NEW YORK — MacKenzie Entwistle might be the most well-liked player on the Blackhawks.

In the locker room after any practice or morning skate, there’s a good chance the 23-year-old forward will be laughing, joking or messing around with several of his teammates, lightening the mood while simultaneously bringing a competitive spirit.

So when Entwistle — after 21 straight games without a goal to start the season — finally buried a shot Wednesday against the Oilers, the Hawks were thrilled.

“First of all, it’s great to see ‘Twisty’ get rewarded,” Max Domi said that night. “He has been playing so hard, and he’s such a great kid. We all love him in here. He has been all over it, so it’s awesome to see him get on the board.”

To Entwistle himself, the goal was just a relief — and a bittersweet sweet one, at that, considering the Hawks still lost that game.

“It sucks not being able to contribute,” Entwistle said. “Not that I wasn’t contributing, but I want to get on the board, I want to help the team win. I felt like, [during] my first 20 games, I had a couple looks and they just weren’t going in. It’s nice to finally get on the board.”

But he did believe it could ignite some momentum for the fourth line, which he has recently been centering with Boris Katchouk and Reese Johnson on his wings. Katchouk had scored his own first goal of the season, after 11 straight goose eggs, earlier the same night.

“It’s about building blocks, and tonight was a big building block for us,” Entwistle added. “The first 20 games, Boris was hurt for a little bit and Reese was in and out of the lineup. For us to get a couple points tonight…is a big confidence-booster. Now it’s just about doing that night-in and night-out.”

As it turns out, he was right.

Over the Hawks’ last three games now, starting against the Oilers and continuing against the Rangers and Islanders this past weekend, the fourth line has been objectively their best. In fact, based on the advanced stats, they’ve enjoyed one of the better three-game stretches by any Hawks line this season.

During their 19 minutes of five-on-five ice time together, the Hawks have enjoyed a 20-12 advantage in shot attempts and 9-3 edge in scoring chances, outscored their opponents 3-1 and produced 80.3% of the expected goals.

By comparison, the Hawks’ second-best line during this stretch — the second line, centered by Domi — sports a measly 39.5% expected-goals ratio. The third line (centered by Jason Dickinson) is at 36.7% and the first line (centered by Jonathan Toews) is at 33.4%.

In the Hawks’ skid-busting win Saturday over the Rangers, Johnson tallied the much-needed first goal of the game, concluding an excellent first shift for the whole line. Coach Luke Richardson mentioned twice after the game, then a third time before Sunday’s game, how strongly that shift set the team’s tone.

“Entwistle’s line again gave us a great start,” Richardson said. “[They] just put the puck in, forechecked them, got it back to the point and shot the puck while getting bodies in front. We got a good tip. The other guys recognized it, realized it and followed suit. So that was a good example for the whole team, the way they played.”

Even in the ensuing loss Sunday, the fourth line outshot the Islanders 4-2 (at five-on-five) while the rest of the team was collectively buried in shots, 28-12.

The Hawks will likely need more contributions from their bottom-six forwards Tuesday. The Devils’ shockingly good 20-4-1 start has been driven by their depth, with a whopping 10 forwards already having recorded at least 12 points. By comparison, only three Hawks forwards (Patrick Kane, Domi and Toews) have reached that threshold.

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The clearest sign Matt Eberflus will succeed as Bears coach is his capacity to adjust. It’s refreshing after Matt Nagy’s stubbornness.

Eberflus has shown great flexibility with in-game tweaks throughout the season, but did his most impressive work during a 10-day break in October. He reworked his lineup, retooled the offense and redirected Justin Fields’ trajectory.

Now he needs to do it again.

As the Bears start their bye week, it’s time to reassess everything with an eye on what can be gained over the final four games. They’re meaningless in the standings as the Bears sit 3-10, but they’re purposeful in the big picture.

Any conversation about the future centers on Fields, and the bye lets him further heal from his separated shoulder and evaluate his decision making as a passer. It also enables Eberflus and offensive coordinator Luke Getsy to analyze how to best use him.

One key issue facing the Bears is how to maximize Fields’ running ability without overusing him.

The Bears used tight end Cole Kmet on quarterback sneaks against the Dolphins, and in their loss to the Packers they ran two wildcat plays with running backs David Montgomery and Darrynton Evans.

“We are trying to go with that in the future to take some hits off of Justin,” Eberflus said. “Justin is going to take the plays when he can, of course, but we want to use him in [important] situations.”

The Bears won’t restrict Fields’ running, nor should they. It’s vital to his game. But they can be judicious about how often and when they expose him to getting drilled.

Eberflus and Getsy should also take a hard look at their wide receivers, especially newcomer Chase Claypool.

Claypool came over in a trade at the start of November and has now played five games. He has averaged 2.4 catches (on 4.4 targets) for 22.2 yards while playing 46% of the snaps.

How is anyone OK with that?

Everyone expected a little more, a little sooner when the Bears gave up a second-round pick — currently No. 34 overall — for him.

