Blocking shots, scoring goals and winning championships — thanks for everything, Hammer pic.twitter.com/TesF3U3fsf

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 4, 2022

First period

The Blackhawks jumped out to an early 1–0 after the fourth line generated an aggressive forecheck. Sam Lafferty forced a turnover in the corner and the puck squirted to Ryan Carpenter on the half boards. Carpenter fed Philipp Kurashev in the right circle who found Lafferty alone in front of the net and he skated across the crease and fired one through the pads of Koskinen for his second of the season at the 2:34 mark.

Following a Duncan Keith video tribute, the Oilers went on their second power play of the period after the Hawks committed their second penalty for too many men. This time, the Oilers cashed in and tied the game at 1–1 at 14:35. Connor McDavid skated around the net and through the left circle then backhanded a pass to Leon Draisaitl who fired a one-timer from a bad angle past Fleury for his 38th of the season and his league-leading 17th power play tally.

At the 16:55 mark, the Hawks took a 2–1 lead. Caleb Jones pinched in and tapped it to Dylan Strome who had a 2-on-1 down low and he fed a wide-open Patrick Kane who fired a one-timer from the left circle for his 17th of the season.

The Oilers tied it at 2–2 with 33.8 left in the opening frame. With both teams skating four-on-four, Draisitl skated down the right side one-on-one with Connor Murphy who appeared to have him well covered but a pass attempt deflected through to Evander Kane who skated in alone down the middle and wristed one past Fleury for his sixth of the season.

After a wild first period, the Oilers had an 11–8 advantage in shots on goal.

Second period

The Hawks generated several quality scoring chances including a near shorthanded tally by Brandon Hagel, however, neither team lit the lamp in the middle frame. The Hawks erased two Edmonton power play chances while the home team failed to score on their only man-advantage of the period. The Hawks outshot the Oilers 12–5 for the period and held a 20–16 advantage through 40 minutes.

Third period

The Hawks broke the 2–2 tie at the 2:49 mark when Koskinen went behind the net to play the puck then wrapped it around the boards right to Dominik Kubalik who shot it into an open net from the half boards for his 11th of the season.

Late in the third, with the net empty, the Hawks won the draw but Ryan Carpenter failed to clear the zone. A Seth Jones turnover led to Evander Kane, from the side of the goal, passing the puck in front which went off Calvin de Haan’s stick and into the net to tie the game at 3–3 with 49.3 left. For Evander Kane, it was his second of the game and seventh of the season.

Edmonton outshot Chicago 16–10 in the third which gave the Oilers a 32-30 advantage after regulation.

Overtime

Less than a minute into the extra frame, Draisatl was penalized for tripping Caleb Jones in the neutral zone to set up a 4-on-3 power play for the home team. The Hawks would cash in when Patrick Kane fed Alex Debrincat in the right circle but Cody Ceci blocked the one-timer, however, the puck went right back to number 88 who made the exact same cross-ice pass to “The Cat” who buried it for his 30th of the season at 2:23 of overtime to secure a Blackhawks win. The Hawks outshot the Oilers 2–0 in overtime and the two teams finished knotted at 32 in shots on goal for the contest.

Like we said: don’t doubt Cat and Kane in OT #CloroxClutch pic.twitter.com/5x5w5xJ1TI

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 4, 2022

Analysis

The Hawks rebounded nicely from not only giving up a late goal to force OT but a dreadful loss to the St. Louis Blues last weekend. Defensively, the Hawks limited the number of high danger chances by the high-powered Oilers with a ton of blocked shots and an aggressive forecheck. Additionally, the power play came through in a big spot after spending some practice time recently working on their execution with the man advantage.

The Hawks return to the ice on Saturday in Philadelphia for a matinee against the Flyers.  Puck drop is at 2 PM CST on ESPN+ and ABC with the radio call on 720 WGN.

The post Blackhawks defeat the Oilers in a 4–3 OT win appeared first on The Rink.

Coach Dave Hakstol was without defenseman Jamie Oleksiak for this game, who was in COVID-19 protocol. Chris Driedger was given the start over Philipp Grubauer, who left Wednesday’s game with an injury but was available to play. Edmonton was without some of their top contributors in Zach Hyman, Jesse Puljujarvi, and Kyle Turris.

DONATO STAYS HOT!
pic.twitter.com/3CildJipJN

— Seattle Kraken (@SeattleKraken) December 19, 2021

The Kraken came out with some energy in the first period, scoring goals by Red Hot Ryan Donato and Jared McCann in the first half of the period, but Edmonton finally wiped the sleep from their eyes and game battling back to tie the game on a goal by Evan Bouchard and a power play goal by Warren Foegele before the teams could hit the intermission. Unfortunately for the Kraken, the Oilers led in shots 20–7 but Driedger weathered the storm enough to keep the score tied.

The game settled down a bit in the second period, with Edmonton leading in shots once again, but only by a 9–7 margin. The teams traded goals by Edmonton’s Colton Sceviour and Seattle’s Carson Soucy, which set up a 3–3 game heading into the third period. The Kraken had to be feeling fortunate that they were still in the game despite the 29–14 shot disparity.

After two periods where they fought and clawed (mostly by their goaltender) their way to stay in the game, things just fell apart in the third period. The Kraken managed only three shots on goal, while the Oilers threw 12 shots on the Seattle net. Foegele scored his second of the game 8:54 into the third on a disputed goaltender interference call and Connor McDavid (remember that guy?) put the cherry on top with an empty net goal in the final minutes of play.

In the end, the Kraken were probably lucky to even be in the game as late as they were, so they might be able to dress this loss up as a moral victory. Driedger certainly should.

Anchor points

  Driedger might want that Bouchard goal back, but overall, he played a solid game and put the team in a position to win. When your team cannot manage 20 shots on goal and they give up 41, you should not be within one goal in the third period.

“Not up in here!” -Chris Driedger, probably.

Check out tonight’s @WAFDbank‘s Signature Save of the Game. pic.twitter.com/kR720t1UN2

— Seattle Kraken (@SeattleKraken) December 19, 2021

  The Kraken only had one power play of their own and were not able to convert. On the other hand, Edmonton converted on one of their two power plays.

  The game was not a total loss. Seattle had several close calls at the Edmonton end of the ice, as they appeared to go for quality over quantity. There were posts hit and a couple of big saves by Edmonton starter Stuart Skinner.

