NEW YORK — In 130 games with the Rockford IceHogs over the last two seasons, Ryan Hartman racked up 249 penalty minutes, averaging nearly a minor penalty every single game.
In 26 games with the Blackhawks this season, he has spent just four minutes in the penalty box. How is that even possible?
Easy. Hartman wants to play — especially now that he’s skating with two superstars in Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa. And Hartman knows the leash isn’t nearly as long in the NHL as it is in the AHL.
“It’s a mindset,” Hartman said after Thursday’s morning skate in Brooklyn. “It’s knowing that if you want to be in the lineup, you can’t take penalties.”
Hartman hasn’t changed his game much. He’s still the pest he’s always been, and he entered Thursday’s game drawing 1.73 minors per 60 minutes, behind only Andrew Desjardins on the Hawks. Joel Quenneville said the key has been Hartman’s ability to be smart with his stick, and to stay out of the post-whistle scrums — or, at least, to not deliver the extra punch or shove that’s going to get him sent to the box.
A perfect example came in the first period against the Islanders. Hartman and Casey Cizikas collided in the neutral zone, and both popped up bracing for a fight. But Hartman hung back, allowing Cizikas to engage him first. Cizikas got a roughing minor, Hartman didn’t, and the Hawks scored on the ensuing power play.
“I haven’t toned it down,” Hartman said. “The last two years were kind of a process of finding the line and learning not to go over it. You’ve got to stay as close to the line as you can. I think this year I’ve been able to balance it pretty easily.”
Crawford skates
Corey Crawford, who will miss his seventh straight game Thursday night since undergoing an appendectomy, skated for the first time Wednesday. He didn’t take any shots.
“He had some movement,” Quenneville said. “I think it was all good.”
Ladd struggling
Former Hawks winger Andrew Ladd signed a seven-year, $38.5-million contract with the Islanders over the summer, with the expectation that he’d be the left wing for John Tavares. It’s been something of a disaster, as Ladd has just three goals and three assists and has spent much of the season on the fourth line.
“You try to deal with it as it comes and get up every day to get better and try to figure it out,” Ladd said Thursday morning. “I guess it’s as frustrating as you allow it to be, and you try not to let that consume you.”
Tavares said that in Ladd’s case, “positive reinforcement from your peers is crucial.”
“He’s had a great attitude and work ethic,” Tavares said. “You try not to make it all about him, I don’t think that’s ever been the type of guy that he is. But you just try to focus on how he can help the team. But at the same time, he’s a proud guy and wants to go out there and play the best he can play and produce and be counted on as the big reason why we signed him. I don’t think you try and talk about it every day, but conversations come up over the course of the season, whether it’s from me or from him or from some of the other guys, just to talk and get things off your chest.”
Roster report
Michal Kempny returned to the lineup after being a healthy scratch for four straight games. Gustav Forsling and Michal Rozsival are the scratches.
“He works hard every day, gives us that commitment to playing with some pace and purpose,” Quenneville said of Kempny. “We want to make sure, defensively, he’s getting more consistent as we go along. He moves the puck quick and well. That’s what we’re looking for.”
Tyler Motte is a healthy scratch for the first time.
Email: mlazerus@suntimes.com
Twitter: @marklazerus
