There was something ho-hum about it as the Chicago Blackhawks packed up and headed for points west, north and south as part of their annual November circus trip.The perennial Stanley Cup contenders were sitting atop the Central Division with an impressive 11-3-2 record. Defending scoring champion and reigning league MVP Patrick Kane was off to another sterling start with 18 points in 16 games. Frequent linemate Artem Anisimov was red-hot as well, with an 11-game point streak between Oct. 15 and Nov. 6.Just your run-of-the-mill dominance from a team for whom dominance has become commonplace. But -- have appearances been deceiving for the Blackhawks? And, more to the point, will this current road trip help bring the Blackhawks big picture into greater -- if not more accurate -- focus?In short, the answer is yes.In some ways, thats always been the case. When Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey invade the United Center for an extended stay through the Thanksgiving holidays each November, the Blackhawks subsequent road trip serves multiple purposes -- not the least of which is giving the team a chance for critical self-evaluation.This season, the annual circus trip might be even more important for Chicago, both in terms of accurately assessing where the team stands and in that it will allow the Blackhawks to more fully integrate a significant number of young players into the fold. Twin threads of the same tapestry, if you will.Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman acknowledged that his teams record might have been a little misleading, given how well netminders Corey Crawford and backup Scott Darling had played leading up to the trip.Crawford, overshadowed in some ways by the play of Carey Price in Montreal and a red-hot Tuukka Rask in Boston, has put together a body of work early on that should suggest Vezina Trophy and perhaps even Hart Trophy consideration.Coreys been unbelievable, Bowman said. Its allowed us to not play that well and still gain some confidence.Crawfords play specifically has helped mask transitional challenges for a lineup that features five rookies and another first-year player in 26-year-old defenseman Michal Kempny, a native of the Czech Republic?who came over from Russias Kontinental Hockey League during the offseason.When the Blackhawks -- who are a gaudy 8-1-2 at the United Center -- kicked off the circus trip by getting shut out in Winnipeg 4-0 Tuesday night, leveling their road record at 3-3, it reinforced the notion that they have a lot to learn during the trip.This is going to be a good benchmark for us as a team, Bowman said in an interview a few hours before Chicagos trip-opening loss.The Blackhawks have won three championships since 2010, but they followed up a 2015 Stanley Cup win with a first-round ouster at the hands of the?St. Louis Blues?last spring. Several key parts of that 2015 Cup roster are long gone, including Patrick Sharp, Brad Richards, Teuvo Teravainen, Kimmo Timonen, Antoine Vermette, Andrew Shaw and Brandon Saad.The Chicago model is the future for everyone, whether you win Cups or not, one top NHL executive said recently.As in, take your shot, cast off parts that dont fit under the salary cap, and then make another run at it.This season is no different. It took some time because we had so many new players, Bowman acknowledged. Youre trying a bunch of new things.Not everything worked. Early on, the Blackhawks penalty kill was historically bad. Even though theyve shown more structure of late, they still rank dead last in the league in penalty-killing efficiency.?One former NHL coach told ESPN.com early in the season that he wondered if there would be enough offense in the revamped lineup to keep the Blackhawks competitive in what has historically been the most competitive division in hockey. The Blackhawks are tied for sixth in goals per game despite their shutout loss on Tuesday. That is also in spite of the fact that captain Jonathan Toews got off to a slow start, with no goals in his first eight games. Toews has picked up the pace of late while often playing alongside Kane.Now this team will find out even more about itself over the next 11 days and six games, as it makes its way through Western Canada and Southern California.One thing that Bowman looks forward to is the fact that his young players, like 20-year-old college star Nick Schmaltz and 20-year-old defenseman Gustav Forsling, will get their first chance to spend quality time with the rest of the veteran core that remains so much of the teams identity.Those vets -- 37-year-old veteran Marian Hossa has 15 points in 16 games, for instance -- have helped to deflect some of the attention that might otherwise be on these young players as they get their NHL feet under them.Now theyll get a chance to spend time together away from the rink and connect in a much more personal way -- something thats been difficult with veterans for the most part heading