The pads of Chicago Blackhawks goaltenders have been roughed up to start the season.
Through nine games, the Hawks have allowed 275 shots on goal, ninth-most in the NHL. That’s an average of 30.6 shots against per game, fourth-most in the NHL.
Exiting their zone has been tough all season, and their opponents have had no problem taking advantage of Hawks mistakes. The Hawks have spent 42.8% of the season in the defensive zone, the fifth-most in the NHL. Spencer Knight has seen the consequences of this, facing 223 shots against in seven starts.
As a result, the 25-year-old’s numbers have taken a hit. He’s 3-4-0 with a 3.59 goals-against-average and an .888 save percentage. Entering the season, he had a career 2.83 GAA and .903 save percentage.
Knight is still enjoying himself, though.
“We’ve had a lot of good challenges developing our identity and our system,” Knight said. “It’s been fun, we’ve been home for a while and had a little bit of time off. Looking forward to what’s next.”
The struggles of the Hawks (3-6-0) come with growing and building their style of play. It raises the question: What type of team do they want to be?
“We’re establishing it,” Knight said. “We want to play with the puck and play fast through the neutral zone. We have a lot of really talented players when there are pucks on their stick. It’s pretty fun to watch.”
While the Hawks have been trying to establish themselves, Knight has had to play savior. He’s on pace for 1,848 saves, which would be his single-season — by a lot.
What goes through his head when he sees so many shots come his way? “Nothing”, as he pointed out after the Hawks’ 4-2 win against the St. Louis Blues.
“You kind of just focus,” Knight said. “When you get to that point, you let yourself react and do what you need to do and what your body thinks it needs to do. It’s hard to describe, really, but I think that’s basically what I try to do: Just go out and play.”
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Coach Jeff Blashill, who recently ran practice drills addressing puck handling and zone exits, commented on his starting goaltender’s season.
“We haven’t played good enough ‘D’ in front of him to really judge yet,” Blashill said Thursday. “Your goalies can only be as good as your group in front of you and then you have a chance to make those big saves and big moments. He’s definitely (done that). Been happy with Spencer overall.”
Blashill’s a former goaltender, having played for the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers and Ferris State University from 1991-98, so he can relate some to Knight’s current situation. The Hawks need to create scoring chances while lifting some weight off Knight’s shoulders.
But as a goaltender, is there excitement in the chance to make 30- or 40-plus saves? Sure, it’s a bad look for a team’s defense when an opponent can shoot freely on goal, but do goalies see high volume positively or negatively?
“The mindset I try to have is just focus on what I can,” Knight said. “Not really worrying about all the external factors of what’s going on, say, the score, the game, and just focus on what I need to do. That allows me just to have enjoyment in whatever comes my way.”
Added Blashill: “(The) best nights a goalie can have, the ones you want, is seeing lots of shots and all of them low-quality, not seeing high-danger chances and seeing a bunch of shots on the outside. You get a rhythm, you feel good about it, your save percentage keeps ticking up — all those things matter. When you get yourself in trouble is when you give up a lot of quality chances.”
Blashill also noted that the team needs to focus on getting rid of opponents’ quality chances. Entering Friday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens, Knight has made 66 high-danger saves, allowed 12 high-danger goals and has an .846 save percentage in the category, slightly above the .812 league average.
Knight has had a harder time stopping midrange shots, making 49 saves and allowing 11 goals with a .817 save percentage, lower than the .881 NHL average.
Those numbers should improve when the Hawks figure out their defense. Until then, Knight will remain as cool and collected as he usually is.
“Things are always changing, always evolving, and I guess my mindset is that I always try to find ways to evolve,” he said. “Never be stuck in your own ways, allowing yourself to try new things, be open to trying new things, and just knowing that it’s a never-ending process of learning.”