2008–09 Chicago Blackhawks season

The 2008–09 Chicago Blackhawks season was the 83rd season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on September 25, 1926. 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.^[3] Their regular season began on October 10, 2008, against the New York Rangers and concluded 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.

2008–09 Chicago Blackhawks
Division	2nd Central
Conference	4th Western
2008–09 record	46–24–12
Home record	24–9–8
Road record	22–15–4
Goals for	264
Goals against	216
Team information
General manager	Dale Tallon
Coach	Denis Savard Joel Quenneville
Captain	Jonathan Toews
Alternate captains	Duncan Keith Patrick Sharp
Arena	United Center Wrigley Field (1 game)
Average attendance	22,247 (21,783, 106.2% at UC) Capacity: 20,500 Total: 912,155 (871,337 at UC)[1][2]
Team leaders
Goals	Jonathan Toews (34)
Assists	Martin Havlat (48)
Points	Martin Havlat (77)
Penalty minutes	Ben Eager (161)
Plus/minus	Duncan Keith (+33)
Wins	Nikolai Khabibulin (25)
Goals against average	Nikolai Khabibulin (2.33)
← 2007–08 2009–10 →

Pre-season

The Blackhawks signed defenseman Brian Campbell, seen here with the San Jose Sharks, to the largest contract in team history.

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.^[4] The club also brought back announcer Pat Foley to do the play-by-play announcing for all television broadcasts.^[5]

The Blackhawks made a "huge splash" on the first day of free agency by signing defenseman Brian Campbell and goaltender Cristobal Huet.^[6] Campbell's $57.12 million contract was the largest in team history.^[7] 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.^[8] 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.^[9][10]

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.^[11] 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.^[12]

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.^[13]

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	W1
2	September 26	Minnesota Wild	4–3		Huet	United Center	18,034	2–0–0	W2
3	September 28	Dallas Stars	4–3		Niemi	United Center	18,425	3–0–0	W3
4	September 29	@ Columbus Blue Jackets	7–1		Huet	Nationwide Arena	10,508	3–1–0	L1
5	September 30	@ Minnesota Wild	3–2	OT	Crawford	Xcel Energy Center	18,064	3–1–1	OTL1
6	October 2	@ Dallas Stars	4–3	SO	Niemi	American Airlines Center	15,142	4–1–1	W1
7	October 3	@ Colorado Avalanche	7–4		Huet	Pepsi Center	N/A	5–1–1	W2
8	October 5	Colorado Avalanche	4–3	OT	Huet	United Center	18,053	5–1–2	OTL1

Season events

The 2009 NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field.

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.^[14] 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.^[15] 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.^[16] The team reached the wake on two buses, and surprised Tallon, who was unaware of the team's plans.^[16][17] 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."^[16] 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.^[17][18]

On December 28, 2008, the Blackhawks set a franchise record nine consecutive wins.

Division standings

Central Division

		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	y – Detroit Red Wings	82	51	21	10	295	244	112
2	Chicago Blackhawks	82	46	24	12	264	216	104
3	St. Louis Blues	82	41	31	10	233	233	92
4	Columbus Blue Jackets	82	41	31	10	226	230	92
5	Nashville Predators	82	40	34	8	213	233	88

Conference standings

Western Conference

R		Div	GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	p – San Jose Sharks	PA	82	53	18	11	257	204	117
2	y – Detroit Red Wings	CE	82	51	21	10	295	244	112
3	y – Vancouver Canucks	NW	82	45	27	10	246	220	100
4	Chicago Blackhawks	CE	82	46	24	12	264	216	104
5	Calgary Flames	NW	82	46	30	6	254	248	98
6	St. Louis Blues	CE	82	41	31	10	233	233	92
7	Columbus Blue Jackets	CE	82	41	31	10	226	230	92
8	Anaheim Ducks	PA	82	42	33	7	245	238	91
8.5
9	Minnesota Wild	NW	82	40	33	9	219	200	89
10	Nashville Predators	CE	82	40	34	8	213	233	88
11	Edmonton Oilers	NW	82	38	35	9	234	248	85
12	Dallas Stars	PA	82	36	35	11	230	257	83
13	Phoenix Coyotes	PA	82	36	39	7	208	252	79
14	Los Angeles Kings	PA	82	34	37	11	207	234	79
15	Colorado Avalanche	NW	82	32	45	5	199	257	69

bold – qualified for playoffs, y – division winner, p – Presidents' Trophy winner
CE – Central Division, NW – Northwest Division, PA – Pacific Division

