Vinnie Hinostroza calls extended benching ‘a learning experience’

Vinnie Hinostroza has NHL speed, without any question. It’s what he does with that speed that matters. And through his first four games, he wasn’t doing much with it.

“I was just chipping it away and trying to chase it,” Hinostroza said. “I was doing a lot of chasing. The Hawks, we play a big control game. We like to have the puck a lot. I think that fits into my game, but I was kind of fighting it early on.”

Through those first four games, Hinostroza managed just one shot on goal and was largely a non-factor. That earned him a four-game benching, one that Joel Quenneville admitted Tuesday morning was “probably a little too long.” But Hinostroza made the best of being scratched, watching the games from above and putting in extra work after practices and morning skates.

And when he returned to the lineup Sunday night against Los Angeles as a fourth-liner, he looked noticeably better, more aggressive, and more patient with the puck.

“Four games is a long time,” Hinostroza said. “But it was a learning experience. I was watching all our players during the games and I was working with the coaches after practice on things I needed to work on.”

The American Hockey League, where Hinostroza spent last season, is a chip-and-chase league, due largely to the drop-off in talent after the top couple of lines on each team. But in the NHL, particularly for a puck-possession team such as the Hawks, chip-and-chase needs to be a last resort, not a first choice. Hinostroza, who is still seeking his first NHL point, believes he’s already put that style behind him.

“It’s not hard; that’s how I’ve played my whole life,” Hinostroza said of carrying the puck through the neutral zone and into the offensive zone. “It’s just a little bit faster. All these guys have been in the league for so long, so they know what plays are going to work and what plays aren’t going to work. So I think for us [rookies] it’s just a learning experience. And sitting out those games and watching and working after practice, it helped me realize what’s going to work and what I have time to do.”

Forsling in

Gustav Forsling returned to the lineup after missing two games with an upper-body injury suffered when Calgary’s Lance Bouma hit him face-first into the glass last week.

“You always want to play every day and go full,” Forsling said. “But I think this has been good for me. I’ve been thinking a lot how it went earlier, and re-evaluating myself. Of course, it’s been tough, but I see the good in it.”

With Forsling back in, Michal Kempny — not Michal Rozsival — was scratched. That’s partly because Forsling and Kempny both play the left side. But it’s also because Quenneville has been pleased with Rozsival’s play in the last three games, his first games of the season.

“His minutes or his games played will probably be down a little bit this year, but I still like the way he’s come in and played,” Quennevile said. “That’s why we’re keeping him in the lineup right now. He’s coming off real solid games, and he’s got a little bite to his game, as well.”

Desjardins close

Quenneville said that Andrew Desjardins, who suffered an apparent foot injury in the preseason finale, could return for Sunday’s home game against Dallas.

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