Rinkcast host Andy Campbell is joined by Rink staffers Jeff Osborn,  Sean (Goldstein) Fitzgerald and Ray Napientek to discuss a turbulent two weeks for the Chicago Blackhawks in this first episode of season 6.

• Alex DeBrincat and Kirby Dach trades
• Review of the Blackhawks’ 2022 NHL draft
• Petr Mrázek and Alex Stalock in the pipes
• Goodbye Dylan Strome and Dominik Kubalik
• Hello Andreas Athanasiou, Max Domi, and Stalock
• Evolving Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews narratives

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Blackhawks Rinkcast – S6Ep1 – Goodbye to the Old, in With the New! https://t.co/IMvxJjQvsC

— Hockey Rinkcast Channel (@TheRinkcast) July 20, 2022

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Both teams were looking to get back into the win column, as the Hawks entered the contest having lost four straight, while the Red Wings had dropped their last two. A win for Detroit would be their 19th of the season, which would match their total for the pandemic-shortened 2020–21 season. The Hawks started Marc-Andre Fleury in net against Detroit’s Alex Nedeljkovic.

First period

Led by Fleury, the Hawks survived several early possessions by the Wings, who had the Hawks pinned in their zone. Despite the slow start, the Hawks got on the board first at the 10:24 mark on a 3-on-2 break. Dominik Kubalik fed Philipp Kurashev, who entered the zone and passed to Seth Jones on the right wing, who found a wide open Kubalik on the doorstep for his 10th of the season on a nifty put-back.

The Blackhawks would take a 2–0 lead on a power play goal by Dylan Strome at 12:40 of the opening frame. With former Blackhawk Pius Suter in the penalty box for tripping, Alex DeBrincat found Strome in front, and Strome deflected the puck in for his fifth of the season.

Nearly two minutes later, Strome struck again with his second of the game. Patrick Kane entered the offensive zone and made a no-look turnaround pass to Strome, who sniped one top shelf from the left circle for his sixth to give Chicago a 3–0 advantage.

The Hawks were still not done breaking out of their offensive slump, as with 31.5 seconds remaining, the visitors took a commanding 4–0 lead when Sam Lafferty scored his first in a Blackhawks uniform on a feed from Strome, who had three points in the period. The Hawks outshot the Wings 16–8 in the opening frame.

Second period

Looking to shake things up, Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill pulled Nedeljkovic before the start of the period for Calvin Pickard. The switch certainly sparked the team, as Robby Fabbri intercepted a careless pass by Calvin de Haan in the slot and skated around a Fleury poke check attempt and backhanded the puck into a wide-open net for his 12th of the season to cut the deficit to 4–1 at the 5:45 mark.

Just 56 seconds later, the Wings made it 4–2 when Tyler Bertuzzi scored his 20th of the season. Bertuzzi skated in on the rush and shot the puck from the right circle, which Fleury stopped, but left a juicy rebound that Bertuzzi outhustled both Hawks defensemen for and tapped it in.

With 13 seconds left in the period, Suter cut the Blackhawks lead to 4–3 with a nasty wrist shot from the slot past a screened Fleury for his 10th of the season. For the period, Detroit had a 13–11 advantage in shots on goal, however, the Blackhawks had a 27–21 edge in the category through two.

Third period

The Hawks ended the Wings’ scoring run when Strome completed the hat trick at 6:10 of the period. With the Hawks on the power play, Strome deflected a Jones shot from the point to give Chicago a 5–3 lead on Strome’s seventh of the season and the first hat trick of his NHL career.

While playing 4-on-4, the Hawks regained their three-goal cushion which began with a strong defensive play by Caleb Jones in his own zone when he forced a Bertuzzi turnover. The Hawks went the other way and Jonathan Toews found DeBrincat for his team-leading 25th of the season at 8:55 to give Chicago a 6–3 lead.

The Wings were not done as they cut it to 6–4 with a power play goal when a pair of Calder Trophy candidates connected. Rookie Lucas Raymond found fellow freshman Moritz Seider at the point, who blasted one past “The Flower” for this fourth of the season at 12:05 of the frame.

The Red Wings continued the comeback when Dylan Larkin scored his 20th of the season, unassisted, at 15:25 when he snapped a shot under the crossbar to cut the deficit to 6–5.

Twenty-six seconds later, Brandon Hagel picked off an outlet pass from former Blackhawk Nick Leddy in the offensive zone and wristed it under Pickard’s glove for his 11th of the season to extend Chicago’s lead to 7–5 at 16:13.

With the net empty, “The Cat” picked Larkin’s pocket near the Hawks’ blue line and skated in alone and scored his second of the game and 26th of the season to give the Blackhawks an 8–5 lead with 1:43 left to ice this one and end the Hawks’ losing skid. The Wings outshot the Hawks 12–11 for the period, but the Blackhawks finished with a 38–31 advantage for the game.

The good, the bad, the ugly

The good

Strome: The player Blackhawks fans love to pick on had arguably the best game of his career with a hat trick plus an assist, as he pulled the Hawks out of their offensive slump.

The bad

De Haan: Clearly his days in a Hawks uniform are numbered and he had a lousy game defensively including an awful turnover which led to the Wings’ first goal which sparked their comeback. He also looked overmatched on the penalty kill against the younger and faster Red Wings.

The ugly

The Hawks’ defense: And by defense, I mean everyone on the ice because it is inexcusable to take a 4–0 lead after one, chase their top goaltender, then get sloppy and let a young and inexperienced team back in the game. The Hawks were fortunate to come away with a win in regulation, as there were several occasions where the Hawks saw a multiple-goal lead fizzle to one, which put the Hawks on their heels. But give the Hawks credit for capitalizing on a few costly mistakes by the Wings, which found their way to the back of the net.

Analysis

This was certainly one of the most entertaining Blackhawks games in recent memory. After a slow start, the Hawks broke out offensively in the first, but had to hang on several times as this young and talented Wings team showed why they are a team on the rise. The Blackhawks return home on Friday night to face the Colorado Avalanche at United Center. Puck drop is at 7:30 p.m. CST on NBCSCH with the radio call on WGN 720.

The post Strome’s hat trick lifts Hawks past Red Wings appeared first on The Rink.

Strome found himself in the Colliton doghouse to start this season with no chance of getting out of it. Strome has appeared in only six Blackhawks games this season after being healthy scratched by the Colliton-led coaching staff for the first five games of the season. Once inserted into the lineup, Strome played fourth-line minutes for one game before again being banished back to the press box for another two games.

This has been a recurring theme with the Blackhawks under Colliton.

Colliton’s doghouse

When a player fell out of favor with the Colliton, the player had little chance to redeem themselves. Strome was a prime example of that. Colliton, hailed as the great communicator, only really communicated well with players he liked. Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times highlighted this notion in his most recent piece:

His open-communication coaching style applied only to players he liked, some to a ridiculous degree (David Kampf), and didn’t apply to those he disliked (Dylan Strome).

After Kirby Dach was injured in 2020–21 and Jonathan Toews was out with his then-mysterious illness, Strome was thrust into a more spotlighted role. With the Blackhawks in full rebuild mode, Strome’s defensive shortcoming were on full display. Strome had been on Colliton’s list for a while, being healthy scratched multiple times in the season prior. However in 2020–21, it was the beginning of the end, as Strome was healthy scratched for two must-win games against Nashville. With the Blackhawks’ slim playoff chances hanging in the balance and team in desperate need of some offense, scratching Strome was a really puzzling move.

Colliton on scratching Strome last night: “He was a victim of circumstance where we felt we needed seven defenseman… I’ve got no problem with Stromer. He’s playing hard and trying to do what we’re asking him to do.”

— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) April 22, 2021

Despite Colliton’s comments, it was obvious that this was the final straw for Strome. Strome played out the final string of the season with the Blackhawks riding a seven-game losing streak into the offseason.

Despite his tepid relationship with Colliton, then-General Manager Stan Bowman signed Strome to a two-year extension in the offseason. The hope was that Strome could get back to his play prior to his ankle injury in 2019–20, however, he was just never given the chance under Colliton.

Not a fourth-line player

Despite the insistence of the Blackhawks to play Strome on the fourth line, he does not play hockey like a fourth-line player. He does not check well and is not strong defensively, but that was where Colliton and his staff insisted on playing Strome this season.

When placed in the correct offensive system, Strome can produce solid offensive numbers. Remember, Strome was the third overall pick in 2015 NHL Entry Draft for the chronically rebuilding Arizona Coyotes. Strome had come off a season in which he scored 129 points with the Erie Otters, more than the first overall pick, Connor McDavid, who posted 120.

In his first game with the Blackhawks on Nov. 27, 2018, Strome had one goal and one assist. In 58 games in the 2018–19 season, he put up 51 points, with 17 goals and 34 assists, which amounted to 0.88 points per game. He averaged 17:04 minutes of ice time per game. One could surmise that Strome’s success was directly related to the Blackhawks’ style of play that season. If everyone remembers correctly, the Blackhawks scrapped Colliton’s hybrid man-to-man system in favor of a free-wheeling, offensive-minded style of play.

Second life

Now that Colliton is gone and Derek King is the interim head coach of the Blackhawks, Strome should be playing a nightly basis. In his first game under King, Strome played in 13:45, which is not a ton of time, but King is still feeling out his new group of players.

In reality, Strome does not have a spot on this team—not because he cannot play in the NHL, but because his style of play. He is a 6-foot-3, 200-pound forward that does not win corner battles or use his body. He is a below average skater who needs to be in the right offensive system to hone his diminishing skill set. On this team, he should not be taking minutes away from Dach at center and he is not better than Toews or Tyler Johnson at center, so he is a man without a role on the Blackhawks.

The best possible solution for Strome is to play well in his time under King and hope the Blackhawks can find him a new team, a team that does not need him to be a defensive forward or play him on the fourth line. If the Blackhawks do that for Strome, he should get a second lease on life this season.

The post A second life for Dylan Strome? appeared first on The Rink.

Monday, April 19: Third-period meltdown dooms the Blackhawks

After an energized 10 minutes of action from the Blackhawks, the Predators took over. The recently returned Matt Duchene got Nashville on the board early. Alex DeBrincat tied the game up later on the power play on a nifty pass from Pius Suter.

Calle Jarnkrok scored to put the Predators up by one at 2–1. Following another defensive lapse, Mattias Ekholm made the score 3–1 in favor of Nashville. With the game slipping away, an unlikely scorer cut the gap to one, as David Kampf netted his first goal of the second to close the margin to 3–2.

David Kampf finally scores his first goal of the season. He went 49 straight games without one, dating back to last season. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/nMeyaSqLIB

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) April 20, 2021

In the third period, Kevin Lankinen surrendered two early goals to put the game out of reach. In a rare move, Head Coach Jeremy Colliton then pulled Lankinen from the game. The final score was Nashville 5, Blackhawks 2.

Wednesday, April 21: Blackhawks’ impressive third period snatches victory from the jaws of defeat

In a game where the Blackhawks needed their stars to rise to the top, the team was instead lead by the energetic Brandon Hagel. Hagel found Suter for the first Blackhawks goal of the game. It would then be all Nashville with four unanswered goals.

In the third period, The young offensive defenseman Wyatt Kalynuk cut the gap to 4–2 with a tap-in goal from Patrick Kane. The recently re-acquired Vinnie Hinostroza kept the comeback moving along with his first goal of the season. Dominik Kubalik then scored the equalizer to knot the game up at 4–4.

In overtime, Hagel struck by roofing a shot past Juuse Saros for a thrilling 5–4 comeback victory.

Brandon Hagel scores overtime winner to complete three-goal comeback against Predators. Wow. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/xLWrtfG1mR

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) April 22, 2021

 Friday, April 23: The day the season ended for the Blackhawks

The Blackhawks had an 11% chance of making the playoff entering the third and final game of the week. After playing inspired hockey in the third period on Wednesday, the Blackhawks could not find their offensive rhythm in the opening 20 minutes this time around. Malcolm Subban did his best to keep the Blackhawks in this game, but ultimately his 25-save effort was not enough. Nashville got goals from Ryan Johansen, Luke Kunin and Erik Haula.

The Blackhawks would get a late third goal from Hinostroza to make the final score 3–1. With that loss, the Blackhawks’ playoff chances went from long to non-existent. Now, the focus of this team should be on younger players for the rest of the season.

Analysis: The curious case of Dylan Strome

With the season on the line, Colliton decided to healthy scratch Dylan Strome on Wednesday and Friday. Strome was on the ice a half-hour before game time on Friday before being pulled from the lineup. The move is puzzling because the Blackhawks have had a tough time scoring and winning faceoffs against the Predators this season. In their eight games this season, the Hawks averaged just 1.75 goals against the Predators. That is their worst goals-for percentage against an opponent this season.

In terms of faceoffs, Nashville ranks sixth in the NHL while the Blackhawks rank 28th in the league. Personally, Strome has a faceoff win percentage of 47%, which is the second-highest mark on the team behind only Kampf. Meanwhile, the top three guys on Nashville are over 50%, with Colton Sissons leading at 54.3%. With all of those facts under consideration, it makes the move for Colliton to bench Strome in favor of icing seven defensemen even more puzzling.

Could Strome’s benchings be an indication of his future with the Blackhawks? This is one of the many questions that will be facing the organization during the rest of the regular season and in the offseason.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks’ push for playoffs ends with a whimper appeared first on The Rink.

The Rink staff members John Jaeckel, Sean Fitzgerald, and Andy Campbell reconvene to talk about the Blackhawks trades and the upcoming deadline.

• Analysis of the big trade (Lucas Wallmark, Lucas Carlsson for Brett Connelly, Riley Stillman, Henrik Borgstrom and a 7th) with Florida.
• Analysis of the smaller trade with Florida (Brad Morrison for Vince Hinostroza)
• What messages are the front office giving, regarding the trade deadline?
• Weekly Dylan Strome talk.
• Hype man Stan Bowman’s tire pumping.
• Blackhawks long term injuries to the core

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The Rink staff members John Jaeckel, Ray Napientek, Sean Fitzgerald, and Andy Campbell reconvene to talk about the Blackhawks and some more broad NHL topics.

• Blackhawks have some success vs Florida after getting beat up by Tampa
• Thoughts on Kirby Dach’s return to the lineup.
• Referee Tim Peel getting caught on the hot mic and forced out of service.
• Thoughts on “big boy hockey”.
• Some listener questions.

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The Rink staff members John Jaeckel, Jeff Osborn, Sean Fitzgerald, and Andy Campbell reconvene to talk about the Blackhawks’ misfortunes in Florida and the upcoming trade deadline.

• What do we think the Blackhawks will do at the deadline?
• What do we think they should do at the deadline?
• Our thoughts on Stan Bowman’s comments today about Jonathan Toews

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OFFICIAL: Forward Dylan Strome has signed a 2-year contract extension!#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/ebZFzSIapn

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) January 3, 2021

In his first full season with the Blackhawks, the 2015 third-overall pick scored 38 points (12 goals, 26 assists) in 58 regular season games and three points in nine playoff games. Strome was acquired during the 2018–19 season from the Arizona Coyotes along with Brendan Perlini in exchange for Nick Schmaltz. Strome has totaled 105 points over 164 career games.

Strome will join the Blackhawks tomorrow for the first day of on-ice sessions at training camp.

The post Blackhawks re-sign center Dylan Strome to two-year extension appeared first on The Rink.

In this first podcast of season 4, the Rink staff members John Jaeckel, Sean Fitzgerald, and Andy Campbell to talk about the latest Blackhawks news considering the absence of Jonathan Toews to open the new year.

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In this final podcast of season 3, the Rink staff members John Jaeckel, Ray Napientek, Sean Fitzgerald, and Andy Campbell to talk about the Blackhawks moves.

• Kirby Dach fractures his wrist at World Championships.
• Dylan Strome is still not signed with camp starting in a week
• Carl Soderberg signed to fill a spot at center

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Though that could, should and would be the preferred path in Chicago, it is not happening and it will not happen period. It is simply not in the fabric of the organization’s culture to admit recent mistakes or make a splash, whether that means an early departure of a fan favorite or a game-changing acquisition. Rightly or wrongly, the Hawks have decided to reward loyalty of past performances of their players as opposed to forecasting for longer-term success, and consequently, the team is stuck in neutral. So, if any fans have thoughts that the current on-ice product will look drastically different for the 2020–21 season, it is best to leave those expectations locked in the basement somewhere.

Something will give soon though, and it may not be that long of a wait after the Stanley Cup Finals are completed, but more than likely nothing drastic is ahead. With a frozen cap, as it stands right now, the Hawks have just under $8 million in annual cap space to play with. They are assessing unrestricted free agent Corey Crawford and restricted free agents Drake Caggiula, Slater Koekkoek, Domink Kubalik, Dylan Strome and Malcolm Subban. That is a lot of names without much room.

The Blackhawks will have a decision to make on Dylan Strome, but do not have to do it overnight. (Photograph courtesy of the Chicago Sun-Times)

Crawford and Kubalik are the big-named targets of the bunch. Rumors are already swirling that the Hawks have been working with Crawford on a new deal, but it is anyone’s guess as to what is really on the table. The safe bet, considering loyalty points are critical to the Hawks’ brass, would be to assume that the netminder will be back on a short-term deal. What the price point could be is up for speculation, and it should be. It would be frustrating to see the Hawks offer anything north of $3 million annually considering Crawford’s age and health history. There is a real possibility that even if resigned, he may start in half of next season’s games. So assessing his current value is an unenviable task. This certainly is not an easy decision to make, especially considering how weak the Hawks have been defensively the last few seasons.

Kubalik will be looking for a substantial raise, but what General Manager Stan Bowman should look to do—that he unwisely did not wait to do with Alex DeBrincat—is offer Kubalik a “prove it again” two-year bridge deal to the tune of $3 million or less per year. In the harsh reality of this business, a first-time restricted free agent in the NHL has little leverage with their next contract. This somehow eluded Bowman when dealing with 2020 RFA to be DeBrincat, instead rushing to extend him last season for double of his current market value. Assuming the Hawks want Kubalik and he wants to stay, he truly is not in a position to play hardball this offseason.

The other RFAs find themselves in difficult spots and probably nobody more than Strome. If Kubalik and Crawford are inked, then the idea of moving Strome is very realistic. It is difficult to identify how much Strome is worth or how much he is willing to settle for. And while the other names in the RFA group are less attractive, you still need cheap labor and players rostered at $1 million or less per season. Koekkoek should probably be in a different uniform next season and Subban may be out if the Hawks feel Collin Delia is equal in ability, but sneaking in the hard-nosed Caggiula under the cap would bring back some much-needed sandpaper. All three of these RFAs are arbitration eligible as well. Should the Hawks not utilize a buyout option of Zack Smith or Olli Maatta—Maatta seemingly less likely at this point—then there simply may not be the funding to hold on to Strome. Again though, he is an RFA without arbitration rights, so Bowman holds all the cards and should wait for the market to play out well ahead of prioritizing Strome’s fate.

Dominik Kubalik should be a priority for the Blackhawks and they may be lucky enough to sign him for an affordable bridge deal. (Photograph courtesy of the Chicago Blackhawks)

There is also is the argument of whether or not Strome is a good fit in Chicago as well. He lacks speed, is moderately productive offensively, is not good enough defensively to alter his game to be a third-line pivot and has proven that he cannot play the wing. If Jonathan Toews and Kirby Dach are the top two centers heading into 2020–21 season, where does Strome really fit in? Another component factoring into Strome’s value is how some feel that he “compliments” DeBrincat’s game. However, if you commit over $6 million to a winger, there should be ample players he can skate with. Suggest for a moment that Smith is bought out. Should those dollars be used for Strome, or should the Hawks seek to move Strome for assets and go bargain hunting for additional needs with the $2.16 million in savings with a Smith buyout? The latter may be the better play.

The Hawks are committed to Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook as members of the “now-aging” core. Brandon Saad has one year left on his contract with a $6 million cap hit. While many think it is fun to speculate he may be on the move, what are the Hawks looking to get in return? If Bowman and company truly believe they are in some sort of “win-now” mode, then unless they are seeking to blow it up and get picks an prospects in return, dealing Saad may not result in gaining an NHL roster player or players that will drastically improve the club. Plus, Saad is one of Bowman’s “guys” and we know how that goes.

The Hawks’ current defensive unit is not in great shape despite a relatively deep prospect pool. If Maatta is bought out, as some have suggested, then you lose the player who was arguably their best defender in the postseason, therefore weakening your blue line for the upcoming season. Should Bowman wish to trade Maatta or Calvin de Haan, which will be hard, unlikely and ill-advised, the Hawks should expect to retain some salary for either player.

As always, there will be moves people do not anticipate and perhaps Bowman and company have a trick or two up their sleeves. That said, with the recent historical mantra of “we like our team” and the 2010–2015 nostalgia tour still marketable to the casual fan, do not expect the team or their results to be much different next season. Strome may be elsewhere and a nice role player here or there may be added, but this is your team.

Following Sather’s lead from 2018 would be incredibly exciting, but the combination of depreciating assets with no-movement clauses and an administration in denial, the much-needed “blow up” or any radical changes in the make up of the team is unlikely.

The post ANALYSIS: Movement is coming soon, but do not hold your breath appeared first on The Rink.

If the Blackhawks wanted to beat the Ducks, they would need to do what they do best and that is to score, preferably first. They did exactly that when Kirby Dach skated to the front of the net and dished the puck of to Adam Boqvist, who found Drake Caggiula to the side of Ducks goalie John Gibson for his ninth goal of the season. Of note, it was the first goal in NHL history involving two players born in the 2000s in Boqvist and Dach, who recorded the assists. The Blackhawks ended the first period up 1–0.

