Chicago Blackhawks: 3 players in the spotlight on homestand

The Chicago Blackhawks are in a tough situation. Their chances of making the playoffs are less than 1%. They play their next three home games starting Friday. Derek King's team is looking for players to improve their game. Reichel, Johnson and Kuznetsov are the players in the spotlight. The 19-year-old Reichl has played four NHL games. He had a collision with a Dallas player. Johnson had neck surgery on Dec. 3. His last game was on Oct. 29. King is confident his player's conditioning and speed have returned. It's just a gut feeling.

Regula feels he has shown the most growth on defense since joining the Blackhawks. King will talk to interim general manager Kyle Davidson on Thursday about the strategy for Reichel and Regula. He will also talk about how much more time they will get in Chicago. Rags has been good for the team since coming back up.