Hawks’ Michael Frolik mired in another long scoreless streak

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Chicago Blackhawks Vs Florida Panthers 1 St-Period Action. Blackhawks No.19 Jonathan Towes fires the puck past Florida Panthers goaltender No.60 Jose Theodore. January 20Th, 2012 I Scott Stewart~Sun-Times

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Updated: February 22, 2012 8:06AM

It’s feast or famine for winger Michael Frolik, who entered play Friday mired in another extended scoring drought.

Frolik took the ice against the Florida Panthers without a goal in his last 16 games, halfway to matching the 32-game scoreless streak that plagued him last season. Nothing has seemed to go his way, including an open-net miss last Saturday against the Detroit Red Wings.

‘‘Maybe it [would bother me before], but these days it doesn’t,’’ Frolik said. ‘‘It’s not easy. I try to not think about it too much and just play the game.’’

Frolik’s skid has caused him to be dropped to the fourth line, below rookies Andrew Shaw, Jimmy Hayes and Marcus Kruger.

Frolik came to the Hawks after back-to-back 20-goal seasons in his first two years in the league. Despite his struggles, he showed flashes of his potential with an outstanding playoff series last season against the Vancouver Canucks.

‘‘He’s had stretches,’’ said coach Joel Quenneville, who recently split up the third line of Frolik, Dave Bolland and Bryan Bickell after their production ‘‘dried up.’’

‘‘[Frolik has] got to get back to being more comfortable with the puck and having more confidence with it in the scoring area and having more pace to his game,’’ Quenneville said. ‘‘Last game, he took it to the net a couple of times. That was better in that area, though he didn’t necessarily get rewarded.’’

Back in business

There was a time this season when it looked as though the closest former Hawks center John Madden was going to get to the NHL was sitting on a couch with a remote control.

‘‘It was very difficult, no doubt about it,’’ said Madden, who told reporters he watched a lot of hockey, including the Hawks, before signing with the Florida Panthers on Jan. 4.

Madden didn’t have a point and was a minus-1 in five games entering play Friday, but he said he thinks he found the best situation for himself despite not taking advantage of several offers during the offseason.

‘‘When you’re .  .  . having doubts about whether your career is over or not, it really weighs on your mind, even though inside you don’t want it to be over and you feel you can still play,’’ Madden said.

Injury update

The Hawks hope forward Patrick Sharp (fractured left wrist) will be able to return to the lineup during the western Canada portion of their nine-game road trip, which starts Jan. 31.

Convention news

Passes for the 2012 Blackhawks Convention, which will be held
July 20-22 at the Chicago Hilton and Towers, will go on sale at
11 a.m. Tuesday.