ANAHEIM, Calif. — Andreas Athanasiou usually sports a bit of a beard, a hair more than a five-o’clock shadow.
But the last time the forward skated with the Chicago Blackhawks, he didn’t look nearly as hirsute as he appeared Friday.
“It’s growing a little bit right now,” Athanasiou said after practice at the Honda Center. “Yeah, I’m not sure what I’ll do with it.”
But Athanasiou said not much else has changed about him during his 3½-month stint with Rockford.
“I got to play a lot of hockey there,” he said. “Can’t really say I changed anything up or did anything differently. I kind of just know my game and just keep trying to build it every day, and it’s all I really did.”
Athanasiou was recalled Friday, along with defenseman Wyatt Kaiser, while defenseman Nolan Allan was sent down to Rockford.
Meanwhile, forwards Nick Foligno (back) and Philipp Kurashev (hand) sat out practice Friday and are day to day.
After being almost an afterthought for months, Athanasiou skated with Connor Bedard and Tyler Bertuzzi on the top line Friday, and odds are that will be the alignment Saturday against the Anaheim Ducks in the last stop on a three-game trip.
It’s for that reason and others that Athanasiou and Kaiser are players to watch.
Athanasiou jumps right into the deep end with Bedard.
It wouldn’t have been a stretch to think we had seen the last of Athanasiou in a Hawks uniform.
He played five games in October — the last being at home against the Vancouver Canucks on Oct. 22 — but didn’t record a point. He has a relatively dangerous Fenwick-for percentage of minus-16.7%.
Athanasiou’s cap hit, which initially was $4.25 million at signing, was identical to Jason Dickinson’s, but Dickinson relative DFF% this season is 38.7%
Athanasiou, 30, became a fixture on the scratch list before being assigned to the IceHogs on Nov. 12.
“It was good,” he said. “I got to play a lot of hockey, and it was a good group of guys, and we started having a lot of fun there, playing some good hockey.”
Athanasiou said he didn’t wonder about whether he had seen his last chance with the Hawks.
“I didn’t think about that at all,” he said. “I just kind of came in and tried to make myself better every day and go out there and play hard for all those guys down there.”
Next thing you know, he’s on a flight to Anaheim on Friday morning, makes a beeline to the rink and takes line rushes with Bedard.
You would understand why some might scratch their heads about that choice.
Last season, Bedard and Athanasiou (regardless of the third forward) had an expected-goals-for percentage of just 31.9%.
With Athanasiou, Bedard’s lines had a 43.7 xGF%.
“Pace,” Hawks interim coach Anders Sorensen when asked why he placed Athanasiou as Bedard’s left wing. “He’s been playing well down there and obviously played at this level.
“He could be a good injection, pace-wise. And he’s versatile. He can play all different scenarios, so it’s good.”
Last season, it seemed like Athanasiou helped create a lot of chances but couldn’t help convert many of them.
When asked if he watched tape of Bedard and Athanasiou together, Sorensen said: “I did not, no. … He knows how to produce. Looking forward to having him there.”
Nothing has set in stone with the forward lines lately, anyway.
“We’re trying different things,” Sorensen said. “We’re not winning right now, so we’ve got to find different ways to create more chances but balance the lineup.”
Athanasiou downplayed the role.
“Obviously (it’s) unbelievable to get to play with him,” he said of Bedard. “But no matter who it is, it’s another day you get to play hockey, so you can’t complain.
“And no matter who it is, no matter where it is, you’ve just got to go out and give it your best.”
Kaiser stays level through an up-and-down season.
He was sidelined by an illness during camp and missed the season opener. But he played in the Hawks’ second game, against the Winnipeg Jets, through Dec. 14.
Kaiser was sent to Rockford on Dec. 20 and called up again nine days later. He was assigned to the IceHogs again on Jan. 23 before his latest call-up.
Kaiser borrowed a phrase from Colton Dach — “mental warfare” — to describe the yo-yo effect of going up and down between Chicago and Rockford.
“Sometimes you get told (by coaches) exactly what they want you to work on, and sometimes you don’t hear much,” he told the Tribune.
At the same time, players have to acclimate to a new locker room, new situation and a hotel instead of home.
“So it is mental warfare, for sure, a little bit,” the 22-year-old said, “but just understanding that, long term, it’s a process.
“You’re still trying to get better, and whether you go through here or the AHL, you’re still getting better. By the time you’re 25 you’re going to be way better than you are now, right?”
Kaiser knows what he has to work on: breakouts, puck handling and skating a lot more.
“Just get back to playing my brand of hockey a little bit,” he said.
Sorensen said he has received “really good” reports about Kaiser from IceHogs interim coach Mark Eaton.
“(I) talked to Eats and watched some video on him too,” Sorensen said. “He’s back to where he was earlier in the year where he’s able to transport pucks and break up some plays.
“So, looking forward to having him back in the lineup here.”
