Pat Maroon mentioned one thing Monday concerning the Blackhawks that no person can dispute however that solely uncommon breeds like him are prepared to talk aloud.
“The NHL wants us within the playoffs,” Maroon mentioned. “It’s higher for us, higher for the group, higher for the followers, higher for the NHL.”
That’s certainly one of many the explanation why the gruff 36-year-old ahead, regardless of being on a one-year contract in his eighth totally different group, has been so annoyed by the Hawks’ dire lack of success this season.
“I’ve missed the playoffs one time in my profession,” he mentioned. “It’s not one thing I’m used to, dropping this a lot and making an attempt to determine options to unravel the issues which can be going flawed on this group. It’s actually robust. Definitely if you’re driving your automotive dwelling after video games, you’re extra pissed off than you might be completely satisfied most nights.”
Few individuals fairly anticipated the Hawks to be playoff contenders this season, however issues weren’t presupposed to be this bleak once more, it doesn’t matter what.
After one other rock-bottom second Monday in a 5-2 loss to the Flames, the Hawks stay final within the league standings and on tempo to complete the season with 56 factors — simply 4 factors higher than final season and three factors worse than in 2022-23, after they had been designed to tank for Connor Bedard.
The demoralizing scenario is forcing the Hawks’ latest gamers — who had been introduced in final summer time to theoretically assist the group step ahead this season — to grapple with a actuality they’ve by no means needed to endure earlier than and/or re-frame their expectations decrease than they’ve ever been earlier than.
That’s one thing ahead Teuvo Teravainen, who had made the playoffs every of the final six seasons with the Hurricanes and received a Stanley Cup his one earlier full season in Chicago, has struggled to do.
“I’ve by no means been in this type of scenario the place, after [the] new 12 months, we’re final within the league,” Teravainen mentioned final week. “Mentally, it has been robust. Profitable is a lot enjoyable. Once you lose quite a lot of occasions, after video games I find yourself pondering, ‘What might I do higher?’”
That re-framing course of has additionally been troublesome for defenseman Alec Martinez, who had received three Cups and made 131 playoff appearances with the Kings and Golden Knights earlier than becoming a member of the Hawks in July.
“It’s positively an adjustment,” Martinez mentioned Tuesday. “It’s irritating dropping. I don’t assume there’s a man in right here that enjoys it. We’re all rivals; all of us wish to win. Actually, honestly, it has been robust. You need to sort of change your mindset.”
Martinez talked about how human intuition, when issues go poorly, is to “attempt to repair all the things, all on the similar time.” He’s making an attempt to change his strategy to as a substitute deal with small targets, like serving to others — and himself — one space and one particular person at a time.
Longtime Hawks insist they haven’t and can by no means let themselves settle for dropping, however they’ve nonetheless had years to learn to go about their enterprise and every day lives amid such frequent failure and disappointment.
For guys like Maroon, Teravainen and Martinez, nevertheless, this appears like Mars. The fixed dropping is so international to them, and it causes unanswerable inquiries to rattle by their brains.
How is it potential for the group to be this dangerous? Why can they seemingly not repair something? How come they’re individually struggling, too? The reckoning is each humbling and aggravating.
“We had been introduced in right here for a motive, and [if] we wish to win hockey video games, we have now to prepared the ground and assist mentor…whereas nonetheless taking part in our recreation,” Martinez mentioned. “It has been an adjustment, but it surely’s actually a problem we’re all prepared to just accept.”
Mentioned Maroon: “After we play the suitable means, we see outcomes from it. I simply don’t perceive why we all the time fall again on that lure once more.”
