Blackhawks Breakaway

The Blackhawks losing streak extended to eight games with an overtime loss in Carolina, but there were some signs of improvement with the team. Pat Boyle and Steve Konroyd discuss Jeremy Colliton going to the “nuclear option” pairing Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane on the same line and it seemed to work, but how did the other lines fare? Plus – how close are we to seeing some calls made to Rockford and how important are the next two “winnable” games? On the latest Hawks Talk Podcast, Pat Boyle and Steve Konroyd break down... 00:45 - Mindset of the team after their 8th straight loss 02:00 - Opposition getting quality chances against hawks goalies 4:00 - Toews and Kane playing on the same line 5:00 - Nick Schmaltz needs to take more shots 5:45 - Colliton's lines during overtime 8:00 - DeBrincat playing on a line with Kampf and Kahun 9:45 - Debrincat with more goals than Kane or Roenick through 100 career games 12:10 - How close are the Blackhawks to making some callups from Rockford to give the team a boost? 14:00 - Hawks get a chance against 2 other struggling teams in Blues and Knights

Pat Boyle sits down for a 1-on-1 with new Blackhawks Head Coach Jeremy Colliton and they discuss Colliton’s journey to become head coach of the Hawks, how he plans to attack his new job, plus memories of the only NHL game he played at the United Center. 0:45 – A whirlwind of a week for Colliton 1:26 – His biggest challenge taking over the Blackhawks 1:55 – How his style is different from Joel Quenneville’s 3:08 – His memories of playing at the United Center 4:07 – On playing with Brent Seabrook as kids 4:50 – Dealing with concussions as a player 6:00 – When he knew he wanted to coach 6:55 – How he went from Sweden to Rockford 8:15 – What he learned in his deep run with the IceHogs 9:00 – How he attacks the power play 10:10 – On how he uses analytics 11:30 – When will Forsling, Sikura and Ejdsell

On the latest Hawks Talk Podcast it’s all about the firing of Joel Quenneville and the hiring of Jeremy Colliton as the 38th head coach of the Chicago Blackhawks. Pat Boyle and Charlie Roumeliotis discuss why the move was made now? Blackhawks management believes they have a playoff roster right now and other takeaways from the press conference. Who is Colliton and where could Q end up coaching next? :30 - Why did Q get fired? 4:10 - Timing of the firing 9:15 - Young players and Q 12:30 - Blackhawks brass believes they have a playoff roster 15:50 - Colliton, who is he? 20:00 - What’s next for the Blackhawks under Colliton? 21:20 - Q ends up coaching in...?

On the latest Hawks Talk Podcast Adam Burish joins Pat Boyle to discuss the Hawks recent 0-4-1 stretch of games and answer fans' #AskAdam questions. Burish talks about the Hawks struggles closing games, whether they should call up someone from Rockford and should DeBrincat join Kane’s line? :45 - Takeaway from 5-game losing skid and winless Western Canada road trip 1:35 - How did the Hawks blow a 3-1 lead in Calgary? 2:20 - Trouble closing games 4:00 - Time to call Rockford? 5:15 - Should Cat join Kane? 7:00 - What’s up with Schmaltz? 8:55 - Bottom 6 talk 10:40 - Improving defense 12:30 - Power play solutions 18:00 - Favorite person you fought? 21:15 - 2nd fiddle to Sharp?

On the latest Hawks Talk Podcast, Patrick Sharp sits down with Pat Boyle to discuss his new role as NBC Sports Chicago studio analyst. Sharp talks about the return of Corey Crawford and how his presence has a calming effect on the team. He also weighs in on the work Patrick Kane puts into his game and how 88’s style has impacted the young generation of NHL players. Sharpy has some suggestions to improve the Blackhawks' struggling power play and is he ready to deal with Adam Burish and Jamal Mayers on the NBC Sports Chicago set? 0:45 – Sharp on his Blackhawks playing back-to-backs 2:12 – Patrick Kane’s never-ending quest to get better 5:25 – When did Sharp know when to retire? 6:30 – How Patrick Kane changed the NHL 7:55 – Sharp on how Chicago has embraced the Blackhawks 9:35 – On Corey Crawford’s return 10:05 – Alex DeBrincat taking the next step 11:40 – The bounce-back of Jonathan Toews 13:10 – Sharp joins the media “dark-side” 14:04 – Sharp and Boyle break down the Blackhawks power play