  Edmonton crushed the Kraken in every relevant possession metric, which predictably figured in the final score:

5-on-5 Corsi (total shot attempts) 70% – 30%
5-on-5 Fenwick (Unblocked shot attempts) 67% – 33%
5-on-5 High Danger Chances For 65% – 35%
5-on-5 Expected Goals For 66% – 34%
Faceoff Percentage 58% – 42%

  The Kraken were supposed to face the Toronto Maple Leafs later tonight, but the game was postponed due to Covid-19 concerns (along with Thursday’s game in Calgary). As a result, their next contest will be Tuesday at Climate Pledge Arena against the Arizona Coyotes. The puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. PDT (allegedly).

The post RECAP: Oilers spoil Kraken return home, win 5-3 appeared first on The Rink.

Overall, the game did not have a high goal count, but there were plenty of shots and action around goalies Joey Daccord (SEA), Philipp Grubauer (SEA) and Stuart Skinner (EDM). They all saw their fill of shots, saving a combined 64 of 67 (.955 save percentage), with Skinner giving up two goals, Grubauer giving up one and Daccord going a perfect 8 for 8.

Seattle tied the game with under a minute remaining in regulation and the goaltender on the bench for the extra attacker. Jaden Schwartz was the momentary hero for the Kraken after the Brendan Perlini swan song continued, with his third goal vs. Seattle this preseason early in the second period.

Center Jared McCann continued his hot play, with the Kraken game-winner with under a minute remaining in the overtime period. The “home” team outshot Edmonton 41–26 in the contest.

Anchor points

On Thursday, the Kraken announced that (D) Ryker Evans, (F) Brent Gates, (F) Tye Kartye, (F) Ryan Lohin, (F) Cole Mackay, (G) Francis Marotte, (F) Jacob Melanson, and (C) Ryan Winterton had all been released from camp or re-assigned to their junior club.

Postgame, they announced that (G) Antoine Bibeau, (D) Connor Carrick, (D) Cale Fleury and (F) Gustav Olofsson had been waived. This means they are probably headed to the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL.  Forward Luke Henman was sent to Charlotte outright.

Antoine Bibeau (SEA), Connor Carrick (SEA), Cale Fleury (SEA), Gustav Olofsson (SEA), Tanner Kaspick (STL), Matthew Peca (STL), Nolan Stevens (STL), Maxime Lagace (TB), Otto Somppi (TB), Daniel Walcott (TB), Shane Gersich (WSH), Lucas Johansen (WSH) and Dylan McIlrath (WSH).

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) October 2, 2021

The Kraken face the Flames again, in Kent, Washington, tonight. The puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. PDT.

The post RECAP: Kraken get revenge, beat Oilers 2–1 in overtime appeared first on The Rink.

The reporting on the negotiations between the Blackhawks and Oilers turned out to be accurate—retained salary by Chicago had been rumored to be a sticking point. In the end, the Oilers acquired Keith, who has two years remaining on his current contract, along with minor-league forward Tim Soderlund, for 24-year-old defenseman Caleb Jones and a conditional third-round pick—with Chicago not having to retain any of Keith’s salary.

The Chicago media—and Blackhawk Twitter—were quick to proclaim this a big win for Blackhawks President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Stan Bowman. But, that is not unusual. Bowman could acquire a roll of tape and a frighteningly large segment of the fanbase would still be “juiced.”

The key to this deal is the 24-year-old Jones, not because he is a hugely promising player, but because he just happens to be the younger brother of a rumored Blackhawk offseason target, Columbus defenseman Seth Jones.

Caleb Jones, by himself, is probably yet another No. 5–7 defenseman on a Chicago team already chock full of them. But, if his presence in Chicago could help the Hawks sign the elder Jones to an extension (after first trading for him), then the Keith trade will have worked out very well for Chicago, both in terms of securing a valuable rebuild piece for the blue line, and most of the cap room needed to sign him.

If not, then Caleb Jones and a third-round draft pick (the majority of which never actually play in the NHL) is not a “winning return” for an aging, but still likely effective (in the right situation, i.e. outside Chicago), Keith.

Finally, we would be remiss if we did not tap our sticks on the departure of a true warrior, and a vital cog in the great Blackhawk teams from 2009–15. Keith will be missed, and his No. 2 is certainly headed to the United Center rafters before too terribly long.

All we have for now.

The post TRADE ANALYSIS: Blackhawks deal Duncan Keith to Edmonton appeared first on The Rink.

If you came here looking for another “feel good” article about the Chicago Blackhawks’ return to playoff glory in 2020, you are probably in the wrong place. And certainly, there are lots of those out there.

That said, we offer, as always, an objective take on the games just concluded, as well as an assessment of where the team is in a larger sense—so here it goes.

Good news: The Blackhawks made it further than most expected.

Bad news: They pretty much got dominated in the first actual playoff round by a team with a talent level the Blackhawks need to attain themselves.

Which means: The Blackhawks have some work to do. And they may not be able to get that work done soon enough in light of their salary cap structure, prospect pipeline and other factors.

There is a temptation, that some may have already succumbed to, to color this first round loss to the Vegas Golden Knights as proof that “whatever Stan Bowman et al are doing, it’s working.” And therefore, just stay the course, In Stan We Trust.

And in the America of 2020, where opinions are driven entirely by emotion and not fact, you can always find the “right” set of “facts” somewhere on the internet to support your opinion.

So, on the surface, you can point to the fact (and it is a fact) that the Blackhawks made the playoffs for the first time in three seasons. However (also a fact), they got an assist from a pandemic and a “liberal” play-in format that included all but the worst seven teams in the league. The Blackhawks were in that tier between No. 17 and No. 24 that got a break, and they took advantage of it, beating a disappointing Edmonton Oilers team three games to one.

In that series, the Blackhawks showed more balance, more desire and more willingness to mix it up physically than the highly touted Oilers. Those are all positives, at least in terms of how Chicago measures up against what was ultimately an overrated team like Edmonton.

But, in the first real playoff round, against the Vegas Golden Knights, the Hawks struggled for the most part (to put it charitably). Were it not for the Game Four heroics of goaltender Corey Crawford, the team would have been swept. The Blackhawks also foiled the Vegas power play for the first four games. But otherwise, at five-on-five, arguably the best metric of playoff viability, the Blackhawks were dominated by a bigger, deeper, more-disciplined and relentless team.

The Brandon Saad-Jonathan Toews-Dominik Kubalik line, that was the best for either team against the Oilers, was less of a factor versus Vegas. Newly minted, $6.4 million-per-year winger Alex DeBrincat got his first goal of the playoffs on an empty netter in Game Four, and had a nice actual goal in Game Five. Pierre McGuire, predictably, was all oooohs and ahhhs over Kirby Dach and Adam Boqvist (deservedly so in terms of the potential of both young players), but failed to point out how physically overwhelmed both were (in reality) at times.

