Dave Bolland standing with the Blackhawks starters while being honored for his One More Shift. (Photo by Chase Agnello-Dean/NHLI via Getty Images)

Prior to Friday’s game, the Blackhawks honored two-time Stanley Cup Champion and former Chicago Blackhawks forward Dave Bolland for his One More Shift. Bolland received a warm welcome from the home town faithful at the United Center.

A loud and well-deserved ovation for the return of Coyotes legend Dave Bolland. pic.twitter.com/0LogK0XTKc

— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) October 19, 2019

The famous saying “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” was in order for head coach Jeremy Colliton ahead of the game. The only lineup change made was at goalie, as Robin Lehner was starting in goal:

DeBrincat – Toews – Caggiula

Shaw – Strome – Kane

Saad – Kampf – Kubalik

Smith – Carpenter – Nylander

Keith – Murphy

Maatta – Seabrook

de Haan – Gustafsson

Lehner

First period

After everyone settled into their seats, the third line did what they have done best throughout this young season: be a force to be reckoned with. Roughly fourty seconds into the period, Brandon Saad and Dominik Kubalik started a rush up ice with Saad dishing over to Kubalik. After the Czech winger crossed the opposing blue line, he dipped his shoulder and fed a pass to Saad in front. Unfortunately, the bid was denied.

Early in the opening frame, the Blue Jackets did a good job of controlling the pace of play. They generated numerous quality scoring chances early, including on the power play, but Robin Lehner stood tall. 

After very little action to touch on, the Blackhawks struck first. Calvin de Haan fed a pass up the left wing boards to Alex DeBrincat in the Blackhawks’ zone. DeBrincat subsequently fired a pass off the glass and down the ice. The feed perfectly found Drake Caggiula at the opposing blue line, waiting for the dish. Caggiula skated in on the two-on-two and wired a perfect shot to the top right corner of the net for his first goal of the season.

Drake Caggiula's first goal of the year is NICE

Stream the game here: https://t.co/heSdrKpFnT pic.twitter.com/4UMWQE1ceq

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) October 19, 2019

After the impressive tally by Caggiula, the Blackhawks took their lead into the first intermission, despite being outshot by the Blue Jackets 15–10 and badly out possessed. 

Second period

The middle frame against Columbus felt awfully familiar. The Blackhawks seemed to come out flat, unlike they did against Edmonton. The game Monday finally seemed like the Blackhawks improved in the middle frame. They didn’t play bad, but they were still outshot and out possessed.

The best chance of the early minutes came from Chicago. Calvin de Haan found the puck behind the net and dished it out in front to Patrick Kane. Kane was able to get a good shot off, but Columbus goaltender Elvis Merzlikins made an excellent save on the play.

About five and a half minutes into the period, the Blue Jackets’ top center took over. Pierre-Luc Dubois was fighting for the puck against the Blackhawks’ top pairing and was able to wiggle his way around Connor Murphy for the loose puck. Upon gaining possession, Dubois out-waited Robin Lehner, forcing him out of position, and fired a bad angle shot into the back of the wide open net. The game-tying goal felt inevitable after Columbus had dominated possession.

The Blackhawks’ best chance of the period came about a minute after the Dubois goal. Merzlikins attempted to move the puck up ice but the pass was picked off by Andrew Shaw. Shaw found Kane down low to Merzlikins’ right side as he waited for one of his linemates to get open. Dylan Strome ended up being open back door, but could not connect on the one-timer that would have given Chicago the lead.

The Blackhawks survived the middle frame without yielding any more damage. Columbus outshot Chicago once again in the period and was the better possession team again. 

Third period

The opening minutes of the third period did not look great for the Blackhawks. They looked sluggish and behind in comparison to their opponent. Around three minutes into the period, a Blackhawks turnover led to a Columbus rush up the ice. Defenseman Markus Nutivaara fired a shot on net and followed his own rebound. The rebound shot wasn’t as strong as the first, but he got just enough on the puck to float it into the back of the net and give the visitors the 2–1 lead.

https://twitter.com/NHL_fi/status/1185518584627367937

Following the goal, the Blackhawks found more of a pep in their step. They seemed to turn it on after going down a goal in the third period. With about 12 minutes remaining, the Blackhawks had an important power play but nearly cost themselves. Nick Foligno had a shorthanded breakaway and the puck squeaked through Lehner. However, the whistle had already been blown before the puck trickled out from under Lehner and into the back of the net. Chicago lived to see another day.

The reason that power play was so important is because about forty seconds later, Gustafsson set up at the point on that power play and found Patrick Kane at his usual right wing spot on the man advantage. Kane gifted a perfect pass across the ice to DeBrincat, who was set up at the left wing face-off dot. DeBrincat wasted no time, one-timing the puck into the back of the net to tie the game at two-a-piece. 

pic.twitter.com/oApg048srb

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) October 19, 2019

For the remainder of the third, the Blackhawks penalty kill stood tall and Lehner looked good. The Blackhawks were able to generate a power play themselves, thanks to Ryan Carpenter, but they could not capitalize on the opportunity. The game required overtime to determine a winner at 1901 W. Madison St. 

