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Hossa hoping he�ll break out offensively soon
From chicagoblackhawks.com: (link)
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Save for the crucial overtime winner he scored in Game 5 of the first round against Nashville, Chicago winger Marian Hossa has been pretty quiet in the playoffs. He's scored only twice on his 42 shots on goal and was 0-for-6 Sunday in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final.
It hasn't really mattered, though. The Blackhawks are three wins away from reaching the Stanley Cup Final -- a round Hossa knows a lot about, having played and lost there with Pittsburgh in 2008 and Detroit in 2009.
Even though Hossa's lack of production hasn't killed the Hawks, it's bothering him. He touched on that as well as a few other topics with NHL.com and various other news outlets inside Chicago's dressing room at HP Pavilion on Monday.
Here is what Hossa had to say:
Q: Dustin Byfuglien has five goals in the last five games. How much does his production take some of the pressure off of you and the fact you have only two goals in these playoffs? And does it mean you don't always have to worry about scoring?
Hossa: Yeah, well, I worry about it a little bit. I want to score. That's always in my mind. I always want to do better than two goals. That's in my mind, for sure, but it's great to see Buff get the winning goal yesterday. That was huge. He won the game for us there. And, you know, it's just nice to see more guys scoring.
Q: Simple question, but why do you think you only have two goals?
Hossa: Why? Simple question, hard answer. If I had the answer I'd like to answer it. It's just different things, I guess. The one big thing is the finishing is not there where I'd like it to be. It's not going in for me.
Q: Is that something that just happens through the course of a season and playoffs where you'll have it for a couple of weeks and then lose it for a couple of weeks before getting it back?
Hossa: Yeah, I have been there and hopefully I can find it sooner than later. Obviously going to the net, getting chances, shots at the net, I just have to find a way to finish the shots better than I've done.
Q: Road teams have been great in the playoffs. Why does home ice not have the same juice as it used to have?
Hossa: It seems that way. I don't know why it is that way. Even our team, we feel more comfortable on the road because we've been winning more games on the road. But when we go home, we have to find a way to win at home, too. Why? I don't know why.
Q: Describe or explain the lift you guys are getting from Buff with his production offensively, because he obviously does it in front of the net and then yesterday he did it 30 feet away from the net, too.
Hossa: I mean, that's the thing, when you are on a roll you just keep rolling and Buff, his advantage is the physical play. He's so big and strong that he's dominating the game right now and we just feel right now anything he touches it's golden, so we might as well use it.
Q: Does he look like, if not now, maybe next year or the year after, one of the premiere power forwards in the NHL?
Hossa: Definitely. When you look at his size and how he's overpowering some players, it's unreal. It's his advantage and he's using it so he's going to be so effective.
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Save for the crucial overtime winner he scored in Game 5 of the first round against Nashville, Chicago winger Marian Hossa has been pretty quiet in the playoffs. He's scored only twice on his 42 shots on goal and was 0-for-6 Sunday in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final.
It hasn't really mattered, though. The Blackhawks are three wins away from reaching the Stanley Cup Final -- a round Hossa knows a lot about, having played and lost there with Pittsburgh in 2008 and Detroit in 2009.
Even though Hossa's lack of production hasn't killed the Hawks, it's bothering him. He touched on that as well as a few other topics with NHL.com and various other news outlets inside Chicago's dressing room at HP Pavilion on Monday.
Here is what Hossa had to say:
Q: Dustin Byfuglien has five goals in the last five games. How much does his production take some of the pressure off of you and the fact you have only two goals in these playoffs? And does it mean you don't always have to worry about scoring?
Hossa: Yeah, well, I worry about it a little bit. I want to score. That's always in my mind. I always want to do better than two goals. That's in my mind, for sure, but it's great to see Buff get the winning goal yesterday. That was huge. He won the game for us there. And, you know, it's just nice to see more guys scoring.
Q: Simple question, but why do you think you only have two goals?
Hossa: Why? Simple question, hard answer. If I had the answer I'd like to answer it. It's just different things, I guess. The one big thing is the finishing is not there where I'd like it to be. It's not going in for me.
Q: Is that something that just happens through the course of a season and playoffs where you'll have it for a couple of weeks and then lose it for a couple of weeks before getting it back?
Hossa: Yeah, I have been there and hopefully I can find it sooner than later. Obviously going to the net, getting chances, shots at the net, I just have to find a way to finish the shots better than I've done.
Q: Road teams have been great in the playoffs. Why does home ice not have the same juice as it used to have?
Hossa: It seems that way. I don't know why it is that way. Even our team, we feel more comfortable on the road because we've been winning more games on the road. But when we go home, we have to find a way to win at home, too. Why? I don't know why.
Q: Describe or explain the lift you guys are getting from Buff with his production offensively, because he obviously does it in front of the net and then yesterday he did it 30 feet away from the net, too.
Hossa: I mean, that's the thing, when you are on a roll you just keep rolling and Buff, his advantage is the physical play. He's so big and strong that he's dominating the game right now and we just feel right now anything he touches it's golden, so we might as well use it.
Q: Does he look like, if not now, maybe next year or the year after, one of the premiere power forwards in the NHL?
Hossa: Definitely. When you look at his size and how he's overpowering some players, it's unreal. It's his advantage and he's using it so he's going to be so effective.
