If the Hawks can match their first-half production in the second half of the season, they will have 94 points. That would be the most the team has compiled since coach Orval Tessier`s Hawks racked up 104 in 1982-83.
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If they can reach 100 points, it`d be the fifth time in the organization`s history. The Hawks first reached 100 in the 1970-71 season, when the schedule increased to 78 games.
Anything more than 87 points would be the second-best record the Hawks have had in the last 15 years. The last consistently good stretch the team experienced was under Billy Reay, from 1969-70 through 1973-74. The club went over 100 points three times in this span and its lowest output was 93 points.
– What does it mean to Steve Larmer that he has played in 600 consecutive games, the fifth-longest longevity streak in National Hockey League history.
”It doesn`t mean a lot,” the self-effacing winger said.
– If the Hawks are headed for a Stanley Cup semifinal rematch with the defending champion Calgary Flames, who won last year`s trip into the championship round with a 4-1 series decision over Chicago, coach Mike Keenan would like to see his team get home ice advantage in the semifinal. That means they`d have to post more points in the regular season than the Smythe Division winner, be it Calgary or whomever.
”I think if we`d have had home ice advantage against Calgary last year, we might have went another step and made the hurdle into the finals,” Keenan said boldly.
Keenan also made noted that there are competitive races in all four divisions. ”Mr. (NHL President John) Ziegler has to be happy with that,” he said. ”The edge between teams in the league is so small now that it`s made it extremely competitive. The next four to six weeks will be an important period for everybody.”
– Denis Savard said that if he were being honest, ”maybe I`d have to say we can use one more tough guy. But at the same time, I think we`ve got the right personnel now. We`re team tough. We`ve shown already we`re a team that`s sticking together when other teams try to intimidate us, and sometimes that means more than individual toughness.”
– Bob Bassen probably will be recalled from the minors this week unless Greg Gilbert can make a quick recovery from his tonsilitis.
– Keenan admits that he can`t replace Doug Wilson while the defenseman is out with strained knee ligaments. But he said no organization has the depth to do that. ”Can Los Angeles replace a Larry Robinson or Montreal a Chris Chelios?” he asked. ”Wilson`s one of the league`s elite players and we`re playing at less of an advantage without him.”