2008–09 Chicago Blackhawks season

The 2008–09 Chicago Blackhawks season is the club's 82nd season in the National Hockey League (NHL). Prior to the start of the season, the Blackhawks announced that 20-year-old center Jonathan Toews would serve as the team's captain for the 2008-09 season, thus making him the 3rd-youngest player to earn that distinction in the NHL.
 Their regular season began on October 10, 2008, against the New York Rangers and will conclude on April 12, 2009 against the rival Detroit Red Wings. The Blackhawks played in the Winter Classic, an outdoor game, against the Red Wings at Wrigley Field on January 1, 2009. The team succeeded in making the 2008-09 playoffs with a 3-1 win over Nashville on April 3 after missing the 2007–08 playoffs by three points.
==Pre-season==
The Chicago Blackhawks had a busy offseason following the 2007–08 regular season. In late April, a few weeks after the season concluded, the Blackhawks announced that they were entering a three year partnership with WGN (720 AM); they previously aired games on WSCR (670 AM). This coincided with a previous announcement that the team would air up to twenty games on WGN's TV affiliate. The club also brought back announcer Pat Foley to do the play-by-play announcing for all television broadcasts.
The Blackhawks made a "huge splash" on the first day of free agency by signing defenseman Brian Campbell and goaltender Cristobal Huet. Campbell's $57.12 million contract was the largest in team history. Along with Campbell and Huet, the Blackhawks signed three other free agents, while losing three to other teams. Long-time Detroit Red Wings coach Scotty Bowman joined the organization in late July as Senior Advisor of Hockey Operations. The Hawks also added Rockford IceHogs head coach Mike Haviland as an assistant coach, and signed former Colorado Avalanche coach Joel Quenneville as a scout.
On July 16, 2008, the NHL announced that the Blackhawks would host the second outdoor NHL Winter Classic on January 1, 2009, at Wrigley Field against the rival Detroit Red Wings. The game will be the 701st meeting between the two clubs, and the Blackhawks will wear uniforms similar to those they wore during the 1936–37 season.
The team also announced that they intended to retire jersey number #3 in honor of defensemen Pierre Pilote and Keith Magnuson. Hockey Hall of Famer Pilote spent thirteen seasons with the Hawks, winning the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the NHL's best defenseman on three occasions. Magnuson accumulated over 1,400 penalty minutes in eleven years with the team. Magnuson was the president of the Blackhawks Alumni Association before he died in an automobile accident in 2003.
2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)	2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)	2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)	2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)	2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)	2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)	2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)	2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)	2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)	2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)	2008 Pre-season Game Log: 5–1–2 (Home: 3–0–1 ; Road: 2–1–1)
# 	Date 	Opponent 	Score 	OT 	Decision 	Arena 	Attendance 	Record 	Recap 	
1 	September 23 	Columbus Blue Jackets 	4–3 	 	Crawford 	United Center 	18,752 	1–0–0 	 	
2 	September 26 	Minnesota Wild 	4–3 	 	Huet 	United Center 	18,034 	2–0–0 	 	
3 	September 28 	Dallas Stars 	4–3 	 	Niemi 	United Center 	18,425 	3–0–0 	 	
4 	September 29 	@ Columbus Blue Jackets 	7–1 	 	Huet 	Nationwide Arena 	10,508 	3–1–0 	 	
5 	September 30 	@ Minnesota Wild 	3–2 	OT 	Crawford 	Xcel Energy Center 	18,064 	3–1–1 	 	
6 	October 2 	@ Dallas Stars 	4–3 	SO 	Niemi 	American Airlines Center 	15,142 	4–1–1 	 	
7 	October 3 	@ Colorado Avalanche 	7–4 	 	Huet 	Pepsi Center 	N/A 	5–1–1 	 	
8 	October 5 	Colorado Avalanche 	4–3 	OT 	Huet 	United Center 	18,053 	5–1–2 	 	
==Season events==
The Chicago Blackhawks opened the season against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on October 10, 2008. After winning only one of their first four games, the Blackhawks fired head coach Denis Savard. Shortly afterwards, they promoted scout Joel Quenneville as his replacement. In 147 games as coach, Savard posted a 65-66-16 record.