Overtime

Columbus won the opening face-off of the extra frame and proceeded up ice. Despite having possession for the first forty seconds, the visitors could not do anything with the opportunity. 

Instead, the dynamic Kane-Toews duo proceeded up the ice with Toews feeding Kane as the trigger man. Kane put a shot on net, that ultimately hit Toews’ shin pad, and it found its way into the back of the net to secure the Blackhawks 3–2 victory. 

Jonathan Toews overtime winner for his first goal of the season. He’ll take it. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/Cwjr2pASuC

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) October 19, 2019

Quick Hits

• Day late, but not a dollar short: The Blackhawks lacked meaningful energy until the Blue Jackets took the 2–1 lead early in the third period. After that, the Blackhawks were by far the better team. However, one player’s energy that stuck out was Alex Nylander. He was constantly back checking and was almost always one of the first player up ice when he was out there. Other players had great energy too, but you could see Nylander embracing the fourth line role and making the most of it. 
• Is he a backup?: Robin Lehner, the “backup” goalie, looked sensational for the Blackhawks on Friday night. Despite giving up two goals, he made many big saves throughout the game, especially early in the first when the Blue Jackets were badly outplaying the Blackhawks. If the Crawford/Lehner duo look like they did on Monday and Friday, respectively, then the Blackhawks have something they can be proud of in net.
• Top shelf/top line: The Blackhawks “first line” was responsible for all three goals Friday night, as Alex DeBrincat scored on the power play and both Drake Caggiula and Jonathan Toews registered their first goals of the season. If the top line can get going and the second line follows suit, then the offense will continue to look like it did last season and, potentially, even better.

The Blackhawks will remain home as they wait for the Washington Capitals. Puck drop is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. CDT on Sunday, October 20.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks come from behind, beat Blue Jackets in overtime appeared first on The Rink.

I am not immune to it either. Re-listening to the latest episode of the Rinkcast, I realized I was getting a bit too down on the Blackhawks for my own good so I wanted to do something to make myself and maybe some other Blackhawks fans happy, even for just a moment. A stroll down memory lane to relive the three moments that clinched the Blackhawks their three modern-era Stanley Cup championships.

Kane’s 2010 Overtime Winner Still Reigns As Blackhawks Fan-Favorite

Last week, I tweeted out a poll on Twitter to gauge the temperature of the Blackhawks community as to which game-winning goal was their favorite in a Stanley Cup clinching game:

I've been a bit negative about the #Blackhawks recently.
SO, let's do something positive and fun: Relive the past.
Which #StanleyCup Winning Goal is your personal favorite and why!
Comment below

— Mario Tirabassi (@Mario_Tirabassi) July 5, 2018

The responses to the poll were awesome and gave me and I would hope others, a few moments of Blackhawks happiness in between the perceived doom and gloom of this Summer, so far. I posed the 2010, 2013, and 2015 Stanley Cup Game-Winning Goals against each other, Patrick Kane in 2010, Dave Bolland in 2013, and Duncan Keith in 2015. In what was nearly no surprise, the first Stanley Cup championship in 49 years for the Blackhawks back in 2010, clinched by Kane in overtime of Game Six against the Flyers, came out on top.

Third Place: Duncan Keith, 2nd Period, 1-0 Goal vs Tampa Bay – 2015

In what I thought would have had a better showing than just 9% of the vote, Duncan Keith’s opening goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game Six of the 2015 Stanley Cup Final broke the tension in the United Center on a stormy night in Chicago late in the second period. Chicago and Tampa Bay had fought a tough battle of attrition through nearly 40-minutes of action, then Keith took a feed from Kane and finished a rebound chance on Ben Bishop.

Keith was an absolute machine during the 2015 Stanley Cup run for Chicago. Averaging a staggering 31:07 minute of ice-time per game over the course of a 23-game post-season, Keith finished with 21 points and was the first defenseman to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as Stanley Cup playoffs MVP since Scott Niedermayer in 2007.

CHICAGO, IL – JUNE 15: Duncan Keith #2 of the Chicago Blackhawks scores a goal in the second period against Ben Bishop #30 of the Tampa Bay Lightning during Game Six of the 2015 NHL Stanley Cup Final at the United Center on June 15, 2015 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

A few responses in favor of Keith’s 2015 winner:

So worth it! $$, weathering the weather (monsoon rain & tornado) while waiting for the gates to open, insane tension and crazy heart rate. But counting down those last few seconds and the crazy eruption of emotion – seeing my team win the cup on home ice!?!?!! Worth it all.

