When the Blackhawks hit the road on their annual Circus Trip, they took along with them coach Joel Quenneville’s goal of accumulating at least seven points during the six-game swing.
Consider it mission accomplished — and more.
“Joel gave us a goal to shoot for, and we went above that goal,” defenseman Brian Campbell said. “We beat it by two points, but when you get the first four games, you want to keep rolling and get the rest and be greedy.”
The Hawks grabbed nine of a possible 12 points during their jaunt through western Canada and California. They won the first four games before running out of gas with a 3-0 loss in Anaheim on Friday and a 2-1 shootout defeat in L.A. on Saturday night. The 4-1-1 mark fell short of the 1990-91 squad that went 5-1, but the Hawks returned home Sunday with a 16-6-3 record that has them atop the Central Division and tied for second with Calgary in the Western Conference.
“We’ve proven we can win on the road again this year,” captain Jonathan Toews said. “That’s a big step for us. When you get quite a few points on a road trip like we did, it gives you confidence going down the road that you don’t have to keep coming from behind to try and stay up there in the standings.
“We feel we’re in a good spot right now, but we know there’s still a lot of room for improvement. Coming off this we can be confident about going back in our own building this week and hopefully get that energy back that our fans give us.”
After an 8-2-2 record in November, the Hawks can look forward to sustaining their momentum with a favorable home schedule in December. They play eight of their next 10 at the friendly confines of the United Center, beginning Tuesday night against division rival Columbus.
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The Circus Trip
Here’s a look back at the Hawks’ extended road trip.
Nov. 19 @ Calgary: W, 7-1
Nov. 21 @ Edmonton: W, 5-2
Nov. 22 @ Vancouver: W, 1-0
Wednesday @ San Jose: W, 7-2
Friday @ Anaheim: L, 3-0
Saturday @ L.A. Kings: L, 2-1 (SO)