Pass that thing and watch me flex
Behind my back, you know what’s next

Watch #CHIvsANA live on the #MyTeams App: https://t.co/mfQ1ZBTGTC pic.twitter.com/5kvPz80JL0

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 4, 2020

Most people thought the Blackhawks traded the wrong goalie at the deadline and there is evidence on both sides of the argument, but to Crawford’s credit, if the Hawks do by some miracle somehow sneak into the playoffs, it would be in part to his willingness to sacrifice his whole body to keep his teammates in the game. For a goalie that has missed a lot of time the past two seasons due to injury, he gave the Blackhawks everything he had in the first period.

Crawford’s numbers this season only tell one side of the story. The Blackhawks’ defense has been terrible this season so the goalies are saving more shots. The more shots there are, the more likely the opposing team scores. Simple percentages. The home team may have scored the lone goal of the opening period, but the Ducks out shot them 16–6 and were taking better shots due to the Blackhawks’ mismanagement of the puck, a story that has had many chapters this season.

The Blackhawks came out for the second period with a lot more energy and fast-paced play almost as if they knew they were lucky to escape the first period with a lead. A deflected shot off the stick of Duncan Keith took a fortunate bounce off the end boards, right in front of Dylan Strome, who fired it past Gibson’s right side for his 11th of the season for a 2–0 Blackhawks advantage.

Dylan Strome ends a 14-game goal drought and records his 100th career NHL point. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/0PDWMd7lKP

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) March 4, 2020

Shortly after, however, Christian Djoos fooled everyone, including Crawford, into thinking he was taking a shot and he drew the Blackhawks defenders all away from the net in time to pass it to Danton Heinen, who shot it in the gaping net for his ninth goal of the season. The Blackhawks’ lead was down to just one goal, once again, at 2–1.

Crawford continued his fancy footwork when Adam Henrique had a prime scoring opportunity, but the goaltender stretched wide and got his left leg pad in front of the shot. Henrique had about two or three opportunities before the whistle.

The Blackhawks had two good shorthanded chances from Brandon Saad on a breakaway and later Caggiula, but Gibson was there to hold the deficit at one. That was when the Blackhawks’ best puck handler, Patrick Kane, got just past the Ducks’ blue line and fired a pin-point pass to Strome in stride, who redirected the puck past Gibson for his second goal of the game and 12th overall for a 3–1 Chicago lead. Lucas Carlsson got his first career point on the goal, as he set Kane up with an exquisite lead pass to start the play, as well.

Patrick Kane finds Dylan Strome for his 2nd goal of the night! pic.twitter.com/Y43wDqq4fR

— BlackhaWWWks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) March 4, 2020

The Blackhawks would waste little time in queuing Chelsea Dagger again in the second period. Heinen went for a backhand shot on goal on a breakaway, but Boqvist scurried back and got his stick in the way to disrupt Heinen’s attempt. The Hawks quickly transitioned the puck for a three-on-one the other way and Alexander Nylander capitalized. Nylander toyed with Gibson by going forehand, backhand, then short side into the back of the net for his ninth goal of the season, pushing the Blackhawk advantage to 4–1.

Alex Nylander with a pretty move for his 9th goal of the season. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/CMoQTUZhDt

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) March 4, 2020

Just 15 seconds later, Nylander would get another point this time on an assist to Kane in front of the goal. This was Kane’s 29th goal of the season. The Blackhawks scored four goals on 18 shots while the Ducks mustered only one goal on 13 shots. This was a very different Blackhawks team in the second period, a team that played both sides of the ice and with a purpose, finishing the second period up 5–1.

Patrick Kane scores 15 seconds after Alex Nylander for his 29th goal of the season. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/yfVbs1bosV

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) March 4, 2020

The third period opened with a scary moment, as Ryan Getzlaf tried to avoid Crawford after he stopped a shot and accidentally kneed the goaltender in the head. The medical staff and concussion spotter must have seen something they did not like because they brought Crawford to the bench and he was replaced by Malcolm Subban, who was making his Blackhawks debut. It ended up being short lived, however, as Crawford only missed little more than a minute of play and came right back in to guard the net. Crawford, despite a history of numerous head and neck injuries in his career, came back into a game where his team was up late by four goals and in control of the game.

Alrighty then.

Corey Crawford re-enters the game, after originally being pulled by the concussion spotter. pic.twitter.com/Op5TmD3O1z

— BlackhaWWWks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) March 4, 2020

Just a few minutes later, he got a wellness check on a redirected shot from Carter Rowney and Crawford missed it for the Ducks’ second goal of the game, cutting the gap to 5–2 with Rowney’s seventh goal of the season. The Blackhawks, however, would add one more goal for good measure when Matthew Highmore hit David Kampf for his eighth of the season and a 6–2 lead on Anaheim goalie Ryan Miller, who replaced Gibson for the third period.

What a pass by Matthew Highmore, who connects with David Kampf for team’s 6th goal tonight. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/15ViKUGcGI

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) March 4, 2020

Crawford allowed two goals on 39 shots and the line of Strome, Kane and Nylander had a combined for 13 shots, four goals and three assists. Not a bad day at the office for the Blackhawks, as they took the 6–2 victory and they would hope the rest of the dominoes in front of them would fall their way.

The Blackhawks get the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday at the United Center and puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Do not be surprised if Crawford is not in net for that one and Subban makes his “unofficial” Blackhawks debut. With the season likely lost at this point, there really is no need to push a possibly injured Crawford into his seventh start in a row unless they must. Whoever is scheduled in goal probably wishes they were not, as the Oilers are first place in the Pacific Division and show zero signs of slowing down.

The post Along the Boards: Blackhawks take down the Anaheim Ducks 6–2 on the back of Corey Crawford appeared first on The Rink.

The-Rink.com host “Gatekeeper” goes solo and gets together with our old buddy Tyler Cameron from HockeyBuzz.

• Recorded prior to the Sens and Habs games.
• We discuss the pending Robin Lehner contract situation.
• Dominik Kubalik is red hot and looking like a steal.
• Who are our picks for a new Blackhawks GM?
• What might happen around the trade deadline?
• If you’re interested in writing for The-Rink about  any division, email writefor@the-rink.com

Please subscribe, rate this episode, and even write us a review. Reviews will be read on the air.

Also, please help spread the word to more #RinkRats and visit our sponsor www.PUCKHCKY.com. Use the discount code “THERINK” for 10% off all orders.

The Rinkcast is brought to you by the Overtime Podcast Network

The post Blackhawks Rinkcast – Season 3, Episode 10 – Tyler Cameron of HockeyBuzz appeared first on The Rink.

The-Rink.com co-hosts “Gatekeeper” and “JJ” usher in the new year during the first period of the Blackhawks / Predators game with even more Blackhawks injuries.

• Blackhawks down 3–0 to the Preds while we recorded.
• Talk about the latest injuries.
• Some positive things to say about Adam Boqvist and Dominik Kubalik.
• It wouldn’t be a Rinkcast without more goalie praise.
• It also wouldn’t be a Rinkcast without some realism.
• We wrap with a short Rinkrat PuckBag segment.
• Check out our friend and former writer’s blog http://fansfronchroom.wordpress.com
• If you’re interested in writing for The-Rink about the Chicago Wolves (or any division) email writefor@the-rink.com

Please subscribe, rate this episode, and even write us a review. Reviews will be read on the air.

Also, please help spread the word to more #RinkRats and visit our sponsor www.PUCKHCKY.com. Use the discount code “THERINK” for 10% off all orders.

The Rinkcast is brought to you by the Overtime Podcast Network

The post Blackhawks Rinkcast – Season 3, Episode 9 – Dance of the Walking Dead appeared first on The Rink.

First period

The Hawks actually dominated action, outshooting Calgary 14–6 in the period, with Dominik Kubalik getting rewarded at 19:28 with his 13th goal of the season. Kubalik went and fought to stay in front of the net, getting a nifty tip on an Adam Boqvist shot, which was probably more of a pass. That put the Hawks up 1–0 at intermission.

Second period

Calgary came out blazing, as you would expect they might after giving up a goal in the last minute of the previous period. However, the Hawks were not ready and revealed their Achilles heel, sloppy defensive zone play, resulting in a turnover and a quick Elias Lindholm goal just 14 seconds in.

Another Hawk turnover, this one off a weak clear by Connor Murphy, led to Calgary’s second goal later in the period when Matthew Tkachuk found Lindholm flying up the left wing, and he buried it for a 2–1 Flames lead. Adding insult, Tkachuk decided to plaster Kirby Dach hard into the end boards well after the goal light went off.

And making matters worse: Strome. While the Hawks gave their usual vague injury update after the game, take a look:

Don't like to see this. Dylan Strome headed to the locker room after this play. pic.twitter.com/jXgZfGhf0h

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) January 8, 2020

Third period

Did I mention the Hawks did a lot of things right? I did, and one of those was by one Hawk in particular, Corey Crawford. You can argue both Calgary goals were stoppable, but Crawford came up big on several Flames chances, including one absolutely spectacular stop on Johnny Gaudreau on the Flames’ second five-on-three of the night.

Patrick Kane was electric and seems to have ignited linemate Dylan Sikura (we will see how long that lasts). But, Calgary goalie Cam Talbot was also outstanding on a night when the Hawks actually outshot the opposition 31–28.

All I have on this one.

What do you think? Comment below.

The post Along the Boards: Flames hold on to beat Blackhawks 2–1 appeared first on The Rink.

The contest did not start pretty for the Blackhawks. By the end of the opening frame, the Blackhawks were down 3–0 with tallies from Michael Grabner, Clayton Keller, and Brad Richardson.

Grabner’s tally was an excellent display of speed, he dipped his shoulder and released a backhand shot that had eyes, finding it’s way past Robin Lehner’s blocker side. Keller’s was a result of a defensive breakdown, as he had a semi-breakaway after an excellent pass from Jordan Oesterle. The third goal was a result of excellent net-front presence from Richardson, as he was able to tip a nice Jacob Chychrun shot through Lehner’s five hole.

There was hope in the second, as the captain, Jonathan Toews, tallied his seventh goal of the season to cut the Coyotes’ lead down to just two. The goal was a result of a well-placed shot from Dominik Kubalik that resulted in a perfect rebound for Toews to hammer home.

Finders keepers#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/bTzxEOuQfU

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 13, 2019

However, the lead would be extended for the hometown team, this time by a familiar face. After a Coyotes’ face-off win, Nick Schmaltz walked to the slot and sniped a shot over Lehner’s left shoulder to give Arizona the 4–1 lead. 

The Blackhawks opened the scoring in the third period, however, it was too late. With right around seven minutes remaining, Dylan Strome tapped home an Alex DeBrincat shot to cut back into Arizona’s lead. The power play tally was Strome’s seventh of the season. 

Dylly Dylly!

Strome strikes on the power play. #CHIvsARI pic.twitter.com/F8L9pLcKPS

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 13, 2019

With two minutes remaining, the Coyotes added insult to injury. After a puck was dumped in, Christian Dvorak, the Chicagoland native, retrieved the puck behind Lehner. Erik Gustafsson was caught down low, leaving Keller wide open in the slot and he tucked a roof shot past Lehner to give the Coyotes the three-goal lead and the final score, 5–2. 

Three points

The Hawks looked terrible: There is no nice way to say it. The Hawks were badly outplayed. They just have not looked good recently. This team, earlier in the season, showed moments of brilliance. Now, this team is relying on Robin Lehner and Corey Crawford to keep them in games. They’ve done a great job doing that, but it hasn’t been enough to yield wins.

Injuries suck: You can tell that the Blackhawks miss Duncan Keith and Calvin de Haan. I’d even argue they miss the likes of Andrew Shaw. They need good players. In years’ past, circa 2015, this team had the depth to accommodate injuries. Now, this team is S.O.L without one or two players in the lineup. Did someone say tank?

Give me the top three: What does this mean? Well, it means if you’re going to change the franchise for the better, you need top 3 picks in the draft. Although no guarantees, these players are what it takes to change a franchise. I think Kirby Dach is a part of the long-term solution, as is Adam Boqvist, but the Hawks need a continuing influx of talent in order to fill the holes. With big contracts against their cap, that’s the only way to improve, young, cheap talent. 

The Blackhawks return to action on Saturday, paying a visit to the defending Stanley Cup champions. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CST.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks fall on their face, lose to Coyotes 5–2 appeared first on The Rink.

News broke on Friday that both Duncan Keith and Andrew Shaw were sent to the IR, retroactively. What does that mean? It means that Keith could technically return any day now, and Shaw can return after Friday’s game. It ultimately frees a roster spot if they can make the cap situation work.

With the aforementioned injuries, the Blackhawks trotted out the following lines against the Devils.

Saad – Toews – Nylander

DeBrincat – Strome – Kane

Kubalik – Kampf – Wedin

Smith – Dach – Carpenter

Koekkoek – Murphy

de Haan – Seabrook

Gilbert – Gustafsson

Crawford

First period

The opening frame as a whole was a quiet one. Neither team was truly able to get too much working in their favor early on. 

The first action occurred with about 13 minutes remaining in the period. Dennis Gilbert, playing his second game in a row due to Olli Maatta’s illness, laid a big hit on prized rookie and first overall pick Jack Hughes. The hit sparked Wayne Simmonds to respond, as he and Gilbert squared off. 

Dennis Gilbert lays a big hit on Jack Hughes then scraps with Wayne Simmonds. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/yDRdsvDZ9g

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) December 7, 2019

The biggest mistake of the first period for the Hawks was a lack of discipline. With just over seven minutes remaining, Zack Smith was called for an elbowing penalty against Nikita Gusev. 

On the powerplay, the Devils cycled the puck around the point and circles in the offensive zone. After Sami Vatanen passed the puck to Gusev on the left circle, he returned the puck to Vatanen at the point. Vatanen delivered the exact same pass, this time to Taylor Hall on the opposite circle and the former MVP fired a wicked shot past Crawford to give the Devils the lead. 

https://twitter.com/NJDevils/status/1203111446151872512

The most notable chance of the period for the visitors was a Kirby Dach grade-A chance that he simply missed on. It’s safe to say he knew it too, given his reaction on the play, as he looked to the sky in disbelief. 

The Devils took their 1-0 lead into the first intermission at home. The Devils outshot the Blackhawks 10-7 in the opening frame.

Second period

The second period began in a similar fashion to the first. There were not a ton of scoring opportunities for either side, but a few decent missed chances were exchanged. 

However, fortunes changed for the visitors. A Sami Vatanen hooking penalty on Patrick Kane sent the Blackhawks to a much needed powerplay. 

On the powerplay, the Blackhawks generated a grade-A chance after Dylan Strome found Patrick Kane. Kane’s bid was initially stopped, but the puck was still free. The rebound bounced to the left wing side of the ice and Alex DeBrincat, for the second game in a row, buried the rebound to tie the game.

We'll take it!#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/RxZXBVDdrC

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 7, 2019

The last great chance of the period came on a Devils breakaway. However, Crawford made a huge save and kept the game tied as the game entered the second intermission. 

Third period

The third period was fast, but quiet. Both teams had some chances, as the Hawks had a power play, but could not capitalize on the chance. The Devils had some chances as well, but neither team could crack the other’s goaltender. 

Neither team could convert on their chances and the third period ended the way it began, with both teams tied at one after 60 minutes of play. 

Overtime

Talk about chances. The Hawks had numerous chances, as did the Devils. Both goalies stood tall as their teams needed and kept the other team from capitalizing in the 3-on-3 overtime period. 

However, the game would require a shootout as neither team could convert.

Shootout

In the shootout, the first four shooters scored. Kane and Toews both scored for the Blackhawks and Nikita Gusev and Jesper Boqvist scores for the Devils.

After that, the goalies stood tall and sent the shootout to sudden death.

In the fifth round, the Blackhawks sent Kirby Dach to shoot. Dach converted on his first ever NHL shootout attempt and put the Hawks up 3-2.

This Kirby Dach (@kdach77) fellow is good at hockey. pic.twitter.com/5DC2fQLez6

— NHL (@NHL) December 7, 2019

On the other side, number one pick Jack Hughes took the 5th attempt for the Devils, but was denied by Corey Crawford, sealing the win for the Blackhawks. The Hawks won in the shootout 2-1.

Quick hits

• 250 for Crow: Friday’s game marked the 250th career victory for Corey Crawford in the NHL. Given the number of goaltenders to accomplish that in NHL history, dare I say it could be a topic of discussion for Corey Crawford to be a hall of famer. 
• The youngster: Kirby Dach converted on his first ever NHL shootout attempt. It makes a lot of sense that Dach would be successful given his skillset. He has great hands, works well in tight on goaltenders, and normally scores out in front of the net. He did an excellent job to help the Blackhawks get a much needed victory in New Jersey. Also, how about the reaction from the youngster’s mom?

This is the purest gif we have ever shared on twitter dot com

Mama Dach watching her rookie win it in the shootout! #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/yjs4zNYnSH

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 7, 2019

The Blackhawks will play host to the pacific leading Arizona Coyotes on Sunday night at the United Center. Puck drop is scheduled for “one of those great six o’clock starts” as the great Eddie Olcyzk would say.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks edge Devils in the shootout, 2–1 appeared first on The Rink.

Corey Perry celebrated his 1,000th NHL game on Saturday in Dallas. The forward spent the majority of those 1,000 games in Anaheim with the Ducks but has rebounded this year with a change of scenery. 

Congratulations, Corey! #GoStars pic.twitter.com/HvrucYkL8z

— X – Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) November 24, 2019

The Blackhawks rolled out their lines and the lineup looked very similar to many of their last five games. The lines were as follows:

Saad – Toews – Nylander
DeBrincat – Strome – Kane
Kubalik – Kampf – Shaw
Smith – Dach – Carpenter

Keith – Gustafsson
de Haan – Seabrook
Maatta – Murphy

Lehner

First period

The early portion of the period was a lot of back and forth between the two teams, but not a lot of quality chances were generated. The best chance of the first ten minutes came from Corey Perry. On the night of his 1,000th game, he could have put the Stars ahead early. Instead, he just flat out missed on his attempt to bury a puck with Lehner out of position.

Although Perry could not bury his chance, the Stars still struck first. Around the 14-minute mark, the Stars won a key faceoff in the Blackhawks’ zone. John Klingberg, in his first game back from injury, wired a shot through traffic that was tipped in front by Roope Hintz and ultimately found its way behind Robin Lehner. 

Roope and Klinger were skating together a lot coming back from injury.

They combine for the first goal in their first game back. #CHIvsDAL | #GoStars pic.twitter.com/EYpp3x86BG

— X – Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) November 24, 2019

Although the Stars dominated the period, the Blackhawks found a way to capitalize on an A+ opportunity. On a play that started with Connor Murphy getting the puck up the boards, Patrick Kane tipped the pass further to Alex DeBrincat. “The Cat” led the charge up ice with Olli Maatta and had a two-on-one. DeBrincat and Maatta played catch, but the final move came from Maatta, getting his shot to squeak past Anton Khudobin to tie the game. The goal was the first as Blackhawk for Maatta.

Olli Määttä scores first goal of the night for the #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/fpJYpAECO1

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 24, 2019

Patrick Kane picked up the secondary assist, extending his point streak to 12 games. Kane has been sensational all season thus far. 

Despite how bad they played, the Blackhawks went into the first intermission tied at one. An excellent position to be in given how much the Stars dominated the first period. 

Second period

The period began with the Stars having a quality chance against Robin Lehner in the first minute. The Stars had a bit of a two-on-one. Jamie Benn, who coming into this game was riding a four-game point streak, failed to convert on the chance after the puck went off the toe of his stick.

The Blackhawks first excellent chance came via a power play in which DeBrincat was tripped by Blake Comeau to initiate the man advantage. The Blackhawks didn’t score on the power play, however, they dominated possession on the power play. They won every draw in the offensive zone, and only had to regroup once or twice before moving the puck around and getting shots on net. 

It’s safe to say if every Blackhawks power play looked that good all the time, they’d be much better statistically. 

On the other end of special teams, the Blackhawks killed off the first power play for the Stars in beautiful fashion. The Hawks killers swarmed the Stars and constantly applied pressure, leaving the Stars searching for answers as they were unable to generate any meaningful chances on their first man advantage of the evening. 

After the Hawks kill, the remaining five minutes of the period featured another Dallas Stars power play. However, seven seconds into the man advantage, Joe Pavelski was sent off for hitting David Kampf in the face. The roughing penalty resulted in four-on-four hockey for the remainder of the period. 

With ten seconds remaining, Jonathan Toews drew a penalty on Miro Heiskanen for holding. Toews had the puck for a good 20 seconds, skating circles around the Stars defenders without losing the puck. The penalty set up a four-on-three for 50 seconds. 

The teams entered the second intermission with about 48 seconds of four-on-three time remaining. The Blackhawks looked much better in the middle frame than they did in the opening frame, registering 13 shots during the period. 

Third period

The final frame began with an unsuccessful power play for the Blackhawks. Despite starting with the man advantage, they could not generate any meaningful offense. Instead, Dallas gets out of a sticky situation unharmed. 

About two and a half minutes into the period, Khudobin made the save of the game, completely doing the splits to make a save on Dominik Kubalik, who had a wide open cage. The Hawks had a few follow-up chances, but Khudobin was able to shut the door. 

Absolute ROBBERY by Dobby. #CHIvsDAL | #GoStars pic.twitter.com/UzLGBLC3rR

— X – Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) November 24, 2019

The best chance for the Stars in the period came on a power play after a David Kampf delay of game penalty. The Stars had a great sequence and nearly capitalized, but the Blackhawks penalty kill stood tall and Lehner made two excellent saves to keep the home team from taking the lead. 

With three minutes remaining, it appeared the Hawks had taken the lead in Dallas after a Dylan Strome deflection on a Maatta shot. However, the play was waved off immediately for a high stick and after review it was confirmed.