In December, an anonymous Blackhawks fan submitted an email to Mike Ross of XM Radio's NHL Home Ice, which revealed that the team had interrupted their travel schedule to attend the wake of General Manager Dale Tallon's father. The team voted to delay their flight to Chicago during a six game road trip in order to travel to the wake, which was in Northern Canada. The team reached the wake on two buses, and surprised Tallon, who was unaware of the team's plans. Ross was shocked that no media outlets had initially reported the story, and commented, "Its amazing that such a good story can be found nowhere on the internet, and not even mentioned in the Chicago papers. Had one of the Blackhawks got into a fight and punched some drunken loser in a Toronto bar it would be plastered all over papers and the television." The story eventually garnered much attention from various media outlets in the following week, including ESPN, Yahoo! Sports and Deadspin. MSNBC's Keith Olbermann commended the team's actions, by naming them the "best persons in the world" for the week.
On December 28, 2008, the Blackhawks set a franchise record nine consecutive wins.
==Division standings==
===Conference standings===
===Game log===
Legend:
2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log 	2008–09 Game Log
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100%
October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11	October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2 ; Road: 0–3–1) Pts. 11
# 	Date 	Opponent 	Score 	OT 	Decision 	Arena 	Attendance 	Record 	Pts 	Recap
1 	October 10 	@ New York Rangers 	4–2 	 	Huet 	Madison Square Garden 	18,200 	0–1–0 	0 	
2 	October 11 	@ Washington Capitals 	4–2 	 	Khabibulin 	Verizon Center 	18,277 	0–2–0 	0 	
3 	October 13 	Nashville Predators 	3–2 	SO 	Huet 	United Center 	21,712 	0–2–1 	1 	
4 	October 15 	Phoenix Coyotes 	4–1 	 	Khabibulin 	United Center 	20,522 	1–2–1 	3 	
5 	October 18 	@ St. Louis Blues 	4–3 	SO 	Khabibulin 	Scottrade Center 	19,150 	1–2–2 	4 	
6 	October 19 	Vancouver Canucks 	4–2 	 	Huet 	United Center 	21,193 	2–2–2 	6 	
7 	October 22 	Edmonton Oilers 	3–0 	 	Khabibulin 	United Center 	21,168 	3–2–2 	8 	
8 	October 25 	Detroit Red Wings 	6–5 	SO 	Khabibulin 	United Center 	22,690 	3–2–3 	9 	
9 	October 27 	@ Minnesota Wild 	3–2 	 	Huet 	Xcel Energy Center 	18,568 	3–3–3 	9 	
10 	October 31 	Dallas Stars 	5–2 	 	Khabibulin 	United Center 	21,212 	4–3–3 	11 	
==Playoffs==
*For the first time since 2002, the Blackhawks qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
*For the first time since 1996, the Blackhawks advanced to the Stanley Cup Semi-final.
*For the first time since 1995 the Blackhawks advanced to the conference finals.
