CHICAGO - Forget Patrick Kanes flashy moves and Jonathan Toews steady play. Same for the rest of the talented forwards on the Chicago Blackhawks. Instead, check out the players who line up right behind the teams biggest stars. Chicagos athletic defencemen play a prominent role in the NHLs most potent offence. Duncan Keith leads all NHL defencemen with 30 assists. Niklas Hjalmarsson is on pace for career highs in goals and assists. Brent Seabrook has three goals and 23 assists after he had 20 points in 47 games last season. Nick Leddy and Johnny Oduya also have provided valuable support on offence. Its hard enough for teams to deal with the likes of Kane and Toews. Now, when Keith & Co. are coming up and taking aim, the Blackhawks turn into a goaltenders nightmare. "I love our defence. Theyve been huge for us the past two seasons," forward Patrick Sharp said. "They all skate well. They all move the puck and with the forwards that we have in our locker room, we like to get it with speed and they do a good job of getting it to us. Our defence (has) been the key to our team this year." The importance of Chicagos offensive defencemen was on full display Monday night, when the Blackhawks beat the New Jersey Devils 5-2 for their sixth win in the last eight games. Leddy helped set up Kanes tiebreaking goal in the second period, and then capped the scoring with his fifth of the season in the third. Seabrook added two assists. It was the Blackhawks 15th game with at least five goals, running their league-best total to 145. They also lead the NHL with an average of 2.87 points a game by their defencemen, according to STATS, a significant increase from their 2.08 average for last seasons Stanley Cup-winning team. St. Louis, which hosts Chicago on Saturday night, is next on the list with 2.64 points a game for its defencemen and 128 goals overall. "I think as a defence corps you know that its important that we help control the offensive goal, not just necessarily scoring points but just being in on the attack and being an extra option that might create some space for our forwards," said Keith, who also had an assist against the Devils. Keith is one of the top contenders for the Norris Trophy after he took home the award for the NHLs top defenceman in 2010. The 30-year-old Keith, who was selected by the Blackhawks in the second round of the 2002 draft, has led the team in ice time every season since he made his debut in 2005. He plays alongside Seabrook in Chicagos top defensive pairing. "The two of them have been together basically since they broke into the league," said coach Joel Quenneville, a former NHL defenceman. "Thats been a big part of our team. When you think about all the shifts theyve played together, theres a lot of familiarity with one another and I think they complement each other for the right reasons." That familiarity is a common theme when it comes to the Blackhawks defencemen. Seabrook, a first-round draft pick by Chicago in 2003, had two of the Blackhawks biggest goals in their run to the title last season. He scored in overtime in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals against Detroit after Chicago battled back from a 3-1 series deficit, and then had another overtime winner in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup finals at Boston. Hjalmarsson also was drafted by the Blackhawks and is in his seventh season with the team. The 22-year-old Leddy, a 2009 first-round selection by Minnesota, was acquired in a trade in 2010 and has played for Chicago for four seasons. Oduya came over in a February 2012 trade with Winnipeg. "Youre with a group or a linemate or a defence partner for a certain amount of time, you develop that chemistry on the ice and even off the ice," Keith said. "You become more familiar with one another and closer. I just think it helps the overall game on the ice knowing what guys tend to do out on the ice and what they want to do." The Blackhawks (26-7-6) also have done a strong job of finding the right players for their system, which emphasizes puck possession. The eight defencemen on Chicagos roster range in height from 6-foot (Leddy and Oduya) to 6-3 (Seabrook and Hjalmarsson) and weight from 190 pounds for Oduya to 221 for Seabrook. The top defencemen are all strong skaters who are comfortable with the puck on their stick and can cover a lot of ground in a hurry. "The style of play fits the player and the player fits style of play," Oduya said. "I think thats important." Authentic Shoes Wholesale . Switzerland faces Belgium or Kazakhstan in the quarterfinals in April. Serbia dropped into the World Group playoffs in September. A confident Chiudinelli and Lammer defeated veteran doubles player Zimonjic and young Krajinovic 7-6 (3), 3-6, 7-6 (2), 6-2. Cheap Shoes Outlet Stores . 