Dylan Strome's goal is disqualified due to having a high stick. #Blackhawks still tied 1-1 pic.twitter.com/SerEEw3sO2

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 24, 2019

The game indeed required overtime, and the Stars and Blackhawks entered overtime tied on the scoreboard and in almost every team statistic.

Overtime

The Blackhawks took possession first as Toews, Kane, and Keith took the ice first for the visitors. A Hawks turnover led to a Heiskanen breakaway, but Toews was able to break up the chance and force a turnover. 

An excellent individual effort from Patrick Kane nearly ended the game. Kane stole the puck from a Dallas defender and took off, creating a breakaway for himself. Unfortunately, Kane couldn’t capitalize. It hurt even worse because the Hawks were called for too many men on the ice after that chance. The Stars took their timeout before heading to the powerplay.

The Blackhawks killed the penalty, despite great chances by Dallas. Andrew Shaw had a semi breakaway just before time expired and looked to be tripped, instead, nothing was called and Shaw was furious. It appeared to be a penalty, but the game entered the shootout. 

Shootout

One shooter for Dallas, one goal. Joe Pavelski scored on the first shot of the overtime. Toews matched that by missing on his move to tuck the puck past Khudobin. 

The second Dallas shooter, Tyler Seguin, also scored. Both goals were five-hole on Lehner. Patrick Kane also missed on his chance and the Stars took the game in the shootout, 2–1. 

Quick hits

• Lehner looked good: Although he is not a shootout goalie, Lehner looked incredible during actual hockey play. He has continued to keep the Hawks in games and there is no denying that he may have been the best free-agent signing this past summer for any team in the league. The Stars had 15 high-danger chances in this game, 10 of them came in the first period. He only let one in. Yes ladies and gents, that’s really good. 
• Good penalty kill: The Blackhawks penalty kill looked sensational all night. The final powerplay in overtime allowed a lot of chances, but Lehner stood tall. If the kill can look like they did tonight all season, they will be in good shape going forward. 
• First one feels good: Olli Maatta scored his first goal as a Blackhawk tonight on a nice two-on-one with Alex DeBrincat. Maatta has improved every game with the Hawks and is proving to be a nice addition to this defensive group. Maatta also nearly had an assist on Strome’s high stick redirect goal. 

The Blackhawks will host this same Dallas Stars team on Tuesday, November 26 at the United Center. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CST.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks fall 2–1 to Stars in shootout appeared first on The Rink.

The Blackhawks lines and pairings were as follows:

Brandon Saad — Jonathan Toews — Alexander Nylander

Alex DeBrincat — Dylan Strome — Patrick Kane

Kirby Dach — Andrew Shaw

Ryan Carpenter — David Kampf — Zack Smith

Duncan Keith — Calvin de Haan

Olli Maatta — Connor Murphy

Erik Gustafsson — Brent Seabrook

Slater Koekkoek

Prior to puck drop, former Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell took the ice for One More Shift. It was an awesome moment no one will ever forget.

What are the chances they're talking about 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘢𝘭 from the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs?#10neGoal #OneMoreShift pic.twitter.com/HGGC8tSe49

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) November 22, 2019

First period

With only 11 forwards for the Blackhawks in this matchup, Patrick Kane took on the task of double-shifting on the third line. Slater Koekkoek and Erik Gustafsson seemed to be alternating shifts on the third pairing with Brent Seabrook.

The game was pretty much even for the Blackhawks and the Lightning in the first 20 minutes. Both teams stifled transition opportunities against each other and whenever one team managed to get some offensive zone time, they didn’t allow many chances. With around 9 minutes remaining in the first period, the Lightning had a couple of great scoring opportunities, but Corey Crawford stood tall and stopped them.

After Slater Koekkoek drew a cross-checking penalty on Alex Killorn, the Blackhawks new power play units got to work. The first unit of Erik Gustafsson, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Alex DeBrincat, and Andrew Shaw got a couple of good looks. Kirby Dach got his chance on the second unit, but the Blackhawks couldn’t convert on the man advantage.

Directly after the Lightning killed the penalty, Duncan Keith sat for interference on Brayden Point. While the kill looked good to start, Ryan Carpenter blocked Corey Crawford’s view of Mikhail Sergachev‘s point shot and it found its way into the net to give the Lightning the lead.

POWER PLAY GOAL!! @TBLightning's Mikhail Sergachev scores on a Power Play! #GoBolts

Don't miss any more of the action! Watch now on FOX Sports Sun or FOX Sports Go here: https://t.co/8RrQyQUIjk pic.twitter.com/FkmGBrL2mU

— Bally Sports Florida & Bally Sports Sun (@BallySportsFL) November 22, 2019

Within the last five minutes, the Blackhawks put the pressure on the Lightning and earned a power play opportunity with under 15 seconds left. After the first period, Tampa Bay held a 1-0 lead over Chicago and a 14-12 advantage in shots.

Second period

The trends from the first frame continued into the beginning of the second. When each team had the puck, they maintained pressure but couldn’t create prime scoring chances. That changed as the Lightning held onto the puck more as the period continued.

Everything seemed really boring this period, until the Blackhawks coughed up the puck with around five minutes left in the period. Chicago allowed a two-on-one but Crawford stymied Anthony Cirelli before the rebound hit the crossbar. That was the best chance for either team during the second period.

With four minutes remaining, Chicago circled the puck around Tampa Bay and Patrick Kane generated what was the Blackhawks’ best chance of the period. This all led to the Lightning taking their third penalty of the game with four minutes remaining. A good opportunity to tie the game for the Blackhawks was wasted, as they could not find shooting lanes for themselves. While the power play units sustained control in the offensive zone, the theme seemed to be a lack of shots with the advantage.

At the end of 40 minutes, the Lightning continued to lead the Blackhawks 1-0 and shots were 24-20 in favor of the visitors.

Third period

The Blackhawks didn’t get off the greatest start after the puck dropped for the third period. David Kampf was called for boarding around the three-minute mark and Zack Smith left the ice after taking a puck up high. So, Chicago was without one of their penalty-killing forwards, but they managed to kill the minor.

Then came the third-period push for the home team. Puck possession for the Blackhawks actually led to scoring chances when they were in the offensive zone. They circled the puck around the Lightning and it founds its way to Brent Seabrook. He went down low, almost below the goal line, and shot the puck off Curtis McElhinney‘s back to tie the game at one with just over ten minutes left in the third.

Seabrook threads the needle to tie it up pic.twitter.com/Ym9zt0cJJL

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 22, 2019

What looked to be a momentum swing was quickly washed away when the Lightning were able to grab the puck again just over a minute later. Mathieu Joseph and Olli Maatta crashed together and the refs missed a blatant high-sticking call as Joseph got his stick up around Maatta’s face. That allowed the puck to slide past him to Alex Killorn, who found an open Victor Hedman at the point. His shot was tipped by Anthony Cirelli and the Lightning regained the lead.

Although the Blackhawks continued to pressure, the Lightning took advantage of their defensive breakdowns yet again. A puck battle in the neutral zone was lost by the Blackhawks and Ondrej Palat came up with the puck. Maatta, the only defenseman back, slid to his stomach for the stick check, but Palat went around his skates and slipped the puck to an uncovered Brayden Point. He gave Tampa Bay a 3-1 lead with 7:30 left in the game.

It looked as if things were over for the Blackhawks when Brandon Saad sat for hooking, but they pulled Corey Crawford early after the penalty kill pushed momentum their way. With just under three minutes left to play, Chicago won a faceoff with six attackers on the ice. Patrick Kane patiently waited until he found a shooting lane, and the puck found its way through multiple bodies in front. McElhinney stopped the original shot, but Dylan Strome corralled the puck and slipped it above the right shoulder of the Lightning goaltender to bring the Blackhawks within a goal.

The #Blackhawks won't go quiet into that good night!

Strome brings them within 1! pic.twitter.com/Jy7YSYOZMp

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 22, 2019

But all hopes of tying the game were cut short when Anthony Cirelli single-handedly worked the puck out of his own zone and found Cedric Paquette, who buried the empty-net goal to seal the 4-2 win for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Overall, the Lightning outshot the Blackhawks 35-34 in what turned out to be a close game.

Pluses

• Patrick Kane extended his point streak to 11 game with an assist on Dylan Strome’s goal. After a rough start to the season, he’s looking to be back to normal. He was an absolute beast in this game, double-shifting on the second and third lines and accumulating the most time on ice of any player on either team (27:52).
• After a rough game against the Hurricanes, the Blackhawks seemed to put together a better defensive effort this time out. They kept up with the Lightning in terms of shot attempts, scoring chances, and high-danger chances. If they can continue this pattern and score more at the same time, they just might win some of these close games.

Minuses

• I don’t know what Jeremy Colliton was thinking going with 11 forwards and seven defensemen tonight, and it’s clear by the post-game comments from Jonathan Toews the team didn’t get it either. I get that the team struggled against Carolina, but you won four in a row prior to that with the same lineup. Why would you switch something that was working all that time just because it fell short once? This tactic almost never works, and it was obvious the Blackhawks looked extremely disjointed throughout the majority of the game with a disjointed lineup.

The Blackhawks will head to Dallas to take on the red-hot Stars Saturday night at American Airlines Center. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks drop second straight game, fall to Lightning 4-2 appeared first on The Rink.

Jeremy Colliton went with Corey Crawford in net against Vancouver. Crawford came into the game with a career 8–5–4 record, .912 save percentage and 2.59 GAA in 18  regular season games against the Canucks. The lineup was without Dominik Kubalík for the first time this season, and Slater Koekkoek was the other healthy scratch on the night. The lines and pairings were as follows:

Brandon Saad — Jonathan Toews — Alexander Nylander

Alex DeBrincat — Dylan Strome — Patrick Kane

Drake Caggiula — Kirby Dach — Andrew Shaw

Zack Smith — David Kampf — Ryan Carpenter

Duncan Keith — Erik Gustafsson

Calvin de Haan — Brent Seabrook

Olli Maatta — Adam Boqvist

1st Period

The Blackhawks got the first five minutes of the game off on the right foot, out-shooting and out-pacing the Canucks with consistent pressure and pucks on net from every angle. Chicago surpassed their shot total from Tuesday night’s first period against the San Jose Sharks (3) within the first four minutes of action.

Chicago’s efforts were rewarded in the form of a highlight-reel goal from Alex DeBrincat 6:41 into the opening period.

UNREAL GOAL, @Brinksy97! pic.twitter.com/Z81aVsvXXR

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 8, 2019

Falling between a trio of Canucks defenders, DeBrincat threw the puck on net in desperation and it beat Jacob Markstrom for the 1–0 tally, his fifth goal of the season. With the goal, DeBrincat passed Ed Olczyk for the 5th most career even strength goals by a Blackhawks player before turning 22 years old with 52 goals, according to TSN Statscentre. 

Chicago was able to continue the early momentum, turning the tables from Tuesday and putting 15 shots on net to the Canucks’ three shots, through the first 13 minutes of the game.

Duncan Keith nearly put the Blackhawks up by two, but passed up a wide open opportunity to pass to David Kampf, who had to reach well behind him to get the puck and his shot was ultimately blocked before reaching the net.

.@shawz15er makes it 2-0 @NHLBlackhawks!

LOVE TO SEE IT (all caps necessary) pic.twitter.com/myyqzLZMHN

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 8, 2019

As the period wound down, the Blackhawks found themselves on the powerplay late. Andrew Shaw found himself some ice in the middle of the Vancouver penalty-kill and a tic-tac-toe setup from Patrick Kane and Dylan Strome gave the Blackhawks the 2–0 lead on Shaw’s third goal of the season.

The period ended with the Blackhawks on the penalty-kill and the shots on goal even at 17–17, but the score 2–0 in favor of Chicago.

2nd Period

With just over a minute of a penalty-kill left on the clock to begin the period, the Blackhawks were unable to hold the two-goal lead as the Canucks got on the board with the man-advantage on a J.T. Miller goal right on the doorstep. Miller’s seventh goal of the season made it a 2–1 game with 18:57 to play in the second period.

pic.twitter.com/0DMNCaXBoS

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 8, 2019

Arguably, there could have been a review for a kicking motion on the goal, but the puck was deemed to have gone off Miller’s stick. Just a few minutes later, Markstrom made a pair of point-blank saves on Jonathan Toews to keep Vancouver in the game early on in the second period.

Unlike the beginning of the first period, Corey Crawford was forced to make a number of high-danger saves in the second period to keep the Blackhawks one-goal lead alive to the mid-way point of the period. At one point in the game, Chicago led in shots on goal with a 14–3 lead, at the mid-way point of the game, the Canucks had taken the shots on goal lead with 27 to Chicago’s 25.

Book-ending the second period with penalties to kill, Strome took a slashing penalty with just over three minutes remaining in the period. Chicago would be able to kill off the short-handed time and head to the second intermission still holding the 2-1 lead. Shots on goal through two periods favored the Canucks by a 29–27 mark.

3rd Period

The Blackhawks took the ice in the third period to the tune of REO Speedwagon’s “Ridin’ the Storm Out.” While that it is a rocking song, not quite the energy that Chicago may want to channel with a one-goal lead at home.

Jacob Markstrom had an interesting night in between the pipes for the Canucks and nearly had an empty net chance allowed as he went on his second adventure of the game going to play the puck, but the Blackhawks were unable to convert. Drake Caggiula was able to draw a Canucks penalty near the mid-way point of the third period to try to give Chicago a bit of momentum on the powerplay, but nothing would come of it except for a scoring chance for Vancouver.

SHOWTIME on the power play! pic.twitter.com/VtiiygZc5q

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 8, 2019

Truly riding the storm out through the third period, the Blackhawks were on their heels for most of the twenty minutes of action, despite having multiple powerplay chances. But it would be Kane firing a shot from the top of the left circle on the man-advantage that would get by Markstrom and give the Blackhawks a 3–1 lead with just over five minutes to play in regulation. The powerplay tally would tie Kane with Denis Savard for fifth-most powerplay goals (101) by a Blackhawks player 30-years old or younger.

The second powerplay goal of the night marked the first multi-powerplay goal night for the Blackhawks this season. It was also Kane’s fifth goal of the season and his third point on the night. All good things.

David Kampf would get an empty-net goal to make it a 4–1 game and then the Canucks would add a 4–2 goal from ‘Shotgun’ Jake Virtanen with just over a minute to play and in the final moments of the game Brandon Saad added another empty-net goal to finally finish off Vancouver for a 5–2 win.

Brandon Saad pots an empty-net goal to give the #Blackhawks a 5-2 lead with 3 seconds to play in regulation. The over/under was set at 6. #CHIvsVAN

— Mario Tirabassi (@Mario_Tirabassi) November 8, 2019

Blackhawks getting their third regulation win of the season and fifth win of the season. Crawford made 36 saves on 38 shots faced and improved his record to 2–4–1 this season with a .900 save percentage.

Plus

• With the powerplay goal in the first period, the Blackhawks have now scored at least one powerplay goal in three of the their last four games. Chicago holds a 14.6 powerplay percentage this season, good for 23rd in the NHL. Tonight marked the first time since December 9, 2018 that the Blackhawks had at least six powerplay chances in a game.

Minus

• Despite the win, it was another night where the Blackhawks were out-shot and out-chanced by their opposition. With the offense not scoring at the same clip it was last season behind career-best years from Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, Chicago will need to shore up this aspect of their game if they are going to right the ship.

Finally, some postgame fun from Patrick Kane and Andrew Shaw, messing with the local media.

Step Brothers style… Kaner and Shaw went to the interview together pic.twitter.com/okf68Yw3Dw

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 8, 2019

The Chicago Blackhawks are back in action on Saturday night as they travel to take on the Pittsburgh Penguins. Puck drop on Saturday is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. CST at the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.

FULL GAME HIGHLIGHTS

The post RECAP: Blackhawks ride the storm out, top Canucks 5-2 appeared first on The Rink.

Four or five years ago, tonight’s matchup between the Blackhawks and the Kings would have featured two dynastic NHL powerhouses at the top of their games. Tonight, it featured two sub-.500 teams struggling to score and establish any kind of consistency.

Prior to the game on the NBCSN warmup, Hawk color man Ed Olczyk pronounced that the Kings are “in a rebuild.” Well, perhaps the same should be said of the Blackhawks.

Robin Lehner, who has clearly been the better of the Hawks’ two goalies early this season, took the net for Chicago, facing Jack Campbell for the Kings.

Of note, veteran defenseman Brent Seabrook was a healthy scratch—something to watch as the season progresses.

The Hawks’ lines and pairings were:

Drake Caggiula — Jonathan Toews — Patrick Kane
Dominik Kubalik — David Kampf — Alexander Nylander
Brandon Saad — Kirby Dach — Andrew Shaw
Dylan Strome — Ryan Carpenter — Alex DeBrincat

Duncan Keith — Calvin de Haan
Olli Maatta — Dennis Gilbert
Slater Koekkoek — Erik Gustafsson

First period

If Chicago head coach Jeremy Colliton was trying to send a message to Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Strome by demoting them to the fourth line, it seems to have worked—Strome took a DeBrincat set-up off transition and buried it from the slot at just 2:33 into the contest, making the score 1–0 Chicago.

The Kings then took a minor penalty at 3:36, which Chicago failed to capitalize on.

Broken record time (and prepare for more of it): The Kings’ bigger forwards had a target on 18-year-old Kirby Dach’s back from the get-go. Overall, the early going featured a fair amount of banging, with Drake Caggiula and (go figure) Andrew Shaw running around quite a bit for the Hawks.

Calvin de Haan took an unintentional delay of game at 10:56, giving the Kings their first power play of the night. After extended LA offensive zone pressure, Lehner made back-to-back strong saves at 11:43. But, King left wing Ilya Kovalchuk evened it up with a tripping penalty 195 feet from his own net at 12:14, which eventually turned into a brief Blackhawk man advantage that was then killed off by LA.

The Hawks mounted another flurry late in the period led by Jonathan Toews and Brandon Saad, but the period ended with the Hawks up by one. Shots were 12–11 Chicago.

Second period

The Hawks struck early again, with David Kampf corralling a pass from a falling Alex Nylander and putting it past Campbell at 2:26 for a 2–0 Chicago lead.

Shaw took a holding the stick minor at 5:24, putting LA on the man advantage, which the Hawks killed with Lehner strong on a few late King chances.

Nylander and Dominik Kubalik had a nice two-on-one opportunity at 9:46 that Nylander could not squeak through Campbell’s pads.

There was a bit of controversy when Saad was caught in the face by the follow-through of an LA player’s stick after taking a shot. Saad fell to the ice, but play continued until the refs blew it dow with the Hawks offside at 15:19. The Hawks cashed in just seconds later when DeBrincat picked up a puck behind the LA net and fed Strome again in the slot, which Strome held on to long enough to draw Campbell down then converted up high at 15:55, extending Chicago’s lead to 3–0.

Strome and DeBrincat clicked yet again at 19:52, this time with Strome feeding DeBrincat out front to make it 4–0 Hawks, which was how the period would end. The Kings outshot Chicago 12–8 in the frame.

Third period

Strome almost made it three goals for the night at 2:35 when he got in behind the King defense. But Campbell was up to the challenge to deny the hat-trick bid.

The Kings finally solved Lehner at 3:35 on a Sean Walker blast from the right circle to cut the score to 4–1.

Toews took a hooking minor at 12:18 which the Hawks effectively killed. DeBrincat and Strome again almost converted a two-on-one at 16:00, but to no avail. But, at 17:43, Drake “Caligula” Caggiula finally broke the Cat-Strome spell and tipped a puck home, making it 5–1 Chicago, which would prove to be the final score.

The good

The Strome, Ryan Carpenter, DeBrincat line. Crazy good. Three goals, seven points. Lehner was also very strong (38 saves, .974 save percentage). Nylander made plays all over the ice.

The bad

Hard to find on a night like this against a really bad Kings team. So, yeah, the Kings. Well, the Hawks were yet again outshot, 39–26.

The ugly

The guys in black, again.

All we have on this one. Comment below.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks down Kings 5–1 appeared first on The Rink.

Sitting in 6th place in the Central Division, the Blackhawks now have some work to do on the road. They have been getting mostly stellar goaltending from Corey Crawford and Robin Lehner, but the Hawks can’t seem to prevail in one-goal games.

The Hawks had an opportunity to get back on track Saturday against the Carolina Hurricanes.  Here’s the full recap.

First period

After Chicago’s poor performance against the Flyers on Thursday, Colliton was looking for more work ethic from his team to start the game Saturday.  Almost immediately after puck drop, Corey Crawford was faced with high danger chances.  Andrei Svechnikov found the puck near the side of the net for a shot in close, but Crawford came up with the save.  Brent Seabrook had some issues in the first,  turning the puck over and getting beat by Carolina’s quick forwards such as Sebastian Aho.

But not all was bad.  Although Brandon Saad wasn’t on their line today, Dominik Kubalik and David Kampf continued to be strong on the forecheck, producing good shots on net.  Kirby Dach also showed ability in the transition game, although his strength on the puck in the corners was exposed against big defenseman like Joel Edmundson.

Just five minutes into the first period, Duncan Keith was called for a high sticking minor.  Unfortunately for the Blackhawks, this led to a Svechnikov power play goal.  But just a few minutes later, the Hawks had their turn, when Jake Gardiner tripped Alex Nylander in the Canes zone.  Nothing came of the power play, but the Blackhawks did gain some momentum.  Specifically in the last five minutes, the Hawks had chances from Keith, Alex DeBrincat, and Jonathan Toews, but goaltender Petr Mrazek made all the saves.  The period ended with shots even 12-12 but the Canes up 1-0.

