Blackhawks feel good vibrations

• Reprints

Corey Crawford appears to have recaptured his form. He has won his last two games after a recent slump. | Brian Kersey~AP

Updated: January 29, 2012 8:16AM

A disheveled Dave Bolland leisurely strolled into the Blackhawks’ locker room, where more media was gathered than teammates. His famous mischievous-looking grin from successful playoff runs already was on his face before the first question.

Does it seem like you guys are playing your best right now?

“We’re playing at our best, but we still have more as a team,” said Bolland, looking around at the vacant locker-room stalls. “We have a few injuries; a few guys are out. But I think we have a lot more in us. I think we all know that.”

The Hawks have been an imperfect team the first half of the season, but they have the most points in the NHL with 50. Still, they want and expect much more.

Just like Bolland slowly made his way to meet the media Tuesday, this is a team that slowly found its stride and still managed to reach the top of the league.

Comparisons to their Stanley Cup-winning team two seasons ago are inevitable. After 36 games, the Hawks are 23-9-4. After 36 games two years ago, they were 24-9-3.

“It’s natural that people are going to start doing that,” Jonathan Toews said. “It’s nice to hear those accolades and things. Maybe it’s easier to keep cruising when people are believing in you and giving you high praise by saying that we’re comparing our team to the one we had two years ago. But none of that stuff really matters in here.

“We always focus on what we have to do, the same way when it’s not going so good and we’re being criticized. That won’t change much. We know we have a lot of room for improvement as a team. We’ll look at it that way.”

Take out the very productive runs of Toews, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp and Marian Hossa, and the main theme for the Hawks this season has been about continued improvement. It’s about finding the right places for new players and getting others to be more consistent.

Goalie Corey Crawford looks confident again after sitting on the bench for weeks and taking longer practices. Ray Emery overcame a bad training camp by proving he’s a viable backup.

Bolland is starting to get going offensively after an injury-plagued November. Viktor Stalberg seemingly has taken the next step in his development and become a solid secondary threat, which the Hawks lacked over the first 20-plus games.

After a rough November, the Hawks’ defense has settled in. The top pairing of Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook is a combined ­plus-10 in the last two games.

There are more signs, too. The special teams have become more consistent, and Jamal Mayers’ fourth line is getting better.

Overall, the Hawks’ continuous improvement — which is best exemplified by a 9-1-1 record in December — has Toews, Bolland and others saying they have the same vibe as when they won the Cup.

Plus, general manager Stan Bowman, who has plenty of salary-cap room this time, hopes to make his team even better by the trade deadline.

“Every single game we go in there [knowing], even though we don’t play our best game, we know we can find a way to win,” Toews said. “That was one of the biggest things about our team a couple years ago, that we had different guys stepping up every single night. We’re seeing more and more of that right now.”

The Hawks’ most recent victory Monday over the ­Columbus Blue Jackets was like that. They were outplayed in the first and third periods, but a three-goal spurt, including two by Stalberg, in the second paved the way for a 4-1 victory.

There are other examples. The Hawks are 8-1-1 when they’re outshot.

“When we have all four lines rolling [and] all six ‘D’ going, we’re a top team,” Bolland said. “We’re like that team we had two years ago. We have that kind of persona in this room to do it again.”

In some ways, the Hawks’ gradual rise to the top had them flying under the radar — until now.

“It’s fine with me,” Toews said. “We’ll get the attention when it really matters.”