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Anthony continued his success against Atlanta by scoring 25 points and New York regrouped after blowing a 17-point lead to beat the Hawks 95-91 on Wednesday night. It was an important win for the Knicks, who were coming off an ugly 120-89 loss to San Antonio on Sunday. "Oh, man, it was a great way to kind of get back on track," Anthony said. "Any time you can win on the road, thats always a big win." Anthony averaged 41 points against the Hawks in two games last season, bringing his career average against Atlanta to 26.9. Smith, last seasons Sixth Man of the Year, made his first start since March 9, 2012, at Milwaukee. He came off the bench in each of his 80 games last season. Smith was suspended the first five games this season for violating the NBAs anti-drug program. Coach Mike Woodson said before the game he started Smith instead of Pablo Prigioni to "see if we can get off to a better start." Smith did his part, making three of four 3-pointers in the opening period as the Knicks took a 29-24 lead. Prigioni started the second quarter and followed Smiths lead, sinking a 3-pointer to give the Knicks their first double-digit lead at 36-26. Smith finished with 12 points in only his second game of the season after off-season knee surgery. "I kind of went over my limit with him," Woodson said. "He played 32 minutes and I didnt want to go over 30. But its tough when youre trying to win games and youre turning to your trainer and asking how many minutes hes on the floor.... It makes it a little tough." The Knicks committed only six turnovers. The Hawks had 15, including four by rookie point guard Dennis Schroder in less than 9 minutes. New York outscored Atlanta 30-23 in the final period. "Much better effort than we put forth in that San Antonio game," Anthony said. "Im glad to see that we responded in that fashion and put that game behind us." The Knicks, relying on 3-pointers, led 47-30 in the second period and 55-45 at halftime. New York made only 5 of 25 shots from the field while being outscored 233-10 in the third period, leaving the Hawks with a 68-65 lead.dddddddddddd "We took some quick shots," Anthony said. "I took some quick shots. We just had to settle down and get our composure back, get our momentum back and go from there." Anthony and the Knicks regained control after the Hawks led 78-72 early in the fourth quarter. Anthony made a free throw, driving layup and a 3-pointer to launch an 11-0 run that gave New York the lead. Andrea Bargnanis 3-pointer capped the run. Anthony made 9 of 25 shots from the field. "Hes a heck of a player," said Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer. "I feel like a lot of the night we made Carmelo work for his shots, but because hes a great player he was able to make some of those tough shots. At that big moment, they needed him to step up and he did. Its a credit to Carmelo." Bargnani had 20 points and 11 rebounds, and rookie Tim Hardaway Jr. had 14 points for New York. Jeff Teague led Atlanta with 25 points and eight assists. Al Horford had 23 points. Horford said the Hawks must learn to finish out games. "I feel good about our team," Horford said. "We just need to learn how to hold the leads and finish out these games. Weve let some of these slip away, so we need to be better in that regard." Teague said the Hawks are still coming together in Budenholzers first season. "We made mistakes," Teague said. "Were still a new group and were still trying to figure one another out. Were getting better every game. (The Knicks) have been together for a while." The Knicks made eight of their first 16 3-pointers. The Hawks missed their first nine 3s before Cartier Martin ended the drought late in the second period. NOTES: Hawks G Lou Williams has been cleared for full participation in practice as he continues to recover from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee on Jan. 18. ... Kyle Korver made two 3-pointers and has at least one 3 in 81 consecutive games, the second-longest streak in NBA history behind Dana Barros (89). ... New Yorks Metta World Peace had four points on his 34th birthday. ... Teague made 11 of 14 free throws. ... Martin had 13 points for Atlanta. ' ' '