YEAH SVECH!!! pic.twitter.com/DUOB4n08JU

— x – Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) October 26, 2019

Second Period

The Canes started the second period with a heavy forecheck, forcing the Blackhawks to regroup quite often in their own zone.  Dach had more good looks, especially on one strong drive to the net.  He isn’t like other rookies where they just pass to veteran players.  Dach is legitimately trying to make and finish plays on his own sometimes.

Corey Crawford stood strong making big save after big save through the second.  And even though he started the game on the 4th line, Dylan Strome found himself along on a breakaway only to be stopped by Mrazek..

#crOwMG pic.twitter.com/kUlNDz7l99

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) October 26, 2019

Midway through the period, Dach had the puck in the corner when Svechnikov laid a huge hit on him.  There was no immediate reaction from the Blackhawks, but after the play Erik Gusfasson gave Svechnikov a crosscheck.  The Blackhawks had one power play in the period that came from a Martin Necas hooking call, but the Canes killed it off.

In the final minute of the period, the Canes were putting on serious pressure in the Hawks zone when Nino Niederreiter scored putting Carolina up 2-0 going into the third.

Give me fuel!!
Give me fire!!
Give me Nino Niederreiter!! pic.twitter.com/3kYAgp4xyM

— x – Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) October 26, 2019

Third Period

The third period started poorly for the Blackhawks when Dach got called for a holding minor.  The Canes capitalized on a Sebastian Aho setup to a Jordan Staal goal.  At 3-0, even Crawford was trying to get the offense going by passing the puck from behind the goal up ice to his forwards.

The Hawks couldn’t get much going until late in the period when Nylander drew another tripping minor.  But the Canes killed off the Hawks third power play of the day.  Despite being up late in the third period, Carolina continued to put the pedal to the metal: finishing checks, getting the puck in deep, and giving the Blackhawks no room to skate.

With a minute remaining, Svechnikov scored his second goal of the game.  The final score was 4-0 Carolina with the Blackhawks leading in shots 32-31.  It’s important to note that Carolina blocked 20 shots to Chicago’s nine.

Remember the magic words tomorrow…

"I'M A CANIAC AND IT'S BO TIME"

cc: @Bojangles1977 pic.twitter.com/S1t0VozZQj

— x – Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) October 26, 2019

What’s Next?

The Blackhawks won’t have much time to forget about this loss.  They get on a plane today and head back to Chicago to face the LA Kings Sunday night.  Today was more of the same with the Blackhawks.  Solid goaltending paired with a lackluster defense and non-existent forwards.

Colliton is doing his best to make this a hard-working team, but the chemistry doesn’t seem to be there.  The Hawks went through something similar last year when they lost several games in a row in the middle of the season.  But with a few really good teams in the central pulling away, it looks like Chicago could be battling uphill for the rest of the year with this kind of start.

The post Recap: Blackhawks blanked 4-0 by Svechnikov, Hurricanes appeared first on The Rink.

While there are positives (Dominik Kubalik, Robin Lehner, the return of the “real” Brandon Saad and the possibility of an improved defense—if everyone can get and stay healthy), there are some obvious issues, not least of which is a puzzling weakness in scoring goals (30th in the league). Sure, it is only after six games. And you have to take both of those points together in order to really understand what is going on.

While most fans probably expect that the Hawks will fight for every point in every game in order to make the playoffs, the truth is, despite an almost universal belief that Stan Bowman had a good and productive offseason—the Hawks came into the season with more questions than answers.

So, if you are wondering, for example, why Dylan Strome is being “experimented” with at wing, why the lines really are not clicking, etc., understand the Blackhawks are trying some things out to see how they will work—at the risk of losing points.

Some assume that because he was drafted third overall this past June, 18-year-old Kirby Dach playing second line center in the NHL is “perfectly natural.” Well, it is on a rebuilding team, not so much on a contending team. By the way, the Hawks were absolutely destroyed in the face off dot (34%) yet again last night—and at the risk of re-litigating the stupid “face offs don’t matter” argument, they do, especially if you project yourself as a puck-possession team. But I digress. The good news there is Dach’s percentage (40%) was not the team’s worst. The bad news? 40%.

Hence the title of this blog. Now, some of you will say, “Okay, enough already, JJ, we get it, the Hawks are rebuilding.” To which I respond, “Okay, so then do not expect much, especially not right now and maybe all year.”

Honestly, I believe the Hawks, as they have tried and basically failed at the last few seasons, are trying to engineer lightning in a bottle over the course of 82 games. If—IF—Dach matures through on the job training (like Alex DeBrincat did two years ago and Saad did in 2013), IF Calvin de Haan and Connor Murphy and everyone else can get and stay healthy, IF Strome can adjust to wing, IF we get more good Alex Nylander than bad Alex Nylander, IF Lehner continues to look like an elite (or near elite) netminder, then perhaps the playoffs will be a real possibility.

But, we are working through the IFs right now; answers to be determined.

All I have for now. Comment below.

The post ANALYSIS: Adjust your Blackhawks expectations appeared first on The Rink.

As expected, long-time Blackhawk Corey Crawford took the net for Chicago’s home opener in the second game of the season. There continues to be speculation as to how head coach Jeremy Colliton will split up the games in net between Crawford and Robin Lehner.

Here was the starting lineup for tonight’s matchup:

Alex Nylander — Jonathan Toews — Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat — Dylan Strome — Andrew Shaw

Brandon Saad — David Kampf — Dominik Kubalik

Zack Smith — Ryan Carpenter — Drake Caggiula

Duncan Keith — Erik Gustafsson

Olli Maatta — Brent Seabrook

Slater Koekkoek — Connor Murphy

Brendan Perlini and Calvin de Haan were the scratches.

First period

In the first five minutes, the Blackhawks did not get many chances. Newly signed Sharks forward Patrick Marleau got the first shot on net 21 seconds in and the Corey Crawford made some great saves early on.

The chances the home team did get were grade A about five minutes in. The third line maintained offensive zone time and simply threw the puck on net, generating a flurry of chances. Eventually, Brandon Saad retrieved a rebound off San Jose goaltender Aaron Dell and found a passing lane for Dominik Kubalik, who buried the puck in the wide-open net for his first NHL goal and a 1–0 Chicago lead.

Dominik Kubalik scores his first NHL goal and the first of the game for the #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/pnDkt78SiP

— Juliana Nikac (@juliananikac) October 11, 2019

A penalty by Ryan Carpenter in the offensive zone allowed the San Jose power play to get going and they did not let it go to waste. The Blackhawks lost the faceoff and Kevin Labanc scored off an impossible angle to tie the game at 1–1.

The tie did not last long, though. Just under two minutes after the Labanc goal, Olli Maatta retrieved a pass from around the boards and took a slap shot that Dell saved. But, with Andrew Shaw in his kitchen, Dell could only stop the puck so many times before it was shoved in. And boy, was Shaw excited to score his first back in a Blackhawk sweater and to give the home team the lead at 2–1.

Once again, another brutal offensive zone penalty for the Blackhawks led to another tie near the end of the first period. And you just had to know Marleau would score in his 1,658th career game. After one frame, the Blackhawks led the Sharks 14–11 in shots with the game tied at 2–2.

Second period

To start the second frame, the Blackhawks had a power play thanks to Shaw being himself and drawing a penalty against Brenden Dillon at the tail end of the first period. However, Chicago got nothing going on that man advantage. Kubalik continued to look fantastic and was rewarded with a promotion from the third line to the top line with Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews.

The Blackhawks did convert on a prime scoring chance later on, though. After chasing the puck into the offensive zone, Alex DeBrincat stole it away from Erik Karlsson along the boards and fed it to Shaw. From the left faceoff dot, Shaw’s wrist shot found a path into the net behind Dell. The Blackhawks regained the lead for the third time in the game at 3–2 around nine and a half minutes into the second period.

Andrew Shaw scores his second of the game to give the #Blackhawks a 3-2 lead pic.twitter.com/yzr9XUXnz3

— Juliana Nikac (@juliananikac) October 11, 2019

Of course, that advantage did not last long. Just 33 seconds later, San Jose defenseman Brent Burns slid along the boards and put a shot in front of the net from right above the goal line. The puck bounced off Blackhawk defenseman Connor Murphy and directly behind Crawford, tying the game at 3–3.

Both teams exchanged chances for the next few minutes. After Crawford stopped a shot the Sharks put on net, the puck found its way to Kane, who slid it up to Dylan Strome on a two-on-one with DeBrincat. The Sharks’ defense just continued to watch the puck while Strome and Kane tossed it back and forth until Strome shot it home to give the Blackhawks a 4–3 edge.

San Jose continued to pressure the Blackhawks in the Chicago zone for the remainder of the period. With about two minutes left, a shot from Burns at the blue line tipped off the stick of Timo Meier to Crawford, who could not control the rebound. Maatta lifted his own stick off the ice to tie up Marleau, but that did not stop the forward from scoring yet again, tying the contest at 4–4.

After two periods, the Blackhawks and Sharks found themselves tied at four goals apiece with the visitors leading 23–22 in shots.

Third period

The Blackhawks did not look like they wanted to win in the third period. San Jose had the majority of the chances, and, luckily, Crawford stopped almost all of them.

Almost is the keyword there. Five minutes into the final frame, the Sharks circled around the Blackhawks for much too long. The puck found Joe Thornton behind the net and he spotted a wide-open Barclay Goodrow directly in front of the net. There was no defender on him, as Alex Nylander and Erik Gustafsson were both tied up with the same player along the boards. The Sharks had their first lead of the game at 5–4 and the Blackhawks looked dead on their feet.

What a Goodie. pic.twitter.com/kaziUNMO9Q

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) October 11, 2019

In the final minute or so of the game, Chicago did have a decent amount of chances. None of them made their way into the net behind Dell and the Blackhawks lost 5–4, as San Jose earned their first win of the season. The Sharks outshot the Blackhawks 34–30 in the game.

The Blackhawks will remain at home Saturday night to face the Winnipeg Jets at 6 p.m.

Pluses

• Dominik Kubalik was the best player for the Blackhawks. He scored the first goal of his NHL career and controlled play when on the ice. He looks like a steal so far.

Minuses

• The penalty kill picked up right where it left off last year: looking terrible. San Jose scored two power play goals and now the Blackhawks are only 50% (three of six) on the penalty kill. That is not good enough at all.
• After a good first game and stellar preseason, Alex Nylander was invisible tonight. He was bumped off the first line and moved to the third line, then eventually switched in for a double-shifting Patrick Kane.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks fall 5-4 to Sharks in home opener appeared first on The Rink.

Welcomed news to all of the Chicago Blackhawks community, the team locked up star forward Alex DeBrincat to a three-year contract extension on Thursday, just over 24 hours before the team drops the puck for the 2019–20 season. DeBrincat, 21, has been an offensive catalyst for the Blackhawks since taking the ice in Chicago in 2017. The second-round pick from 2016 has 128 points through his first 164 NHL games with Chicago, topping the 40-goal mark last season with 41 tallies. He has not missed a game in his first two seasons in Chicago.

Breakdown: Year 1, $5.1 million (includes some SB money); Year 2, $5.1 million (all salary); Year 3, $9 million (all salary) https://t.co/wfvQIb78HJ

— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) October 3, 2019

With DeBrincat’s deal extending through the 2022–23 season, he will remain a restricted free agent once the contract ends.

The Cat is BACK!

Alex DeBrincat has signed a 3-year contract extension that runs through the 2022-23 season, with an AAV of $6,400,000. #Purr #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/rF4ztP9YON

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) October 3, 2019

At $6.4 million AAV for three years, the deal is heavily favored by the team as they try to navigate signing both DeBrincat and his friend, center Dylan Strome, to long-term deals. Former teammates with the Erie Otters in the OHL, DeBrincat and Strome were reunited midway through last season and paired on the second line together. After an underwhelming start to his professional career with the Coyotes organization, Strome broke out for 51 points in his 58 games with the Blackhawks.

As the Kane and Toews era of the Blackhawks begins to turn the corner, Chicago is hoping that DeBrincat and Strome can be the next focal points of the organization up front to lead the team for years to come. Signing DeBrincat now gives the Blackhawks that window of opportunity.

The post BREAKING: Alex DeBrincat signs three-year extension with Blackhawks appeared first on The Rink.

On the 21st night of September, the lines for the matchup were as follows:

Nylander – Toews – Kane

DeBrincat – Strome – Shaw

Saad – Wedin – Kubalik

Smith – Carpenter – Caggiula

Keith – Gustafsson

Maatta – Seabrook

Murphy – Koekkoek

Lehner

First period:

With only a few regulars in the Bruins’ lineup, the Blackhawks took over early into the first few minutes of the game. Three minutes into the contest, Brandon Saad drew a hooking call and the power play came up with some good opportunities, including a goal. Dylan Strome buried a puck Alex DeBrincat put on net and the home team opened the scoring.

ORDER UP: One greasy power play goal #CHIvsBOS pic.twitter.com/851AP1vgZF

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) September 22, 2019

Just a few minutes later, newcomer Robin Lehner made a spectacular save on a two on one to preserve the Blackhawks’ lead. The Bruins picked up their pace after that stop and had a few good scoring opportunities in the first period.

Midway through the frame, Bruins goaltender Maxime Lagace came streaking out of his net as Patrick Kane went after the puck, taking a great scoring chance away from the Blackhawks. The home team had another great scoring chance when Slater Koekkoek flipped a shot from a tough angle. Somehow, the it did not cross the goal line before a Bruin defender cleared the puck away to keep it a one goal game.

The Blackhawks took their 1–0 lead with a 13–10 shot advantage into the first intermission at the United Center.

Second period:

The beginning of the second frame started just as the first did: a lot of good chances for the Blackhawks but nothing to show for them. The Bruins took advantage and found some quality zone time, but Lehner kept the home team afloat.

About four minutes into the period, the visitors hard work paid off, earning a penalty shot after a flurry of saves by Lehner and Connor Murphy covering his hand over the puck. Ryan Fitzgerald showed off some skill, placing a perfect shot just to the right of Lehner to tie the game at 1–1.

On their second power play of the game, the Blackhawks had a few good chances, most notably a tip in attempt by Kane that barely missed the net. Despite being unsuccessful this time around, the power play looks just as good as it did for much of the second half of last season.

However, Boston dominated most of the middle frame of this contest, forcing Lehner to make a surplus of great stops to keep the home team in the game. He held his own and looked much like the goaltender fans have expected him to be.

Late in the frame, the Blackhawks’ third line went to work in the offensive zone. Brandon Saad moved the puck along the boards and passed it back to Anton Wedin behind the net. Wedin then flipped it back to Saad, who slipped it behind Lagace to put Chicago ahead 2–1.

Give and GOAL!#KneelBeforeSaad pic.twitter.com/oeEHceQTWf

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) September 22, 2019

Despite getting outshot 17–13 in the second period, the Blackhawks headed into the second intermission with a one goal lead.

Third period:

The ice remained tilted in favor of the Boston Bruins to begin the third period as the game opened up and the Blackhawks took their first penalty of the game. All the momentum was stifled by the home team’s successful efforts with a man down, including forcing the visitors to ice the puck on their own power play.

Play slowed in the middle of the period with neither team allowing much past the neutral zone. The Blackhawks picked up their pace around the 11 minute mark, forcing the new Boston netminder, Kyle Keyser, to stop some grade A scoring chances.

The Blackhawks had an opportunity to take the lead on their third power play of the game. After a couple of good scoring opportunities, Boston rushed up the ice shorthanded with Erik Gustafsson defending and Par Lindholm tied up the game 2–2.

With nothing else happening in the final minutes of regulation, the Blackhawks and Bruins headed into overtime.

Overtime:

To begin the overtime period, the Blackhawks rolled out the usual trio of Kane, Jonathan Toews and Gustafsson. On a partial two on one, Kane had a prime scoring chance but could not get the shot off due to a stick check by Anders Bjork.

Both teams had multiple chances to end the game, but Keyser and Lehner both made spectacular saves. Of course, the game winning goal had to be a weird one. Murphy one timed a puck that Keyser stopped with his shoulder, but the puck took a weird bounce off Kane’s chin. He found it heading toward the net and shoved it just enough for it to cross the goal line.

The Blackhawks won the game 3–2 and earned their second victory of the preseason.

Quick hits:

• How Swede it could be: Alexander Nylander has seriously impressed throughout camp on the top line with Kane and Toews. He had a few great chances in this preseason contest and continues to make his case for being on the opening night roster. Wedin also showed off during this game, assisting on the second Blackhawks goal and getting an opportunity on the penalty kill next to Toews. He could be another option at center on the third line.
• Steady Lehnny: After a shaky first appearance in the preseason, Lehner bounced back with a fantastic showing against Boston tonight. He stopped 39 shots and faced 34 scoring chances. He moved well in his crease and made some spectacular stops throughout the game. Lehner remained poised in net and looked like himself. Safe to say, Chicago probably does not have to worry about him moving forward.

The Blackhawks remain in Chicago to play the Washington Capitals on Wednesday. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. and can be seen on NBCSCH+.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks defeat Bruins in overtime 3–2 appeared first on The Rink.

The-Rink.com co-hosts “Gatekeeper” and “JJ” finally wrap up season 2 with Puckpedia’s Hart Levine to chat about salary cap related topics.

• The Traverse City rookie tournament starts Friday
• Five IceHogs rookie breakout candidates not named Adam Boqvist.
• Hart discusses escrow, RFAs and UFAs, Alex Debrincat and Dylan Strome extensions, Robin Lehner, and that beloved Brent Seabrook contract.
• The rookie tournament paperwork debacle.
• The “Blood,Sweat and Tiers” prospect segments.
• What are we looking for in training camp?
• We wrap with The-Rink #RinkratPuckBag segment.

Please subscribe, rate this episode, and even write us a review. Reviews will be read on the air.

Also, Please help spread the word to more #RinkRats and visit our sponsor www.PUCKHCKY.com. Use the discount code “THERINK” for 10% off all orders.

The Rinkcast is brought to you by the Overtime Podcast Network

The post Blackhawks Rinkcast – Season 2, Episode 28 – The Hart of Puckpedia appeared first on The Rink.

The-Rink.com co-hosts “Gatekeeper” and “JJ” are joined by staff writers Mario Tirabassi, Eric Andrews, Ray Napientek to talk about the end of the Blackhawks season.

• The Blackhawks moved up from 12th to third in the NHL Draft Lottery!
• What should/could the Blackhawks do in the draft?
• Is it possible they trade up or down?
• How does the change in draft order change summer free agency?
• Airing of grievances.
• We answer some listener and reader questions

Please subscribe, rate this episode, and even write us a review. Reviews will be read on the air.

Also, Please help spread the word to more #RinkRats and visit our sponsor www.PUCKHCKY.com. Use the discount code “THERINK” for 10% off all orders.

The Rinkcast is brought to you by the Overtime Podcast Network

The post Blackhawks Rinkcast – Episode 51 – Season Wrap / Draft Lottery appeared first on The Rink.

The down side of that is that all the meatball theories are being thrown on the table. On the commute in this morning, I heard a respected member of the Blackhawks media suggest that the Blackhawks trade their pick, Brandon Saad, Adam Boqvist and potentially another piece to move up one—just ONE—spot. Let me be the first to tell you, that would be immensely irresponsible and stupid.

Before you fire up your EA Sports NHL 19 video game and start constructing irrational trade scenarios, let me be the one to tell you to stop.

Just stop it!

I am as happy as all of you are and, potentially, even more happy. Last night was Christmas in April for me. Despite their faux playoff run, Blackhawks fell “bass-ackwards” into a top-three draft position. All the pieces have fallen into place. We all have to remind ourselves of some very important things, though. Tinkering too much with a brand-new, shiny toy could result in breaking it before you even get to use it. The Blackhawks, more specifically Stan Bowman, need to use this pick wisely.

I believe they will use it wisely. Bowman’s actions since Joel Quenneville was fired tell me he is on the road to improving this team for next season. My honest opinion is that Bowman has done some of his best work as a Blackhawks General Manager these last six months.

He cut bait on mistakes he made last summer instead of his normal regiment of doubling down and found a useful player in Drake Caggiula. He admitted Nick Schmaltz was not the player they had hoped he was and brought in two talented (and bigger) former first round picks in Dylan Strome and Brendan Perlini. Instead of blindly buying into the playoff hype, he stood his ground and did not overpay for a low-percentage trade deadline acquisition. I have been far from a Bowman fan, but I am completely on board with these moves, or lack thereof in some cases.

Here comes the part where I make all the fans with wild imaginations and their crazy nonsense scenarios angry. These are just a few I have seen or read:

Point: The Blackhawks should trade down and select another defenseman. (?)
Counterpoint: NO! They are playing with house money, and they do not need another defenseman after spending the last two drafts stockpiling defensemen. That is silly. They needed depth scoring and a shutdown defenseman. This draft can bring the Blackhawks depth scoring, but no defenseman in this draft can step in before Toews and Kane are gone and be a shutdown defender. That kind of move will probably need to be done through a trade or free agency.

Point: The Blackhawks should trade up to take Jack Hughes or Kaapo Kakko.
Counterpoint: NO! Unless you can get a team to willing take your spare parts and garbage (which they will not), there is no package the Blackhawks can put together that does not set the roster back going into next season. Furthermore, the talent gap between Hughes/Kakko and third overall is not so wide that it would be worth overpaying to move up. Big market teams like the Rangers and Devils are not letting go of top-two picks for anything less than a blockbuster, franchise-changing deal.

Of the two scenarios, moving down the draft would hold the higher potential, but is unlikely. Bowman could acquire a useful player (or two) and still draft a high-end offensive player.

This brings me to my prediction. I think the Blackhawks stay at third overall and take a player like Dylan Cozens or Kirby Dach, unless something crazy happens like Hughes or Kaako dropping, ala Seth Jones.