home to their families when the teams in Chicago.We want these guys to come together as teammates, Bowman said. Right now they dont know each other all that well.This road trip should change that, just as it might give us a clearer understanding of exactly what this Blackhawks team is capable of. Mavericks Jerseys 2020 . Their 38th instalment is arguably their biggest fight card to date, including three-title fights and a main event which was selected by the fans. The promotion boasts 14-straight years of business and is operated by MFC president Mark Pavelich, who is often overlooked in this country for the foundation hes established for MMA in Canada. James Donaldson Jersey . LOUIS -- Valtteri Filppula assisted on three of Tampa Bays four goals, and the Lightning beat the St. https://www.cheapmavericks.com/803l-maxi-kleber-jersey-mavericks.html . According to a report from the Winnipeg Free Press, the Bombers will name Acting GM Kyle Walters to the post full time. DeShawn Stevenson Jersey . You can watch the game live on TSN at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt. The Flyers had won seven of eight before dropping their last two outings on consecutive days over the weekend. Philadelphia was handed a 6-3 loss by the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday afternoon before dropping a 4-1 decision to the Rangers the following night in New York City. Seth Curry Jersey . Miller reached right to deflect Mikhail Grabovskis attempt with just over 2 minutes remaining in regulation, and then made two more saves in the shootout Sunday to give the Sabres a 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals. CORAL GABLES, Fla. -- First-half foul trouble prevented Ebuka Izundu from contributing to his teammates dominant run.Izundu more than did his share in the second half as he scored all 14 of his team-high points to lead Miami to a 92-43 win over Western Carolina in the season opener for both teams on Friday night.All my teammates told me to keep my head in the game, said Izundu, who committed two offensive fouls 30 seconds into the game and sat out the rest of the half. That what I did, try to help my team win.Izundu shot 5 of 5 from the field in his first start for the Hurricanes after a reserve role during his freshman season.The Hurricanes started with an 18-4 spurt and maintained the double-digit lead the rest of the game, the first between both teams. Davon Reed keyed Miamis early run with a 3-pointer and a dunk.Right from the start we showed a lot of focus, intensity, team work, helping each other defensively, Miami coach Jim Larranaga said. At the offensive end, we shared the ball.JaQuan Newton, Kamari Murphy and Dewan Huell finished with 13 points each for Miami. Murphy scored 11 points in the first half and also finished with eight rebounds.Defensively we were great and we shared the ball, Murphy said. Thats the way basketball should be played.D.J. Vasiljevics 3-pointer with 58 seconds remaining in the half gave Miami a 41-18 lead. Vasiljevic was the Hurricanes fifth double scorer with 11 points.Three Western Carolina starters sat most of the first half because of foul trouble. Marc Gosselin committed four fouls in eight minutes and Devin Peterson and Charlendez Brooks had three each.Deriece Parks and Onno Steger scored 10 points each for the Catamounts.We were very outmanned to be honest with you, Western Carolina coach Larry Hunter said.dddddddddddd I thought their length early on and speed of the game first seven-eight minutes we werent ready for that. First game jitters -- our execution wasnt very good and they took advantage of that.HIGHLIGHT REEL: Huell, the Hurricanes highly-regarded freshman, scored his first college points on a slam dunk 3:08 into the game. Huell followed the dunk with a three-point play midway through the first half.HOMECOMING DEBUT: Catamounts freshman guard Maurice Smith, of neighboring Lauderdale Lakes, played 14 minutes in the second half. Smith was scoreless and had two assists.BIG PICTURE:Miami: The early signing period rewarded the Hurricanes with two players ranked in the top 100, according to recruiting services. Miamis early signees and members of the 2017-18 freshman class are 5-foot-7 guard Chris Lykes, of Gonzaga College High in Bowie, Md., Deng Gak, a 6-foot-11 forward from Blair Academy in Blairstown, New Jersey.Western Carolina: The Catamounts are 3-31 against ACC teams. Their last victory against a team from a Power Five conference was in 2001, when they defeated Florida State, 79-69. The Catamounts defeated then Big East-member Louisville in 2009.UP NEXT:Miami: the Hurricanes make their first road trip of the season Wednesday at North Florida. Miami is 3-0 in the all-time series against the Ospreys with the three victories at home.Western Carolina: the Catamounts open their 2016-17 home schedule against Hiwassee on Sunday afternoon. Western Carolina plays eight of its first 10 on the road. ' ' '