If you ever need an honest, perceptive and genuinely thoughtful answer to any question, Johnny Oduya is your guy. The veteran Blackhawks defenseman is a font of perspicacity and perspective, an oasis of insight in a sporting desert of cliches and coach speak.

But even Oduya pretty much came up empty when asked to explain the undeniable chemistry between himself and blue-line partner Niklas Hjalmarsson.