This is a great opportunity for the Blackhawks organization. Just look at this list of recent players drafted third overall:

Jesperi Kotkaniemi
Miro Heiskanen
Pierre-Luc Dubois
Dylan Strome
Leon Draisaitl
Jonathan Drouin
Alex Galchenyuk
Jonathan Huberdeau

These are all potential high-end, difference-making players. Rejoice, Chicago, safe does not always mean bad. Take it in and celebrate.

Give us your thoughts below!

A mood.#NHLDraft #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/fRO2HdbcMY

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) April 10, 2019

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

The post REACTION: What might the Blackhawks do with the third overall pick? appeared first on The Rink.

7:30 p.m. CST
United Center
TV/Radio: NBCSCH/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Corey Crawford (14–18–5, save percentage: .907, goals against average: 2.96)
Dallas – Anton Khudobin (16–16–5, save percentage: .926, goals against average: 2.47)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (20.5 percent, 12th)
Dallas (20.5 percent, 14th)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (73.1 percent, 31st)
Dallas (82.4 percent, Fifth)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (32.6, 11th; 34.6, 30th)
Dallas (30.5, 21st; 31.7, 18th)

Shooting Percentage
Chicago (9.9 percent, Ninth)
Dallas (8.4 percent, 28th)

Faceoff Percentage
Chicago (49.4 percent, T-20th)
Dallas (51.9 percent, Fourth)

Average height and weight
Chicago 6’1”, 197 lbs.
Dallas 6’2”, 207 lbs.

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Drake Caggiula–Jonathan Toews–Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Brendan Perlini

Brandon Saad–Artem Anisimov–Dominik Kahun

Chris Kunitz–Marcus Kruger–John Hayden

Duncan Keith–Erik Gustafsson

Gustav Forsling–Brent Seabrook

Carl Dahlstrom–Connor Murphy

Dallas Stars

Jason Dickinson–Tyler Seguin–Alexander Radulov

Jamie Benn–Roope Hintz–Mats Zuccarello

Andrew Cogliano–Radek Faksa–Blake Comeau

Mattias Janmark–Jason Spezza–Tyler Pitlick

Esa Lindell–John Klingberg

Miro Heiskanen–Roman Polak

Taylor Fedun–Ben Lovejoy

Analysis

Coming off their 4—3 victory against the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday night, the Blackhawks look to continue playing the role of spoiler as they welcome the Dallas Stars to the United Center.

The Stars enter play on Friday firmly cemented in one of the two wild card positions in the West. The Stars can’t move up, but they can certainly fall to the second wild card spot if the Colorado Avalanche continue to collect points.

The Blackhawks can play spoiler and aid in setting the Stars up to play the top seed in the Western Conference, the Calgary Flames. A tough matchup such as this one could spell a quick end to the Stars’ playoff run.

At this point, this game is essentially meaningless for the Blackhawks. They are too high in the standings to get a lottery pick (unless they luck out), so they will probably pick somewhere between 10 and 15.

That said, a team with nothing to lose is a dangerous team. The Stars need to be cautious on Friday night, otherwise, they could fall into the second wild card spot and be set for a date with the talented Calgary Flames, who may be the most complete team in the Western Conference.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks vs. Stars appeared first on The Rink.

Prior to the game, the Esposito brothers were honored together for “One More Shift” in a Blackhawks sweater. There is no doubt the moment had to be special for the brothers, players and fans alike, as these two greats, and Top 100 players of all time, were honored before Wednesday’s clash.

Dylan Sikura was sent down to the Rockford on Tuesday. In return, the Blackhawks recalled defenseman Dennis Gilbert for his NHL debut. The lines returned to similar form, with a few exceptions. They were as follows:

Drake Caggiula – Jonathan Toews – Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat – Dylan Strome – Brendan Perlini

Brandon Saad – Artem Anisimov – Dominik Kahun

Chris Kunitz – Marcus Kruger – John Hayden

Duncan Keith – Erik Gustafsson

Carl Dahlstrom – Brent Seabrook

Dennis Gilbert – Connor Murphy

Cam Ward

David Kampf is injured with a facial injury and both Gustav Forsling and Slater Koekkoek were healthy scratches on Wednesday night.

First period:

The first period began in pretty quiet fashion for both teams. The early portion of the frame was highlighted by sloppy plays and poor shot attempts. Neither team was able to generate much through the first 10 minutes.

After a slow first half of the period, the Blues found themselves with a golden opportunity to take the lead. With eight minutes left in the stanza, youngster Robert Thomas was sprung on a breakaway. Ward denied the bid and kept the visitors off the board.

With under four minutes remaining in the period, the Blackhawks’ top line created a quality opportunity. Toews carried the puck up the ice and found Kane at the offensive face-off dots in the Blues’ zone. Kane fired what looked like a shot on net that was tipped intentionally by the captain, giving the Blackhawks a 1–0 lead late in the first period.

Captain Jonathan Toews tallied his 35th goal of the season tonight to establish a new career-high!

He tops the 34 he scored in 2008-09. #OCAPTAIN pic.twitter.com/MOabJSamQW

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) April 4, 2019

Not much else happened early, and the Blackhawks took their 1–0 lead into the first intermission against the red-hot Blues.

Second period:

The second period did not begin well for the home team. Gustafsson let a puck get by him on a pinch attempt and sprung Vladimir Tarasenko and Ryan O’Reilly on a two-on-one against Keith. Tarasenko elected to shoot from the left wing side and buried a beautiful wrist shot to tie the game at 1–1.

26 seconds through the 2nd period and Vladimir Tarasenko makes it a 1-1 game. pic.twitter.com/JXrZu19HSS

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) April 4, 2019

A few minutes later, the Blues nearly struck again. This time, the Blues were short handed when Oskar Sundqvist found himself on a breakaway against Ward. Ward made a beautiful save on the play, just getting enough of the puck for it to hit the crossbar and harmlessly float to the corner.

With just under seven minutes remaining in the middle frame, Saad made a great play in his own zone to poke the puck away from David Perron. Saad started the two-on-two up ice with Kahun and Saad quickly passed the puck to his fellow winger.

Saad crashed the net, along with Anisimov, while Kahun pulled up just over the blue line. Kahun skated to the middle of the ice and fired a wrist shot at the net. Anisimov, on a fly by in front of Jake Allen, tipped the puck past Allen and gave the Blackhawks the 2–1 lead.

Anisimov! #Blackhawks take a 2-1 lead in the 2nd period! pic.twitter.com/x3tdRTO4ln

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) April 4, 2019

A late power play for the Blackhawks would not amount to anything and teams entered the second intermission with the score still 2–1.

Third period:

The early portion of the third period was similar to that of the first, neither team could generate any meaningful offense. With about eight and a half minutes remaining, the Blackhawks started up ice as the forwards went to change.

Strome was all alone on the left wing side of the ice in his own zone. Strome was able to find Kane, who bolted ahead after coming off the bench, for a breakaway from the blue line in. Kane used his dynamic speed and roofed a perfect backhand shot to give the Blackhawks a 3–1 lead. Initially, the referees were unsure if the puck entered the net due to how fast it came out of the net. However, after review, the goal was good and Kane recorded his 42nd goal and career-high 107th point.

Patrick Kane snaps a 10 game goal drought AND sets a new career high in points with 107 pic.twitter.com/9UyoiviTbq

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) April 4, 2019

The celebration would not last. On the next shift, primary assist getter Dylan Strome was sent to the penalty box, giving the visitors life on the power play. Less than a minute after Kane’s goal, Perron beat Ward blocker side to cut the deficit to just one at 3–2.

A power play goal for the Blues!

Don't go to sleep yet folks, we've got a lot of game left to play! Watch: https://t.co/w77aqOnokG pic.twitter.com/Rknk3kJNqu

— NBC Sports Hockey (@NBCSportsHockey) April 4, 2019

The Blackhawks were able to fend off the Blues for the bulk of the third period. As time dwindled down, Allen was pulled for the extra attacker. Kane missed wide on an open-net chance, sending St. Louis back into the Chicago zone.

The Blues’ third line gave the team new life. Patrick Maroon carried the puck in on the left wing boards with just over 40 seconds remaining. He fired a pass backdoor to a crashing and wide open Tyler Bozak to even the game at 3–3. Bozak was all alone in the blue paint and stuffed the puck past Ward to send the game to overtime.

TYLER BOZAK IN THE LAST SECONDS OF THE GAME! CLUTCH!#STLBlues pic.twitter.com/0SjcO1EhI4

— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) April 4, 2019

Overtime:

The overtime period would not amount to much for either team. Both teams had notable chances, but neither side could capitalize in the five-minute, three-on-three frame.

The best chance of overtime came from Saad. As his linemates changed, Saad carried the puck in, one-on-one, against St. Louis forward Brayden Schenn. Saad made a move to freeze Schenn and created an open chance from the face-off dot in. The power forward brought the puck nicely to his backhand, but was denied by Allen to ultimately send the game to a shootout.

Shootout:

Toews and the Blackhawks elected to go first in the shootout and the captain did not disappoint. Toews skated off to Allen’s left, back to the middle and gave a quick backhand-forehand combination before burying a shot high past Allen’s blocker. Chicago took a quick 1–0 lead in the shootout.

Let's take another look at Jonny's sensational shootout winner, shall we?!#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/PRtJsbGPPz

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) April 4, 2019

Toews’ goal was ultimately the only tally in the “fifth period”. Kane struck iron and DeBrincat beat Allen but could not elevate the backhand shot. Fortunately, Ward stopped all three St. Louis shooters to preserve the 4–3 Blackhawks victory in the shootout.

Quick hits:

• Hey kid, welcome to the show: Gilbert made his NHL debut on Wednesday night against the Blues. The former Notre Dame defenseman has played well for the IceHogs all season, being paired with Henri Jokiharju often as Rockford’s top pairing. With the Blackhawks officially out of the playoff race, it makes sense to give some of their young defenseman a look. The Hawks have a logjam of players on the back end, so sorting out the good from the bad is necessary to clear roster spots if they want young players to come up and contribute.
• Kane’s career high: After scoring his 42nd goal on Wednesday, Kane set a new career high in points for a season with 107. The 30-year-old winger has been sensational all season. Had the Blackhawks made the playoffs, a strong case could have been made for Kane as league MVP. In deciding which player was truly most important to their team, there is no doubt Kane has a better case than Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov and possibly Edmonton’s Connor McDavid for the award. Nonetheless, Kane looks ageless at this point, and a strong offseason by General Manager Stan Bowman and the rest of the front office could position this team for one more run with Kane and Toews in their primes.
• Saad is worth $6 million: Saad receives a lot of hate from the Blackhawks fan base, claiming he is not worth his contract. However, the 26-year-old has 46 points (23 goals, 23 assists) and plays an excellent two-way game. Wednesday night’s game is a prime example of that. Saad was all over the ice making plays at both ends for the Blackhawks. He may not be a 70-point player, but Saad is worth every penny of his contract. If the forward group does not have to babysit the defensemen next year on defense, as they have done so heavily this season, we could easily see Saad erupt for a 30-goal, 30-assist season while still playing that relentless two-way game.

The Blackhawks remain in Chicago after Wednesday’s game, waiting to welcome the Dallas Stars to town on Friday. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CST.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks defeat the Blues 4–3 in the shootout appeared first on The Rink.

9:30 p.m. CST

SAP Center at San Jose

TV/Radio: NBCSCH/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Corey Crawford (13–18–3, SV%: .909, GAA: 2.91)

San Jose – Martin Jones (34–17–5, SV%: .898, GAA: 2.91)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play

Chicago (20.5 percent, T-11th)

San Jose (23.8 percent, Sixth)

Penalty Kill

Chicago (73.1 percent, 31st)

San Jose (79.7 percent, 19th)

Shorts for/against

Chicago (32.6, T-11th; 34.7, 30th)

San Jose (33.4, Fourth; 28.4, Second)

Shooting Percentage

Chicago (9.9 percent, Ninth)

San Jose (10.6 percent, Sixth)

Faceoff Percentage

Chicago (49.4 percent, 21st)

San Jose (50.4 percent, 13th)

Average height and weight

Chicago 6’1”, 195 lbs.

San Jose 6’1”, 200 lbs.

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Alex DeBrincat–Jonathan Toews–Patrick Kane

Brendan Perlini–David Kampf–Dylan Strome

Brandon Saad–Artem Anisimov–Dylan Sikura

Chris Kunitz–Marcus Kruger–Dominik Kahun

Duncan Keith–Erik Gustafsson

Gustav Forsling–Brent Seabrook

Slater Koekkoek–Connor Murphy

San Jose Sharks

Timo Meier–Logan Couture–Joe Pavelski

Evander Kane–Tomas Hertl–Gustav Nyquist

Marcus Sorensen–Joe Thornton–Kevin Labanc

Melker Karlsson–Barclay Goodrow–Joonas Donskoi

Marc-Edouard Vlasic–Brent Burns

Brenden Dillon–Justin Braun

Joakim Ryan–Tim Heed

Analysis

The Blackhawks began writing their eulogy on Tuesday night in Arizona as the Blackhawks dropped the contest 1–0. An offense that has been very good all season decided not to show up in a game that could ultimately seal their fate for the season. The Coyotes kept themselves very much in the hunt after Tuesday’s win.

Chicago now may focus on young players getting better looks and the impending draft lottery coming up. Perhaps the Blackhawks can luck out and sneak into the top five and draft a player who may be able to help the roster now, if not sooner than later.

The Sharks are on the complete opposite end from the Blackhawks in the playoff picture. The Sharks have already clinched their trip to the postseason and currently sit second to the Calgary Flames in the Pacific Division standings. Despite losing six straight games, the Sharks are still a much better team than the Blackhawks and should likely be able to use this game to get back to their winning ways.

The Sharks weak point this season has been goaltending. Although he has 34 wins, Martin Jones has struggled this year, posting a .898 save percentage and a 2.91 goals against average (GAA), which is identical to Corey Crawford’s GAA. This is one area the Blackhawks may be able to exploit and aid in continuing the Sharks bad losing streak.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks at Sharks appeared first on The Rink.

2:00pm CST
Pepsi Center
TV/Radio: NBCSCH/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Corey Crawford (12–16–3, SV%: .908, GAA: 3.03)
Colorado – Semyon Varlamov (19–18–9, SV%: .910, GAA: 2.86)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (20.6%, 13th)
Colorado (21.8%, 8th)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (73.3%, 31st)
Colorado (77.6%, 27th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (32.4, 12th; 35.0, 30th)
Colorado (33.1, 5th; 31.7, 19th)

Shooting %
Chicago (10.2%, 7th)
Colorado (9.5%, 14th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (49.3%, 21st)
Colorado (48.4%, 26th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 195lbs
Colorado 6’1” 201lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Dylan Sikura–Jonathan Toews–Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Brendan Perlini

Brandon Saad–Artem Anisimov–Dominik Kahun

Chris Kunitz–David Kampf–Marcus Kruger

Duncan Keith–Erik Gustafsson

Gustav Forsling–Brent Seabrook

Carl Dahlstrom–Connor Murphy

Colorado Avalanche

Derick Brassard–Nathan MacKinnon–J.T. Compher

Colin Wilson–Carl Soderberg–Mikko Rantanen

Alexander Kerfoot–Tyson Jost–Matt Calvert

Sven Andrighetto–Gabriel Bourque–Ryan Graves

Samuel Girard–Erik Johnson

Ian Cole–Tyson Barrie

Patrik Nemeth–Nikita Zadorov

Analysis

The Blackhawks remain five points out of the second wild card position after the Minnesota Wild beat the Washington Capitals on Friday night. The two teams between the Blackhawks and that second wild card spot both have 78 points entering play today. The Coyotes have hit a small slide after being red-hot and the Avalanche have continued consistent play to remain in the hunt. The Blackhawks have an opportunity to pass the Avalanche with four points this weekend in the home-and-home that begins today.

It is no secret that the Blackhawks’ two most important games occur this weekend. At this point, every game is the most important. However, a possible four point swing in either direction can either enhance the Blackhawks’ playoff chances, or completely wipe them out of the playoff picture.

Key players will need to step up for the Blackhawks. With Drake Caggiula still injured, the lines that were once clicking during the Blackhawks long win streak have been split. The chemistry has been off, and the Blackhawks could use that consistency once again to remain in the hunt. Therefore, Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Dylan Strome, Alex DeBrincat and Brandon Saad will need to provide a lot of offense if the rest of the team cannot provide the necessary depth.

The Colorado Avalanche sit one point back of the Minnesota Wild entering play on Saturday. The Avalanche have won 5 of their last 7 games, allowing them to cement themselves in the playoff picture. It currently looks like a three team race for the second wild card spot with Minnesota, Arizona and Colorado all within one point of each other. The Blackhawks can quickly change that this weekend, however, if they can steal four points from the Avalanche.

The Avalanche are short-handed without captain Gabriel Landeskog. Landeskog was injured a few weeks ago with an upper body injury. His loss was a major loss to the Avalanche, not only because of his off-ice presence, but because Landeskog set a career high in points (69) despite only playing in 68 games.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks at Avalanche appeared first on The Rink.

7:30pm CST

United Center

TV/Radio: NBCSCH/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Corey Crawford (12–15–2, SV%: .907, GAA: 3.07)

Vancouver – Thatcher Demko (1–2–0, SV%: .895, GAA: 3.21)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play

Chicago (20.7%, 12th)

Vancouver (14.9%, 29th)

Penalty Kill

Chicago (73.5%, 31st)

Vancouver (81.0%, 14th)

Shorts for/against

Chicago (32.4, 13th; 35.1, 30th)

Vancouver (29.6, 25th; 31.5, 16th)

Shooting %

Chicago (10.4%, 7th)

Vancouver (9.0%, 21st)

Faceoff %

Chicago (49.4%, 20th)

Vancouver (49.2%, T21st)

Avg. height/weight

Chicago 6’1”, 195lbs

Vancouver 6’1” 195lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Brandon Saad–Jonathan Toews–Dylan Sikura

Dominik Kahun–Artem Anisimov–Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Brendan Perlini

Chris Kunitz–David Kampf–Marcus Kruger

Duncan Keith–Erik Gustafsson

Carl Dahlstrom–Connor Murphy

Gustav Forsling–Brent Seabrook

Vancouver Canucks

Loui Eriksson–Bo Horvat–Nikolay Goldobin

Josh Leivo–Elias Pettersson–Brock Boeser

Tanner Pearson–Adam Gaudette–Jake Virtanen

Tim Schaller–Markus Granlund–Tyler Motte

Alexander Edler–Alex Biega

Ashton Sautner–Chris Tanev

Guillaume Brisebois–Troy Stecher

Analysis

Corey Crawford carried the Blackhawks to victory in Montreal on Saturday night. The Montreal-native continued his streak of dominance against the team he grew up rooting for. Now, Crawford may have to put on his red cape once again as the Blackhawks welcome another Canadian foe to the United Center when the Canucks pay a visit.

This game is certainly a trap game for the playoff hopeful Blackhawks. With the Coyotes, Wild and Stars all playing well, the Blackhawks cannot afford to lose a game down the stretch, especially to a team such as Vancouver. The Canucks have nothing to lose, as they are almost all but mathematically eliminated from playoff contention. It’s teams like these that will derail any potential playoff berth for the Blackhawks.

The line to watch right now is the Strome line. Dylan Strome, Alex DeBrincat and Brendan Perlini have given this team true balance throughout the lineup. Now that Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews have been split up, the Blackhawks have three lines that can contribute meaningful scoring.

The Vancouver Canucks are setting themselves up for a high draft pick in this summer’s draft. Once playoff hopefuls, the Canucks fell apart as the season started winding down. The Canucks currently sit third-from-last in the Western Conference with 70 points. It’s safe to say they will not be playing in late April with their current record.

The true bright spot for the Canucks all year has been Elias Pettersson. The sensational rookie has been nothing short of spectacular for the Canucks, as he leads the Canucks in both goals and assists with 27 and 33, respectively. The Blackhawks need to watch out for the young sensation and cannot afford to take the foot off the gas on Monday night, otherwise the Blackhawks playoff hopes could quickly fade.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks vs Canucks appeared first on The Rink.

The Blackhawks are still trying out numerous players who’s futures are uncertain with the club going into next year. Notable players in the lineup that fit that bill include Brendan Perlini, Dylan Sikura, Dominik Kahun and Gustav Forsling. The lineup for the game was as follows:

Saad – Toews – Sikura

DeBrincat – Strome – Perlini

Kahun – Anisimov – Kane

Kunitz – Kampf – Kruger

Keith – Gustafsson

Forsling – Seabrook

Dahlstrom – Murphy

Crawford

First Period:

The first period began with the home team falling behind quickly to the boys from the desert. Under five minutes into the game, a ring-around attempt from Carl Dahlstrom hit the referee and was picked up by the Coyotes. Richard Panik found the puck in front, held on just long enough to get Corey Crawford out of position, and buried his 12th goal of the season to make it 1-0 early.

https://twitter.com/CMS_74_/status/1105269217870393344

Under three minutes later, Alex DeBrincat outletted a pass to Brent Seabrook on the right wing boards near the red line. Seabrook quickly found Brendan Perlini at the blue line going in with a solid pass. The pass was slightly tipped, but Perlini still found himself on a breakaway and he beat Darcy Kuemper to tie the game.

Brendan Perlini scores against his former team … pic.twitter.com/9Jbm77vWb0

— Cristiano Simonetta (@CMS_74_) March 12, 2019

Less than two minutes after Perlini’s tally, the Blackhawks struck again. Jonathan Toews made a sweet move on the right wing side of the ice to shake his defender. Upon creating space for himself, he put a perfect pass on the tape of Brandon Saad standing right outside the blue paint. Saad tipped the puck past Kuemper to give the Blackhawks the 2-1 lead.