Schedule and results

Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)

2008–09 Game log
October: 4–3–3 (Home: 4–0–2; Road: 0–3–1) # 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 L1 2 October 11 @ Washington Capitals 4–2 Khabibulin Verizon Center 18,277 0–2–0 0 L2 3 October 13 Nashville Predators 3–2 SO Huet United Center 21,712 0–2–1 1 SOL1 4 October 15 Phoenix Coyotes 4–1 Khabibulin United Center 20,522 1–2–1 3 W1 5 October 18 @ St. Louis Blues 4–3 SO Khabibulin Scottrade Center 19,150 1–2–2 4 SOL1 6 October 19 Vancouver Canucks 4–2 Huet United Center 21,193 2–2–2 6 W1 7 October 22 Edmonton Oilers 3–0 Khabibulin United Center 21,168 3–2–2 8 W2 8 October 25 Detroit Red Wings 6–5 SO Khabibulin United Center 22,690 3–2–3 9 SOL1 9 October 27 @ Minnesota Wild 3–2 Huet Xcel Energy Center 18,568 3–3–3 9 L1 10 October 31 Dallas Stars 5–2 Khabibulin United Center 21,212 4–3–3 11 W1
November: 6–3–3 (Home: 2–1–2; Road: 4–2–1) # Date Opponent Score OT Decision Arena Attendance Record Pts Recap 11 November 1 @ Columbus Blue Jackets 4–3 SO Huet Nationwide Arena 14,680 5–3–3 13 W2 12 November 3 Colorado Avalanche 6–2 Khabibulin United Center 21,142 6–3–3 15 W3 13 November 9 Calgary Flames 6–1 Huet United Center 21,169 7–3–3 17 W4 14 November 12 Boston Bruins 2–1 SO Khabibulin United Center 22,092 7–3–4 18 SOL1 15 November 14 St. Louis Blues 4–3 OT Khabibulin United Center 22,260 7–3–5 19 OTL2 16 November 16 San Jose Sharks 6–5 Huet United Center 21,181 7–4–5 19 L1 17 November 18 @ Phoenix Coyotes 3–2 SO Khabibulin Jobing.com Arena 14,682 8–4–5 21 W1 18 November 20 @ Dallas Stars 6–3 Khabibulin American Airlines Center 18,027 9–4–5 23 W2 19 November 22 @ Toronto Maple Leafs 5–4 OT Khabibulin Air Canada Centre 19,474 10–4–5 25 W3 20 November 26 @ San Jose Sharks 3–2 OT Huet HP Pavilion at San Jose 17,496 10–4–6 26 OTL1 21 November 28 @ Anaheim Ducks 1–0 Huet Honda Center 16,994 10–5–6 26 L1 22 November 29 @ Los Angeles Kings 5–2 Huet Staples Center 16,147 10–6–6 26 L2
December: 10–1–1 (Home: 5–0–0; Road: 5–1–1) Pts. 21 # Date Opponent Score OT Decision Arena Attendance Record Pts Recap 23 December 3 Anaheim Ducks 4–2 Huet United Center 21,574 11–6–6 28 W1 24 December 6 @ Detroit Red Wings 5–4 SO Huet Joe Louis Arena 20,066 11–6–7 29 SOL1 25 December 7 Phoenix Coyotes 7–1 Huet United Center 21,217 12–6–7 31 W1 26 December 10 Ottawa Senators 2–0 Huet United Center 21,614 13–6–7 33 W2 27 December 12 @ Colorado Avalanche 4–3 Khabibulin Pepsi Center 17,569 14–6–7 35 W3 28 December 14 Columbus Blue Jackets 3–1 Huet United Center 21,379 15–6–7 37 W4 29 December 16 @ Edmonton Oilers 9–2 Khabibulin Rexall Place 16,839 16–6–7 39 W5 30 December 19 @ Calgary Flames 3–2 OT Khabibulin Pengrowth Saddledome 19,289 17–6–7 41 W6 31 December 20 @ Vancouver Canucks 3–1 Huet General Motors Place 18,630 18–6–7 43 W7 32 December 26 Philadelphia Flyers 5–1 Khabibulin United Center 22,712 19–6–7 45 W8 33 December 28 @ Minnesota Wild 4–1 Huet Xcel Energy Center 18,568 20–6–7 47 W9 34 December 30 @ Detroit Red Wings 4–0 Khabibulin Joe Louis Arena 20,066 20–7–7 47 L1
January: 7–6–1 (Home: 3–3–1; Road: 4–3–0) # Date Opponent Score OT Decision Arena Attendance Record Pts Recap 35 January 1* Detroit Red Wings 6–4 Huet Wrigley Field 40,818 20–8–7 47 L2 36 January 4 Calgary Flames 5–2 Khabibulin United Center 22,146 21–8–7 49 W1 37 January 6 @ Phoenix Coyotes 6–0 Huet Jobing.com Arena 14,651 22–8–7 51 W2 38 January 8 @ Colorado Avalanche 2–1 Khabibulin Pepsi Center 15,174 22–9–7 51 L1 39 January 10 @ Nashville Predators 4–1 Huet Sommet Center 16,802 22–10–7 51 L2 40 January 11 Nashville Predators 3–1 Khabibulin United Center 21,666 23–10–7 53 W1 41 January 14 Buffalo Sabres 4–1 Huet United