarge
  Hannah Foslien/Getty ImagesJonathan Toews was second in the league in faceoffs won this season, a stat the Hawks need him to replicate in the playoffs.
• One of the Wild's greatest strengths is their faceoff ability. They ranked third in the league with a 52.4 faceoff percentage. The Blackhawks and Wild were nearly even in faceoffs in their three games this season. The Blackhawks won 92 faceoffs, and the Wild won 89. Both teams have two players ranked among the top 25 in faceoff leaders.
  
  
• The Wild's offseason acquisitions of forward Zach Parise and defenseman Ryan Suter -- two players the Blackhawks went after -- paid off this season. Parise led the Wild with 18 goals and 38 points. Suter had a team-high 28 assists and was third on the team with 32 points. The two players weren't at their best in April, however, when they combined for four goals and eight assists, after combining for 10 goals and 22 assists in March.
  
  
• Two of the three games between the Blackhawks and Wild this season were decided by one goal. The Blackhawks won 1-0 in regulation and the Wild won 3-2 in a shootout. Both teams excelled in close games all season. The Blackhawks were 19-3-5 with a .704 winning percentage in one-goal games, and the Wild were 13-5-3 with a .619 winning percentage. The Blackhawks ranked second in the league, and the Wild were sixth.
  
  
• Rookies Charlie Coyle, a 21-year-old forward, and Jonas Brodin, a 19-year-old defenseman, have been key to the Wild's success this season. Coyle has 14 points on the season and had four goals and three assists in April. Brodin is in the running for the Calder Memorial Trophy. He has two goals, nine assists, a plus-three rating, 60 blocked shots and 18 takeaways on the season.
  
  
• Forward Jason Pominville, who was acquired from the Buffalo Sabres at the trade deadline, helped the Wild in their playoff push. He had four goals and five assists in 10 games since being acquired. He is considered day-to-day after taking an elbow in the face recently.
  
  
• The Blackhawks and Wild made a trade in February 2010 that sent Kim Johnsson and the rights to Nick Leddy to the Blackhawks and defenseman Cam Barker to the Wild. Johnsson played eight games for the Blackhawks and was a free agent after the season. The 22-year-old Leddy has played in 176 games for the Blackhawks in the past three seasons. Barker finished the 2009-2010 season with the Wild and also played the 2010-2011 season with them before being bought out of his contract. He had 12 points in 71 games for the Wild.

The Blackhawks shouldn't feel too bad in losing out in the Zach Parise/Ryan Suter sweepstakes. After all, the Nashville Predators lost a key player in the deal and the Detroit Red Wings weren't able to acquire either one of the stars. Suter would have at least been a nice replacement for Niklas Lidstrom, who is retiring.

So who's worse off? Not the Hawks. And they gain in the division by subtraction.

It's simply not fair to say "Stan Bowman can't get it done" solely based on the two players signing in Minnesota, where Parise is from. Other teams offered more money -- more money in terms of cap space than the Hawks even have -- and still Suter and Parise went to Minnesota. They wanted to play together and they wanted to play near home -- Suter is from Madison, Wisc. -- and they were able to accomplish both. It remains to be seen if the Hawks could have pulled off something similar, but massive changes to the roster would have been coming if the duo came to Chicago instead.

Looking at the glass half-full the Hawks still don't have to do much heavy lifting this summer if they choose not to or are unable to. As has been well documented they have a full squad, one which can compete, and if things like special teams and goalie play improve --- then they might actually surprise some fans. Those two aspects getting better isn't wishful thinking -- necessarily. There is no guarantee but the Hawks can make the case they can be better than a year ago by staying the course. It doesn't mean you don't try to improve and that's what the Hawks attempted in recent days, in some big ways.

Martin Brodeur was offered a two-year deal, Suter and Parise were extended huge offers, but nothing came to fruition. These were long shot plays -- did anyone really think Brodeur was going to leave New Jersey after two decades? The point is you turn over every stone and if you come up short you can at least say you gave it your best shot.

Now, it's not completely unfair to ask why Chicago isn't the destination the Hawks might think it should be. And did the recent front office dysfunction play a part or did whispers about Joel Quenneville's job security trickle down to Suter or Parise? That would be a problem. But there is no indication that was the case, not that those players would admit to such. As is, when you're committing to 13 years you're probably not thinking the same coach is going to be there the whole time anyway.

So at the end of your holiday, ask this question: Would you rather be the Hawks today or the Predators or Red Wings? The answer doesn't get you a Stanley Cup but at least it should make you feel better on a day when only one fan base is ecstatic while others are left wondering ‘now what?'

Call it a Wild day for Minnesota: On Wednesday, the team landed not one but both of the NHL's top players available in free agency: forward Zach Parise and defenseman Ryan Suter.



Sources told ESPN.com's Pierre LeBrun that both deals are worth $98 million over 13 years.



"WE GOT 'EM!" the Wild announced on their Twitter account early Wednesday afternoon.

