First period

With the Hawks shorthanded, Buffalo won the draw and Rasmus Dahlin’s pass attempt deflected to Ilya Mikheyev, who skated down the ice into the Sabres’ zone. Mikheyev made a perfect lead pass to Ryan Greene, who had a step on the Sabres’ defender and not much room to operate but it was enough to score his 11th top shelf to give Chicago a 1-0 lead at 3:58.

goals in back-to-back games for Greener pic.twitter.com/AFm1BVHJ4Q

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) April 14, 2026

Late in the first, the Sabres tied it at 1-1 on a goal by Joshua Norris at 19:02. Josh Doan picked off a pass from Andre Burakovsky then fed Norris for his 12th of the season. The game was tied after one.

Second period

Buffalo took a 2-1 lead when Tage Thompson scored his 39th of the season. Louis Crevier fumbled the puck in the corner. Thompson retrieved it and skated in front and shot left for the unassisted goal at the 13:00 mark. The Sabres would take a one-goal lead into the locker room after two periods.

Third period

Buffalo took a 3-1 lead on Alex Tuch’s 32nd of the season. Shortly after the Hawks failed to convert on a 5-on-3 power play for over a minute, Dahlin found Tuch open at the blue line and he skated in alone and fired a wrist shot off Knight’s glove and into the net at 5:38.

Thompson notched his 40th of the season to give the Sabres a 4-1 lead. Jason Zucker quickly entered the zone and fed Dahlin, who found a wide-open Thompson, who fired a one-timer past Knight at 11:13.

With 1:25 left, the Sabres executed another highlight-reel passing play that was finished by Ryan McLeod, who scored his 14th of the season. Buffalo won it 5-1, and combined with Detroit’s 4-3 loss to Tampa Bay in overtime, the Sabres clinched the Atlantic Division crown.

Analysis

The trend continued for the Hawks as they played a solid first period followed by a subpar final 40 minutes. The second period saw the Hawks get dominated both physically and in offensive zone time but the Sabres only had a one-goal lead after two frames. The wheels came off in the third thanks to a terrible power play that did not shoot enough and failed to take advantage of a few opportunities while only trailing by a goal including a two-man advantage for 1:13. That failed opportunity seemingly deflated an already sagging Hawks team as the Sabres followed up with the next three tallies and came away with the win.

The Hawks will play their season finale on Wednesday night when they host the San Jose Sharks. Puck drop is at 7:30 p.m. CDT on CHSN with the radio call on WGN AM 720.

The post RECAP: Sabres defeat Blackhawks 5-1, clinch Atlantic Division title appeared first on The Rink.

First period

After some back and forth through most of the period, with Buffalo dominating possession, the Sabres finally broke through. Tage Thompson, with his great puck control, found Josh Doan streaking to the front of the net. He was able to beat an outstretched Soderblom to put the puck to the back of the net, 1-0 Buffalo. After that, the floodgates seemed to open. Less than two minutes later, Buffalo would strike again. This time, Jack Quinn had a beautiful drop pass to Jason Zucker who wristed a shot right past the Blackhawks’ netminder, 2-0 Sabres. The Sabres would then get a power play on a high stick from Artyom Levshunov with 4:20 left in the period. They used the full time, but put another past the Blackhawks goaltender, with Bowen Byram getting the tip-in at the side of the net, 3-0 Buffalo.

The Blackhawks would get one back before the period ended to try to claw back into the game, however. Sam Rinzel got the shot from the point on net with Tyler Bertuzzi being there to clean up the rebound, making it 3-1 Sabres going into the intermission.

a goal in his 100th game as a Hawk pic.twitter.com/YyOL3ObmLD

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) November 22, 2025

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Second period

This time, the Blackhawks did not make it nearly as far into the period without allowing a goal. With the puck in the Blackhawks’ defensive end, Zucker dug the puck out of the corner and fed it in front to a streaking Ryan McLeod, who buried the wrister, 4-1. EIGHT SECONDS later, they struck again. Just off the faceoff and initial dump in, the puck found its way back to Mattias Samuelsson, who wristed a shot from the point that beat Soderblom, 5-1 Sabres. Almost nine full minutes later, the Blackhawks would get one back. With Ryan Greene coming out of the corner with the puck, he fed it across to Alex Vlasic. He one-timed the puck that beat Ukka-Pekka Luukkonen glove-side, 5-2 Buffalo.

right on target pic.twitter.com/Bc1PELJ2um

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) November 22, 2025

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A few minutes later, Connor Bedard got a huge chance on a breakaway, but was stopped by Luukkonen with the pad. Buffalo would get another one on the board before the period was over. Rasmus Dahlin found Doan again on the 2-on-2 rush, and he potted his second of the game to make it 6-2 Sabres.

