On the flip side, Patrick Sharp continues to lose minutes. He started out on the second line but it wasn't long before Kris Versteeg bumped him. Sharp ended up skating just 13:08, 2:15 of which was on the second power play unit. Not looking great for Sharp in terms of opportunity.

Some juicy Blackhawk nuggets in Elliotte Friedman's latest 30 Thoughts column:

25. With all of Chicago's cap concerns, opposing personnel guys warn not to discount a deep prospect base — a number of players at the AHL level who are very close. Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman, when asked about Teuvo Teravainen, made an interesting comparison to Vladimir Tarasenko.

"Understand, I am not comparing the two players, but their development," he said. Tarasenko's first season in North America was the lockout. He played 31 games in the KHL and 38 in the NHL. His second was a big step, and now he's outstanding in his third.

This is Teravainen's first full year across the pond, and, at 20, he's one year younger than Tarasenko was. You see what Chicago wants. Take a dip in the pool now, and wade in deeper next season. Then, we expect to see a full swan dive in 2016-17.

That's a good angle on Teravainen (read more on him here) who got sent back to the minors yesterday. I thought he looked really good for the Blackhawks with limited minutes/opportunities. For me it's not a question of if, it's a question of when he gets the chance to blossom. Maybe, like with Tarasenko that needs to be earned before he can bust out but I think that it's more about a path getting cleared in front of him and right now it's looking awfully crowded in Chicago. That ultimately didn't hold back Tarasenko in St. Louis though so if you've got concerns this comparison makes so much sense.

Also worth pointing out for Teravainen is that Brad Richards is currently holding down a top-six spot for Chicago. If any spot is going to open up soon, it will be that one.

Richards, by the way, wants to help keep Patrick Kane atop the NHL scoring race. Another assist for Kane last night, he continues with the lead.

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I talked about Martin St. Louis' struggles since the All-Star break yesterday, turns out so did he in an interview with the New York Post:

"I'm not playing with a lot of confidence right now," St. Louis told The Post following the Blueshirts' 6-3 victory that was keyed by the Kevin Hayes–Carl Hagelin–J.T. Miller unit and by Cam Talbot's outstanding work under pressure in net. "I've gone through stretches like this before, and it's not a fun place to be, but fortunately the team is winning.

"Sometimes the game gets hard. Sometimes life gets hard," said St. Louis, who has gone 14 straight without a goal. "There's only one way to get through it, and that's by keeping your head up and continuing to work.

"I'm very disappointed with that mistake. You never want to make a mistake that leads to a goal," No. 26 said. "But I'm going to do whatever it takes to try and get it together.

"The team is winning, so that helps you buy time to find your game."

It's nice that he can provide some perspective on the situation. We had a reader yesterday mention how Derek Stepan has been sick lately, which might be playing a role in St. Louis’ diminished production. Given just how important Stepan has been for the Rangers this season I don’t question that hypothesis in the slightest.

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Adam Gretz examines Kris Letang's Norris Trophy credentials and why keeping him was the best move that Jim Rutherford has made with the Penguins.

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Not that he's particularly relevant any more but Ryane Clowe is done for the year and perhaps for his career.

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Sean McIndoe looks at how far we've come in the decade since the NHL cancelled the 2004-05 season.

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The CBC tells Glen Metropolit's story, a good read.

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Beauty dive by our old pal Dan Sexton. I give him an 8.5.

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The Kulikov hit on Seguin:

What kind of suspension (if any) do you think we are looking at?

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You can follow me @SteveLaidlaw.