2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs 	2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=100% align="center"
Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Calgary Flames (5)	Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Calgary Flames (5)	Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Calgary Flames (5)	Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Calgary Flames (5)	Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Calgary Flames (5)	Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Calgary Flames (5)	Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Calgary Flames (5)	Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Calgary Flames (5)	Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Calgary Flames (5)	Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Calgary Flames (5)
Game 	Date 	Opponent 	Score 	OT 	Decision 	Arena 	Attendance 	Series 	Recap
1 	April 16 	Calgary Flames 	3–2 	0:12 OT 	Khabibulin 	United Center 	22,478 	1–0 	
2 	April 18 	Calgary Flames 	3–2 	 	Khabibulin 	United Center 	22,514 	2–0 	
3 	April 20 	@ Calgary Flames 	4–2 	 	Khabibulin 	Pengrowth Saddledome 	19,289 	2–1 	
4 	April 22 	@ Calgary Flames 	6–4 	 	Khabibulin 	Pengrowth Saddledome 	19,289 	2–2 	
5 	April 25 	Calgary Flames 	5–1 	 	Khabibulin 	United Center 	22,563 	3–2 	
6 	April 27 	@ Calgary Flames 	4–1 	 	Khabibulin 	Pengrowth Saddledome 	19,289 	4–2 	
==Player stats==
===Skaters===
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes
Regular season	 	 	 	 	 	
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" class="wikitable sortable" width="100%"	 	 	 	 	 	
Player 	GP	G 	A 	Pts	+/−	PIM
 	81	29	48	77 	+29	30
 	80	25	45	70 	-2 	42
 	82	34	35	69 	+12	51
 	78	22	31	53 	+15	55
 	82	7 	45	52 	+5 	22
 	82	15	34	49 	+26	28
 	81	19	28	47 	+19	52
 	61	26	18	44 	+6 	41
 	77	8 	36	44 	+33	60
 	68	6 	34	40 	-6 	65
 	77	15	16	31 	+7 	81
 	82	8 	18	26 	+23	62
 	69	10	16	26 	+7 	50
 	81	6 	11	17 	+3 	55
 	75	11	4 	15 	+1 	161
 	65	1 	13	14 	+7 	79
 	31	2 	11	13 	+6 	14
 	66	6 	3 	9 	+3 	93
 	38	3 	5 	8 	+19	33
 	36	2 	4 	6 	-3 	22
 	13	2 	1 	3 	-1 	2
 	21	1 	2 	3 	+4 	0
 	23	1 	1 	2 	-4 	8
 	42	0 	2 	2 	n/a	8
 	8 	1 	0 	1 	-3 	5
 	41	0 	0 	0 	n/a	2
 	2 	0 	0 	0 	0 	2
 	9 	0 	0 	0 	-1 	4
 	7 	0 	0 	0 	-4 	0
 	3 	0 	0 	0 	n/a	0
 	1 	0 	0 	0 	+1 	2
Playoffs 	 	 	 	 	 	
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" class="wikitable sortable" width="100%"	 	 	 	 	 	
Player 	GP	G	A 	Pts	+/−	PIM
Martin Havlat 	16	5	10	15 	0 	8
Patrick Kane 	16	9	5 	14 	-9 	12
Jonathan Toews 	17	7	6 	13 	-1 	26
Brent Seabrook 	17	1	11	12 	0 	14
Dave Bolland 	17	4	8 	12 	-1 	24
Kris Versteeg 	17	4	8 	12 	-5 	22
Patrick Sharp 	17	7	4 	11 	-1 	6
Brian Campbell 	17	2	8 	10 	0 	0
Dustin Byfuglien 	17	3	6 	9 	-2 	26
Cam Barker 	17	3	6 	9 	-3 	2
Duncan Keith 	17	0	6 	6 	+1 	10
Samuel Pahlsson 	17	2	3 	5 	-4 	4
Adam Burish 	17	3	2 	5 	+3 	30
Andrew Ladd 	17	3	1 	4 	+3 	12
Matt Walker 	17	0	2 	2 	-4 	14
Ben Eager 	17	1	1 	2 	-1 	61
Troy Brouwer 	17	0	2 	2 	-1 	12
Niklas Hjalmarsson	17	0	1 	1 	-2 	6
Colin Fraser 	2 	0	0 	0 	0 	2
===Goaltenders===
Note: GP = Games Played; TOI = Time On Ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime Losses; GA = Goals Against; GAA= Goals Against Average; SA= Shots Against; SV= Saves; Sv% = Save Percentage; SO= Shutouts
Regular season 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" class="wikitable sortable" width="100%"	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
Player 	GP	TOI 	W 	L 	OT	GA 	GAA 	SA 	SV 	Sv% 	SO
Nikolai Khabibulin	42	2467	25	8 	7 	96 	2.33	1192	1096	.919	3
Cristobal Huet 	41	2351	20	15	4 	99 	2.53	1087	998 	.909	3
Antti Niemi 	3 	141 	1 	1 	1 	8 	3.40	59 	51 	.864	0
Combined 	 	 	46	24	12	203	2.46	1554	1429	.917	6
Playoffs 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" class="wikitable sortable" width="100%"	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
Player 	GP	TOI	W	L	GA	GAA 	SA 	SV 	Sv% 	SO
Nikolai Khabibulin	15	880	8	6	43	2.93	421	378	.898	0
Cristobal Huet 	3 	129	1	2	7 	3.23	78 	71 	.910	0
Corey Crawford 	1 	15 	0	0	1 	3.77	7 	6 	.857	0
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Blackhawks. Stats reflect time with the Blackhawks only.