The Bears have shown zero urgency with Claypool, almost as if that’s a project for next season. But he’ll seek a contract extension in the coming offseason, and Fields needs help at receiver now.

Coming out of the bye week, Claypool needs to be fully integrated and getting close to 10 targets per game. That’s important at the moment and for the future, because Fields needs to build chemistry with him and the Bears need to be certain of what they have before committing to a massive contract.

Beyond Claypool, the Bears should allocate snaps to wide receivers most likely to help them in 2023.

Rookie Velus Jones tops that list, regardless of the Bears seeming hesitant to trust him on offense. He’ll learn best by getting in games.

Speaking of wide receivers, did everybody see N’Keal Harry’s 49-yard catch in the fourth quarter? Whoa. That’s Exhibit A on why he should play more. There’s a lot to like about the former first-round pick and his 6-foot-4, 225-pound frame, but the Bears haven’t given him a chance.

Reorient the passing game around Claypool, Harry and Jones and see what they can do.

On the offensive line, if the Bears are comfortable enough to play Alex Leatherwood in a rotation, they should be comfortable enough to put him out there for a full game.

He probably isn’t as good as 11-year veteran Riley Reiff now, but he could be eventually. Leatherwood was a first-round pick from Alabama last year and is under contract through 2024. Playing him over Reiff makes sense.

Eberflus was noncommittal about such a move Monday, but was pleased with how Leatherwood played and seemed amenable to making a future-focused roster decision.

It’s another example of his willingness to adapt, and the moves he makes coming out of the bye will be telling.

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Monday, December 5, 2022

CHICAGO PREP

Rochelle Zell at Northtown, 7:00

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL

North Shore at Lake Forest Academy, 6:00

LAKE SHORE ATHLETIC

ACERO-Cruz at Wolcott, 6:30

NOBLE LEAGUE – BLUE

Noble Street at DRW Prep, 7:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE WHITE-WEST

Ogden at Wells, 5:00

NON CONFERENCE

Bulls Prep at Loyola, 5:30

Calvary (Normal) at Lowpoint-Washburn, 7:00

Carver at UIC Prep, 5:00

Chicago Math & Science at Northside, 5:00

Christian Life at Westlake Christian, 7:30

Cristo Rey at Washington, 7:00

EPIC at Manley, 5:00

Foreman at Raby, 5:00

Gage Park at Hancock, 5:00

Gardner-So. Wilmington at Woodland, 7:00

Golder at Excel-Englewood, 5:30

Grant at McHenry, 7:00

Hiawatha at Our Lady Sacred Heart, 5:30

Holy Trinity at UC-Woodlawn, 5:00

Horizon-McKinley at Hinsdale Adventist, 5:00

Horizon-Southwest at Islamic Foundation, 6:00

Ida Crown at Beacon, 7:00

Julian at Roosevelt, 5:00

Lake View at North Grand, 5:00

LaMoille at Henry-Senachwine, 7:00

Marian Central at Rockford Lutheran, 7:00

Muchin at Universal, 7:00

Rochelle at Dixon, 7:00

Sandburg at Thornridge, 6:00

Serena at Dwight, 5:30

Stagg at Shepard, 6:30

Thornwood at Dyett, 5:00

Vernon Hills at Grayslake Central, 7:00

Zion-Benton at New Trier, 6:30

HALL

Bureau Valley vs. Pontiac, 5:30

LaSalle-Peru vs. Marquette, 7:00

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Bears receiver Equanimeous St. Brown received an apology text from Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander on Sunday — but didn’t know what it was for.

Monday morning, he found out. In a postgame interview, Alexander — who intercepted Justin Fields’ pass when he jumped in front of St. Brown with about three minutes to play — called the receiver a “scrub.”

The two were teammates together in Green Bay for four years, and were in the same draft class.

“I mean he had already apologized for it, so it was probably heat of the moment for him,” St. Brown said Monday. “I don’t take anything personal. Yeah, it is what it is.”

He said Alexander is about more than the one comment.

“I know how he is as a person,” St. Brown said. “He’s a great player. A lot of DBs talk a lot. He apologized, it is what it is. People talk [crap].”

St. Brown had three catches for 85 yards Sunday, including a 56-yarder with Alexander in coverage. That’s what prompted Alexander’s comments.

“Man, he a scrub,” he said in the locker room after the game. “I can’t believe I let him catch that on me. But hat’s off to him because he did make a good catch.”

St. Brown was criticized by both Fields and head coach Matt Eberflus for not fighting his way out of a curl route late in the game, which led to Alexander intercepting the pass. At the least, they said, he needed to try to keep the pass from becoming an interception.

“I’ve got to try to get that ball out sooner,” St. Brown said.

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A jury awarded more than $2.6 million to three former Lake County employees who claimed they were fired by County Clerk Erin Cartwright Weinstein because they supported her opponent in the 2016 election.