The point of all this: Vegas is a very good team, and one that may go deep in the playoffs this year or even come out of the Western Conference. So, you can choose to rest your argument that the Hawks are “improving, just not there yet” on that. Or, you can take a more discerning stance and say the gulf between the Hawks today and the team they need to become is wide, with at best a highly questionable bridge.

Because as always, with the “plan” that Bowman is seeming to execute, the calculus is: “Let’s find and develop youth around the remaining Stanley Cup core (Crawford, Toews, Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith), and we will get back to the top of the league.”

The problem is, as we have just seen, there is a difference between 19-year-olds dabbling in a few first-round games, and 27-year-olds pushing to make the finals. It is called development, experience and time.

Sure, the Hawks have “experience” aplenty in the aforementioned core. But, it is experience that is getting old and running down with each successive season.

Two years ago, we all thought Crawford and Brent Seabrook would be around and contributing for at least a few more seasons. Seabrook now looks done. Crawford had a couple of phenomenal games in these series, but the rest were pedestrian (at best). And how will we be talking about Keith or Toews two seasons from now?

So, the only way to validate or support the approach that the Blackhawks organization is taking to return to the league’s elite is betting that, in order to improve, they will acquire more players and prospects of Dach and Boqvist caliber (i.e., top-10 draft picks who at least somewhat pan out), and then develop them awfully quickly before the current core loses any more tread off its tires.

Thanks to “winning” the play-in series, the Blackhawks look to be drafting around 17th in the first round, not exactly prime position to snag an impact player, not even the goalie of the future they so desperately need.

That is literally the only way the Hawks can do it—through the draft—thanks to some pretty bad salary cap management.

There was a time 5-10 summers ago when the Blackhawks would have to nip and tuck every offseason and get creative to hopefully sign their RFAs and stay under the salary cap, which is a zero-sum game—if you are spending every dime you have under the cap to retain your current guys, there is not much money left to improve with.

This summer, the Blackhawks are back there again, but this time, they are going to have to spend every dime to retain Kubalik, who at 26, may never be better than what he is now, and possibly Dylan Strome (ditto). And, they may even have to lose a serviceable veteran defenseman like Olli Maatta to do it.

The zero-sum game now applies to a fringe playoff team, not a perennial Cup contender.

How did we get here? Look no further than the money being paid to Toews, Kane, DeBrincat, Saad, Seabrook and soon Kubalik. The only “value” in the core is 37-year-old Duncan Keith at $5.5 million per year.

Following the Game Five loss to Vegas, Steve Konroyd and Jamal Mayers were throwing around the idea of extending Crawford this offseason for three years at $5-6 million per year, a notion that it would seem a lot of Chicago fans would be okay with, because…the salary cap is “fake news” and, hey…“Crow.”

But, here is an actual fact. Including the two admittedly stellar outings Crawford had in the playoffs, his overall numbers were 4–5 with a .907 save percentage and 3.31 goals against average. He will be 36 soon and he has had long periods of inactivity due to concussions (which do not get “cured”).

You want to lose Maatta or Saad to finance this madness? Guess what, Maatta was maybe your best defenseman in these playoffs and Saad is not easily “replaced” by some kid who was playing for Penn State last year. It does not actually ever work that way.

In life, to paraphrase “Da Coach,” be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it.

Or, in the end, you get what you really deserve, because there is really nothing to suggest that the Blackhawks can be a meaningfully better team next year, with another year coming off the careers of the aging core.

So, if you really just want to be a team sniffing around maybe getting a playoff spot (and “anything can happen”) year after year, then you may want to just “stay the course.”

Another quote ringing around my head as I pen this recap is the title of that old Talking Heads song: The Road To Nowhere.

If you would rather rejoin the league’s elite, larger work needs to be done—that probably cannot be done without a fresh, no-holds-barred perspective from the top of the organization down, and some big (and probably unpopular in the short term) rebuilding moves.

For fans, it was fun to actually make the playoffs, and to win one game while there, but in the larger sense of redirecting this franchise, the Blackhawks still desperately need to shake things up.

These playoffs should not be seen as validation of Bowman and Jeremy Colliton, but rather further proof that measured baby steps, and resting on past laurels, are not going to be nearly enough to lead the team back to glory.

Being “positive” about the Blackhawks should not be defined as just seeking validation for Bowman or Colliton or a roster and organization still full of holes. It should be defined as recognizing and applauding when the team is actually aggressively pursuing the greatness fans deserve for their dollars.

And when the Blackhawks do that, we will.

The post ANALYSIS: Blackhawks’ playoff run ends; now what?  appeared first on The Rink.

After serving a one-game suspension for an illegal check to the head, Drake Caggiula made his way back into the lineup for the Blackhawks. Meanwhile, Oilers defenseman Adam Larsson was ruled “unfit to play” during warmups. Caleb Jones drew into the lineup to replace Larsson, sliding onto the third pairing alongside Matt Benning.

For once, Connor McDavid did not score early in the period to give the Oilers an early lead. Instead, the Blackhawks were the ones to put the puck in the net first. More specifically, Olli Maatta gave Chicago a 1–0 lead just under halfway through the opening frame with a blast from the point.

Voice activated personal assistant, play Chelsea

It was only a Maatta of time before someone got on the board and it's the @NHLBlackhawks first! #EDMvsCHI | #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/u2pyalTeR8

— NBC Sports Hockey (@NBCSportsHockey) August 6, 2020

But, just 30 seconds later, the Oilers tied it up thanks to Hart Trophy nominee Leon Draisaitl. Three Blackhawks were looming behind the goal line and got caught there once the puck found its way to Tyler Ennis, who passed it over to Draisaitl.

They don't call him Neon Leon for nothin'

The Oilers even the score quickly. It's gonna be a good one. pic.twitter.com/qju570iTKY

— NBC Sports Hockey (@NBCSportsHockey) August 6, 2020

After the tying goal, both teams traded a handful of chances. But the Blackhawks had a surplus of golden opportunities in the first period, including three posts. Within the final four minutes of the period, three penalties were called on the Oilers, giving Chicago a five-on-three opportunity they eventually capitalized on.

After Alex DeBrincat found Kirby Dach down low, the rookie tossed the puck in front of the net for Dominik Kubalik. Kubalik could not put it past Edmonton netminder Mikko Koskinen, but the biscuit somehow found its way in off Jonathan Toews‘ foot with 4.2 seconds left in the first period, giving the Blackhawks a 2–1 lead.

Somehow went in. Blackhawks have the lead heading into the 2nd period!