Third period

Still having some power play time left over from the second period, the Blackhawks started out on the man advantage. They were able to make something of it, with Bedard ripping a shot that Bertuzzi tipped in front, making it 6-3 Sabres early in the third.

teamwork pic.twitter.com/JtpV0SVeA2

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) November 22, 2025

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It was all downhill from there, as the Sabres would put three more goals past Soderblom, with Thompson putting one of his own past next. Then, five minutes later, it was Jack Quinn making it 8-2 Buffalo. The final goal of this beat down came from Jacob Bryson, on a beautiful move out in front to deke his way past Soderblom, with the final score in this one 9-3 Buffalo.

Analysis

This game had little in the way of good to come out of it. Many players, including Rinzel, Vlasic and Soderblom, had their worst games of the season, and it wasn’t even close. The Blackhawks looked gassed, outmatched and generally outclassed by the Sabres, who were able to skate circles around this team. They did not look remotely prepared to play this game at all. Back-to-back games happen, and you have to be ready to give it all you have got or else you will suffer a horrendous defeat like this game where nothing really went well from any metric you would like to look at. Hopefully, the team can rest up before their next game or else that could easily be a bloodbath as well.

The Blackhawks’ next game is on Sunday night against the Colorado Avalanche back home in Chicago. That game will be at 6 p.m. CST on NHL Network and CHSN.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks beat down in Buffalo, drop 9-3 loss to Sabres appeared first on The Rink.

Against the Buffalo Sabres, the lineup changes were minimal, with Philipp Kurashev coming back into the lineup for Josh Anderson and Petr Mrazek getting the start in net.

First period

The first period got off to a slow start, with only three shots in the first 10 minutes. Unfortunately, the third shot got into the back of the net. Rasmus Dahlin put a shot on net that was deflected home by Zach Benson, giving the Sabres a 1–0 lead. Mrazek’s rough night was just getting started. A couple of minutes later, Tage Thompson put a shot on net that was deflected down by Alex Tuch. The puck squeaked through Mrazek’s pads and crossed the goal line, 2–0 Buffalo.

Fifteen seconds later, Dylan Cozens skated the puck back into the offensive zone. He whipped the puck across to Jack Quinn, who one-timed it off the post and in, 3–0 Sabres. With under a minute to go, the Blackhawks had the puck in the offensive zone. An errant pass from Tyler Bertuzzi sent the Sabres back on the attack. Quinn skated up into the offensive zone, dropping the puck off to Cozens for a goal of his own, putting the Sabres up 4–0 going into the intermission.

Second period

After an abysmal start to the game, Mrazek got pulled for Arvid Soderblom. The Blackhawks hoped they could claw their way back into the game with some personnel changes. Despite a 4-on-4 opportunity, the Blackhawks were unable to put any real chances on net until late in the period. Then, the Blackhawks got their first moment of the game to get back into it. Taylor Hall skated into the offensive zone and passed across to Bertuzzi. He put a shot on net that found twine, getting the Blackhawks on the board.

Bedard Hall Bertuzzi pic.twitter.com/JchzSRj4pd

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 28, 2024

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Third period

Three minutes into the third period, it looked like the Blackhawks might be clawing their way back one more time. Lukas Reichel set everything up with a drop pass to Pat Maroon. He put the puck across ice to Seth Jones, who buried the shot, making the score 4–2.

HAWKS GOAL pic.twitter.com/wHjJohRewT

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 28, 2024

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Unfortunately, that would be all of the good news Blackhawks fans. A couple of minutes later, Tuch would strike again after coming out of the penalty box. He snuck the puck past Soderblom again, putting Buffalo back up by three. Tuch would manage to tuck in one more before the game was over, netting a hat trick for himself and giving the Sabres the 6–2 victory.

Analysis

The Blackhawks got behind too early in this game to really come back. Down by four goals in the first, with many of them not ones that should go in, will go a long way to demoralize a team. Two of Tuch’s three goals were weak and should not have gotten past the goaltender. The Cozens-Quinn combo were both avoidable with a little better defense. Overall, this was simply not a good showing for this team, and puts them right into a spot where they need to start winning in their own home rink to right the ship. The Blackhawks’ next game is against the Dallas Stars at home on Sunday night. That game will be on ESPN at 7:30 p.m. CST.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks beat down in Buffalo, lose 6–2 appeared first on The Rink.

Despite all the positivity from the Hawks coming into this game, the Hawks were sunk early by a tough first period. The Sabres were powered to victory by the play of Tage Thompson.

First period

With under nine minutes remaining in the first period, Thompson broke the scoreless tie with his fourth goal of the season. He fired a shot past Arvid Soderblom to give the Sabres the lead. Thomspon had several near misses before burying the goal.

Later in the first period, Beck Malenstyn record his first goal of the season and put Buffalo up 2–0.

The first period ended with the Hawks trailing 2–0.

Second period

In the second period, the Blachawks got on the score sheet with a goal from fourth-line center Craig Smith.

Craig Smith scores his first goal of the season, and Lukas Reichel picks up the primary assist after a nice pass. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/6Y7de6YOqJ

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) October 20, 2024

Chicago was not done in the second period, as Smith scored again to tie the game at 2–2.