One of Weinstein’s first acts after taking office in December 2016, after defeating incumbent clerk Keith Brin, was to fire three of Brin’s former top deputies — Michelle Higgins, Tiffany Deram and Joshua Smothers.

While Weinstein and the county attorneys offered multiple reasons for terminating the three during six days of trial testimony, the verdict returned Friday showed jurors believed Weinstein fired the workers because they weren’t on her team, attorney Paul Vickrey said.

“I think the jury was sending a message,” Vickrey said Monday, noting jurors’ award increased the amount of punitive damages for each of the three plaintiffs to $75,000 from the $50,000 they had requested.

“Dedicated, competent civil servants should not have to worry about losing their jobs every four years for exercising their First Amendment rights on their own personal time,” Vickrey said.

In an email response to questions Monday, Weinstein denied the firings were tied to the workers’ support for Brin.

“I am very disappointed in the verdict,” Weinstein wrote. “I would never terminate someone’s employment for supporting my opponent. I did what I believed was in the best interest of my administration. The attorney general’s office is currently working on post-trial motions, and reviewing the possibility of an appeal.”

A spokeswoman for Attorney General Kwame Raoul declined to comment on the case.

Higgins, Deram and Smothers had actively campaigned for Brin in the months before they were fired. Weinstein, her husband or Weinstein’s top deputy Donna Hamm had seen the three workers marching in parades alongside Brin or at other political events throughout the campaign, according to records in the case.

Higgins had worked in the clerk’s office since 1985 and was chief of the criminal courts division when she was fired in December 2016. Deram, who worked in the office since 1998, was deputy chief of the records division. Smothers, who had worked for the clerk since 2007, was supervisor of the Round Lake branch court. The three had argued that their jobs did not involve making policy decisions and that political alignment with the clerk was not a valid job requirement.

In depositions, Weinstein admitted that she had consulted the county Human Resources department about firing the employees the week before she took office, and that she did not review their personnel files before telling them to clean out their desks, according to court records.

Including punitive damages, compensation for pain and suffering, lost wages and pension, Higgins was awarded $1.1 million; Deram received $1 million; and Smothers $542,000. Weinstein won a second term as clerk in 2020.

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SACRAMENTO – Billy Donovan gave his players Monday off.

The length of the six-game road trip warranted that. The play definitely didn’t.

But still, the Bulls coach was hoping when they do reconvene in the Tuesday practice, there’s a refocus on toughness.

According to one Bulls veteran player, there’s definitely at least going to be some tough love going on.

“There’s going to be tough conversations, there’s going to be words said,” guard Zach LaVine said, when asked about turning the 9-14 start around. “Sometimes you need that. From top to bottom we’ve all got to try and figure it out, because no one is going to dig us out of this hole besides us.”

And it is a hole.

Not only being a season-low five games under .500, but sitting 12th in the Eastern Conference, with only Charlotte, Detroit and Orlando looking up at them.

“I talked to them prior to training camp starting, and I knew this was going to be a hard year for our team,” Donovan said. “This is really where you find out – because we have to dig ourselves out of this – that no one is helping us. Players, coaches, we’ve got to figure this out. They were all like, ‘We’re going to handle the adversity.’ Well, these are the moments that everybody has got to be able to work together, pull together, and pull yourself out of it.”

That’s the disappointing part with this team – it looked like they would take a positive and run with it several times this season.

There was a big home win over Toronto last month, only to be followed up by four-straight losses. Then in one of the more signature wins of the season, the Bulls beat Boston 121-107, following that up with an unexpected win in Milwaukee to start the six-game road trip.

Even after the loss in Oklahoma City, they rallied a game later, beating former Bull Lauri Markkanen and the Utah Jazz. Three wins in four games, and all over quality teams.

That’s about when the trip went off the rails.

Devin Booker dropped 51 on them in just three quarters of work in a blowout loss in Phoenix, and then they dug huge holes against Golden State and Sacramento, only to see comebacks fall short in the second half.

That’s why it was an obviously frustrated group in the Kings visiting locker room.

“Zach, DeMar [DeRozan], Vooch [Nikola Vucevic], Goran [Dragic], Andre [Drummond] … you’ve got a lot of veteran players that have been in the league for a while,” Donovan said. “They take a lot of pride, and they’re competitive guys. When you’re not winning, I understand that [frustration].”

But now it’s how will they use it?

DeRozan wanted to make sure it would be used correctly.

“I’ve got the most confidence in the world that once it clicks for us, it’s going to click,” DeRozan said. “It won’t matter who we’re playing. That’s the beauty of sports, life. You get down, the true character shows up. Who do you wanna be? It’s up to us to control that narrative going forward. You know it’s supposed to be frustrating, supposed to hurt, supposed to suck, supposed to be all these things, and now how do we channel that and challenge ourselves to come out of this and make something out of it?

“All these guys show frustration, show anger, and that’s a great sign. We’ve got to channel that in the right direction, the start of games, second quarter, third quarter, closing out games. Once we see we can do it and it gives us a belief, we’ll be fine.”

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