Blackhawks struggling to adapt to crackdown on faceoffs, slashes

By Mark Lazerus

Joel Quenneville has been frustrated with the lack of explanation when players are thrown out of faceoffs. (AP Photo)

MONTREAL — Brent Seabrook just sort of stood there at the dot, leaned over, went through the motions and allowed Toronto’s Nazem Kadri to take the puck from him. It was overtime, the faceoff was in the Blackhawks’ zone, and Seabrook didn’t want to risk getting a minor penalty for a second violation during the same draw. And frankly, Seabrook had no business being there in the first place.

But thanks to the NHL’s new focus on faceoff violations, there he was instead of Jonathan Toews, who had been tossed from the draw yet again. In all, 11 Hawks and 10 Leafs took faceoffs, as center after center got thrown out for perceived cheating at the dot. Players must keep their skates behind the red lines on the ice and must keep their shoulders square.

“Tonight was an epidemic, for sure,” Joel Quenneville said after the Toronto game. “I think Jonny got tossed about nine times. It was one of those nights.”

With Toews repeatedly booted, Brandon Saad took eight draws — he lost all of them. Defenseman Gustav Forsling took one late in the second period after Tanner Kero was tossed.

What frustrated Quenneville the most was the lack of explanation or clarification from the officials.

“Right now, they don’t tell you why,” he said. “So that’s the part that we can look at. It’s tough on that centerman certainly, the frustration of Jonny and Kadri — they couldn’t quite understand the reason why. I think that’s a work in progress as far as why you’re getting tossed without an answer.”

Faceoffs aren’t the only focus for officials in the early going. There were eight slashing penalties in Monday’s game — four for the Hawks, four for the Leafs. Most of them weren’t vicious ones, either. Toronto’s Eric Fehr was whistled for a love-tap on Alex DeBrincat’s shin pad, and Jake Gardiner was sent off for a tap on Artem Anisimov’s leg.

“We were watching the video and sometimes there’s a whack and the referee didn’t call it, and then sometimes there’s a not-that-hard whack and he calls it,” Richard Panik said. “You’ve just got to expect that they’re going to call it no matter what. So you just have to keep your feet moving and get to the guy, not just try to reach from behind him. Skate and back-check hard, don’t just reach.”

The crackdown is designed to prevent injuries to’ hands and wrists, so those ticky-tack slashes — often desperate flails as a faster player blows by — are going to be called. Players simply have to adapt.

“When you’re out of position, sometimes you try and get a stick on their stick, try to knock the puck off,” Toews said. “Make any contact with their hands or their pants, they’re going to call it. So it’s something we have to be careful with going forward.”

As for whether it’s a good change or a bad change in the officiating, Toews smiled.

“It’s good when it works in your favor, and not the other way around,” he said. “As long as it’s even both ways, I can’t complain. Just something you have to keep in mind.”

Murphy out

Connor Murphy, who is making $3.85 million and for whom the Hawks traded Niklas Hjalmarsson, was a healthy scratch in the fourth game of the season. Murphy took part in warmups but was not involved in line rushes and was replaced in the lineup by veteran Cody Franson, who made his Hawks debut alongside Michal Kempny. Jan Rutta’s emergence — two goals and two assists through the first three games — has made for a suddenly crowded blue line.

Follow me on Twitter @MarkLazerus.

Email: mlazerus@suntimes.com