Chicago's Nick Foligno blasts his entire team

The Chicago Blackhawks weren't able to ring in the new year in the manner in which they had hoped last night against the Dallas Stars, who absolutely had their way with them. By the time it was all said and done, the Blackhawks had surrendered eight goals against the host Stars, who continue to be a force in the Western Conference and almost certainly will be a favorite to win the Stanley Cup this spring.

And last night's brutal loss didn't sit well with veteran forward Nick Foligno, who was not pleased whatsoever with his team's effort.

"I don't know. That is really, really disappointing. Because we talked about how we were trending in the right direction," Foligno said.

"My only hope for a game like today is we just finally hammer it through our thick heads of how we're going to need to play, and that is not it. That is just not who we are, not who we can be. That's not what we expect in the room; that's not what our fans should expect. That's what pisses me off."

It was especially troubling for Foligno, who knows that the young and rebuilding Blackhawks absolutely cannot afford to mail it in against a top opponent like Dallas.

"That's not a winning team; that's just a team hoping. Hoping, 'Ah, maybe it's an easy night. Maybe the other team doesn't have it.' Are you kidding me? That team's record, and we're going to play like that? I'm sorry, just that one is really really frustrating with the strides we think we've been making."

"We owe it to ourselves and to our fans to be a better version, and every game we have to strive for that...."

Even in a difficult circumstance, Foligno is certainly showing leadership that the rest of the team ought to follow.

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