Craig Smith cleans up the rebound on Lukas Reichel’s shot for his second goal of the night. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/eytzIEHSWJ

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) October 20, 2024

The tie lasted until late in the second period when JJ Peterka scored for Buffalo’s third goal of the game with assists from Thompson and Owen Power.

The second period ended with the Hawks down 3–2.

Third period

In the final frame, things got a little chippy between the Blackhawks and Sabres. Peyton Krebs delivered a big hit on Philipp Kurashev that got Tyler Bertuzzi to jump on Krebs.

Peyton Krebs delivers a big hit on Philipp Kurashev, and Tyler Bertuzzi immediately jumps in to defend his teammate. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/MKZ9Kp9pWN

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) October 20, 2024

Later in the period, Connor Bedard fired a shot off Rasmus Dahlin’s face and play was stopped after the shot. Bedard did go over to check on Dahlin. Dahlin appeared to be okay and remained in the game. The Sabres’ Ryan McLeod chipped an empty-net goal to seal the 4–2 win for the visitors.

Analysis

The Blackhawks finally got scoring from someone other than the top line. In the first five games of the season, the Hawks’ offense had been very top heavy. If the Bedard line with Teuvo Teravainen and Nick Foligno did not score, the Hawks were largely kept off the score sheet.

The Hawks’ top line was kept off the score sheet but the fourth line chipped in two goals. Smith potted his first two goals of the season with assists from Reichel. Reichel and Smith appeared to have found some chemistry and hopefully begin to build on it. Reichel, in a make-or-break season with the Hawks, has to show signs of offensive prowess to continue to get ice time.

While the goaltending has been solid thus far, Soderblom put up his first stinker of the season, allowing three goals on 21 shots for a save percentage of .857. With Chicago still offensively challenged, the team must get good to great goaltending on a nightly basis to stay competitive in games.

CHSN update

Before the game, CHSN President Jason Coyle released a statement. In the statement, CHSN blamed Comcast/Xfinity for not offering CHSN a deal or even countering any of CHSN’s offers. The carriage agreement has been an ongoing struggle between the network and cable providers. While Comcast/Xfinity is the largest cable provider in Chicagoland, they appear to be in no rush to get a deal done. The Hawks’ audience currently can only watch games with DirecTV or an antenna.

CHSN also announced that they have an app available and ready to launch but are waiting a response from Comcast/Xfinity before launching. No word on how much the app would cost and which areas would be subject to the NHL’s blackouts.

The Hawks’ next game will Tuesday at 7:15 p.m. CDT against the Vancouver Canucks. The game is available to watch on ESPN+ for out-of-market viewers and CHSN for in-market viewers. If you want to listen to the game, the Blackhawks can be heard on WGN’s AM 720.

The post RECAP: Smith scores twice as Blackhawks lose to Sabres 4–2 appeared first on The Rink.

Trade One

The team traded Ryan Johansen to the Philadelphia Flyers along with a 2025 first-round pick for defenseman Sean Walker and a 2026 fifth round pick. The Avalanche will come out on top with the trade, saving money. In the end Colorado will save $1.35 million on the salary cap. At the beginning of the season, there were expectations that Johansen would fill the role of the second line center. He has done anything but that. In 63 games with the Avalanche, he has only accumulated 23 points. He has also played as low as the fourth line for Colorado. Walker is a mobile defenseman that will carry the puck into the zone. Even on a bad Flyers team he has 22 points in 63 games.

Provided by JFresh Hockey

Provided by JFresh Hockey

Trade Two

The Colorado Avalanche traded Bowen Byram to the Buffalo Sabres for forward Casey Mittelstadt. It was a one-for-one trade that once again had Colorado saving $1.35 million in the salary cap. Byram has had his fair share of injuries, including concussions. But his recent decline in play this season and the addition of Sam Malinski made him expendable. Mittelstadt was leading Buffalo in points and will be a restricted free agent this summer. He is often a standout with his playmaking ability at center on a bad Buffalo team.

Provided by JFresh Hockey

Provided by JFresh Hockey

Call Ups

To supreme the roster for the game tonight against the Detroit Red Wings, Colorado has made two call ups from the Colorado Eagles. Because of Logan O’Connor’s lower-body injury, they required someone to replace him. Jean-Luc Foudy will get his first chance of the season with the Avalanche after only 12 games with the Eagles. He has been struggling with multiple injuries, but he has six points and has been aggressive on both ends of the puck. Ondrej Pavel will also get his second call to Denver this year. The defensive forward has become a staple in the penalty kill for the Eagles and at the faceoff dot as well.

Conclusion

The Avalanche will save about $2.7 million in the two deals today. They are doing this for one of two things. First, they have to plan on making room for Gabriel Landeskog coming back. We all want to hope that he will, but only time will tell. Second, they are making room for another trade on Thursday or Friday before the deadline. The Avalanche improved with these two trades and are showing they want to go all in again.

The post Byram and Johansen traded by Avalanche appeared first on The Rink.

