HAWKS DEALING WITH TOUGH SCHEDULE TO START THE YEAR 

"Did someone from our club sleep with the schedule maker's wife? Seriously though, what is that guy's problem with us?" asked Blackhawks head coach Jim Schoenfeld. "Our players are battling hard every night but it's not easy to get into a rhythm right now. Not when every game is against a playoff team."

Schoenfeld was referring to his team's early season schedule following another close loss, this time to Boston. Chicago put up a good fight but fell just short for the second night in a row. The Bruins jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the 1st period thanks mainly to Scott Young scoring two of his game-high three goals. Ziggy Palffy and Theoren Fleury also scored for the Bs. Answering back for Chicago were Rich Pilon, Alain Cote, Bill Guerin and Troy Loney. Brian Hayward did enough to win by stopping 10 of 14 shots while Arturs Irbe was the tough luck loser stopping 32 of 37.

It has been an extremely tough first week for Chicago. They've played Detroit three times along with Columbus, Vancouver, Los Angeles, Tampa Bay and Boston. The Hawks record is currently 1-7 and could easily get to 1-10 based on the next 3 opponents on the schedule. It starts to get easier around game 14 after their first meeting with Colorado.

For now, Schoenfeld is doing whatever he can to help his team weather the storm. The players have been provided with food and entertainment along with lots of free time on non-game days. They've also been encouraging the younger Blackhawks to pair up with a veteran to help keep them focused on the fundamentals and learn the ropes. Every team goes through rough patches but this was unavoidable.

Chicago's difficult start continues with a trip to New Jersey. The Devils have been one of the top teams in the Wales early on.

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