On the latest Hawks Talk Podcast, Pat Boyle, Adam Burish and Steve Konroyd discuss the Blackhawks' recent nine-day stretch where they went 3-2-1. What worked and what didn't during it? The guys also talk about Patrick Kane's hot start, play a game called "Noticeable or Inconsistent?" with the Blackhawks lineup, and try to figure out what is wrong with the power play. 1:15 — Are you happy going 3-2-1 over the 6 games in 9 days stretch? 3:00 — Patrick Kane is putting up spectacular numbers despite not getting much help 6:05 — Should Nick Schmaltz move back to the same line as Kane? 9:15 — The guys play the game "Noticeable or Inconsistent?" with the Blackhawks lineup 17:50 — What is wrong with the power play? 22:50 — Should Brent Seabrook be taken off the power play? 24:50 — Should Stan Bowman be looking to add a top 4 defenseman or a forward?

On the latest Hawks Talk Podcast, Pat Boyle and Charlie Roumeliotis discuss Corey Crawford’s immediate impact on a Blackhawks team that has been struggling defensively. They chronicle the wild week that Brandon Saad experienced, from being a possible healthy scratch, to joining Patrick Kane’s line and having his first multi-goal game in more than a year. The guys break down Erik Gustafsson’s shot-pass effect on the offense and the Art Of Patrick Kane’s one-timer. The boys also join in with the rest of Alex DeBrincat’s teammates for a chuckle after Feisty Cat faced off with Josh Manson. Lastly, they give a shout out to the Blackhawks fans who listen to the podcast from all over the world. 0:50 - Corey Crawford’s immediate impact in return to lineup 2:40 - On overall team game improving from Tampa Bay game to Anaheim 3:55 - Brandon Saad breaks out 5:11 - Thoughts on separating Patrick Kane and Nick Schmaltz 6:52 - Jonathan Toews continues to look like his old self 9:06 - Alex DeBrincat gets scrappy 10:51 - DeBrincat, Toews, Kane and Joel Quenneville on Feisty Cat 15:45 - The effect of Erik Gustafsson’s slap-pass on offense 20:18 - Why Kane adjusted the flex on his stick 24:11 - The crowded race in the Central Division 25:42 - Hawks Talk country roll call

In the latest Hawks Talk Podcast, Pat Boyle, Jamal Mayers and Charlie Roumeliotis recap Corey Crawford’s season debut after missing nearly 10 months with a concussion. Mayers talks about the Kitty system that Niklas Hjalmarsson and Vinnie Hinostroza probably dealt with in their returns to Chicago. The guys also discuss what’s next for Crawford, the upcoming matchup against Artemi Panarin and the Columbus Blue Jackets, and the Blackhawks’ biggest areas for improvement.

In the latest Hawks Talk Podcast, Pat Boyle, Charlie Roumeliotis and Slavko Bekovic provide their thoughts on the Blackhawks’ 3-0-2 start. They also discuss Brandon Saad’s demotion and whether it could serve as a wake-up call, Corey Crawford’s potential return on Thursday vs. Arizona and what could happen with Anton Forsberg because of it, and address the power play concerns. The guys wrap up the podcast by making a few bold predictions going forward.

On the latest Hawks Talk Podcast, Pat Boyle goes 1-on-1 with Duncan Keith ahead of his 1,000th NHL game with the Blackhawks and what it means to him. Keith tries to pick out one game that sticks out to him most, opens up about losing seven teeth during the 2010 Stanley Cup run and how it still affects him to this day, and which player he had the most heated battles against. Coach Joel Quenneville and teammate Brent Seabrook also weigh in on Keith's milestone and what his most memorable moment has been as a player.