Center 21,684 24–10–7 55 W2 42 January 16 New York Rangers 3–2 OT Khabibulin United Center 22,624 24–10–8 56 OTL1 43 January 17 @ St. Louis Blues 2–1 OT Huet Scottrade Center 19,250 25–10–8 58 W1 44 January 19 Minnesota Wild 4–1 Khabibulin United Center 21,320 25–11–8 58 L1 45 January 21 St. Louis Blues 2–0 Huet United Center 22,299 25–12–8 58 L2 46 January 28 @ Anaheim Ducks 3–2 Khabibulin Honda Center 17,193 26–12–8 60 W1 47 January 29 @ Los Angeles Kings 5–2 Huet Staples Center 18,118 26–13–8 60 L1 48 January 31 @ San Jose Sharks 4–2 Khabibulin HP Pavilion at San Jose 17,496 27–13–8 62 W1 *2009 NHL Winter Classic
February: 7–4–1 (Home: 1–1–1; Road: 6–3–0) # Date Opponent Score OT Decision Arena Attendance Record Pts Recap 49 February 3 @ Edmonton Oilers 3–1 Huet Rexall Place 16,839 28–13–8 64 W2 50 February 5 @ Calgary Flames 5–2 Khabibulin Pengrowth Saddledome 19,289 29–13–8 66 W3 51 February 7 @ Vancouver Canucks 7–3 Khabibulin General Motors Place 18,630 29–14–8 66 L1 52 February 11 @ Atlanta Thrashers 3–1 Khabibulin Philips Arena 14,029 30–14–8 68 W1 53 February 13 @ St. Louis Blues 1–0 Huet Scottrade Center 19,150 30–15–8 68 L1 54 February 14 Dallas Stars 6–2 Huet United Center 22,704 31–15–8 70 W1 55 February 17 @ Tampa Bay Lightning 5–3 Huet St. Pete Times Forum 15,431 32–15–8 72 W2 56 February 19 @ Florida Panthers 4–0 Huet BankAtlantic Center 16,133 33–15–8 74 W3 57 February 21 @ Dallas Stars 3–1 Huet American Airlines Center 18,584 34–15–8 76 W4 58 February 22 Minnesota Wild 2–1 Huet United Center 22,443 34–16–8 76 L1 59 February 24 @ Nashville Predators 5–3 Huet Sommet Center 15,075 34–17–8 76 L2 60 February 27 Pittsburgh Penguins 5–4 OT Niemi United Center 22,689 34–17–9 77 OTL1
March: 6–7–2 (Home: 6–4–1; Road: 0–3–1) # Date Opponent Score OT Decision Arena Attendance Record Pts Recap 61 March 1 Los Angeles Kings 4–2 Niemi United Center 21,386 35–17–9 79 W1 62 March 3 Anaheim Ducks 3–2 OT Huet United Center 21,619 36–17–9 81 W2 63 March 7 @ Boston Bruins 5–3 Huet TD Banknorth Garden 17,565 36–18–9 81 L1 64 March 8 Colorado Avalanche 5–1 Niemi United Center 22,121 36–19–9 81 L2 65 March 11 Carolina Hurricanes 3–2 SO Huet United Center 21,513 37–19–9 83 W1 66 March 13 Columbus Blue Jackets 5–3 Huet United Center 22,176 37–20–9 83 L1 67 March 15 New York Islanders 4–2 Khabibulin United Center 22,140 37–21–9 83 L2 68 March 17 @ New Jersey Devils 3–2 Khabibulin Prudential Center 17,625 37–22–9 83 L3 69 March 18 @ Columbus Blue Jackets 4–3 OT Huet Nationwide Arena 15,190 37–22–10 84 OTL1 70 March 20 Edmonton Oilers 5–4 SO Khabibulin United Center 22,151 37–22–11 85 SOL2 71 March 22 Los Angeles Kings 4–1 Khabibulin United Center 21,629 38–22–11 87 W1 72 March 25 San Jose Sharks 6–5 SO Khabibulin United Center 21,812 39–22–11 89 W2 73 March 27 New Jersey Devils 3–2 OT Khabibulin United Center 21,617 40–22–11 91 W3 74 March 29 Vancouver Canucks 4–0 Khabibulin United Center 21,673 40–23–11 91 L1 75 March 31 @ Montreal Canadiens 4–1 Huet Bell Centre 21,273 40–24–11 91 L2
April: 6–0–1 (Home: 3–0–1; Road: 3–0–0) # Date Opponent Score OT Decision Arena Attendance Record Pts Recap 76 April 1 St. Louis Blues 3–1 Khabibulin United Center 21,548 41–24–11 93 W1 77 April 3 Nashville Predators 3–1 Khabibulin United Center 21,628 42–24–11 95 W2 78 April 5 @ Columbus Blue Jackets 1–0 OT Khabibulin Nationwide Arena 15,957 43–24–11 97 W3 79 April 7 @ Nashville Predators 4–2 Khabibulin Sommet Center 17,113 44–24–11 99 W4 80 April 8 Columbus Blue Jackets 4–3 SO Khabibulin United Center 21,536 44–24–12 100 SOL1 81 April 11 @ Detroit Red Wings 4–2 Huet Joe Louis Arena 20,066 45–24–12 102 W1 82 April 12 Detroit Red Wings 3–0 Khabibulin United Center 22,376 46–24–12 104 W2