First period

The Blackhawks and Sabres played a scoreless first period with Buffalo outshooting the Hawks 13–4. While the Hawks were able to generate some high-danger chances, the Sabres controlled the play most of the period thanks to two power play chances. To further showcase the zone time discrepancy, the Hawks registered 12 blocked shots in the first period alone.

Second period

The Sabres finally broke the scoreless drought with a power play goal. Zemgus Girgensons tipped in a Ryan Johnson shot from the half boards for his fourth of the season at 12:27 of the middle period to give Buffalo a 1–0 lead. The Sabres held that lead through 40 minutes.

Third period

In the third period, right after a Buffalo power play expired, the Sabres extended their lead to 2–0 when JJ Peterka scored his 14th of the season on a wrist shot from in between the boards and right goal post. When Peterka shot the puck, the blade of his stick and the puck were behind the goal line and the shot hit the side of Soderblom’s mask and fell into the net at the 2:55 mark.

With Philipp Kurashev serving a five-minute major for boarding Erik Johnson, the Sabres extended their lead on the power play when Rasmus Dahlin scored his 13th of the season. Dahlin’s shot went in off the stick of Hawks defenseman Jaycob Megna at 6:06 of the third.

Analysis

Perhaps it was the unexpected day off on Wednesday, but the Blackhawks looked sluggish from the start. The Hawks took several careless penalties and were never able to get into any sort of flow. The Blackhawks continued to struggle offensively, both in scoring goals and generating any sustained momentum in the offensive zone. The Hawks were outshot 31–20 for the game, as Luukkonen registered his second consecutive shutout. Including this game, the Hawks have scored just 11 goals in regulation in nine games this month. On the bright side, while he did not get the win, Soderblom played well enough to keep the Hawks in the game, but the lack of goals came back to bite the Hawks again.

The Hawks fly back to Chicago tonight and will play Friday night at the United Center against the New York Islanders. Puck drop is at 7:30 p.m. CST on NBCSCH and WGN Radio 720 AM.

The post RECAP: Sabres white wash Hawks 3–0 appeared first on The Rink.

Long-time Colorado Avalanche defenseman and beloved teammate Erik Johnson played his first game in Colorado wearing a jersey other than the familiar burgundy since leaving Denver for the Buffalo Sabres. The Avs honored him with a tribute that was guaranteed to make even the toughest Avalanche fan shed a tear.

Thank you @6ErikJohnson #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/i0c0bs6zJ3

— AltitudeTV (@AltitudeTV) December 14, 2023

The Avalanche played a good game with several exciting achievements and ultimately added a 5–1 victory to their scorecard.

Sam Malinski, Nathan MacKinnon, Valeri Nichushkin and Mikko Rantanen each had a landmark night in the statistic department, but more on that later

First period

Colorado was off to a hot start and kept the Sabres to an impressive zero shots on goal for over 13 minutes.

With the defense locked in, the historically prolific offense was set up for success.

After breaking a nine-game scoring drought in Monday’s game, Rantanen netted his second goal in two games. The usual suspects, MacKinnon and Cale Makar, both added assists, and the Avalanche took an early 1–0 lead.

Patience from Mikko #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/h9lRL0N3y5

— x – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) December 14, 2023

Nichushkin followed suit and scored netted first goal of the night (and 99th NHL goal) just over halfway through the first period, and Miles Wood joined in on the fun a minute and a half later to give the home team an exciting 3–0 lead.

Eleventh of the season for Chu Chu!#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/sE7dsC8lpK

— x – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) December 14, 2023

The Sabres could find their only chance to score 18 minutes into the period, but it would not make a dent in the game’s outcome.

The Avalanche outshot Buffalo 15–6 at the end of the first frame.

Second period

Lately, it has seemed like Colorado has been struggling to capitalize on opportunities during the second period, and this game was no different.

The previously struggling Sabres closed the shooting gap and left the Avalanche with a measly five shots on goal to their 15.

If the Avalanche defense was not on top of its game, the offensive lull could have proven disastrous, but the period remained scoreless.

Third period

The Avs played the last frame relatively clean, and there were goals to show for it. Malinski has been playing in Denver for several games and has been making a big impact, but the only thing missing was his first NHL goal.

With help from Jack Johnson and Jonathan Drouin, the rookie finally netted a goal. To make it even more special, his dad was in the house to see it happen.

We are SO here for it. #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/EItArPzhKp

— x – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) December 14, 2023

Adding to the already lively showing, Nichushkin nets his second of the game on a power play, assisted by MacKinnon and Rantanen. With this one goal, three milestones were achieved. Nichushkin recorded his 100th goal, MacKinnon’s 800th assist and Rantanen’s 550th point.

Takeaways

One of the most important things from this team is the ability to bounce back from losses and, more importantly, stop them from happening. Until recently, the Avalanche have made a habit of allowing opposing teams to score within the last seconds of a period, occasionally costing them the game.

With that unfavorable trend appearing to end, the inconsistent second period is the next thing to address. In Monday’s game against the Flames, the Avalanche allowed five unanswered goals into their net in the second period alone. The team’s absence in the second frame against the Flyers on Saturday resulted in the game quickly getting out of hand.