Brandon Saad gives the #Blackhawks a 2-1 lead … great play by Toews to set him up. pic.twitter.com/sAhYGin7aI

— Cristiano Simonetta (@CMS_74_) March 12, 2019

Despite the Blackhawks controlling play for the rest of the period, the Blackhawks could not generate anymore offense and took their 2-1 lead into the first intermission.

Second Period:

The Blackhawks would not stop the scoring in the middle frame. Just over three minutes into the second, Brendan Perlini added his second tally of the game. Dominik Kahun dug a puck out of the corner and found Dylan Strome on the right side of the slot. Strome quickly found an oncoming Perlini who snapped the puck glove side on Kuemper to put the Blackhawks up 3-1.

Strome and Perlini team up to give the #Blackhawks a 2-Goal lead https://t.co/ZMMV2kzZdC

— Four Feathers Podcast (@FourFeathersPod) March 12, 2019

With the “second line” clicking, it was time for other lines to step up and continue the scoring. About three minutes after taking a 3-1 lead, the Blackhawks fourth line got involved on offense. After a scrum out in front of Darcy Kuemper, David Kampf picked up the loose puck and sent a backhand pass from the right wing side of the crease to the low slot. The puck ended up perfectly on Chris Kunitz’s stick and he had an easy tap-in for the 4-1 lead.

Chris Kunitz has a wide-open net thanks to Kampf's pass … 4-1 #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/KoxvHv7C6u

— Cristiano Simonetta (@CMS_74_) March 12, 2019

The goal would be the last puck Kuemper saw for the night, as he was pulled in favor of Calvin Pickard.

The Blackhawks were able to take advantage of turnovers by the Coyotes. After almost nine minutes passed in the period, Dominik Kahun forced a turnover in front of the Coyotes’ net and dropped the puck back to Patrick Kane. Kane quickly found Artem Anisimov on the other side of the slot, and without hesitation, Anisimov sent the puck back to Kane for an easy goal giving Patrick Kane 41 goals on the year and the Blackhawks a 5-1 lead.

That. Was. Dirty.

Showtime makes it 5-1 #Blackhawks on #AuthenticFan Night!

STREAM: https://t.co/gkAxyp6eDc pic.twitter.com/OdoEHFGgEu

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) March 12, 2019

The play was perfectly set up by the “third line”. It is certainly encouraging when all lines are clicking the way they were tonight.

Before the period ended, the Blackhawks added yet another tally on the board. This time, Jonathan Toews was hooked by young defenseman Jakob Chychrun when going in on a breakaway and was awarded a penalty shot. On the attempt, Toews went five hole on Pickard and scored his 30th of the season to make it 6-1 heading into the second intermission.

https://twitter.com/CMS_74_/status/1105288393561395200

Third Period:

The third period was quiet in comparison to the first two frames. Fans thought they’d be able to see a hat trick as Brendan Perlini had yet another breakaway in the third, only for the puck to squeak through Pickard and sit on the goal line. The goal would have been Perlini’s 11th of the year and 3rd of the night. However, fans would have to wait.

Brendan Perlini's hat trick bid sits still on the goal line … wow. pic.twitter.com/5OAlxO1zVz

— Cristiano Simonetta (@CMS_74_) March 12, 2019

As time was winding down, the Blackhawks took one last rush up the ice. Alex DeBrincat gained possession of a high toss into the zone from Connor Murphy. Despite DeBrincat easily being able to shoot, DeBrincat found Perlini for his third goal of the night with only three seconds remaining to give Perlini his first career hat trick against his old team.

#AuthenticFan hats on the ice!

Brendan Perlini scores his 3rd of the night with 3.6 seconds left. pic.twitter.com/qIi7hOdvAa

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) March 12, 2019

The Blackhawks take the 7-1 victory against a good team full of familiar faces. The Coyotes still sit one point out of the playoffs and the Blackhawks sit five points out of a playoff spot.

Quick Hits:

• Former Coyotes: Brendan Perlini and Dylan Strome certainly had something to prove Monday night against their former team. Perlini registered his first career hat trick, nearly tallying four goals, and Strome tallied one assist in the Blackhawks’ win. Strome found his game quickly after the trade to Chicago, but it is nice seeing Perlini get hot down the stretch as he is playing for a new contract after this season. It’s safe to say the Blackhawks will be interested in returning the big winger after his late season performance.
• The Return of Kampf: David Kampf has been excellent since he returned from injury. The fourth line has been noticeable both on the score-sheet and all over the ice. It is clear that Kampf, Kruger and Kunitz have good chemistry and they delivered with a big goal from Kunitz tonight.
• Playoffs?: The Blackhawks are mathematically still in the playoff race. They would need a lot of help, but these last three games have shown the Blackhawks can be a good team. They have only given up a combined three goals over those three games and Corey Crawford looks like a starting goaltender once again. It will be intriguing to see what happens with the Blackhawks down the stretch.  

The Blackhawks travel to Canada on Wednesday, March 13th, to take on the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. Puck drop is at 6:00pm CST.  

The post RECAP: Blackhawks Crush Coyotes 7-1 appeared first on The Rink.

2:00pm CST
United Center
TV/Radio: WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Cam Ward (14–9–4, SV%: .894, GAA: 3.69)
Dallas – Anton Khudobin (11–13–3, SV%: .923, GAA: 2.56)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (22.3%, 9th)
Dallas (19.5%, 16th)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (73.5%, 31st)
Dallas (81.9%, 7th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (31.9, 15th; 35.3, 30th)
Dallas (30.0, 23rd; 31.3, 16th)

Shooting %
Chicago (10.5%, 7th)
Dallas (8.4%, 27th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (49.6%, T18th)
Dallas (52.0%, T5th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 195lbs
Dallas 6’2” 209lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Drake Caggiula–Jonathan Toews–Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Dominik Kahun

Brandon Saad–Artem Anisimov–Dylan Sikura

Chris Kunitz–Marcus Kruger–John Hayden

Duncan Keith–Brent Seabrook

Carl Dahlstrom–Connor Murphy

Slater Koekkoek–Erik Gustafsson

Dallas Stars

Roope Hintz–Tyler Seguin–Alexander Radulov

Jamie Benn–Radek Faksa–Blake Comeau

Mattias Janmark–Jason Dickinson–Jason Spezza

Andrew Cogliano–Joel L’Esperance–Brett Ritchie

Esa Lindell–John Klingberg

Miro Heiskanen–Roman Polak

Jamie Oleksiak–Taylor Fedun

Analysis

The Blackhawks dropped arguably the biggest game of the season on Friday night to the Colorado Avalanche. The Blackhawks are falling farther out of the playoff picture with every passing day. In order for the Blackhawks to have any hope at continuing their playoff push, they will need to beat the playoff-hopeful Dallas Stars on Sunday afternoon.

Bright spot from Friday’s game was once again Patrick Kane, who now has extended his point streak to 20 games. There is no doubt that the Blackhawks will need Kane to keep up his superhuman season if they want to squeak in as a final playoff team. Other bright spots included Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Strome continuing their hot play since the turn of the new year.

Dallas is coming off the second game of their back-to-back after taking on the Hurricanes yesterday afternoon. The Dallas Stars have cooled of late after playing really good hockey around the all-star break. After winning five games in a row at one point, the Stars have since lost six of their last eight, allowing teams such as the St. Louis Blues to jump them in the standings.

Dallas needs a win on Sunday just as much as the Blackhawks do. The Stars hold on to the top wild-card spot in the Western Conference with a chance to catch the Blues for third place in the Central Division. To better their roster, the Dallas Stars acquired Mats Zuccarello from the Rangers after being shut out by the Hurricanes yesterday. The Stars hope that he can improve their offense as they look to hold on to a wild-card position.

The Blackhawks are one of the teams chasing the Stars, so a loss for the Stars would spell more worry as the Wild, Avalanche, Coyotes and Canucks are all still hovering in the wild-card discussion.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks vs Stars appeared first on The Rink.

After winning two of their last three games in the last week, the Blackhawks traveled to “Mo-town” to battle with the Red Wings for the final time of the season. Brendan Perlini was sick and missed morning skate, giving way to John Hayden on the fourth line. The Blackhawks were also without Brent Seabrook for the second straight game. The lineup was as follows:

Caggiula – Toews – Kane

DeBrincat – Strome – Kahun

Saad – Anisimov – Sikura

Kunitz – Kruger – Hayden

Keith – Gustafsson

Dahlstrom – Murphy

Koekkoek – Forsling

Ward

First Period:

The first period began with an abnormal set of events. Within the first two minutes of the game, there were three center-ice face-offs, quite the abnormal scene for such a short amount of time.

In a similar fashion, it only took a short amount of time for the Blackhawks to get on the board. Only 1:39 into the first, Jimmy Howard stopped a puck behind his net for Filip Hronek to pick up. When Hronek went to pick up the puck, Artem Anisimov stole the puck, wrapped around on his backhand, and squeaked the puck past Jimmy Howard to give the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead.

The Artful scorer#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/qSl2i4TDfl

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) February 21, 2019

The Blackhawks only enjoyed their lead for about five minutes before the Red Wings struck back. After winning a battle behind the Blackhawks net, Anthony Mantha threw the puck out to linemate Tyler Bertuzzi in front. The puck bounced away from Bertuzzi, as well as Slater Koekkoek, before landing on Dylan Larkin’s stick. Larkin set up and slipped a shot through Cam Ward’s five hole to tie the game. The goal marked number 25 for Larkin on the season.

Dylan Larkin nets his 25th #LGRW

Also shout-out to @MikeTirico making his NHL broadcasting debut! pic.twitter.com/r273nWOGOw

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) February 21, 2019

After play continued to pace, the offense would not stop. Cam Ward broke out the puck to Dylan Sikura in the Blackhawks own zone. Sikura, once corralling the puck, sent a cross ice pass all the way to Brandon Saad at the far right-wing blue line. The play sent Saad and Anisimov in on a pseudo 2-on-1. Saad made the Red Wings pay by firing a sweet wrister past Jimmy Howard’s blocker to give the Blackhawks the lead once again.

Brandon Saad's 21st goal of the season gives the #Blackhawks a 2-1 lead!

Coincidence? Yeah, probably. pic.twitter.com/0SVr3GHaFV

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 21, 2019

After Saad’s 21st of the season, the Blackhawks found a little life a few minutes later. With roughly three minutes remaining in the period, Patrick Kane carried the puck into the Detroit zone, dropping it back for Erik Gustafsson at the right-wing point. Gustafsson found Dylan Strome entering the zone with speed and after a split second, Strome dished the puck to fellow former Erie Otter, Alex DeBrincat. DeBrincat received the puck, took one stride and fired home a beautiful top shelf goal to extend the Blackhawks lead to 3-1. DeBrincat’s goal was his 33rd on the year.

Strome to DeBrincat

Where have we heard that before? #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/ocw9H9TBAB

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) February 21, 2019

The Red Wings did not go away quietly. A late power play for the Red Wings gave them some life before the first frame came to an end. The Red Wings drew iron on their best chance of the power play, and allowed the Blackhawks to squeak into the first intermission still up 3-1. Although the Blackhawks dominated on the scoreboard, they were out shot 15-7 in the first period.

Second Period:

The beginning of the second period had a sense of “deja vu” for Blackhawks fans. After a good defensive play in front of Cam Ward, Patrick Kane picked up the puck with a head of steam. Kane’s speed quickly turned the end-to-end rush into a 2-on-1 with Jonathan Toews. Although looking for Toews, Kane ultimately kept the puck and fired home a perfect wrist shot to once again extend the Blackhawks lead to three goals.

Kaner keeps on keeping on!

He extends his point streak to 19 games and the #Blackhawks lead to 4-1! pic.twitter.com/DeHGblQzoI

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 21, 2019

The Patrick Kane goal was the last shot goaltender Jimmy Howard saw for the rest of the night, as he was pulled for backup Jonathan Bernier after going down 4-1.

The rest of the period featured quality back and forth, but nothing to show for it on the scoreboard. Notably, Drake Caggiula was confirmed out for the remainder of the contest in the second period after taking an inadvertent Toews’ stick up high. The Blackhawks were down to eleven forwards for the rest of the game.

Third Period:

The Red Wings came out firing in the third period against the Blackhawks. Once again, one of Detroit’s most dangerous players would prove to be too much for the Blackhawks defense.

After about four minutes of play, Detroit skated into the Blackhawks zone with a chance to do some damage. The puck ended up on Trevor Daley’s stick, as he took the puck around the net on the left-wing side. Before skating behind the net, Daley dished the puck to Dylan Larkin out in front, who muscled through the Blackhawks defense and fired a shot under Ward’s glove to cut the Blackhawks lead to two.

WHAT A SHIFT! #LGRW pic.twitter.com/tolOrCgKFY

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) February 21, 2019

Following that goal, Detroit found momentum. After a possible botched call on the Gustafsson delay of game penalty, the Red Wings were sent to the power play. Anthony Mantha found the puck high in the zone and fired a shot toward the net. The shot ultimately missed wide right, but took a funny hop to the left-wing side of the ice. Sitting on the doorstep of the blue paint was Andreas Athanasiou, who quickly controlled the puck and lifted a shot off of Ward and in. The Red Wings were all of a sudden in striking distance down only one.

Double A has us within 1. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/cKhevan9aZ

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) February 21, 2019

Following the power play goal, the Red Wings were sent to yet another power play thanks to a Kane tripping penalty on Danny DeKeyser. Fortunately, the Blackhawks penalty kill came up strong and held the Red Wings off the board.

The Red Wings had no luck as the period wore on, but eventually found some luck with under two minutes remaining in the period. After Bernier was pulled for the extra attacker, the top line for Detroit came onto the ice. As Detroit set up in the zone, Mike Green whiffed on a slap shot attempt only for it to land right on Anthony Mantha’s stick. Mantha fired the puck from the left-wing side of the blue paint to the right-wing side with a no-look pass. The pass ended up landing perfectly on Athanasiou’s stick and he buried the wide-open chance to tie the game at four.

https://twitter.com/CMS_74_/status/1098419213851652096

The game would end up requiring extra time, as the Red Wings scored three in the third to send the game to overtime. Shots were 32-16 in favor of the Red Wings.

Overtime:

From the get go, overtime was full of entertainment. Numerous quality chances for both teams certainly made fans’ hearts skip a beat at least once. Arguably the best chance came via Brandon Saad narrowly missing Anisimov on the doorstep. The play resulted in a 2-on-1 that Cam Ward stopped as he lost his mask.

Just before the 2:42 mark in the extra frame, Jonathan Toews skated up ice looking to create a chance for himself. Toews was able to execute a nice move but could not finish coming from right to left on Bernier. Toews re-gained possession of the puck and found Gustafsson open in the low slot and, without hesitation, “Gus“ one-time a pass over to Kane who was wide open backside for the game-winning goal. Blackhawks win in overtime 5-4.

Did you expect anything else?

Patrick Kane GAME WINNER! pic.twitter.com/I6F0GBx7g0

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 21, 2019

Quick Hits:

• It wasn’t pretty: Early on it looked as if the Blackhawks were going to run away with this game. However, a strong comeback from Detroit certainly made things interesting late. Fortunately, Patrick Kane is playing like the MVP this year and had another outstanding night, netting the game-winning goal on a sweet feed from Gustafsson. However, in this case, a win is a win and the Blackhawks can take a wildcard position on Friday if they beat the Avalanche.
• A bunch of Otters: The Dylan Strome to Alex DeBrincat duo has been spectacular since Strome was acquired from Arizona. The play of the Strome line has allowed the Blackhawks to have balance throughout their offensive lineup. It’s safe to say that DeBrincat may have more than 33 goals this year had Strome been his center all season long.
• Playoffs?!: That’s right… the Blackhawks sit tied with the Avalanche for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Colorado has one less game played, so they hold the spot. The Blackhawks can leap into a playoff spot on Friday when they welcome the Avalanche to the United Center for a 6:30pm puck drop.

The Blackhawks will host the Colorado Avalanche on Friday night at the United Center. The battle for a playoff spot will begin at 6:30pm CST.  Also, look out for tonight’s pre-deadline Rinkcast.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks Win Overtime Thriller 5-4 appeared first on The Rink.

6:30pm CST
Little Caesars Arena
TV/Radio: NBCSN/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Cam Ward (13–9–4, SV%: .895, GAA: 3.69)
Detroit – Jimmy Howard (17–16–5, SV%: .913, GAA: 2.80)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (21.9%, 10th)
Detroit (16.1%, 25th)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (73.4%, 31st)
Detroit (77.7%, 25th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (31.9, 15th; 35.4, 30th)
Detroit (29.8, 25th; 32.8, 24th)

Shooting %
Chicago (10.4%, 9th)
Detroit (9.3%, 19th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (49.8%, T17th)
Detroit (51.1%, 9th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 195lbs
Detroit 6’2” 201lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Drake Caggiula–Jonathan Toews–Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Dominik Kahun

Brandon Saad–Artem Anisimov–Dylan Sikura

Chris Kunitz–Marcus Kruger–Brendan Perlini

Duncan Keith–Erik Gustafsson

Carl Dahlstrom–Connor Murphy

Slater Koekkoek–Gustav Forsling

Detroit Red Wings

Tyler Bertuzzi–Dylan Larkin–Anthony Mantha

Thomas Vanek–Frans Nielsen–Darren Helm

Christoffer Ehn–Luke Glendening–Andreas Athanasiou

Justin Abdelkader–Jacob de la Rose–Michael Rasmussen

Niklas Kronwall–Mike Green

Dan Dekeyser–Nick Jensen

Trevor Daley–Filip Hronek

Analysis

After a wild shootout win over the Ottawa Senators on Monday night at the United Center, the Blackhawks travel to Detroit to take on the Red Wings for the second and final time this season. Sadly, the rivalry has lost its luster since the Red Wings moved to the Eastern Conference, but Wednesday’s game has a lot of meaning for the Blackhawks as they push for a playoff spot.

The Blackhawks sit one point out of a playoff spot. A large part of that spot in the standings has to once again be credited to the excellent play of Patrick Kane. His now 18-game point streak and 17-game assist streak continue to roll on as the season closes in on the playoffs. Other notable performances come from Dylan Strome and Alex DeBrincat as both players are among the top point getters (along with Kane) in the month of February.

The Red Wings see the Blackhawks for the second time in ten days since their 5-2 loss at the United Center on February 10th. Since then, the Red Wings are 2-1-1 beating quality opponent Nashville and not so quality opponent Ottawa (beating both teams by a score of 3-2). Back to back losses to Philadelphia over the weekend bring the Red Wings into Wednesday night’s matchup looking to get back in the win column.

The last time the Red Wings and Blackhawks played, Dylan Larkin and Gustav Nyquist (who we noted in our preview as players to watch), both had a major impact on that game. The game was much closer late than the 5-2 score suggested to the box score scanner. Another notable player the Blackhawks need to watch is Andreas Athanasiou. “AA” has the speed to break the game open and get behind the Blackhawks defense, especially with the chance that Brent Seabrook once again misses the game due to injury.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks at Red Wings appeared first on The Rink.

7:30pm CST
United Center
TV/Radio: WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Cam Ward (11–8–4, SV%: .895, GAA: 3.67)
New Jersey – Cory Schneider (0–6–2, SV%: .868, GAA: 4.12)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (21.1%, 12th)
New Jersey (18.8%, 17th)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (73.5%, 31st)
New Jersey (84.0%, 4th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (31.4, 19th; 35.3, 30th)
New Jersey (31.4, 20th; 31.5, 19th)

Shooting %
Chicago (10.3%, 10th)
New Jersey (9.2%, 19th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (49.6%, 17th)
New Jersey (48.5%, 25th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 195lbs
New Jersey 6’1” 195lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Drake Caggiula–Jonathan Toews–Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Dominik Kahun

Brandon Saad–Marcus Kruger–Dylan Sikura

Chris Kunitz–Artem Anisimov–John Hayden

Duncan Keith–Brent Seabrook

Carl Dahlstrom–Connor Murphy

Gustav Forsling–Erik Gustafsson

New Jersey Devils

Joey Anderson–Nico Hischier–Jesper Bratt

Marcus Johansson–Travis Zajac–Kyle Palmieri

Kenny Agostino–Pavel Zacha–Nick Lappin

Brett Seney–Kevin Rooney–Kurtis Gabriel

Andy Greene–Damon Severson

Will Butcher–Ben Lovejoy

Mirco Mueller–Eric Gryba

Analysis

After seven wins, the Blackhawks win-streak was snapped in Boston on Tuesday night. The Blackhawks welcome the lowly Devils to the United Center on Thursday night for a Valentine’s Day showdown.

Chris Kunitz will likely take Brendan Perlini’s place in the lineup, as tonight’s game will mark the 1,000th of Kunitz’s career. The Blackhawks have had the ability to host two of these ceremonies in the last calendar year, as both Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith reached their 1,000th games with the team.

The Blackhawks will look to start a new win-streak on Thursday evening. Cory Schneider (unless there is a last minute change) will be starting in net. His poor stat line may be deceiving, but the Devils have struggled as a team this year, so Thursday presents a great opportunity for the Blackhawks to get back on track.

The Devils are licking their wounds as they enter Thursday’s matchup. Their 8-3 loss to the Blues was not nearly as close as suggested. The Devils were completely manhandled by the red-hot Blues, and look to avoid such an outcome against the Blackhawks, fresh off their seven-game win-streak. In the Devils’ last seven games, they are 2-4-1, helping them slip to within three points of the Ottawa Senators and the best odds to win the draft lottery.

The Devils will still be without their MVP and perennial superstar, Taylor Hall, for Thursday’s game. Although expected back sooner than later, the Devils lack a huge presence in their lineup.

