More aggressive Trevor van Riemsdyk chipping in offensively

In the split second before a defenseman decides whether to pinch in the offensive zone or hang back and play it safe, a lot goes through his mind: the score and time of the game, which team has the numbers advantage, which direction the puck is heading, if the opponent is moving forward or backward, who has the puck and what he tends to do with it.

It’s a lot to process. But for Trevor van Riemsdyk, now in his third season, the process is speeding up and the game is slowing down.

Perhaps not coincidentally, he has two goals and two assists in his last nine games, after posting just two assists in his previous 19 games.

“I’m not really focused on trying to get points or anything like that — it’s just focusing on being in that second layer on the rush and being active,” van Riemsdyk said. “It makes it a lot tougher for teams to defend us when we’re jumping into the play.”

With Niklas Hjalmarsson currently out with an upper-body injury, van Riemsdyk was bumped from the third pairing with Brian Campbell (“Soup Dogg,” as van Riemsdyk called him) to the top pairing with Duncan Keith. Both are offensive-minded partners, so van Riemsdyk’s game doesn’t change much either way.

“He and I have been really trying to push that pace and get up in the play and help out,” Campbell said. “We talk about it a lot. We’re trying to play an all-around game, but we’re trying to support and help out.

“I feel like our game goes to another level when we’re getting in the play. He’s done a great job, scored a couple of big goals over the last few weeks.”

After playing all 82 games last season, van Riemsdyk stumbled out of the gate this year and then missed 20 games with a shoulder injury. He finally started hitting his stride in January and has been averaging nearly 19 minutes per game since.

“Coming out of that injury, he’s been steadily improving,” coach Joel Quenneville said. “His instincts defensively are strong, and he anticipates well, but his patience and play recognition are high-end. We’ve been encouraging him to get involved in the attack.”

Sick day

Goaltender Lars Johansson played Saturday night in San Diego with the Rockford IceHogs. On Sunday, he made a mad scramble back to Chicago to back up Scott Darling against the St.  Louis Blues after Blackhawks starter Corey Crawford fell ill.

Johansson was Darling’s backup for nine games after Crawford’s appendectomy Dec. 3.

Jordin Tootoo also was sick, missing Saturday’s practice and Sunday’s morning skate, as well as the game. Despite the Vancouver Canucks’ handful of mumps cases conjuring up bad memories of the 2014-15 leaguewide outbreak, coach Joel Quenneville said it wasn’t a concern in the Hawks’ dressing room. At least, not yet.

“I don’t think it is [the mumps], no,” he said. “I haven’t heard the word ‘mumps’ around here.”

High praise for Schmaltz

Jonathan Toews equated Nick Schmaltz’s play-making ability — particularly the way he never has to look down at the puck while dangling through traffic — to that of Patrick Kane. Schmaltz has three goals and seven assists in his last eight games.

“I think he thinks it’s college hockey out there again or something,” Toews said. “He’s really confident. He’s just creating that time and space for himself and [using] deception. . . . In some ways, he’s like Kaner, and he just has that look where he can keep his feet moving with his head up and guys don’t know what he’s doing. So he’s a threat to shoot. When you create options for yourself, defenders need to make a decision, and eventually you’re going to be dangerous. He’s feeling that right now. He’s not thinking a whole lot — he’s just going out there and playing.”

New-look Blues

Sunday was the first time the Hawks saw the Blues since Ken Hitchcock was fired and former Minnesota Wild coach Mike Yeo took over. The Blues won seven of their first eight games under Yeo before dropping three straight with the Hawks’ 4-2 win Sunday.

While it might be strange to look over and not see Hitchcock, the Hawks have bigger concerns.

“Hitch did a great job there, and they’ve done extremely well here recently,” Quenneville said. “It’s always a good test. Whenever you’re coaching, you’re more worried about your team and how the matchups go on the ice. You’re not too worried about the other coach during the course of a game.”