‡Traded mid-season
Bold/italics denotes franchise record
==Awards and records==
===Milestones===
Regular season	Regular season 	Regular season 	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season
Player 	Milestone 	Reached 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
Colin Fraser 	1st NHL goal1st NHL point	October 15, 2008	 	 	 	 	 	 	
Brent Sopel 	500th game 	October 27, 2008	 	 	 	 	 	 	
==Transactions==
===Trades===
July 1, 2008 	To Chicago Blackhawks 2009 second-round pick 	To Calgary Flames Rene Bourque
July 17, 2008 	To Chicago Blackhawks Tim Brent 	To Pittsburgh Penguins Danny Richmond
July 24, 2008 	To Chicago Blackhawks Pascal Pelletier 	To Boston Bruins Martin St. Pierre
Septembers 12, 2008	To Chicago Blackhawks 2010 second-round pick from Toronto 	To Montreal Canadiens Robert Lang
October 2, 2008 	To Dallas Stars Doug Janik 	To Chicago Blackhawks Claimed off waivers
October 3, 2008 	To Chicago Blackhawks Joakim Lindstrom 	To Anaheim Ducks Claimed off waivers
October 7, 2008 	To Anaheim Ducks Joakim Lindstrom 	To Chicago Blackhawks Claimed off waivers
October 8, 2008 	To Chicago Blackhawks Doug Janik 	To Dallas Stars Claimed off waivers
October 8, 2008 	To Chicago Blackhawks Conditional seventh-round pick 	To Dallas Stars Doug Janik
December 9, 2008 	To Chicago Blackhawks Jimmy Sharrow 	To Vancouver Canucks Conditional seventh-round pick
January 10, 2009 	To Chicago Blackhawks Adam Pineault 	To Columbus Blue Jackets Michael Blunden
March 4, 2009 	To Chicago Blackhawks Sami Pahlsson Logan Stephenson Conditional fourth-round pick	To Anaheim Ducks James Wisniewski Petri Kontiola
===Free agents===
{|class="wikitable" 	 	
Player 	Former team 	Contract terms
Brian Campbell 	San Jose Sharks 	8 years, $56.8 million
Cristobal HuetCANOE - SLAM! Sports - Hockey NHL - Chicago - Blackhawks and Cristobal Huet agree to four-year deal	Washington Capitals	4 year, $22.5 million
Matt Walker 	St. Louis Blues 	1 year, $600,000
Aaron Johnson 	New York Islanders 	1 year, $525,000
Doug Janik 	Tampa Bay Lightning	1 year, $500,000
==Draft picks==
The 2008 NHL Entry Draft was hosted at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa, Ontario on June 20 and 21. With the eleventh pick in the first round, the Blackhawks selected Kyle Beach from the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League. The Blackhawks drafted seven players (five defensemen and two forwards) in five of the seven rounds. All of the prospects were returned to their junior or professional league by the end of training camp.
Round	# 	Player 	Position	Nationality	College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1 	11 	Kyle Beach 	(LW) 	 	Everett Silvertips (WHL)
3 	68 (from Toronto via NY Islanders)	Shawn Lalonde 	(D) 	 	Belleville Bulls (OHL)
5 	132 	Teigan Zahn 	(D) 	 	Saskatoon Blades (WHL)
6 	162 	Jonathan Carlsson	(D) 	 	Brynäs IF (Elitserien)
6 	169 (from Ottawa) 	Ben Smith 	(RW) 	 	Boston College (Hockey East)
6 	179 (from Dallas via Los Angeles) 	Braden Birch 	(D) 	 	Oakville Blades (OPJHL)
7 	192 	Joe Gleason 	(D) 	 	Edina High School (USHS-Minnesota)
==See also==
*2008–09 NHL season
==External links==
*Chicago Blackhawks official site
*Regular season statistics
*Season schedule and results
==References==
Category:Chicago Blackhawks seasons
Category:2008 in hockey
Category:2009 in hockey