Stream: https://t.co/5Fh2WVMIU9 pic.twitter.com/tQE0BSODY9

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) August 6, 2020

With just under five minutes gone by in the second period, the Oilers found themselves with a couple of good chances in the offensive zone. From the boards, Benning put a slap shot on net. Chicago goaltender Corey Crawford was able to get a piece of that shot, but was unable to corral the rebound. Once again, Draisaitl found the puck and lifted it past Crawford to tie the game at 2–2.

DRAISAITL! AGAIN! #NHLonSN pic.twitter.com/yzHMDkQgrl

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) August 6, 2020

Edmonton and Chicago exchanged power plays throughout the period, and Brandon Saad hit his second post of the game. Both teams remained fairly undisciplined throughout the rest of the period, which seems to be a theme during this series.

With around three minutes left in the period, Dach laid a hit Ennis, who unfortunately was injured on the play. Ennis, an Edmonton native, left the game without putting any weight on his right leg.

DeBrincat and Benning got into a scrum and both were given infractions just over a minute later. Unfortunately for the Blackhawks, DeBrincat was called for both slashing and roughing, putting Edmonton on the power play.

The Oilers moved the puck well on the advantage and eventually capitalized. Draisaitl tossed the puck to the front of the net. Crawford could not grab the rebound, the puck landed on McDavid’s stick and he gave Edmonton a 3–2 lead heading into the final frame.

You can always count on Connor McDavid to get it done

The @EdmontonOilers take the lead heading into the break. pic.twitter.com/DJakImfRcN

— NBC Sports Hockey (@NBCSportsHockey) August 6, 2020

Things moved a bit faster during the third period. Toews hit the post off a rebound just over four minutes in, narrowly missing out on leveling the score. In total, the Blackhawks hit five posts during the game.

After back and forth action throughout the frame, Chicago found some time in the offensive zone with 5:47 left. Slater Koekkoek took a slap shot close to the blue line. Matthew Highmore deflected it in right by Koskinen to tie the game at 3–3.

BLACKHAWKS TIE IT

You're not going to want to miss the rest of this game, promise:
: NBCSN
: https://t.co/lkz1HvPxNq pic.twitter.com/mMj2OEnKAQ

— NBC Sports Hockey (@NBCSportsHockey) August 6, 2020

In a major turn of events, the Blackhawks were given a gift of a goal. Toews won an offensive-zone face off, allowing Chicago to try and get the puck on net. Connor Murphy snapped it toward goal, hoping for a tip from Toews, and that is exactly what he got. Well, kind of. The puck actually went off Toews’ knee after being deflected by Edmonton defenseman Ethan Bear. Either way, it was a goal, giving the Hawks a 4–3 lead with just over a minute remaining in the game.

Despite some pressure from the Oilers late, Chicago held onto the lead and took a 2–1 series lead.

A stellar face-off win by the Captain sets the @NHLBlackhawks up to take the lead late in Game 3! pic.twitter.com/oiKChbTqUO

— NBC Sports Hockey (@NBCSportsHockey) August 6, 2020

Along the boards

Kirby Dach led all team forwards in ice time at 23:21, which is new a career high. #Blackhawks

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) August 6, 2020

Everyone noticed how good rookie forward Kirby Dach looked during Phase 3 training camp. That has clearly translated into actual game play so far, and he looks fantastic. He is battling along the boards for pucks and planting himself in front of the net on the first power play unit. Dach is doing everything fans want from him, and he is been rewarded by earning more and more ice time every night. So far, he has four points in three games, all of them being assists. Hopefully he gets a goal at some point, because he truly deserves it.

The Blackhawks are 1-for-6 on the power play, and that one goal came on a 5-on-3 and was an accident.

— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) August 6, 2020

There is no question the Oilers’ special teams are very good, but Chicago’s power play was abysmal tonight. Outside of the five-on-three conversion, they generated little to no opportunities every time they had a man advantage. In a series that hinges on power play and penalty kill success, this team simply cannot give away prime opportunities when up a man.

https://twitter.com/DimFilipovic/status/1291229556238454784?s=20

There is not much to point out here. It is there for you to see. The Blackhawks have to do a better job at defending the right side of the net. Edmonton is getting most of their chances from this area of the ice. Crawford also needs to do a better job at controlling rebounds. While there was no game plan to plant defenders at this side of the night tonight, there needs to be one going forward or the Blackhawks will find themselves in a lot of trouble.

The Blackhawks and Oilers will be back for Game 4 on NBCSN on Friday. The game is scheduled to begin at 5:45 p.m. CDT.

The post Along the Boards: Blackhawks defeat Oilers 4–3, take 2–1 series lead appeared first on The Rink.

Game 1          3 PM, Saturday, August 1
Game 2          10:30 PM, Monday, August 3
Game 3          10:30 PM, Wednesday, August 5
Game 4           Friday, August 7 (if necessary)
Game 5           Saturday, August 8 (if necessary)
(All times Eastern)

Regular season stats

Head-to-head
Chicago 2-1-0
Edmonton 1-2-0

Special teams
Edmonton power play 29.5% (1st) v. Chicago penalty kill 82.1% (t-8th)
Chicago power play 15.2% (28th) v. Edmonton Penalty kill 84.4% (2nd)

Faceoffs
Chicago         49.9% (17th)
Edmonton      49.0% (23rd)

SF/SA
Chicago         31.8/35.1
Edmonton      29.6/32.0

Avg. age/height/weight
Chicago
6’1”, 191.5 lbs, 25.4 years

Edmonton
6’2”, 197.3 lbs, 25.9 years

Projected lineups

Chicago

Dominik Kubalik – Jonathan Toews – Brandon Saad
Alex Nylander – Dylan Strome – Patrick Kane
Alex DeBrincat – Kirby Dach – Drake Caggiula
Matthew Highmore – Ryan Carpenter – David Kampf

Duncan Keith – Adam Boqvist
Calvin DeHaan – Connor Murphy
Slater Koekkoek – Olli Maatta

Corey Crawford/Malcolm Subban/Colin Delia

Edmonton

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Connor McDavid – Zack Kassian
Tyler Ennis – Leon Draisaitl – Kailer Yamamoto
Andreas Athanasiou – Riley Sheahan – Josh Archibald
James Neal – Jujhar Khaira – Alex Chiasson

Oscar Klefbom – Adam Larsson
Darnell Nurse – Ethan Bear
Kris Russell – Matt Benning

Mikko Koskinen/Mike Smith

Analysis
This series will ride on the relative health and player status of the two teams— whether it’s quick, three game work for the Oilers, or if the Blackhawks can channel past mojo and make a four or five game contest of it.