A source of criticism has been the inefficiency of the power play. However, Colorado went 1 for 2 and Nichushkin has been a huge contributor to the improvement.

Lastly, Ivan Prosvetov has proven to be an excellent addition to the roster. With a .919 save percentage and four wins under his belt, he has been a tremendous source of relief to Alexandar Georgiev and stepping up in the absence of Pavel Francouz.

Ivan did his thing #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/CF9kfhsjqU

— x – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) December 14, 2023

The Avalanche will have a quick road trip to Winnipeg on Saturday before returning to Colorado against the Sharks on Sunday.

The post Emotional night yields 5–1 victory appeared first on The Rink.

Blackhawks lines in warmups vs. Sabres have Reichel with Bedard on the first line:

Reichel-Bedard-Kurashev
Hall-TJohnson-Raddysh
Foligno-Dickinson-Perry
Donato-Entwistle-RJohnson

Vlasic-Jones
Korchinski-Murphy
Kaiser-Phillips

Mrazek

— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) November 19, 2023

The biggest change to the lineup was Lukas Reichel playing on the top line with Connor Bedard and Philipp Kurashev. With Reichel scuffling, the coaching staff is hoping playing with Bedard and Kursahev can get the young forward going. Karashev entered tonight’s game on a bit of a hot streak with two points in his last two games.

First period

In the first period, the Sabres were pressuring the Hawks in their own zone. After making a brilliant save on Zach Benson, Mrazek was bested by Rasmus Dahlin on the next sequence, as Dahlin’s shot came from the point and went past Mrazek. Mrazek was screened by his own teammate Wyatt Kaiser on the goal.

Despite dominating the offensive zone time, the Hawks trailed the Sabres 1–0 after the first period.

Second period

In the second period, the Hawks started it with good offensive pressure but came up empty. The Hawks got an early-period power play opportunity and were able to score the equalizer right as the power play expired. Kurashev made a move around the net and fed a pass to Taylor Raddysh, who deflected the shot past Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen for the goal.

Taylor Raddysh lights the lamp! pic.twitter.com/Fbjq5k9Icy

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 20, 2023

At the 10:00 mark, Kevin Korchinski tripped Zach Benson to give Buffalo a power play chance. The Sabres netted a goal from Jeff Skinner, who tapped one in on the back side past Mrazek. The Sabres led 2–1 after the goal.

Korchinski was called for his second penalty of the period with just under seven minutes left in the period. Reese Johnson nearly tied the game shorthanded with a breakaway chance.

With three minutes to go in the period, Bedard had space entering the Sabres’ zone. Bedard snapped off a shot that was saved by Luukkonen, but the rebound went to Kurashev, who buried the chance to tie the game at 2–2.

Maybe don’t give Bedard that much room? pic.twitter.com/RJoC3nt4Qo

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 20, 2023

The second period ended with the score tied.

Third period

The third period began with the Hawks weathering a Buffalo offensive push and then responding with an offensive push of their own. Reichel drew a penalty with under three minutes passed in the period. The Hawks got off a good chance, but did not cash in the opportunity.

After the Hawks dominated the start of the period, Buffalo’s Erik Johnson flicked a bad angle shot past Mrazek for the Sabres’ third goal of the game.

The Hawks mounted a valiant comeback attempt with less than two minutes remaining, peppering the net with shots, but were unable to tie the game, falling 3–2.

Analysis

The Reichel-Bedard-Kurashev line is very weak from a defensive standpoint and very dynamic from an offensive standpoint. Their play, along with Seth Jones, produced some of the best offensive shifts of the game for the Hawks. On the night, Kurashev had one goal and one assist. He now has 10 points in 10 games and looks to be on the verge of breaking out this season.

On defense, Korchinski continues to have a rough go of it this season. He committed two penalties in the second period and still takes too long making decisions with the puck.

The Hawks continue to battle despite being down and outmatched in the game. This is the mark of the Luke Richardson era. The Hawks are going to be in more games than not because of their effort, but a lack of talent will make wins tough to come by.

The Blackhawks’ next game is Wednesday against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Puck drop is slated for 6 p.m. CST.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks drop fourth straight, fall to Sabres 3–2 appeared first on The Rink.

Scoring recap: After a torrent start to the game, Buffalo cashed in first when Victor Olofsson clapped one home to take a 1–0 lead. The Blackhawks then tied the game with Jason Dickinson’s spirited effort to crash the net. Chicago extended their lead to 3–1 in the second period with tallies from Sam Lafferty and Taylor Raddysh. Tage Thompson scored twice in the third period to level the game at 3–3. In the overtime frame, Olofsson scored the game winner, his second of the game, converting a one-timer.

The good: Arvid Soderblom was brilliant, keeping the Hawks in the game early and registering 41 saves on the evening. It is early, but Chicago is clearly responding under the guidance of new head coach Luke Richardson. Though the talent is not there, they are competing, staying disciplined and are playing a gritty brand of hockey that has eluded Blackhawk teams in the last few years.