Read the entire story.

Zach Parise needed at least another night of sleep before picking a team to play for next season.

Parise said Tuesday that he hadn't made a decision and doesn't have a timetable for one soon after landing in his home state at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

Read the entire story.

CHICAGO -- Day 2 of NHL free agency brought plenty of rumors but little action -- at least when it comes to the big names who might be switching teams. The Blackhawks didn’t sign any of them but -- save for New Jersey, who re-signed goalie Martin Brodeur -- neither did anyone else. Which means there remains a chance for the Hawks to make a big acquisition before it’s all said and done.

New Jersey star and captain Zach Parise is the latest name to be linked with the Hawks, but as of Monday he decided to hold off on making a decision on where he will play for the foreseeable future.

"I'm getting closer but haven't made a decision. I haven't set any deadlines,” he said in Toronto on Monday afternoon.

So the waiting game continues for him and the other prize unrestricted free agent, Ryan Suter. Between the Predators defenseman, Brodeur and now Parise, the Hawks have seemingly been linked to all the big names.
So what’s going on with the team from West Madison Street? Give them credit, they aren’t letting a player slip by them that could help improve their team. At least not without trying.

Suter was the common name linked to the Hawks as free agency opened but the mutual interest faded quickly, either because of contractual concerns or some other unknown reason. At the same time that Suter was being wooed by teams, Brodeur quickly took center stage. Just days earlier the all-time leader in wins declared he would become a free agent after 19 years in New Jersey.

The Hawks aren’t looking to replace Corey Crawford with just anyone or at any cost, but Brodeur would have fit what they want: a short-term upgrade. If Tim Thomas had not decided to take a year off, a play for him would not have been a surprise. But gambling on Roberto Luongo isn’t just a small risk and trading for, say, Jonathan Bernier of Los Angeles, doesn’t guarantee an upgrade. No, Crawford moves to the background or is sent packing only if the Hawks know they are getting better and the price is right. But when the Hawks offered two years, according to a source, the Devils stepped up and Brodeur opted to return to New Jersey for his 20th season.

(Read full post)

Coveted unrestricted free agent Zach Parise has yet to make a decision on where he will sign.

"I'm getting closer but haven't made a decision. I haven't set any deadlines," the former New Jersey Devil told reporters during an impromptu news conference outside of his agent's Toronto offices Monday night.

Read the entire story.

CHICAGO -- The Chicago Blackhawks are believed to be one of two teams in play to sign free agent forward Zach Parise, according to a source, who said the forward may re-sign with the Devils.

Parise, 27, said later Monday that he has not made up his mind, and his agent said he narrowed his choices to a select few teams.

Goaltender Martin Brodeur also received interest from the Hawks before re-signing with the Devils on Monday.

Parise had 31 goals and 38 assists last season while leading the Devils to the Stanley Cup finals. He's a former 45-goal scorer who would instantly make the Hawks the most dangerous offensive team in the Western Conference. His leadership skills are also highly touted as the captain of the Devils in 2011-2012.

CHICAGO -- The Chicago Blackhawks decided to dress eight defensemen for their game against the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday.

After sending down two forwards to the minors on Tuesday, it was about their only option. The Hawks only have 20 players on their roster. John Scott and Jordan Hendry will start at forward with Fernando Pisani as their center, but it sounds as if coach Joel Quenneville may not give the natural defensemen a regular shift every time out.

“We can fit forwards and play them a little bit more in those roles, too,” Quenneville said. “It gives you a lot of options and flexibility as well. It gives you an extra D-man or two if you need them at the other end, too. I’ve been in lineups where you have more than eight on defense more than once. It can work.”

Scott has played some games at forward already while Hendry had a handful at that position last season.

“It’s a little different look for me, but I’m excited about it,” Hendry said. “It should be fun. I played forward growing up, too, so it’s not completely different to me.”

Bickell returns: After being a healthy scratch the past two games, Bryan Bickell is back in the lineup. Quenneville wants the big body to be hard to play against. Bickell says he got the message. Which was? “To be more focused,” Bickell said Wednesday. “I started off well, but my focus wasn’t there. That’s why he took me out of the lineup, to put a little fire underneath me. I need to be physical. I’m a big guy.”

No excuses: To the Hawks credit they haven’t complained about the run of injuries that have occurred in the first month of the season. Dave Bolland and Marian Hossa are on the shelf, but other teams have had it worse. New Jersey announced on Tuesday they would miss their captain, Zach Parise, for three months. The Hawks played Los Angeles without Drew Doughty and Minnesota was missing two of their top six forwards when Chicago was there on Saturday.

“Timing is important, too,” the recently healed Brian Campbell said. “If you have a lot of injuries it’s tough to win a Stanley Cup, but if you get them early you can get them out of the way.”

So does Campbell expect a demoralized Devils team?

“Actually, they’re dangerous, right now,” Campbell said. “But if we take care of what we do and play our style, we’ll win. We want to control the game.”