Playoffs

See also: 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs

• For the first time since 2002, the Blackhawks qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.^[19]
• For the first time since 1996, the Blackhawks advanced to the Stanley Cup Semi-final.^[20]
• For the first time since 1995 the Blackhawks advanced to the conference finals.^[21]

2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs
Western Conference Quarterfinals vs. Calgary Flames (5) – Blackhawks won series 4–2 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 W1 2 April 18 Calgary Flames 3–2 Khabibulin United Center 22,514 2–0 W2 3 April 20 @ Calgary Flames 4–2 Khabibulin Pengrowth Saddledome 19,289 2–1 L1 4 April 22 @ Calgary Flames 6–4 Khabibulin Pengrowth Saddledome 19,289 2–2 L2 5 April 25 Calgary Flames 5–1 Khabibulin United Center 22,563 3–2 W1 6 April 27 @ Calgary Flames 4–1 Khabibulin Pengrowth Saddledome 19,289 4–2 W2
Western Conference Semifinals vs. Vancouver Canucks (3) – Blackhawks won series 4–2 Game Date Opponent Score OT Decision Arena Attendance Series Recap 1 April 30 @ Vancouver Canucks 5–3 Khabibulin General Motors Place 18,630 0–1 L1 2 May 2 @ Vancouver Canucks 6–3 Khabibulin General Motors Place 18,630 1–1 W1 3 May 5 Vancouver Canucks 3–1 Khabibulin United Center 22,659 1–2 L1 4 May 7 Vancouver Canucks 2–1 02:52 OT Khabibulin United Center 22,682 2–2 W1 5 May 9 @ Vancouver Canucks 4–2 Khabibulin General Motors Place 18,630 3–2 W2 6 May 11 Vancouver Canucks 7–5 Khabibulin United Center 22,687 4–2 W3
Western Conference Finals vs. Detroit Red Wings (2) – Blackhawks lost series 4–1 Game Date Opponent Score OT Decision Arena Attendance Series Recap 1 May 17 @ Detroit Red Wings 5–2 Khabibulin Joe Louis Arena 20,066 0–1 L1 2 May 19 @ Detroit Red Wings 3–2 05:14 OT Khabibulin Joe Louis Arena 20,066 0–2 L2 3 May 22 Detroit Red Wings 4–3 18:08 OT Huet United Center 22,678 1–2 W1 4 May 24 Detroit Red Wings 6–1 Huet United Center 22,663 1–3 L1 5 May 27 @ Detroit Red Wings 2–1 03:58 OT Huet Joe Louis Arena 20,066 1–4 L2 Legend:   Win   Loss

