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“He’s one of the fastest in the game on the defensive side of the puck because he’s always around it,” said Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville on Sunday. “Those instincts are always there. Always there. He just plays the right way.” Then he listed some Hossa attributes: “How well he checks, puck possession, puck protection, denying those guys rush opportunities — his positioning is just A-1, as far as perfect.”

Coaches won’t often say that they expect a certain player to score to have value — goals being fairly hard to predict — but they also know that certain players don’t offer much else if they aren’t finishing. With Quenneville, you really do get the sense that he doesn’t give a sweet damn if Hossa scores as long as he keeps being Marian Hossa.

“Everybody would like to score goals, everybody would like to see more production there, but you play the team game and eventually they are going to go in for you,” the coach said. It is no coincidence that Hossa, Saad and their centre, Jonathan Toews, have three of the top eight shot-attempt-differential ratings in the NHL so far in these playoffs. In Game 1, even though their line started more than three-quarters of their shifts in the defensive zone, the forwards all posted puck-possession numbers above 60 per cent, which is excellent.

The interesting thing about the praise Hossa’s teammates and coach have for his game is how it is at odds with how he is perceived by a lot of fans. They remember the kid who could score when he entered the league with the Ottawa Senators, but who disappeared in the post-season. Beginning with the 1999 playoffs, Hossa scored all of one goal, total, in three first-round exits. Once the reputation as a one-way floater is entrenched, it can be hard to shake.