The bad: The team is competing and currently overachieving. Yes, there is plenty of time left and the early start for the Hawks will tail off at some point. How much it tails off will be interesting to monitor. With three potential generational talents in the upcoming 2023 NHL Entry Draft (Connor Bedard, Adam Fantilli and Matvei Michkov), it is critical that the rebuilding Hawks are in the best possible chance to have a top-three lottery pick come June. Sorry fans, but we should be rooting for them to lose.

The ugly: Through his first eight games as a Washington Capital, former Blackhawk Dylan Strome has one goal and five assists. One of his six points is in even strength hockey and he is a -5 to start the season. He is the same one-dimensional player, folks, and those that miss him should start to feel content that Kyle Davidson did the right think by letting him walk away.

The Blackhawks play next at home on Sunday versus the Minnesota Wild. That game will be at 6 p.m. CDT on NBC Sports Chicago.

The post Blackhawks Post-game One-timers — Oct. 29 vs. Buffalo Sabres appeared first on The Rink.

First period

The first period was filled with missed opportunities. The Blackhawks had three great chances from Patrick Kane, Tyler Johnson and Dylan Strome that were stopped by Dustin Tokarski in the first period.

On the other side of the ice, Collin Delia was able to stop all 10 shots on goal to keep the first period scoreless.

Second period

In the second period, the Blackhawks were able to break through against Tokarski for the game’s first goal, as Dominik Kubalik notched goal 15 on the season.

NHL Video Highlight – Dominik Kubalik scores against the Buffalo Sabres to make it 1-0. pic.twitter.com/BxqkEjFOKz

— Chicago Blackhawks Bot (@BHawksGameBot) April 30, 2022

With that goal, Kubalik would finish the season with 15 goals and 17 assists for 32 points, a career low in the NHL. The second period ended with the Blackhawks leading 1–0.

Third period

In the third period, Chicago let Buffalo back into the game with a goal from Tage Thompson. In a common theme on defense for the Blackhawks, the Thompson goal was led to by a defensive zone turnover.

Less than five minutes later, the Blackhawks answered back with a goal from Strome.

NHL Video Highlight – Dylan Strome scores against the Buffalo Sabres to make it 2-1. pic.twitter.com/ZUdJhlkrBN

— Chicago Blackhawks Bot (@BHawksGameBot) April 30, 2022

In a season filled with turmoil for Strome, he was able to find his scoring touch and notch 22 goals, a career high.

Despite the Strome goal, the Blackhawks’ lead did not last, as Owen Power of the Sabres answered back for this second goal of the season. Power joined the Sabres after finishing up his season at the University of Michigan.

Overtime

With the score tied at 2–2, the Blackhawks and Sabres went to overtime. In overtime, Buffalo’s Casey Mittelstadt scored the game-winning goal to end the Blackhawks’ season with a loss.

Analysis

Now that the season is over, the Blackhawks’ front office can start to truly reshape this roster. While General Manager Kyle Davidson has not put a timeline on the rebuild—contrary to some tweets recently from a so-called Blackhawks expert that need to stick to horse racing—this year’s playoffs and draft lottery could help shape the rebuild “timeline.”

In case you forgot, if the Minnesota Wild advance to the Western Conference Final and Marc-Andre Fleury is responsible for four or more wins in the first two rounds, the Blackhawks get the Wild’s first-round pick, and if not, the Blackhawks get a second-round pick. With the team “currently” lacking a first-round pick in this year’s draft, the Wild winning in the playoffs is potentially huge for the Blackhawks and should be something all Hawks fans keep an eye on in the near future. Needless to say, Blackhawks land should absolutely be rooting for a lengthy playoff run for Minnesota.

In addition to Minnesota’s first- or second-round pick, the Blackhawks also are focused on the lottery.  If the Blackhawks do not land the first or second pick in the lottery, their first-round pick goes to Columbus as a part of the Seth Jones trade and would likely be the sixth overall pick. So, potentially, the Blackhawks could get a franchise-altering talent or have two first-round picks next offseason.

With all the picks coming the Blackhawks’ way, the organization has to draft and develop better than in years past. Thankfully, the hiring of Jeff Greenberg is a step in the right direction in that regard, with an established track record of setting up systems to better identify and develop talent. Hopefully Greenberg is able to implement his expertise in the hockey world. Buckle up for an interesting offseason, Hawks fans!

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The Hawks started quickly and burned to a 3–0 lead before the end of the first period. Calvin de Haan opened the scoring off a beautiful feed from Taylor Raddysh to make it 1–0. At the 13:44 mark of the period, Sam Lafferty delivered a huge hit on the Sabres’ Will Butcher, headed to the net and deflected a shot by Jake McCabe past Dustin Tokarski to make it 2–0. And, in a vintage Jonathan Toews move, the captain toe-dragged his way to the net tucked a backhander underneath the blocker of Tokarski to extend the lead to 3–0.