On paper, the series tilts toward the Oilers, though that could be mitigated by the recent return to “health” of goaltender Corey Crawford. A healthy and dialed in Crawford gives the Blackhawks a chance in any series. However, in light of his absence from practices and injury history over the last two seasons, that Crawford is far from assured at this point. If Crawford plays, and plays very well in the Wednesday exhibition versus St. Louis, then consider this series a more even match than it was a week to ten days ago.

And you can argue that old stalwarts Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, and Duncan Keith also give the Hawks a chance every time they hit the ice. But the Chicago supporting cast in August 2020 pales in comparison to that of the Blackhawks last playoff series win in June 2015 (yes, it’s been that long). And that’s where this series will likely turn— in favor of the Oilers.

In any playoff series, it’s all about the matchups. And it’s usually about which team imposes itself physically on the other. Nearly across the board, the Oilers seem to be getting the better of the odds.

Special teams? A pretty clear advantage to Edmonton.

5-on-5?

Aside from the fact that the Oilers are faster than the Blackhawks, they are also bigger. In particular, as playoff hockey tends to be much less “officiated”—and clutching, grabbing and grinding on one end or other is much more prevalent—the Oilers big, nasty defense corps, led by Adam Larsson, Darnell Nurse, and Oscar Klefbom, will have a huge advantage against a basically pretty soft and somewhat inexperienced Chicago forward group. While Alex Nylander, Dylan Sikura, and Kirby Dach have been at times dominant in no/low contact intra-team scrimmages, as they say, there ain’t nothin’ like the real thing, baby.

The Oilers are going to target and try to intimidate these players from the first puck drop. Add Dylan Strome and Alex DeBrincat to the Oilers’ list as well. And don’t think of it so much as running around for big hits, but bodying younger, smaller Chicago forwards off of pucks, an elbow here, a cross check there, seeing how quickly the young Hawk forwards will start pulling up early, quitting on pucks, and otherwise daydreaming about golf season.

Playoff goals tend to be a lot more greasy than those in the regular season, and a pure perimeter team (which is what the Columbus Blue Jackets turned the heretofore “greatest team in recorded history,” the Tampa Bay Lightning, into last April in a four-game sweep) tends to fold like a tent in the postseason. Unless the Hawks can muster a lot of pushback, this is Edmonton’s game plan.

It’s not like these Oilers are the 1983 version of themselves either, but they are a team on the rise and with good reason. All Everything centers Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are essentially this decade’s Crosby and Malkin. This duo gives Oil head coach Dave Tippett the ability to roll two potent scoring lines or load up putting both of the superstars out at the same time. Consider this, McDavid and Draisaitl were on pace for 114 and 127 points respectively when the regular season ended in March. Sure you can argue: stop them and stop the Oilers. But beyond Toews, the Hawks don’t seem to have the horses down the middle to get that done.

Assume Toews will be out against McDavid or Draisaitl. But if Toews takes one, that means Dylan Strome or perhaps Kirby Dach or Ryan Carpenter must take the other: a massive mismatch up and down the ice. Dach may emerge over the next couple of years as a fine NHL player. But a recent stellar performance in no-contact team scrimmages does not mean “yeah, roll him out against McDavid, no problem.”

There was a time when Joel Quenneville could do the same with Kane and Toews, but this is 2020, Kane and Toews are both to varying degrees not quite what they were five to seven years ago, and Hawk head coach Jeremy Colliton is no Quenneville either.

Quite frankly, he has not proved he’s in Tippett’s league.

You almost feel sorry for Colliton in this series. Hell, with the slow slide to mediocrity the Hawk front office has facilitated for the last five years, you feel sorry for him all the time.

Regardless, he’s going to be highly challenged trying to matchup with the speed and size of the Oilers, and always in Edmonton’s building.

Does Chicago have any chance in this series?

Well, no one really knows how “healthy” Crawford is except the player himself and perhaps his doctor. And even then, with COVID-19, there is ample and growing evidence that even young, otherwise healthy patients can have mild symptoms followed by “negative” tests for several days—then suddenly fall off a cliff.

We do know Crawford is unlikely to be 100% dialed in after four months off and a week of practice. And then he is going to see a lot of rubber night in and night out. That’s if he even plays in game 1, or then past game 1. Remember, we were all told Brent Seabrook was going to play until we heard he couldn’t.

Everyone at Hawks camp keeps raving about the strides taken by 2019 #3 overall selection Kirby Dach, but if there’s one other Hawk X-factor in this series, it may be 2018 #8 overall selection Adam Boqvist.

Boqvist could literally go either way in this series, getting caught way too far up ice or out of position and end up with Michelin tracks all over him—or he could rise up to the promise of his exceptional mobility and offensive talent and really give the Oilers an unexpected problem. Or both. But more likely the former than the latter, because again, we’re lighting candles here.

Finally, if Chicago can surprise the Oil in Game 1, take two of the first three, and Crawford plays, it goes five and will be a nail-biter. But . . .

Prediction

Oilers in 4 if Crawford plays. Oilers sweep if he doesn’t.

The post Blackhawks at Oilers/Round 1 Play-In Preview appeared first on The Rink.

But clearly, Chicago Blackhawks General Manager Stan Bowman will have options afforded by this high pick. As always, the outcome will depend on which door he chooses. That is what we will discuss here.

The fact is, Bowman not only “lucked out” in getting the third overall pick in the draft lottery last month—he also got a ton of added pressure. It is easier for a GM to slide out from under the responsibility of a missed 18^th overall selection (Mark McNeill) than it is at a pick position where Jonathan Toews was selected.

Another fact: this is a pick, if Bowman handles it properly, that could not only accelerate the Hawks’ rebuild, but could have a positive and significant impact on the franchise for the next decade or more.

So here, dear readers, are all the options (as we see them today):

BEST AVAILABLE ATHLETE

This was a draft strategy coined by the Dallas Cowboys in the 1970s. Gil Brandt and Co., did not just draft the best available defensive tackle because his team couldn’t stop the run the previous year. The Cowboys always thought two or three years out. And there is a strong argument for this philosophy in the NHL.

Sure, more and more, because of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, salary cap, more and more former European pros coming to North America and improvement in NCAA hockey, players now tend appear more often in the NHL the year after they are drafted. Still, overall, most players are a mere 17 years old when drafted and even some of the best typically require development in junior, college and/or the minors before debuting in the NHL. Sometimes, young players rushed to the NHL can be ruined by high expectations, followed by early struggles on bad teams.

