In the offensive zone, the Blackhawks generally are satisfied with the performance of their power play. Entering the zone, however, has been a struggle.
That became obvious Sunday against the ultra-structured Kings, who clogged up the blue line and gave the Hawks no space to penetrate. Even with a six-on-four advantage during the final minutes, the Hawks couldn’t find a way to get set up.
The Hawks’ 0-for-5 showing on the power play Sunday and 1-for-13 performance in their last three games has dropped them to 26th in the NHL with a 15.6% conversion rate.
That was a focus during practice Monday.
‘‘The power play has to be better,’’ head coach Jeff Blashill said. ‘‘That’s the quick answer. It has to be better in the sense, too, that it gives us momentum, so it doesn’t cause frustration. That’s how your offensive players get confidence; that’s how your team builds off it. So we’ll keep working with it.’’
Blashill cautioned against reading too much into the stats, considering nine games isn’t a big sample size. With that said, the Hawks rank 31st in shots on goal and 30th in scoring chances per minute during five-on-four time, which isn’t good.
They ranked 30th and 29th, respectively, in those categories last season but somehow finished seventh in the league with a 24.9% power-play conversion rate. That suggests they might’ve done something well the stats didn’t measure, such as shoot accurately through traffic when they did fire. But that unidentified ingredient hasn’t appeared yet this season.
The Hawks tested Andre Burakovsky on the right flank of the top unit Monday. It seems likely he’ll get an opportunity there Tuesday against the Senators, even though Blashill wouldn’t commit to it.
Burakovsky’s ability to carry the puck with poise and speed should help. After all, he’s a master at that during five-on-five play and has been the most effective guy on the second power-play unit.
Teuvo Teravainen was bumped down to the second unit. Teravainen’s vision and passing skill are assets, but he’s not particularly fast and has been too reluctant to shoot.
‘‘I think Burakovsky has been very good on the power play,’’ Blashill said. ‘‘This would not be a knock on Teuvo at all. I could point to [all] five guys on that unit and say different guys have had different reasons for its lack of success. But maybe it sparks us if we decide to go with it.’’
Three players remain staples on the top unit — Connor Bedard (left flank), Frank Nazar (bumper) and Sam Rinzel (quarterback) — but Nick Foligno is filling in as the net-front guy with Tyler Bertuzzi nursing a minor injury.
In terms of zone entries, Burakovsky mentioned ‘‘some guys were not where they were supposed to be’’ at certain moments against the Kings, which needed addressing Monday.
The Hawks’ standard power-play breakout involves Rinzel carrying the puck out from behind their net, then drop-passing it in the neutral zone to one of the forwards. Many fans dislike that strategy, but it’s a common approach leaguewide for a reason.
If the penalty kill sends a forechecker and Rinzel can beat him with an early pass up, however, the Hawks want him to do so because that gives them a temporary four-on-three advantage. That’s one thing they need to get on the same page about.
Exactly how to break into the offensive zone is another. There are several options: carefully maneuver over the blue line with possession, as Bedard likes to do; softly chip the puck down the wall for a winger, such as Nazar, to pursue; or fully dump the puck in and try to outnumber the penalty kill in the corner below the goal line to regain possession.
‘‘It’s [about] recognition,’’ Burakovsky said.