Dominik KubalikPhillip KurashevJonathan Toews

Toews dances around a defender for his 10th goal of the season & 6th in the last 10 games to put the #Blackhawks ahead 3-0 in the 1st period. Kubalik with his 2nd assist of the night already.pic.twitter.com/WUNeJdxt6I

— Talkin’ Hawkey (@TalkinHawkey) March 29, 2022

To begin the second, Seth Jones would increase the gap to 4–0, pinching in from the point and firing home a wrist shot from a pass just behind the goal line from Alex DeBrincat.

After that, it was all Sabres for the remainder of the period, outshooting the Hawks 15–5 and narrowing the gap to 4–3. Buffalo got on the scoreboard when Victor Olofsson drilled a one-timer from the far right circle to make it 4–1, and then Olofsson added a second marker before Kyle Okposo made it a one-goal game at the 14:32 mark of the period.

To begin the third period, old friend Vinnie Hinostroza buried a rebound, and gone was the Hawks’ four-goal cushion.

With the game tied 4–4, DeBrincat seemed to put the home side ahead to stay with a power play snipe off a nice feed from Patrick Kane. Dylan Strome also collected his second assist on the night.

Alex DeBrincat extends his goal streak to four games. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/DraG12kCBB

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) March 29, 2022

But it was not meant to be. Alex Tuch tied the game with 2:14 to go, and in the games fleeting minutes, Tage Thomson’s power play shot from the far circle shattered his stick, the puck bounced off the back boards, off Kevin Lankinen’s left leg and into the back of the net with 10.6 seconds on the clock. The Sabres took the game 6–5. For Hawks fans who have been following the team this year, this indeed feels typical.

Tage Thompson's one-timer banks off the back boards and trickles in off of Lankinen's skate for an UNBELIEVABLE goal with just 10.6 seconds to go! Oh my!#LetsGoBuffalo pic.twitter.com/lEcttqCm3Y

— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) March 29, 2022

Lankinen was not sharp, saving 31 of 37 shots he faced for a .838 save percentage. Chicago now heads into the lion’s den with a matchup in Miami against the Florida Panthers on Thursday night. Puck drop is scheduled for 6 p.m. CDT.

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(Odds courtesy of BetRivers)

Vegas Golden Knights @ Boston Bruins -110

O/U: 5.5 -122

My pick: Vegas ML -106. The Boston Bruins find themselves shorthanded tonight as they host the Vegas Golden Knights, as forwards Brad Marchand and Craig Smith have entered COVID-19 protocol. Beside that, I like the matchup here, with Robin Lehner getting the nod for the Golden Knights. Lehner has won two of his last three starts and the team has won four of their last five. This game should be close, but I like Vegas to leave the Garden with a win.

New Jersey Devils @ Philadelphia Flyers -124

O/U: 6 -112

My pick: Devils ML +107. Despite the Philadelphia Flyers having won two in a row on the road prior to returning home tonight, I am not sold on them. I know they have changed up their head coach and a new voice can lift the team’s spirit. However, I like the New Jersey Devils here. They have already beaten the Flyers twice in their own barn. The Flyers are also going on a month without winning at home. I will take a shot on their streaky offense.

Los Angeles Kings @ Tampa Bay Lightning -200

O/U: 5.5 +107

My pick: Tampa Bay Lightning Team Total Over 3 -115. This is a pretty big line for a Los Angeles Kings team who has been playing some solid hockey in December. Jonathan Quick is still proving he can be a top goaltender in this league. His 2.04 goals against average ranks sixth in the NHL. However, his last three starts against the Tampa Bay Lightning? Twelve goals allowed. The Lightning sit ninth in the league in goals. I am going to play the track record here of Tampa Bay.

Buffalo Sabers @ Winnipeg Jets -250

O/U: 6 +102

My pick: Winnipeg -1.5 -104. The Buffalo Sabers turned some heads at the start of the year after going 5–2 to open the season. However, they then fell off a cliff. They had three wins in the entire month of November and have currently lost seven in a row. The Winnipeg Jets should cruise to victory.

Make sure to follow me on Twitter, @ThomasGibbons_3, for my bonus play at 5 p.m. CST.

Happy gambling, and remember, always ride the Tommy Train.

Basics of hockey betting Money line — Winning team Puck line — Team wins by at least two goals (-1.5 when placing a bet) Three-way line — Team wins in regulation  Over/under — Total goals scored during a game including overtime but not a shootout  Parlay — A combination of two or more bets

The information contained on this website is for entertainment purposes only. Please confirm any wagering regulations in your jurisdiction, as they vary from state to state, province to province and country to country. Using this information to contravene any law or statute is prohibited. The Rink is not associated with or endorsed by any professional league, association or team.

The post Tommy’s Puckline Picks — Dec. 14, 2021 appeared first on The Rink.

The #Blackhawks have announced that they have traded goaltender Malcolm Subban to the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for future considerations. pic.twitter.com/ADIlGedLRB

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 2, 2021

The deal gives Subban a new lease on life, opening an opportunity to play NHL games with a Buffalo squad desperate for sound goaltending. Subban had spent the entirety of this season with the Rockford IceHogs in a three-goalie system, historically a poor situation for each receiving the ice time in practice and games they need.