All that said, let’s follow the conventional wisdom that Jack Hughes and Kappo Kaako are off the board when the Hawks go on the clock. Who, then, is the best available athlete?

Again, we will not presume to tell you that. We are not NHL scouts. And we put far more credence in those opinions than “YouTubes” and mock drafts put out by people who get their information from…YouTubes and internet-based mock drafts.

What we can say is this: there does not appear to be any position on the Hawks, except perhaps left wing (Alex DeBrincat, Brandon Saad), that you can say with any certainty is “set,” right now, or, more importantly, three to four years from now.

And for the record, our opinion is, the Hawks should be looking for the highest potential impact player at No. 3 this year—regardless of position—with one important caveat (that we will get to later).

The Hawks need elite young prospects all over the ice. Some may disagree and point to a defense pipeline that includes Adam Boqvist, Ian Mitchell and Nicolas Beaudin, all of whom are good-to-very-good prospects. However, until proven otherwise, all of these players are small and have documented defensive deficiencies that raise some valid questions as to where and exactly how they project in the NHL.

Aside from Henri Jokiharju, who is perhaps the most well-rounded defensive prospect (because that is really what he still is), the Hawks do not have a legitimate high-end defense prospect who plays a two-way game. Jokiharju, at this point appears to be a top-four defenseman in the future. But, where in the top four? Probably not an elite, No. 1 defenseman.

There is one defenseman, Bowen Byram of the Vancouver Giants (WHL), who scouts say stands head and shoulders above the rest in this draft class. At 6-foot-1, 195 pounds, he is more Jokiharju-sized than the smaller Boqvist (for example), skates exceptionally, can defend in space, shoots and passes with aplomb, has off the charts hockey sense and a nasty streak to boot.

So if the Hawks braintrust sees Byram as the best available athlete and a future elite player at No. 3, slam dunk. He is the pick.

While Bowman now appears to have stolen Dylan Strome from Arizona last season, and Jonathan Toews had a solid rebound season, Toews is now north of 30, the Hawks are still weak overall on faceoffs and—especially in the playoffs—you can never have enough quality centers.

From 3–8 in this draft, center is well-represented. Take your pick from Alex Turcotte, Dylan Cozens, Kirby Dach, Payton Krebs or Trevor Zegras. We will not try to fake our way through telling you which should be “the guy” at No. 3. Again, that is up to the Hawks, and that would also be assuming that any of the above are better players than say Byram or Vasili Podkolzin.

Easy for us to say.

Seriously though, Podkolzin, the enigmatic Russian right wing has perhaps “fallen” in the eyes of “internet hockey experts,” but it is hard to imagine serious hockey people dismissing his obvious set of talents and disposition: fast, über-competitive, physical, a great shot (you miss Panarin? This guy could potentially solve that) and defensively responsible.

We hesitate to project 17-year-olds, but watching him on tape in the top Russian junior league, it is hard not to see elements of Panarin and another great current NHLer from Russia, Vladimir Tarasenko.

Sure, there are potential transfer issues from Russia. Sure, he did not flash gaudy offensive numbers in a recent international tournament. Important considerations, but relative blips on the bigger radar picture. Let scouts figure it out based on a much greater set of metrics and time spent watching the player, talking to coaches, etc.

The bigger point is this, it appears that the Hawks have four or five (minimally) viable choices at No. 3 from whom to take the best available athlete—assuming they feel that player is clearly better than who they might take at pick 6, 7 or later.

Which leads to what, for some fans, might be a less comfortable scenario.

TRADING DOWN

“What? Why would you do that? You lucked out and got the third overall pick.”

Here is why. Two words: Cam Barker.

2004 was a two-player draft, perhaps not unlike this one. After Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin, there was a clear drop off to the next player who most, but not all, thought was Cam Barker of the Red Deer Rebels in the WHL. The Hawks held that pick, took Barker and the rest is history.

I wanted the Hawks to take Andrew Ladd instead, who was picked fourth by Carolina, and ironically, ended up hoisting the Cup with the Hawks in 2010—while Barker did not. But, the point is, sometimes in a two-player draft, your scouting might not see much difference in the quality of the player you would take at No. 3 than the one you could get at No. 7 or 8.

Perhaps, the grade you have on all the players left on the board are good to very good, but not elite future NHLers. But, as so often happens in all major sports’ drafts, another GM may have someone targeted that they want at No. 3—and they want him enough to give up a lot to move up and take him.

Here is a purely hypothetical scenario:

On draft night, Hughes and Kaako go first and second as expected. At No. 3, the Hawks are leaning toward taking Turcotte—a sturdy, skilled all-around center prospect—but they do not necessarily grade him much higher than Cozens or Krebs. And they grade none of those players as future, true elite players (a la McDavid, Crosby, Toews).

Thus, the Hawks know if they trade down a few slots, they will very likely get one of those comparable players.

Enter the Buffalo Sabres, picking seventh. Or, perhaps new Edmonton GM—and noted Russophile—Ken Holland, who might absolutely knock the door down to grab Podkolzin at No. 3. Edmonton picks eighth, where the Hawks would still be positioned to snag a future quality NHL center.

But, of course, Holland would need to further sweeten the pot for Chicago. Perhaps quite a bit.

Again, it depends on how much the other team’s GM wants that player at No. 3—how much would they give up?

Could the Hawks not only get a really good center at 7 or 8 who can be a difference maker for another decade, but also, for example, fill a glaring need on the blueline as well?

We can debate whether the Hawks could pry an Adam Larsson or an Evan Bouchard out of Holland in return for a five-slot swap to get a player he loves.

Likely not. But you never know.

The point is, if GMs come to Bowman with those kinds of offers—unless he is thoroughly convinced his guy at No. 3 is “can’t miss” elite— then he is dumb not to at least listen and evaluate.

WHERE IT COULD ALL GO WRONG

Broken record time: Cam Barker.

Say the Hawks hold the No. 3 pick, even though there is (hypothetically) a drop off from 1–2 to 3–7, and take, say, Turcotte.

Let’s even say Turcotte ends up being a better player than Barker, more along the lines of, say, Matt Duchene (a pretty good pro comparable for Turcotte). Duchene has become a nice player. But in the history of the NHL, is he ever going be mentioned in the same breath with Toews? No.

Or, let’s say, Turcotte, like another high first round, former USNTDP player, Jack Skille, ends up significantly underperforming in the NHL. Would that happen? Probably not.

But, over and over, time has a way of defying our initial expectations. Typically, everyone feels good about the pick the morning after the first round, when it is all sunshine and roses, but often not so much three or four years out.

And that is when the second guessing starts, or someone saying: “they should have traded down.”

