Blackhawks' depth being tested in playoffs

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Thursday, April 14, 2011Posted: 8:25 PM

By Tracey Myers
CSNChicago.com

VANCOUVER, British ColumbiaDepth. The Chicago Blackhawks used to have plenty of it. This year, what little theyve got has been tested time after time.

And now its getting tested again.

With Game 2 coming tomorrow against the Vancouver Canucks, the Blackhawks could be down another forward. Tomas Kopecky suffered an undisclosed injury in the first period on Wednesday night and is doubtful to play tomorrow. Dave Bolland is out with his concussion.

I think as weve gone along you always get tested. You take some looks at other guys. Thats what its all about, coach Joel Quenneville said. Its someone stepping up and taking advantage of it to help the team in a positive way.

No, injuries are nothing new to any hockey team. The Blackhawks have gotten through theirs well at timesdespite missing Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa for most of December, Chicago was able to play above .500 hockey. But finding players to step up in key roles throughout hasnt always been easy.

Contrast their situation with that of the Canucks, who enjoyed the depth this season that the Blackhawks used to have. Vancouver had quite a few injuries among their defense corps this season. But they tapped into their farm system, which yielded strong results. Henrik Sedin called the transition seamless, as the Canucks just kept rolling through their injury issues.

Guys stepped up and played a lot of minutes. Now theyre in the press box, Sedin said. On a lot of other teams they would be playing.

This season, the Blackhawks have relied heavily on their top players to get them through injury woes. Thats fine for a while, but eventually they start to wear down. Now youve got the Vancouver Canucks recognizing that as they brought a big, physical presence in Game 1.

Over the course of a series, it wears them down, Vancouver defenseman Kevin Bieksa said. We have four lines and six D rolling over right now. We have fresh legs throwing bodies out there.

And the Blackhawks are taking more abuse than theyre giving. As Quenneville said, the Hawks physical game was below average; the scoresheet showed the Canucks outhitting them 47-21 in Game 1. A lot of those hits seemed to come early when the Canucks were determined to make their presence felt. Literally.

There are no excuses on that part, defenseman Brian Campbell said on possible depth issues. You roll the next person in and go. Nobodys going to feel sorry for us and thats not going to win us a playoff series. Good teams learn how to get past that to win.

True, but the responsibilities have to be spread throughout more. The Blackhawks, down Bolland for all of Game 1 and Kopecky through most of it, leaned heavily on their best players. Patrick Kane played nearly 24 minutes, Jonathan Toews logged more than 23 and a not-100-percent Patrick Sharp played nearly 21. The Blackhawks need more from others and they havent gotten it at a sustained rate like they did last season.

The Blackhawks did their best to patch lineups through depth problems this season. A tight salary cap limiting their Rockford call-ups didnt help.

Injuries happen to every team, every season. The Canucks depth kept their top players from getting worn out. The Hawks may not be as fortunate.

Tracey Myers is CSNChicago.com's Blackhawks Insider. Follow Tracey on Twitter @TramyersCSN for up-to-the-minute Hawks information.

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