A small bright spot for the Devils’ organization is the homecoming for forward Kenny Agostino. Agostino spent time this year with the Canadiens, after time last season with the Bruins organization and the Blues organization before that, before being claimed off waivers by his hometown team. The former AHL leading scorer will look to help his hometown club rebound after his first game with the club did not go so well on Tuesday.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks vs Devils appeared first on The Rink.

6:00pm CST
TD Garden
TV/Radio: NBCSN/NBCSCH/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Collin Delia (6–2–3, SV%: .923, GAA: 2.98)
Boston – Tuukka Rask (17–8–4, SV%: .922, GAA: 2.36)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (21.5%, 10th)
Boston (26.4%, 3rd)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (73.9%, 31st)
Boston (80.0%, T16th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (31.5, 17th; 35.3, 30th)
Boston (33.1, 6th; 30.7, 12th)

Shooting %
Chicago (10.2%, 10th)
Boston (8.7%, 26th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (49.7%, 17th)
Boston (51.3%, 8th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 195lbs
Boston 6’1” 197lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Drake Caggiula–Jonathan Toews–Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Dominik Kahun

Brandon Saad–Marcus Kruger–Brendan Perlini

Chris Kunitz–Artem Anisimov–John Hayden

Duncan Keith–Brent Seabrook

Carl Dahlstrom–Connor Murphy

Slater Koekkoek–Erik Gustafsson

Boston Bruins

Brad Machand–Patrice Bergeron–Danton Heinen

Peter Cehlarik–David Krejci–David Pastrnak

Jake DeBrusk–Sean Kuraly–David Backes

Joakim Nordstrom–Noel Acciari–Chris Wagner

Zdeno Chara–Charlie McAvoy

Torey Krug–Kevan Miller

John Moore–Brandon Carlo

Analysis

This Winter Classic re-match features a red-hot Chicago Blackhawks team taking on one of the top Eastern Conference teams, the Boston Bruins. The Blackhawks are riding a seven-game win streak heading into Boston on Tuesday evening. The key so far to the Blackhawks success has been the play of Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Strome, who all rank in the top four in league scoring since January 20th.

On the heels of a brand-new three-year contract extension, Collin Delia is likely to man the crease when the Blackhawks travel to beantown. Delia was rewarded for his strong play so far this season with a three-year/$3 million extension, paying him an AAV of $1 million a season. This contract may prove to be a gamechanger for Stan Bowman, as he has now locked up a possible future number one goalie for this team at an insanely good price.

Another move that grabbed the attention of Blackhawks’ fans was the promotion of forward Dylan Sikura from Rockford. Sikura is currently the leading scorer in Rockford and will serve as the Blackhawks’ 13th forward, after playing numerous games with only 12 forwards on the roster. Sikura may draw into Tuesday’s contest against Boston, likely taking the place of either Brendan Perlini or Chris Kunitz.

The Bruins are not an easy win for this red-hot Blackhawks team. The Bruins currently sit in third place in the Atlantic Division, only one point back of the second-place Maple Leafs. They have won four of their last five games, taking points in all five of those games (their only loss was a shootout loss to the first-place New York Islanders). Expect the Bruins to come out flying, especially with the chance to leapfrog the Maple Leafs in the standings.

Much like the Blackhawks, the Bruins’ scoring has come from a select number of players. David Pastrnak leads the team with 66 points followed by Brad Marchand who has 65. They are followed by Patrice Bergeron (51), David Krejci (43) and Torey Krug (39). After those five players, the next highest scorer is Jake DeBrusk with 19 points. The key to a Blackhawks win on Tuesday night will be shutting down the big guns in the Bruins’ top six.  

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks at Bruins appeared first on The Rink.

2:00pm CST
United Center
TV/Radio: NBCSCH/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Collin Delia (6–2–3, SV%: .923, GAA: 2.98)
Detroit – Jonathan Bernier (6–12–2, SV%: .898, GAA: 3.34)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (21.8%, 10th)
Detroit (16.6%, 23rd)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (73.6%, 31st)
Detroit (77.3%, 25th)

Shots for/against
Chicago (31.5, 16th; 35.1, 30th)
Detroit (29.3, 25th; 32.8, 26th)

Shooting %
Chicago (10.2%, 11th)
Detroit (9.4%, 17th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (49.7%, 17th)
Detroit (51.2%, T8th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 197lbs
Detroit 6’2” 203lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Drake Caggiula–Jonathan Toews–Patrick Kane
Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Dominik Kahun
Brandon Saad–Artem Anisimov–Brendan Perlini
Chris Kunitz–Marcus Kruger–John Hayden
Duncan Keith–Brent Seabrook
Slater Koekkoek–Connor Murphy
Gustav Forsling–Erik Gustafsson

Detroit Red Wings

Justin Abdelkader–Dylan Larkin–Gustav Nyquist
Thomas Vanek–Frans Nielsen–Anthony Mantha
Darren Helm–Luke Glendening–Andreas Athanasiou
Michael Rasmussen–Jacob de la Rose–Christoffer Ehn
Niklas Kronwall–Mike Green
Dan Dekeyser–Nick Jensen
Jonathan Ericsson–Dennis Cholowski

Analysis

The Blackhawks have now won six-straight games thanks to their victory over the Vancouver Canucks in overtime on Thursday night. After two days off, the refreshed Blackhawks will welcome their old Western Conference foe, the Detroit Red Wings, to the United Center for Sunday matinée hockey.

The key thus far to the Blackhawks streak has been good goaltending mixed with quality offense. Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews are both outpacing their scoring totals from last season and huge seasons from former Erie teammates Dylan Strome and Alex DeBrincat have propelled the Blackhawks thus far. If the Blackhawks truly want to compete for a playoff spot, they will need better scoring from the bottom six. Currently, Brandon Saad is the only player playing in the bottom six who has more than 25 points.

The Red Wings enter Sunday’s contest on the second leg of a back-to-back. The Red Wings lost in Buffalo on Saturday 3-1 to the Sabres. The Red Wings have now lost two-straight games after winning three-straight games dating back to January 22nd.

The Blackhawks need to take advantage of a tired Red Wings team. Detroit’s top-two scorers should pose some concern for the Blackhawks defense. Dylan Larkin leads the team with 52 points and is one of the fastest players in the NHL. He will certainly make the Blackhawks defense look foolish if he is given too much space. Gustav Nyquist can also prove to be dangerous if he is given space. In order for the Blackhawks to improve to seven-straight victories, they will need to nullify Detroit’s top-two forwards.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks vs Red Wings appeared first on The Rink.

The Blackhawks starting lines were as follows:
Drake Caggiula – Jonathan Toews – Patrick Kane
Alex DeBrincat – Dylan Strome – Dominik Kahun
Brandon Saad – David Kampf – Marcus Kruger
Chris Kunitz – Artem Anisimov – John Hayden

Duncan Keith– Brent Seabrook
Slater Koekkoek – Erik Gustafsson
Carl Dahlstrom– Connor Murphy

First Period

Shortly after the opening faceoff, a great shift from the Blackhawks center Dylan Strome line lead to Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins taking a slashing penalty against Alex Debrincat less than two minutes into the game. Only a few seconds later, after an offensive zone face-off win by Toews, Erik Gustafsson, fired a wrist shot from the point to beat Talbot through traffic.  Gustafsson now has three goals in his last two games.

The first five minutes saw the Hawks hustling to loose pucks, winning board battles, and exiting their zone cleanly. They generated five shots on goal in the first six minutes of the game and were dictating most of the pace early. At 9:30 Kyle Brodziak took a holding penalty on John Hayden, sending the red-hot dangerous Blackhawks power play out for the second time in the opening frame. Though the power play looked good again, an extra and errant pass from Debrincat below the hash marks squandered the Hawks second man advantage, Oilers with their first successful penalty kill of the game.

The ice started tilting towards the Oilers side as the momentum shift led to Leon Draisaitl taking advantage of a Blackhawks defensive breakdown. Luckily for the visiting team, Ward was in position to make the save in close. The situation did not improve for the Hawks who were sent to the penalty kill at 3:58 after Connor Murphy gets called for a questionable boarding penalty. Much like the first Chicago power play the Oilers scored only moments after Murphy’s infraction.  At 18:45 Darnell Nurse sent a one-timer on Ward, who could not control the rebound. Connor McDavid found the puck and got it to Draisaitl who buried it in the open net to tie the game at one.

Shortly after, and potentially on their way to letting the game get out of hand, the Blackhawks took yet another penalty late in the period. Carl Dahlstrom tripped Ty Rattie sending the Oilers back to the power play less than a minute after the Hawks failed to kill the previous one. A minute into the penalty kill, Marcus Kruger took what could be argued as a good hooking penalty on Ryan Nugent-Hopkins who was in close and alone on Ward. Two minutes after allowing the Oilers to tie the game the Hawks face a five on three penalty kill situation.

Jonathan Toews won the crucial face-off in the defensive zone but the Hawks could not control the puck. Connor McDavid fed Draisaitl with an absolutely beautiful no look pass for Draisaitl’s second of the game. In two minutes the Hawks went from up one to down one.

Still on the penalty kill, the Blackhawks committed yet another penalty when McDavid entered the zone with speed on Dahlstrom and Seabrook. Beaten by the best player in the league, Dahlstrom hooked McDavid, giving the Oilers another five on three advantage that would eventually carry over into the second period.

Shots were 16-9 in favor of the Oilers in the first period, and the Oilers led 2-1.

Second Period

The Blackhawks opened the second period killing the final 30 seconds of a five on three penalty kill.  After stifling Draisaitl and McDavid, the Hawks resume five on five play, and started to pressure the Oilers in their zone. Former coach Joel Quenneville, always said something to the effect of ‘whoever wins the 5 on 3 situation usually wins the game’ the Blackhawks would heed those old words in the second period.

Forward Patrick Kane, under the threat of ending his point streak, started to wake up as the top line was an offensive threat almost every shift.

At 13:11 Drake Caggiula had a three-on-one odd-man rush with Patrick Kane but fired a shot that Talbot gloved. Caggiula has been effective on that top line and it was good to see him take the shot when that’s the best choice instead of defaulting to passing it to Kane and squandering a good scoring chance.

The Hawks dictate most of the play in the remaining half of the second period but Talbot kept the Oilers in front. The second period concluded with an incredible save from Cam Ward on Ty Rattie. McDavid drove up the wall and fed Rattie directly in front of the net but Cam Ward went post-to-post and made the pad save, his best of the night.

Shots were 12-7 in favor of the Blackhawks in the second period. Oilers still led 2-1, though.

See what we mean?!#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/1l9dmjLv2a

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) February 6, 2019

Third Period

Carrying the momentum from the second period, the Blackhawks looked to even the score in the final frame. At 16:10 Chris Kunitz knocked the puck off the wall, Marcus Kruger picked it up and fed John Hayden in front of the net with a slick backhand. Hayden buried the puck and the Hawks, after controlling most of the play for the last 20 minutes, tied the game early in the third period.

The Blackhawks continued to press the gas pedal as, a minute and a half later, center Dylan Strome scored using Darnell Nurse as a screen and sniped the puck short side over the glove of Cam Talbot, set up by Alex Debrincat and Dominik Kahun. 3-2 Blackhawks.

We anticipate a tweetStrome after this wrister#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/O3BUue1VEh

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) February 6, 2019

On the very next shift, Artem Anisimov gained the zone and fired a wrist shot on the Oiler goaltender.  Ward fumbled the rebound, and defenseman Oscar Klefbom got his stick lifted by Patrick Kane.  Kane stole the puck in close and fired it into the open net with Talbot down and out.

Oiler Head Coach Ken Hitchcock challenged the goal claiming goalie interference, as Brandon Saad made a great drive to the net and his foot was in between Talbots legs.  Saad’s leg was out of the blue paint and not interfering with Talbot’s ability to make the save, so the goal stood.

As a result, the Blackhawks had now scored three goals in the last two minutes of play, and Cam Talbot’s night was over. Hitchcock sent in Mikko Koskinen, who on November 1st stopped 40 Hawks shots in a shutout win.

At the 13:22 mark of the final frame, Jonathan Toews entered the Oilers zone off of a Pat Kane feed and drifted between the circles.  He continued below the goal line, maintaining possession from the outstretched stick of defender Kris Russell.  Toews then found Caggiula all alone between the hash marks and Caggiula buried the shot, his second goal in the last week.

Caggiulove to see that!#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/gOjAIgEGb7

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) February 6, 2019

With 9:34 left in the game, Jonathan Toews drew a high sticking infraction from Leon Draisaitl which led to another Blackhawks power play. Toews and Debrincat had a couple of opportunities on the resulting man advantage but they could not solve Koskinen initially. After an Oilers clear, Duncan Keith moved the puck to Brandon Saad, who sent the puck to Brent Seabrook along the wall.  Seabrook threw a saucer pass in front of Dominik Kahun, who redirected the puck out of the air and roofed it for his ninth goal of the season. The Hawks now led 6-2 with 7:48 left in the game, and the locals decide to call it a night. The Oilers had decent pressure but the score stayed the same for the remainder of the game, which gave the Blackhawks a convincing 6-2 win

Final Thoughts

The Hawks have now won five in a row.  They have 21 power play goals in the last 16 games and now sit three points out of the final wildcard spot with five teams to jump. They play the team that currently occupies the final wild card spot in the Western Conference, the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday, an important two points for the Blackhawks.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks Win Fifth Straight in Edmonton 6-2 appeared first on The Rink.

8:00pm CST
Rogers Place
TV/Radio: WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Collin Delia (5–2–3, SV%: .922, GAA: 2.99)
Edmonton – Mikko Koskinen (14–11–2, SV%: .908, GAA: 2.84)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (20.5%, 16th)
Edmonton (21.4%, T10th)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (74.0%, 31st)
Edmonton (75.5%, 29th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (31.3, 17th; 35.1, 30th)
Edmonton (29.0, 27th; 31.2, 17th)

Shooting %
Chicago (10.0%, 12th)
Edmonton (9.8%, 14th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (49.8%, 17th)
Edmonton (47.9%, 27th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 197lbs
Edmonton 6’2” 204lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Drake Caggiula–Jonathan Toews–Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Dominik Kahun

Brandon Saad–David Kampf–Marcus Kruger

Brendan Perlini–Artem Anisimov–John Hayden

Duncan Keith–Brent Seabrook

Carl Dahlstrom–Connor Murphy

Gustav Forsling–Erik Gustafsson

Edmonton Oilers

Milan Lucic–Connor McDavid–Ty Rattie

Tobias Rieder–Leon Draisaitl–Alex Chiasson

Jujhar Khaira–Ryan Nugent-Hopkins–Zack Kassian

Colby Cave–Kyle Brodziak–Jesse Puljujarvi

Darnell Nurse–Adam Larsson

Kris Russell–Matt Benning

Brandon Manning–Kevin Gravel

Analysis

The red-hot Blackhawks are riding a four-game winning streak heading into the freezing-cold city of Edmonton on Tuesday night. Temperatures will rival what we saw in  Chicago just less than a week ago. The Blackhawks will look to make it five straight against Connor McDavid and the Oilers.

Although Patrick Kane is having an MVP season, talk of the town of late has been Erik Gustafsson’s offensive play. On Saturday night, “Gus” registered two goals, with the second being the power play overtime game-winner against the Minnesota Wild. Despite his struggles in the defensive zone this season, the limited minutes of the third-pairing and power play time have suited well for the Swedish defenseman of late. Another notable point-getter on Saturday night was Dylan Strome. Strome now has 29 total points this season in 49 games. However, 23 of those points have come in 29 games with the Blackhawks and it seems that Strome’s change of scenery has played out well for the young center.

The Edmonton Oilers are a franchise looking for an identity. After numerous questionable moves (to say the least) over the last few years, Peter Chiarelli was finally relieved of his duties at the end of January. One such move will play his first game against the club who gave him a two-year contract his offseason, as Brandon Manning will suit up against the Blackhawks for the first time in the 2018-19 campaign.

The Oilers have struggled of late, losing their last five games dating back to January 19th. The Oilers currently sit only two points ahead of the Blackhawks in the Western Conference standings and would surely love to climb back into the playoff picture. However, it remains to be seen if Connor McDavid can carry this club on his back all the way to the promised land. Many will say that is improbable.

One fun matchup to watch will be Patrick Kane and Connor McDavid. Although not necessarily going head-to-head on each shift, both players currently have 31 goals (tied for second in the league) and 76 points (also tied for second in the league). It will be fun to see who can edge out the other in the goal and point standings en route to a possible Richard/Art Ross trophy.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks at Oilers appeared first on The Rink.

7:30pm CST
United Center
TV/Radio: WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Cam Ward (7–8–4, SV%: .884, GAA: 3.99)
New York – Robin Lehner (15–7–3, SV%: .930, GAA: 2.02)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (19.2%, 19th)
New York (16.9%, 24th)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (73.8%, 31st)
New York (79.7%, 18th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (31.2, 18th; 35.0, 30th)
New York (28.1, 29th; 30.3, 9th)

Shooting %
Chicago (9.8%, 15th)
New York (10.6%, 8th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (49.9%, T-16th)
New York (48.3%, T-23rd)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 197lbs
New York 6’2” 209lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Drake Caggiula–Jonathan Toews–Patrick Kane

Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Dominik Kahun

Brandon Saad–David Kampf–Marcus Kruger

Chris Kunitz–Artem Anisimov–John Hayden

Duncan Keith–Brent Seabrook

Henri Jokiharju–Connor Murphy

Slater Koekkoek–Erik Gustafsson

New York Islanders

Anders Lee–Brock Nelson–Jordan Eberle

Anthony Beauvillier–Mathew Barzal–Josh Bailey

Michael Dal Colle–Valtteri Filppula–Leo Komarov

Matt Martin–Casey Cizikas–Cal Clutterbuck

Nick Leddy–Johnny Boychuk

Adam Pelech–Ryan Pulock

Devon Toews–Scott Mayfield

Analysis

The Blackhawks enter Tuesday’s game after a huge win over the Washington Capitals, 8-5, at the United Center. The top players for the Blackhawks came to play, as their top 5 goal scorers (Kane, Toews, DeBrincat, Saad, Strome) all scored in the impressive win over the defending champs. There’s no doubt that the game was tough. Collin Delia, although sensational, faced 39 shots. This has been right in line with the average number of shots that the young goaltender has seen since being recalled. It’s difficult to stop every puck when you face 40 shots per game. Impressively, Delia still has a save percentage north of .920 (albeit a 3.00 GAA) which sheds light on how good he has been given how bad the defense has been (30th in the league in shots on goal against).

Patrick Kane looks to continue his hot streak after taking home the NHL Third Star of the Week honors. Kane has 20 points in the month of January and 10 points in his last three games. The Blackhawks will enter the All Star break (and their mandatory week-long break) after Tuesday’s game, returning to action on Friday, February 1st in Buffalo, New York to take on the Sabres.

Since their last meeting with the Blackhawks on January 3rd, the Islanders have been the hottest team in hockey. The Islanders are 8-2 in the month of January, thanks to great depth scoring and quality goal-tending. The tandem of Robin Lehner and Thomas Greiss have been sensational behind Barry Trotz’s defensive scheme and eight (yes, you read that right) players with ten goals or more.

The Islanders look to maintain their lead on the Metropolitan division with their ninth win in the first month of 2019. It’s a tight race at the top of the “Metro” with the Islanders, Capitals, Blue Jackets and Penguins all within four points of each other in the Eastern Conference standings. The Islanders will also enter their mandatory break after Tuesday’s game, returning on Friday, February 1st to take on the NHL’s best, the Tampa Bay Lightning, in the Big Apple.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com.

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks vs. Islanders appeared first on The Rink.

Jeremy Colliton really changed up the lines during Saturday’s practice, keeping those same lines for Sunday’s game. Noticeable changes include Chris Kunitz entering the lineup, as well as Slater Koekkoek playing over Henri Jokiharju. The lines were as follows:

Caggiula – Toews – Kane

DeBrincat – Strome – Kahun

Saad – Kampf – Kruger

Kunitz – Anisimov – Hayden

Keith – Seabrook

Dahlstrom – Murphy

Koekkoek – Gustafsson

Delia

Brendan Perlini entered concussion protocol over the weekend, so his status remains uncertain.

First Period:

The first period began with the Capitals pacing play. An early Capitals power play could have given the visitors an early lead. Instead, the Capitals played on the outside and didn’t get any quality opportunities on Collin Delia, and the game remained deadlocked with no score.

Six minutes into the first, the Blackhawks’ new third line broke out on a rush up the ice, with Brandon Saad leading the charge. Saad danced around one defender, crossed the blue line and walked the young defenseman Madison Bowey, before putting the puck past Braden Holtby’s blocker for a 1-0 Chicago lead.

Brandon Saad took the puck ALL THE WAY HOME! pic.twitter.com/VKExZbqn2l

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) January 20, 2019

The Blackhawks’ fun wouldn’t stop there. Just over a minute later, the Capitals had a major defensive breakdown. Patrick Kane found himself wide open in the high slot. Kane held the puck, picked his spot and fired home his 28th goal of the season to make it 2-0 Blackhawks. Credit has to go to Drake Caggiula on the play, as he had a perfect screen on Holtby. The Capitals’ goaltender stood no chance with Kane wide open and not having a clean look at the puck.

https://twitter.com/CMS_74_/status/1087045064801640448

As the period neared its last five minutes, the Capitals were able to get one back. Defenseman Brooks Orpik threw a shot on Collin Delia that glanced off of his body and into the net. The goal was Orpik’s second of the year and the Capitals halved the Blackhawks lead 2-1.

