For a lesson in chemistry, take a look at the Chicago Blackhawks current season, writes Bryan Dietzler in an online Bleacher Report article.

Avid sports fans may think the Blackhawks are currently suffering from “Stanley Cup Hangover.” Since the team won a championship last year, the slow season start is a common sports phenomenon of not playing at an optimum level after a championship winning year, aka a “hangover.” Dietzler says this may be true, but the bigger reason behind their struggles is due to team chemistry.

“Chemistry is the result of extended time practicing and playing with a group of people in order to build cohesion and team unity,” wrote Dietzler. The Blackhawks traded players and released other team members and signed new talent after winning the Stanley Cup. In effect, the Blackhawk’s team chemistry has been seriously interrupted.

Dietzler points out that hockey lines thrive on chemistry or teamwork: players need to “think and do things without speaking and know each other’s tendencies.” A hockey line moves as a single unit. It’s hard to act as one person until the new players and old players rebuild their chemistry, learning how each teammate think and plays.

As the Blackhawk’s “new” team begins to gel, watch for the team chemistry to come together on the ice.