Subban, a first-round pick of the Boston Bruins in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, was acquired by the Blackhawks at the 2020 trade deadline as part of the Robin Lehner trade with the Vegas Golden Knights.

Subban appeared in a total of 17 games with the Blackhawks between the 2019–20 and 2020–21 seasons, accumulating a 6–8–1 record, a 3.20 goals against average and a .900 save percentage in those outings. The younger brother of P.K. Subban, Malcolm played in five games for the IceHogs this season prior to the trade, posting a 2–2–1 record with a lackluster 3.38 goals against average and .893 save percentage.

With Rockford’s goalie situation now addressed, there are two big winners from the deal: Subban obviously, and also Collin Delia, who had frequently been benched with the IceHogs in favor of both Subban and Arvid Soderblom. With Subban gone, Delia should start seeing more regular opportunities to show his abilities.

The post BREAKING: Blackhawks trade Malcolm Subban to Buffalo appeared first on The Rink.

After a great showing against the Florida Panthers, Head Coach Dave Hakstol gave Chris Driedger his second start in a row. Former Sabres defenseman Will Borgen played in his second Kraken game against his former team. The #RevengeEffects were in play, as Borgen assisted on Mason Appleton’s late second period goal for the former Sabre’s first career point.

borgen revenge game pic.twitter.com/Xy300Fhbh2

— Seattle Kraken (@SeattleKraken) November 30, 2021

On the momentum of a big third period in Florida, the Kraken came out in the first period against the Sabres and opened an early 3–0 lead. Shots were almost even, with the Kraken holding a slim 12–11 advantage. The Kraken offense came from defenseman Carson Soucy (shorthanded at 5:47), Brandon Tanev (also shorthanded at 14:40) and Jared McCann with just under a minute remaining in the period.

The second period is where things opened up and defense was thrown out the window. The teams traded goals throughout the period, with big rookie Brett Murray netting his first career goal two minutes into the middle frame. McCann scored his second of the night five minutes later to expand the Kraken lead back to three goals.

Veteran Jeff Skinner scored his seventh goal of the season for the Sabres with under three minutes left in the period and, as mentioned previously, Appleton scored his first as a Kraken less than a minute later, which wrapped up an action-filled, 26-shot (14–12) period. Heading into the third period up 5–2, the visitors were sitting in a good position to come away with a victory.

An Appleton a day keeps the Sabres at bay pic.twitter.com/Ve7WmO6VlP

— Seattle Kraken (@SeattleKraken) November 30, 2021

The wildness did not end with the second period, though.

Skinner scored his second goal of the game on a terrible turnover by Jamie Oleksiak just 37 seconds after the third period opening face-off to cut the Kraken lead to 5–3, which held for almost 15 minutes. Seattle’s Jaden Schwartz scored his fifth goal of the season at the 13:44 mark to re-establish the three-goal margin.

Buffalo’s 2019 first-round draft pick, Dylan Cozens, scored his sixth of the season with a minute and a half remaining in regulation to, once again, cut the lead down to two goals, but Appleton closed out the game a minute later with an empty-net goal.

give some fist bumps to the boys pic.twitter.com/3FfneMGJzu

— Seattle Kraken (@SeattleKraken) November 30, 2021

Anchor points

With his team jumping out to a comfortable lead, Driedger had the opportunity to breathe a bit. He weathered an 11-shot first period and did well to keep the Sabres from getting any closer than two goals. Two third-period goals on only six shots was the point of concern in this game. He definitely wants the Skinner power play goal back as well: Driedger overplayed the original shot and was badly out of position when Skinner banked the puck off his skates.

In most other games, four power plays against and none for would be a big issue, but the Kraken were able to hold the Sabres to only one power play goal. Seattle still sits in the creamy middle of the league at 16th on the penalty kill, while their power play has climbed to 18th overall with their recent hot streak on the man advantage.

Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin had a really rough game. He was directly responsible for both Kraken shorthanded goals, which his team never recovered from. He was also on the ice for three more even strength goals. Needless to say, Dahlin was memorable for the wrong reasons in a game where he tallied his 100th career assist.

Appleton adding to the offense is a good sign for Kraken fans. It took him 10 games to get started, so this was hopefully a sign of things to come.

Kraken leading goal scorer Jordan Eberle left the game with a lower-body injury after playing only 7:21.

The possession and analytics metrics were fairly even, which is odd in a game where one team tallied seven goals. If Buffalo could get a save in the first period, this game could very well have had a much different outcome.

5-on-5 Corsi (total shot attempts): 52%–48%
5-on-5 Fenwick (unblocked shot attempts): 51%–49%
5-on-5 high-danger chances for: 55%–45%
5-on-5 expected goals for: 51%–49%
Face-off percentage: 53%–47%

With their fourth win in their last five games, the Kraken take today off and take a short trip to Detroit to face another rebuilding team in the Detroit Red Wings. The puck drop is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. PST.

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