Around 30 seconds later, (yes, seconds) the Blackhawks added their third goal of the first period, with some help from Dmitri Orlov. The Blackhawks top line generated some chances before a puck found its way up into the air in front of Braden Holtby. Orlov attempted to swat the puck over the net, but after whiffing on that chance, the puck floated into the net behind Holtby for the Blackhawks’ third goal of the period. Despite Orlov putting the puck in, Toews was the last Blackhawks player to touch the puck so he was credited with his 19th of the season.

That is a #Blackhawks goal by Dmitry Orlov pic.twitter.com/8Ub3CvhHQc

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) January 20, 2019

The Blackhawks took the 3-1 lead into the first intermission. Only 9 first period shots led to the three goals for the Blackhawks.

Second Period:

The Blackhawks didn’t stop the goal scoring to open the second period. After a Capitals turnover, Dylan Strome skated up ice with the puck. Once he entered the Capitals’ zone, Strome drew four defenders’ attention and found a wide-open Alex DeBrincat, who fired home his 25th goal of the season. DeBrincat’s goal was the last shot Braden Holtby would see as he was pulled for Phoenix Copley.

https://twitter.com/CMS_74_/status/1087056673330655237

The middle portion of the period was defined by chippiness and extra-curricular activities between both teams. Notably, Alex Ovechkin took a run at Patrick Kane and Connor Murphy retaliated. Tom Wilson and Duncan Keith also exchanged shoves and a nice hip check from Keith drew more attention from Wilson. Brent Seabrook was involved as well, all leading up to one big “party in the sin bin” for both teams.

PARTY IN THE SIN BIN https://t.co/4GnfziJtaS

— Ron Luce (@LuceOnTap) January 20, 2019

With under five minutes remaining, another weak goal helped the Capitals crawl back into the game. As the Capitals tried establishing position in the offensive zone, Dmitri Orlov fired a shot from a bad angle, almost fully in the corner to Delia’s right. The puck had eyes and found a small opening on Delia to make the game 4-2.

Third Period:

The early portion of the third period made it seem as if the Capitals were going to rally. Only three minutes in to the third, John Carlson capitalized for his 7th goal of the season. A big face-off win for the Capitals led to Carlson’s monster one timer that found the corner over Delia’s shoulder.

Following Washington’s third goal, Nicklas Backstrom went to the penalty box and sent the red-hot Blackhawks power play onto the ice. This would prove to not be a good idea for the Capitals. Just over 10 seconds into the power play, Jonathan Toews found Patrick Kane at the right-wing face off dot, after Kane settled the puck, he fired the puck through Copley’s underarm to make the game 5-3.

The #Blackhawks power play stays
Patrick Kane stays
The Blackhawks lead 5-3 pic.twitter.com/DrOhI1Ijad

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) January 20, 2019

Four minutes later, Patrick Kane made a great play in the defensive zone to get the puck out to a flying Jonathan Toews. Toews and Drake Caggiula had a 2-on-1 from the red line in. The Captain kept the puck and fired a laser to Copley’s stick side to further the Blackhawks lead, 6-3. The goal was Toews’ 20th of the season, his 12th straight year of accomplishing that feat.

Jonathan Toews makes it 6-3. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/Zg9RnJ7wjj

— Cristiano Simonetta (@CMS_74_) January 20, 2019

However, the momentum began to shift in favor of the visitors. Two goals at the ten and thirteen-minute marks gave the Capitals some life and cut the Blackhawks’ lead to 6-5. To that point, all five goals for the Capitals came from defensemen as Carlson scored his second and Niskanen scored his first of the game.

Today’s game was a game of superstars, as Jonathan Toews put the team on his back and gave the Blackhawks a cushion. The Captain, after a great move to shake free, fired a puck five-hole on Phoenix Copley, giving him his 21st goal, the Blackhawks’ 7th of the day, and the hat trick for #19.

Jonathan Toews undresses Orlov and picks up the hat trick.

Sensational goal. 7-5 #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/yVzlz9Xj7m

— Cristiano Simonetta (@CMS_74_) January 20, 2019

After the Capitals pulled Copley, Dylan Strome fought through a hooking penalty to hit the empty net and increase the Blackhawks lead to three. The Blackhawks beat the defending Stanley Cup champions, 8-5.

Quick Hits:

• What a day for the big guns. Both Toews and Kane had five points each. Toews’ hat trick helped the Captain reach the 20-goal plateau for the 12th straight season. Patrick Kane is also now only nine points away from the Art Ross (most points) lead. These two have been spectacular this year and they’re two of the oldest players on the roster.
• Despite giving up five goals, Collin Delia was excellent for the Blackhawks today. He continues to make numerous big saves due to Blackhawks’ defensive breakdowns. His best save of the day was the sprawling save made below (check out the highlight).

Delia with a sprawling save on Wilson! #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/LQ7qdLsqXG

— Cristiano Simonetta (@CMS_74_) January 20, 2019

• The Blackhawks snap a two game losing streak. They are still in the basement of the league, but it’s performances like this today that gives hope for this team moving forward. They’re learning how to play under Colliton and with an infusion of talent through the prospect pool and free agency, there is a chance this team returns to being competitive sooner than later.

The Blackhawks host the red-hot New York Islanders on Tuesday, January 22nd at the United Center. Puck drop is at 7:30pm CST.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks Down the Champs, 8-5 appeared first on The Rink.

The-Rink.com co-hosts Jeff “Gatekeeper” Osborn and John Jaeckel get together to talk about the  Blackhawks and their happenings over the holidays.

• Our Indy Fuel beat writer Evan Miller gives us the first Indy Fuel report.
• The Blackhawks lose to Boston in the 2019 Winter Classic.
• Blackhawks trade Manning and Norell to Edmonton for Caggiula and Garrison
• Where does Caggiula fit in the lineup?  Does anyone get sent down or waived?
• Goalie talk with the Gatekeeper
• We answered some great listener and reader questions

As a new year gift, we close out with “On My Side” from The-Rink friend and huge Blackhawks fan Patrick Judge with his bandmates in Demon Hunter.

New for 2019, the Rinkcast is also available on YouTube

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The post The Blackhawks Rinkcast – Episode 40 – Winter Classic appeared first on The Rink.

7:30pm CST
United Center
TV/Radio: NBCSCH, FS-N/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Collin Delia (1–0–0, SV%: .972, GAA: 1.00)
Minnesota– Devan Dubnyk (12–12–3, SV%: .913, GAA: 2.59)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (13.0%, 30th)
Minnesota (23.1%, 9th)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (73.6%, 31st)
Minnesota (86.6%, 2nd)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (31.7, T-16th; 33.9, T-28th)
Minnesota (31.7, T-16th; 29.5, 7th)

Shooting %
Chicago (9.0%, 24th)
Minnesota (9.3%, T-16th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (50.0%,18th)
Minnesota (50.9%, 11th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 197lbs
Minnesota 6’1” 202lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks
Brandon Saad–Jonathan Toews–Dominik Kahun
Artem Anisimov–Dylan Strome–Patrick Kane
Alex DeBrincat–David Kampf–Brendan Perlini
John Hayden–Jacob Nilsson–Dylan Sikura
Duncan Keith–Erik Gustafsson
Gustav Forsling–Brent Seabrook
Carl Dahlstrom–Connor Murphy

Minnesota Wild
Jason Zucker–Eric Staal–Mikael Granlund
Zach Parise–Mikko Koivu–Nino Niederreiter
Jordan Greenway–Charlie Coyle–Luke Kunin
Marcus Foligno–Eric Fehr–J.T. Brown
Ryan Suter–Jared Spurgeon
Jonas Brodin–Greg Pateryn
Nick Seeler–Nate Prosser

Analysis

The Blackhawks were defeated by the Florida Panthers 6–3 this past Sunday, at the United Center. The loss snapped a three-game win streak for Chicago.

Dylan Strome, acquired in the Nick Schmaltz deal, recorded his second multi-point performance as a Blackhawk. On Sunday, Strome scored once and assisted on two other goals. The 21-year old center also won 67 percent of his draws (8-for-12).

Patrick Kane started the holiday break on a five-game point streak. During the current streak, the forward has netted 2 goals and 5 assists. Kane also has points in 10-of-11 games leading up to the break (4 goals, 10 assists).

The Wild enter tonight’s game on a four-game losing streak, last finding the win column two weeks ago against the Panthers 5–1.

Minnesota relies on a stingy defense and solid goaltending from Devan Dubnyk, expected in net tonight. Dubnyk has recorded a 1–4 record in his last five starts, however, in those starts has a  .935 save percentage.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com. 

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks vs Wild appeared first on The Rink.

After three quality wins against divisional opponents, the Blackhawks were going for their fourth straight win on Sunday against the Panthers. Chris Kunitz made his first appearance in the Blackhawks lineup after numerous games as a healthy scratch. Young forward Jacob Nilsson also made his NHL debut after being recalled from Rockford on Saturday. The lineup was as follows:

Saad – Toews – Kahun

Anisimov – Strome – Kane

DeBrincat – Kampf – Sikura

Kunitz – Nilsson – Perlini

Keith – Gustafsson

Forsling – Seabrook

Dahlstrom – Murphy

Ward

First Period:

The first period began well for the home team on Sunday night. Cam Ward looked strong in his own net after a few goal posts headlined the only quality chances for the Panthers early on. The Blackhawks’ forecheck looked good early as well, generating numerous chances on James Reimer.

Notable “almost” chances included a Brendan Perlini shot right outside the blue paint, that Reimer barely caught a piece of to send it over the top of the net, and two consecutive posts from the Panthers prior to their powerplay mid-way through the first period.

With about 6:40 remaining in the first, Brendan Perlini found Dylan Strome down low behind the Panthers’ net. Strome sat and set up, scanning the ice before sending a pass to his left, finding Connor Murphy. Murphy put the puck top shelf and gave the Blackhawks the late period lead.

Connor Murphy doesn't let two black eyes keep him out of the net! pic.twitter.com/rkLyfWbGxO

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) December 24, 2018

As time was ticking down on the first period, with under four minutes remaining, the Blackhawks looked like their old selves this season. After a bad turnover by the Blackhawks in which Carl Dahlstrom blew a tire, Cam Ward tried to clear after leaving his net and the puck ended up on Jayce Hawryluk’s stick with a wide-open net, tying the game, 1-1.

Second Period:

With less than three minutes gone to begin the period, the Blackhawks would get another dose of Jayce Hawryluk. The young forward had a breakaway from the blue line in after an incredible stretch pass from defenseman Michael Matheson. Hawryluk put a great shot past Cam Ward to give the visitors the 2-1 lead early in the middle frame.

Less than two minutes after the Panthers took the lead, the Blackhawks looked to capitalize on the power play and even up the game. After only about 15 seconds gone on the man advantage, Alex DeBrincat sent a pass to the slot looking for Dylan Strome. The puck glanced off of Strome’s foot, hit the post, and bounced back into the blue paint toward an oncoming DeBrincat. “The Cat” tapped home the rebound for his 17th of the season and tied the game at 2-2.

The Cat pounces on a loose puck and it's all tied up!

2-2 in Period 2. #CHIvsFLA pic.twitter.com/DIjKvUYnpK

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 24, 2018

There were a few good chances throughout the “meat” of the period, but neither team could break the tie. With under four minutes remaining, the Panthers headed to the power play after a Duncan Keith cross check. On the power play, big offseason addition Mike Hoffman scored from the right wing face-off dot to give the Panthers the 3-2 lead late in the period. However, the action wouldn’t stop there…

Less than a minute later, what looked like a harmless Mackenzie Weegar shot, ended up taking a difficult bounce off of Cam Ward and right onto the stick of Jared McCann. The young center would further extend the Panthers lead, 4-2, as the contest went into the second intermission.

Third Period:

The third frame started in very similar fashion to how the second frame ended. After a defensive zone turnover by Jonathan Toews, Jared McCann found an open Denis Malgin for the Panthers’ fifth tally of the game. The Blackhawks looked like the team they were prior to their three-game winning streak, turning over pucks, taking stupid penalties and ultimately, just not playing good hockey.

In a valiant attempt at a comeback, the Blackhawks added their third goal at roughly the mid-way point of the third period. After Connor Murphy carried the puck into the offensive zone, he found Patrick Kane on the right wing boards. With perfect precision, Kane found Dylan Strome backdoor for the tap-in goal to cut the Florida lead to two. It was Dylan Strome’s third point of the game.

DYLAN STROME TAPS HOME PATRICK KANE'S PASS ON THE DOORSTEP!#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/DjLLWkSiO7

— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) December 24, 2018

Despite some quality looks for the Blackhawks, they could not crack James Reimer for the remainder of the period. Frank Vatrano added the empty net goal to give the Panthers the 6-3 lead and, by that score, the game was over. Florida wins 6-3 at the United Center.

Quick Hits:

• Dylan Strome had himself a game. After only one goal in his last five games, the young centerman scored one goal and added two assists. Strome now has nine points (six goals, three assists) since joining the Blackhawks after the Nick Schmaltz trade. It’s safe to say the change of scenery and quality opportunity to play in the top six has helped the former third-overall pick regain some confidence and play his game.
• Cam Ward did not look like the same goaltender we saw against Nashville and Dallas. He looked tired, wasn’t playing with confidence, and let in some goals that should not have gone in. It’s safe to say that both Hawryluk tallies were very preventable, which could have given the Blackhawks a chance to extend their win streak to four games.
• Many fans may be calling for Collin Delia to have a shot and play more games now after the NHL returns from Christmas break. Delia looked great against the Avalanche on Friday night and, at this point in the season, what do the Blackhawks have to lose by giving Delia a quality look in Corey Crawford’s absence?

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all! The Blackhawks will be back in action on Thursday, December 27th at home against the Minnesota Wild. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30pm CST.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks Fall to Panthers at Home, End Three-Game Win Streak appeared first on The Rink.

The-Rink.com co-hosts Jeff “Gatekeeper” Osborn and John Jaeckel get together to talk about the big trade that happened Sunday night.

• Blackhawks make a trade featuring Nick Schmaltz, Dylan Strome, and Brendan Perlini
• They then go out and lose 8-3 to the Vegas Golden Knights
• Who should the Hawks attempt to trade?
• What are the latest rumors?
• The Blackhawks power play is epically bad
• We answered some great listener and reader questions

Please subscribe, rate this episode, and even write us a review. Reviews will be read on the air.

Also, Please help spread the word to more #RinkRats and visit our sponsor www.PUCKHCKY.com. Use the discount code “THERINK” for 10% off all orders.

The post The Blackhawks Rinkcast – Episode 37 – Schmaltz Ya Later appeared first on The Rink.

There was some anticipation ahead of the game with the addition of Dylan Strome and Brandon Perlini in the Nick Schmaltz trade but the Blackhawks were also without Henri Jokiharju due to illness.

First Period

Daniel Carr got the Golden Knights on the board first with his first goal of the season at 2:10. A 3 on 2 turned into a 2 on 1 and he went top shelf over Corey Crawford’s glove side after a beautiful backhand saucer pass by Tomas Nosek.

For a minute it seemed like the Blackhawks responded as Dominik Kahun tapped one past Fleury who lost his net. Unfortunately, the goal was overturned on a Vegas challenge and Kahun was clearly offsides as he came into the offensive zone. A couple minutes later the Kahun-Anisimov-Kampf line had another solid opportunity but Fleury made a great save to stop Kampf.

At 12:14 Alex Tuch put the Golden Knights up 2-0 with an assist from Crawford. Crawford tried to play the puck but his pass went off the boards to Tuch who sniped it top shelf.

The Blackhawks couldn’t convert on terrific chances by Strome or Toews but the Golden Knights had no problem extending the lead 3-0. Cody Eakin snuck in behind the defense and pulled out a nice forehand-backhand move to freeze Crawford.

A minute later Shea Theodore was called for Interference but it was more of the same for the Blackhawks as they could not convert on the power play.

Second Period

Gustav Forsling got the Blackhawks on the board :29 into the period on a long shot from the blue line that was redirected by the Golden Knights.

After 5 minutes of back and forth play Patrick Kane was called for a high-sticking on Theodore. The Golden Knights were able to capitalize on the power play as William Karlsson sniped a shot over Crawford’s glove hand again as the result of a good screen by Ryan Reaves to make it 4-1.

Strome as was able to get one back for the Blackhawks at 11:16 after Kane slid a pass in front of the net that ended up on his stick. The new Blackhawks center did a good job of getting to the front of the net and was rewarded.

Just two minutes later Strome lost a faceoff to Reaves that went directly to Deryk Engelland who snapped one that redirected off of Reaves and past Crawford to extend the lead to 5-2.

With just :06 seconds left in the period Theodore scored with a shot that was redirected in between John Hayden’s legs to make the score 6-2 Golden Knights and that’s where the period ended.

Third Period

Crawford was pulled and Cam Ward started the final period for the Blackhawks and made a few saves. Forsling was called for a delay of game at 4:38 as he shot the puck over the glass. Just one minute later Karlsson was called for tripping Saad to create some 4 on 4 hockey.

Ten seconds later the Golden Knights capitalized on the spacious ice as Theodore coralled a puck on edge and knuckled one past Ward. Vegas extended the lead 7-2 and things were spiraling out of control for the Blackhawks.

It didn’t get better as an Eakin shot redirected off of Saad and then off of Keith’s skate right past Ward to make it 8-2. Erik Gustafsson was able to put home a Strome pass at 15:15 as Vegas was clearly in cruise control. The Hawks trailed 8-3.

That’s where it ended as the Vegas Golden Knights extended their winning streak to 4 games in dominating fashion over the Blackhawks.

There wasn’t much positive to build on and there is no use harping on all of the things that went wrong. There were too many and though it wouldn’t have made much difference, the Blackhawks had no puck luck. This is one of the games the team has to just put behind them and more forward.

Follow @Pappy_Hour on Twitter for Blackhawks news and random hockey musings.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks Thwarted By Golden Knights appeared first on The Rink.

7:30pm p.m. CST/5:30pm PST
United Center
TV/Radio: NBCSCH/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Corey Crawford (5 – 8 – 1, SV%: .914, GAA: 2.68)
Vegas– Marc-Andre Fleury (12 – 8 – 1, SV%: .913, GAA: 2.33)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (12.6%, 31st)
Vegas (17.7%, 22nd)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (75.0%,T-27h)
Vegas (82.4%, 6th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (33.0, T-7th; 33.1, 27th)
Vegas (33.0, T-7th; 27.2, 2nd)

Shooting %
Chicago (8.2%, 27th)
Vegas (8.3%, 26th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (50.1%,16th)
Vegas (47.6%, 1T-28h)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 197lbs
Vegas 6’1” 199lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Brandon Saad–Jonathan Toews–John Hayden
Alex DeBrincat–Artem Anisimov–Patrick Kane
Alexandre Fortin–David Kampf–Dominik Kahun
Brendan Perlini–Dylan Strome–Marcus Kruger
Duncan Keith–Gustav Forsling
Erik Gustafsson–Henri Jokiharju
Brandon Manning–Brent Seabrook

Vegas Golden Knights

Jon Marchessault–William Karlsson–Reilly Smith
Max Pacioretty–Cody Eakin–Alex Tuch
Tomas Nosek–Ryan Carpenter–Daniel Carr
William Carrier–Pierre-Edouard Bellemare–Ryan Reaves
Nate Schmidt–Brayden McNabb
Colin Miller–Nick Holden
Shea Theodore–Deryk Engelland

Analysis

Chicago acquired forwards Dylan Strome and Brendan Perlini from Arizona for forward Nick Schmaltz on Sunday evening. General Manager Stan Bowman stated after the trade, “We are better today than we were yesterday.” As with any trade, time will tell.

Tonight, the Blackhawks take the ice after defeating the Florida Panthers 5-4 in overtime. The five goals were the first time the Hawks scored more than three in a game since October 25th versus the New York Rangers, a span of thirteen games.

Vegas defeated Chicago all three times last season, which was Vegas’ inaugural season in the NHL. The Golden Knights have played .500 hockey this season, not getting the hot start as last season, when they shocked the hockey world and made the Stanley Cup finals.

Forward Jon Marchessault leads Vegas in goals (10) and points (20), while center William Karlsson leads in assists (12). Winger Max Pacioretty, acquired from Montreal in an off-season trade, currently rides a five-game point streak (6 goals, 1 assists).

Corey Crawford and Marc-Andre Fleury are expected in net tonight. The veterans have combined to raise the Stanley Cup five times in their careers (Crawford-2, Fleury-3).

Henri Jokiharju did not participate in the morning skate, due to an illness, and will be a game-time decision.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on the-rink.com. 

The post Preview/Game Thread: Blackhawks vs Golden Knights appeared first on The Rink.

Heading to Arizona is former Blackhawks 20th overall pick in 2014, Nick Schmaltz.  Schmaltz was having a terrible season following what was thought to have been his breakout season in 2017-18. He had not scored a goal in eight games, and scored just one in his last 15 games. Schmaltz also saw his role go from fixture at second line center to third line wing. Apparently the Blackhawks organization was tired of waiting for him to become more consistent and mature.

Heading back to Chicago is 21-year-old former 3rd overall pick in the 2015 draft, Dylan Strome, and 22-year-old former 14th overall pick in the 2014 draft wing Brendan Perlini.  Strome has recorded six points (3G, 3A) with Arizona so far this season, while Perlini registered six points (2G, 4A) in 22 games this season with the Coyotes.

In acquiring Strome and Perlini, the Blackhawks are off the hook for the sticky contract negotiations that will have to take place this summer with the disappointing Schmaltz, as he will be an RFA on July 1. Strome is signed through the end of next season, while Perlini becomes an RFA this coming summer.

Dylan Strome

Brendan Perlini

The post BREAKING: Blackhawks Trade Schmaltz to Arizona appeared first on The Rink.