In the end, no one knows right now—and no one can predict the future. But, this is why NHL scouts are paid to go to places like Nisku, Alberta, in January to watch hockey players, talk to coaches, etc., and you hope yours are as good as or better than anyone else’s…and that your GM has the judgement and courage to, when presented with good data, do the right thing for the franchise—not just temporarily placate the masses.

Please comment below.

The post ANALYSIS: The blessing (and the curse) of the third overall draft pick appeared first on The Rink.

PROJECTED GOALIES:

Chicago – Cam Ward (3-1-3 W-L, 3.91 GAA, .889 SV%)
Edmonton – Mikko Koskinen (1-0-0 W-L, 3.05 GAA, .889 SV%)

Team statistics:

Power Play

Chicago (26th – 13.95%)
Edmonton (15th – 21.95%)

Penalty Kill

Chicago (18th – 77.5%)
Edmonton (28th – 69.44%)

Shots for/against per game

Chicago (7th, 33.6% – 23rd, 33.2%)
Edmonton (22nd, 30.5% – 8th, 29.4%)

Shooting%

Chicago (T-14th – 9.8%)
Edmonton (T-17th, 9.5%)

Faceoff%

Chicago (18th, 49.6%)
Edmonton (T-23rd, 48.4%)

Avg. height/weight

Chicago
6’0” 195lbs
Edmonton
6’1” 196lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS:

Chicago Blackhawks

Alex DeBrincat – Jonathan Toews – Dominik Kahun
Brandon Saad – Artem Anisimov – Patrick Kane
Alexandre Fortin – Luke Johnson – Nick Schmaltz
Chris Kunitz – David Kampf – John Hayden

Duncan Keith – Henri Jokiharju
Erik Gustafsson – Brent Seabrook
Brandon Manning – Brandon Davidson

Edmonton Oilers

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Connor McDavid – Kailer Yamamoto
Tobias Rieder – Leon Draisaitl – Alex Chiasson
Milan Lucic – Ryan Strome – Drake Caggiula
Jujhar Khaira – Kyle Brodziak – Zack Kassian

Oscar Klefbom – Adam Larsson
Darnell Nurse – Kris Russell
Jason Garrison – Matt Benning

Analysis:

The Blackhawks waste no time, after the previous night’s loss in Vancouver, heading to Edmonton to face the young high flying Oilers.

They come into Edmonton riding a three game losing streak, and are facing the Oilers for the second time in four days. Sunday night the two teams fought to a 2-1 overtime finish, with the Oilers eventually prevailing.

Patrick Kane should make his return to the lineup after sitting out Wednesday night with an illness, and Marcus Kruger should also be returning after his night off spent in Coach Joel Quenneville‘s revolving door at Chateau de Bow Wow.

Forward Brandon Saad is coming off one of his best games of the season.  He could have easily had a hat trick last night against the Canucks.  A solid rocket off the goal post and a negated goal (kicking violation) are the only things that kept him from totaling three by the end of the night.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game later tonight or early tomorrow on the-rink.com.

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

Edmonton  (5-3-1) at Chicago Blackhawks (6-3-2)

5:00pm Central/4:00pm Mountain

United Center

TV/Radio: NHL Network,NBCSCH/WGN

PROJECTED GOALIES:

Chicago:

Cam Ward (.885 SV%, 4.23 GAA)

Edmonton:

Cam Talbot (.901 SV%, 2.88 GAA)

Team statistics:

Power Play

Chicago (11.1%, 28th)

Edmonton (26.4%, 8th)

Penalty Kill

Chicago (74.3%, 24th)

Edmonton (75.0%, T-21st)

Shots for/against per game

Chicago (34.5, 4th – 34.4, T-25th)

Edmonton (30.3, T-23rd – 29.2, T-9th)

Shooting%

Chicago (10.6%, T-10th)

Edmonton (9.9%, 16th)

Faceoff%

Chicago (48.6%, T-20th)

Edmonton (48.4%, 22nd)

Avg. height/weight

Chicago

6’1” 195lbs

Edmonton 6’2” 202lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS:

Chicago

DeBrincat-Toews-Kahun

Saad-Anisimov-Kane

Fortin-Johnson-Schmaltz

Kunitz-Kruger-Hayden

Keith-Jokiharju

Gustafsson-Seabrook

Manning-Rutta

Edmonton

Nugent-Hopkons-McDavid-Yamamoto

Rieder-Draisaitl-Chiasson

Lucic-Strome-Caggula

Khaira-Brodziak-Kassian

Klefbom-Larsson

Nurse-Russell

Garrison-Benning

Analysis:

Looking to avoid being swept on the weekend, the Chicago Blackhawks host the Edmonton Oilers in their first matchup of the season. Chicago lost last night in St. Louis 7-3, while the Oilers topped the Predators 5-3 in Nashville.

Patrick Kane notched two more goals in St. Louis, pushing his season total to 11 goals in 11 games. Kane also leads the Hawks with 17 points.

Edmonton center Connor McDavid can turn any possession into a scoring chance with his skill and speed. The former 1^st overall pick tops the Oilers in goals (7) and assists (9) in only nine games.

Cam Ward, expected in net tonight, will face off against goaltender Cam Talbot for Edmonton. Ward surrendered five goals last Sunday against Tampa Bay. However, he played about as well as a goaltender can when facing 54 shots against.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game later tonight or early tomorrow on the-rink.com. 

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

Here we sit, at the halfway point of the 2017-18 NHL season, and the once mighty Blackhawks are a point out of a wildcard playoff spot at 20-15-6. We’ll have a more comprehensive first half breakdown here on The-Rink.com in the next couple of days, but let’s summarize by saying this:

20-15-6 and 11th in the conference is not anything any should feel good about. And yet, at the same time, there are some hidden positives.

First, the Hawks have played 19 games at home (where’s they’ve been a strong 11-6-2) and 22 on the road. Second, while Patrick Kane’s line (with Nick Schmaltz at either center or left wing) has been, meh, as you’d expect,mostly good all season, perhaps more importantly for the team’s fortunes, the Jonathan Toews line has been showing some signs of life of late.

It was The Kane-Schmaltz line that opened the scoring, with schmaltz niftily retrieving a puck from a scrum to the left of Oiler goalie Cam Talbott and tucking the puck through Talbott’s 5-hole. 1-0 Chicago.

Not too much later, Alex “El Gato” Debrincat took a wild shot from the goal line to Talbott’s right that caromed in off an Oiler defender. 2-0.

Shots in the first period were 15-11 Chicago, but the Oilers had two high quality chances close in, one for Connor McDavid, the other for Patrick Maroon, both of which were ably shut down by Anton Forsberg, playing for the first time in a couple of weeks.

