![\"Nick](\"https:\/\/cst.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/3b945a3\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/4097x2731+1+0\/resize\/840x560!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F51%2Fe6%2Fe3a6250a4003aa2893b99ac1cbbd%2Ffoligno.jpg\")
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Anders Sorensen hasn\u2019t hesitated to interrupt poorly executed practice drills and yell at the Blackhawks for sloppiness during his tenure as interim coach.<\/p>\n
During practice Tuesday, however, the only yelling was in the form of words of encouragement coming from captain Nick Foligno. It was, at a random time, one of the Hawks\u2019 sharpest sessions in months. They strung together lots of pretty plays.<\/p>\n
With only 11 games left in another long-since-lost season, Foligno is trying to ensure the Hawks\u2019 energy levels don\u2019t drop off \u2014 as they easily could \u2014 before the season finale April 15.<\/p>\n
\u2018\u2018It\u2019s my job,\u2019\u2019 Foligno said. \u2018\u2018I knew what I signed up here to do: try to move this forward. Whether it\u2019s in increments or big jumps, we\u2019ve still got to try to push this thing forward.<\/p>\n
\u2018\u2018That\u2019s where you separate yourself as a guy who really cares or a guy that\u2019s just [motivated] when it\u2019s convenient, right? We\u2019re weeding out some of those things in here. We need guys who want to be a part of this. It\u2019s not easy. It\u2019s not for the faint of heart. It\u2019s hard. It\u2019s an emotional roller coaster a lot of days. But we\u2019re hoping we can start to solidify ourselves.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Foligno has made several not-so-vague references such as that one about former alternate captain Seth Jones\u2019 trade request in the weeks since he was dealt, although Jones might not have been the only veteran mentally checking out.<\/p>\n
It has become clear Jones\u2019 realization he no longer could tolerate the Hawks\u2019 lengthy rebuild not only created some interpersonal tensions but also opened eyes to the importance of having a locker room full of players genuinely invested in and devoted to the cause, not just collecting paychecks and going through the motions.<\/p>\n
Foligno, who has one year left on his contract, said he has been \u2018\u2018encouraged\u2019\u2019 by some things he has seen around the team and alarmed by others. He didn\u2019t want to discuss the latter things Tuesday, but he intends to do so in exit interviews and this summer.<\/p>\n
A year ago, Foligno\u2019s impassioned comments at the end of the season about the Hawks needing to \u2018\u2018make some changes\u2019\u2019 seemingly influenced general manager Kyle Davidson\u2019s sense of urgency, but Davidson\u2019s quantity-over-quality offseason additions didn\u2019t have the desired effect.<\/p>\n
Davidson will try to land a bigger fish this summer, but the Hawks also will work on improving their internal culture, with Foligno being more involved in that.<\/p>\n
\u2018\u2018I know fans and everybody want a quick answer .\u2009.\u2009. but this is the hard part of what we\u2019re trying to accomplish,\u2019\u2019 Foligno said. \u2018\u2018You\u2019re doing it on the fly. You\u2019re not doing it while everyone else is sitting idle; you\u2019re doing it while other teams are getting better, while teams are ramping up. It\u2019s a competitive league, and that\u2019s why .\u2009.\u2009. you don\u2019t want to get left behind.<\/p>\n
\u2018\u2018It\u2019s [about] making sure every guy, to a man \u2014 whoever is going to be a part of this \u2014 understands the job that\u2019s going to be needed down the stretch, into the summer and going into next season.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
In the meantime, Foligno has talked with the guys about trying to give Hawks fans some highs to enjoy during the rest of this five-game homestand, which continues Wednesday against the Devils. The Hawks\u2019 14-17-4 home record isn\u2019t nearly as bad as their 7-24-5 road record, but the 14 home victories are still the second-fewest in the NHL.<\/p>\n
NOTE:<\/b> Forward Jason Dickinson<\/b> will miss the rest of the season with a wrist injury, interim coach Anders Sorensen<\/b> said. Defenseman Alec Martinez<\/b> (upper body) is considered day-to-day, and forward Colton Dach<\/b> (elbow) will miss some more time.<\/p>\n
For Dickinson, the Hawks\u2019 best defensive forward, his season is over after 59 games and only seven goals \u2014 down from 22 last season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Hawks’ captain wants “whoever is going to be a part of” the Hawks’ rebuild moving forward to understand the amount of work they’ll be expected to put in.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18719,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18718","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chicago-blackhawks"],"yoast_head":"\n