Player statistics

Skaters

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals 

Regular season Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Martin Havlat 81 29 48 77 +29 30 Patrick Kane 80 25 45 70 −2 42 Jonathan Toews 82 34 35 69 +12 51 Kris Versteeg 78 22 31 53 +15 55 Brian Campbell 82 7 45 52 +5 22 Andrew Ladd 82 15 34 49 +26 28 Dave Bolland 81 19 28 47 +19 52 Patrick Sharp 61 26 18 44 +6 41 Duncan Keith 77 8 36 44 +33 60 Cam Barker 68 6 34 40 −6 65 Dustin Byfuglien 77 15 16 31 +7 81 Brent Seabrook 82 8 18 26 +23 62 Troy Brouwer 69 10 16 26 +7 50 Colin Fraser 81 6 11 17 +3 55 Ben Eager 75 11 4 15 +1 161 Matt Walker 65 1 13 14 +7 79 James Wisniewski‡ 31 2 11 13 +6 14 Adam Burish 66 6 3 9 +3 93 Aaron Johnson 38 3 5 8 +19 33 Craig Adams‡ 36 2 4 6 −3 22 Samuel Pahlsson† 13 2 1 3 −1 2 Niklas Hjalmarsson 21 1 2 3 +4 0 Brent Sopel 23 1 1 2 −4 8 Nikolai Khabibulin (G) 42 0 2 2 n/a 8 Jack Skille 8 1 0 1 −3 5 Cristobal Huet (G) 41 0 0 0 n/a 2 Tim Brent 2 0 0 0 0 2 Jordan Hendry 9 0 0 0 −1 4 Pascal Pelletier 7 0 0 0 −4 0 Antti Niemi (G) 3 0 0 0 n/a 0 Jacob Dowell 1 0 0 0 +1 2

Playoffs 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:  Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Regular season
Player GP Min 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
Player GP Min 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
Player	Milestone	Reached
Colin Fraser	1st NHL goal 1st NHL point	October 15, 2008
Brent Sopel	500th game	October 27, 2008

Transactions

Trades

July 1, 2008	To Chicago Blackhawks Conditional 2nd-round pick in 2009 or 2010 – Bradley Ross	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
September 12, 2008	To Chicago Blackhawks 2nd-round pick in 2010	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
	To Chicago Blackhawks Conditional 7th-round pick in 2010	To Dallas Stars Doug Janik
December 9, 2008	To Chicago Blackhawks Jimmy Sharrow	To Vancouver Canucks Conditional 7th-round pick
January 10, 2009	To Chicago Blackhawks Adam Pineault	To Columbus Blue Jackets Mike Blunden
March 4, 2009	To Chicago Blackhawks Samuel Pahlsson Logan Stephenson Conditional 4th-round pick	To Anaheim Ducks James Wisniewski Petri Kontiola

Free agents

Player Former team Contract terms Brian Campbell San Jose Sharks 8 years, $56.8 million Cristobal Huet[22] 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

Player New team David Koci Tampa Bay Lightning Patrick Lalime Buffalo Sabres Jason Williams Atlanta Thrashers

Draft picks

The 2008 NHL entry draft was hosted at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa, Ontario, on June 20–21, 2008. With the 11th pick in the first round, the Blackhawks selected Kyle Beach from the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League (WHL). 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)	Canada	Everett Silvertips (WHL)
3	68 (from Toronto via NY Islanders)	Shawn Lalonde	(D)	Canada	Belleville Bulls (OHL)
5	132	Teigan Zahn	(D)	Canada	Saskatoon Blades (WHL)
6	162	Jonathan Carlsson	(D)	Sweden	Brynas IF (Elitserien)
6	169 (from Ottawa)	Ben Smith	(RW)	United States	Boston College (Hockey East)
6	179 (from Dallas via Los Angeles)	Braden Birch	(D)	Canada	Oakville Blades (OPJHL)
7	192	Joe Gleason	(D)	United States	Edina High School (USHS-MN)

See also

• 2008–09 NHL season

External links

• Chicago Blackhawks official site
• Regular season statistics
• Season schedule and results