— sem (@semiamagain) July 5, 2018

2015. Because it was also my birthday.

— {B} (@wonderBmarie) July 6, 2018

This goal was actually my own favorite of the three because of the situation of the game and its significance in solidifying the Blackhawks as a modern-era dynasty. Plus, Keith’s lion roar after scoring the goal still gives me goosebumps.

Second Place: Dave Bolland, 3rd Period, 3-2 Goal vs Bruins – 2013

Coming in a very competitive second-place, the second goal of one of the most memorable moments in all of Stanley Cup Final history, 17 seconds, Dave Bolland was able to cement himself in Blackhawks lore by scoring the game-winning goal against the Boston Bruins in the final minute of Game Six of the 2013 Stanley Cup Final. In his last game as a Blackhawk, Bolland found space behind the Bruins net to set himself up for the perfect rebound chance on one of the most improbable sequences in NHL history. From the grips of a Game Seven scenario, Bolland gave the Blackhawks their second Stanley Cup in three seasons.

The goal would be the latest goal scored in a non-overtime game to win the Stanley Cup in NHL history at 19:01 of the 3rd period. Just 17 seconds prior, Bryan Bickell tied the game at 2-2 in a last-ditch effort by Chicago to try to avoid a potential Game Seven against Boston.

BOSTON, MA – JUNE 24: Dave Bolland #36 of the Chicago Blackhawks scores past Tuukka Rask #40 of the Boston Bruins in the third period in Game Six of the 2013 NHL Stanley Cup Final at TD Garden on June 24, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

A few responses in favor of Bolland’s 2013 winner:

That 17 seconds was incredible!!! Also because it was Crow's first and he was crawsome throughout the entire Cup run!!!

— Les Sweetpea's Papa (@TheHawkeyGuy) July 6, 2018

2012/2013 17 seconds sequence was so awesome, even though Kanes goal was the first SCW-goal for 49 years.

— Cklimateer (@cklimateer) July 5, 2018

The goal would hold, obviously, and the Blackhawks would complete the wire-to-wire run in the strike-shortened 2013 season as the best team in the NHL. To date, the Blackhawks are the last team to win both the President’s Trophy and the Stanley Cup in the same year, thanks to a heads up play by Bolland.

Winner: Patrick Kane, Overtime, 4-3 Goal vs Flyers – 2010

The most memorable moment of the Blackhawks modern-era is Patrick Kane’s overtime goal that gave Chicago its first Stanley Cup since 1961. Game Six against the Philadelphia Flyers, in overtime, and only Kane and Patrick Sharp seemed to see the puck go in. (Also, my Dad. Go ahead, ask him if he saw it first, he’ll be happy to tell you he did.) The 2010 Stanley Cup Final came down to one of the more confusing ends in NHL playoff history, but ultimately the puck was found under the padding of the net behind Michael Leighton and the Blackhawks were 2010 Stanley Cup Champions.

What chaos indeed, Doc.

Kane’s goal was the first of three Stanley Cups to be won by Chicago over a six-year span and was the defining moment of the changing of the guard for the organization after years and years of sub-par hockey, and sub-par fanfare. The rejuvenation of the organization through the core of Kane, Keith, Marian Hossa, Brent Seabrook, and Jonathan Toews, to name a few, had its signature moment.

PHILADELPHIA – JUNE 09: Patrick Kane #88 celebrates after scoring the game-winning goal in overtime against Michael Leighton #49 of the Philadelphia Flyers
to defeat the Flyers 4-3 and win the Stanley Cup in Game Six of the 2010 NHL Stanley Cup Final
at the Wachovia Center on June 9, 2010 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

A few responses in favor of Kane’s 2010 overtime winner:

Had to go with the Kaner goal, because it was the start of the great Hawks cup run and because he was rocking that sweet ass mullet.

— MarkOnTheTweet (@HawksFanAZ) July 5, 2018

2010, only because I’ve been a Hawks fan since ‘67 and I wasn’t sure if I would ever see them win the Cup. ‘13 was great. We were at ‘15!

— Keith Bliss (@keithisbliss) July 6, 2018

https://twitter.com/chynes22/status/1015014914576904192

With “One Goal” achieved in 2010, for some Blackhawks fans, it was enough. After “One Goal” was achieved again in 2013, it was magic. After “One Goal” was achieved a third time in 2015, it was gravy. Sweet, sweet gravy over a Stanley Cup full of poutine.

For all of Blackhawks fandom, the three Stanley Cups in a six-year span from 2010-2015 will be remembered forever as yet another “Golden-Age” of Blackhawks hockey.

Let’s all hope it can return to that again. Soon.

The post Patrick Kane’s OT Winner Still Blackhawks Fan Favorite Cup Memory appeared first on The Rink.