The Chicago Blackhawks came into Friday night’s action still looking to get back into the win column. With losses at Carolina and at home versus the Flyers, they continue to face good teams that have proven hard to beat this season. With the Winnipeg Jets and their high-flying offense coming to the UC, the Blackhawks would have to be good defensively to beat this team. The only notable lineup change from the Philadelphia game would be Petr Mrazek taking over the crease from Arvid Soderblom.
First period
Both teams traded chances early, with the first goal coming late in the period. At the 14:47 mark of the frame, in what seemed like a relatively harmless rush, Nikolaj Ehlers put a shot on net from a sharp angle. It went over Mrazek’s shoulder short side and found twine, giving the Jets a 1–0 lead. The Blackhawks out-shot the Jets in the first, but it did not matter, as the score stayed 1–0 going into the intermission.
Second period
It did not take nearly as long for a goal to come in the second, as Ehlers would go on to pot his second of the game. On a delayed penalty call, he took the puck coast to coast and ripped a shot past Mrazek’s pad, 2–0 Winnipeg. The Blackhawks would answer later in the period, though. At the 15:58 mark of the period, Seth Jones intercepted a pass in the slot. He put the puck up to Colin Blackwell, who broke into the Jets’ zone on a breakaway. Then, he tucked the puck over the glove of Connor Hellebuyck to make it 2–1 going into the break.
this angle tho🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/QHZbHt5tGN
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) February 24, 2024
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Third period
The Blackhawks were putting everything they had into tying this game up. They outshot the Jets 14–7 in the third period as a whole. It still took until the last minute for them to get the equalizer. With the goalie pulled and an extra skater on the ice, Jones managed to keep the puck in the zone despite a diving Ehlers’ best efforts. Jones got the puck to the front of the net, where Jason Dickinson tried to get the puck through. Then, the puck found its way to Tyler Johnson, who knotted this one up 2–2 with 43 seconds on the clock. This one was going to overtime.
TYLER JOHNSON TIES IT UP 🚨🚨 pic.twitter.com/BjZGk5AvRO
— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 24, 2024
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Overtime
Unfortunately, this one did not last long into overtime. As the Blackhawks have shown many times this year, they cannot withstand heavy offensive firepower in the 3-on-3 overtime frame. Kyle Connor skated into the Blackhawks’ zone with the puck. He put a shot towards the net that went off of Nick Foligno’s skate and redirected past Mrazek. The Jets snatched the victory 3–2 in overtime.
Analysis
As per usual this season, the Blackhawks’ undoing is the amount of turnovers they give up. I did not see any in particular that directly led to a goal, but that is not to say that they did not indirectly. This was just a rough loss, as they tried to do what they could to win, outshooting the Jets and putting the puck on net whenever possible.
The Blackhawks play next on Sunday afternoon against the Detroit Red Wings. That game will be at 5 p.m. CST on NHL Network and NBC Sports Chicago. Blackhawks legend Chris Chelios will have his No. 7 retired in a 3 p.m. ceremony before franchise icon Patrick Kane makes his return to the UC for the first time since being traded in 2023.