CHICAGO -- Bryan Bickell has set a five-hit minimum for himself.
Less than five and he doesn’t think he can be a difference-maker in any capacity for the Chicago Blackhawks. Five or more, watch out, it could be 'Playoff Bickell,' just in the regular season instead.
“I need to bring at least five hits a game to get me going, personally,” Bickell said. “Hopefully everything will work out from there. I just need to keep my head down and keep working hard.”
There have been two Bickells in recent seasons. There has been the ordinary third-line forward in the regular season and the game-changer in the playoffs. He’s had 38 points in 107 regular-season games over the last two seasons and 27 points in 42 playoff games in the same span.
The difference is undeniable, and Bickell’s goal heading into this season was to transform himself into that playoff performer throughout the regular season. Through four games, he hadn’t done that. In the fifth game on Tuesday, he did. He had a goal, an assist, was a plus-2 and had six hits.
The two-point performance was his first multi-point regular-season game since April 15, 2013. He went the entire 2013-14 regular season without a multi-point game.
What sparked Bickell on Tuesday was a talk he and Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville had prior to the game.
“He just talks to me and knows it needs to be better for me,” Bickell said. “He believes in me. I’m happy to have that, and I need to stick with it.
“That’s what I need to do every game -- to be physical. I know the last handful of games weren’t what they wanted or what I wanted. Kind of got a slap on the wrist and said wake up. For me to be physical, to open ice for my linemates and for my teammates, it’s definitely important to get me going. [Tuesday] was the right step to go the right way.”
What Bickell gave the Blackhawks on Tuesday was exactly what Quenneville was seeking.
“I think more of the playoff Bick,” Quenneville said of what he wanted from Bickell. “I just think that whether it’s confidence, whether it’s finding a way to be excited about every shift and getting that consistency of his game has always been a work in progress. I think [Tuesday] was a good measuring stick for him and a good standard to try to achieve game in, game out.”
The hitting aspect doesn’t directly lead to more offense for Bickell, but it does seem to have a way of waking him up. He averaged 1.8 hits a game in the regular season and 4.2 hits in the playoffs last season. In the 2012-13 season, he averaged 2.3 hits in the regular season and 3.7 in the playoffs.
Blackhawks forward Patrick Sharp understood why Bickell became more engaged in the game when he got physical.
“I’ve noticed in Bick’s game over the year when he’s skating in straight lines and finishing his checks the puck seems to follow him,” Sharp said. “He does that have ability to make the shots that he did last game, even make good passes as well. I know personally I feel the same way when I’m physically involved a little bit more. I’m not going to be throwing guys around, but when you finish checks you get bumped a little bit, you seem to find that puck and go to the dirty areas. I think that sums up Bicks pretty good.”