Each team tallied a goal in the second period. The Oilers beat Forsberg on what was a sift goal when Darnell Nurse redirected a slow shot that slipped past the Hawk netminder. Forsberg was otherwise rock solid in the game, stopping 32 shots, and earning first star. 2-1 Hawks.

The Hawks stretched the lead back out to two goals late in the period when Jonathan Toews, made a power move through the slot, fending off an Oiler defender with one arm, and pushing the puck toward the net with the other. Brandon Saad was there to fire the puck home. 3-1 Chicago.

The scoring ended in the third period, when the Toews line struck again. This time, Toews and Saad simply wore down two quality defenders in Nurse and Kris Russell with  relentless low cycle, leading finally to a Jordan Oesterle wrister past Talbott, 4-1 Chicago.

That was the game, a needed pick-me-up after a disappointing 5-4 home loss to Vegas on Friday, where most observers felt the Hawks were simply outworked. The bigger stories, perhaps, were these:

• a strong outing for Forsberg, who had to be wondering, at least a bit, whether he was going to end up a footnote in the Cinderella story of Jeff Glass. As excited as some of the throng got about Glass, Forsberg simply makes it look a lot easier, because he’s bigger in his net and doesn’t flop around like a fish in the crease.
• The resurgence of the Toews line. This was the second strong game in a row for this line. As much as I have my doubts about Vince Hinostroza as a consistent top 6 player in the NHL, his speed and energy create opportunities when used correctly. Which means—getting past opposing defenders, dishing the puck to Saad or Toews and letting them go to work. When he tries to get too cute, like he did with a blind drop pass later in the game yesterday that ignited an Oiler odd-man break, not so much. But another big reason for this line’s success of late seems to be that Czech rookie David Kampf is now taking a lot of the draws on penalty kills and that is taking harder minutes off of Toews, within each game and over time.
• A better defensive showing. The Hawks protected the house better in this game than they did against Vegas, when a hapless Glass was basically shelled for 40+ shots. Jan Rutta made a particularly nice play, negating a prime Oiler chance.

The Hawks hit the road in Ottawa Tuesday night. We’ll have a preview then, and more in the meantime.

Follow: @jaeckel

The post Recap: Blackhawks 4, Oilers 1 appeared first on The Rink.

Edmonton Oilers (18-21-3) at Chicago Blackhawks (19-15-6) 

2PM Central/1 Mountain

RADIO: WGN 720

PROJECTED GOALIES:

Edmonton:

Al Montoya  (2-1-0, 3.49 GAA, .871 save%)

Chicago:

Anton Forsberg . (1-5-3, 3.33 GAA, .902 save%)

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS:

Edmonton

Lucic-McDavid-Puljuljarvi

Cammalleri-Nugent Hopkins-Strome

Caggiula-Draisaitl-Slepyshev

Khaira-Letestu-Kassian

Murse-Larsson

Klefbom-Russell

Sekera-Benning

Chicago

Saad-Toews-Hinostroza

Hartman-Schmaltz-Kane

Sharp-Kampf-DeBrincat

Bouma-Wingels-Panik

Keith-Oesterle

Forsling-Rutta

Murphy-Seabrook

STATISTICAL COMPARISONS:

Power play:

Edmonton 16.2% (24th)

Chicago 14.9% (29^th)

Penalty kill:

Edmonton 70.9% (31st)

Chicago 81.3% (15th)

Corsi For % (5-on-5):

Edmonton 52.8% (5th)

Chicago 52.9% (3rd)

Faceoffs:

Edmonton 49.3% (21st)

Chicago 48.9% (23rd)

SUMMARY:

The Hawks lost discouragingly Friday night on home ice to Vegas. A road win in Edmonton recently was the start of a brief run that the Knights ended day before last. So recapturing their roll today would be a nice outcome for a Hawk team that continues to struggle for consistency and confidence.

Anton Forsberg takes the net, perhaps signifying the end of the brief “Jeff Glass Era” in Chicago. Unfortunately, a segment of the fanbase (at least) seems to have fallen in love with Glass—whose flaws had begun to show the last couple of games—and Forsberg might get some early boos and catcalls if he’s rusty.

Scroll to the bottom of the page and join the conversation in real time on our official game thread with JJ, Gatekeeper and the rest of the RinkRats.

Follow: @jaeckel

The post Preview And Game Thread: Oilers At Blackhawks appeared first on The Rink.

These were the Blackhawks starting lines:
Brandon Saad – Jonathan Toews – Richard Panik
Ryan Hartman – Nick Schmaltz – Patrick Kane
Alex DeBrincat – David Kampf – Vince Hinostroza
Lance Bouma – Tommy Wingels – John Hayden

Duncan Keith – Jordan Oesterle
Connor Murphy – Brent Seabrook
Michal Kempny – Cody Franson

Patrick Sharp, Gustav Forsling and Jan Rutta all took a seat after playing in Vancouver, Thursday.

As far as play went, It took almost eight minutes for either team to get a dangerous chance, until Jonathan Toews and Brandon Saad hooked up to nearly beat Cam Talbot, but Talbot was able to narrowly keep the puck from crossing the goal line.

The Jeff Glass show then began. Connor Murphy and Brent Seabrook turned into a yakety sax skit and left Leon Draisaitl all by himself for a clear breakaway from the Blackhawks’ blue line in. Glass maintained his composure and was able to deny the Oilers young forward.  This wasn’t the only time he was one-on-one with a young talented Oilers forward, as he was forced to stop Connor McDavid more than once.

A late first period Michal Kempny penalty allowed the Oilers to show off their power play chops and eventually yielded a 1-0 lead. Glass made the stop of a long Ryan Nugent-Hopkins shot but the rebound dropped right into the slot area. Jesse Puljujarvi just gave the loose puck a wild whack and it beat Glass.

After just a couple of chances very early on, the Blackhawks showed little signs of offensive life for the final 3/4 of the period, but were actually able to tie the game, anyway. Ryan Hartman continued his solid play by scoring his second goal in two nights by keeping his play simple.  He drove hard to the net, and swatted a Patrick Kane rebound past Cam Talbot.

Even though they tied the score, the Blackhawks were out shot 19-11. At this rate, they looked like they were going to have a rough night, especially with a first time NHLer in the net.

The Oilers opened the second period much like they played a majority off the first period. They tested Glass from the opening faceoff, but the “rookie” had a little luck on his side and a little help from his friends Connor Murphy and Brent Seabrook.

At the midway point of the second period the Blackhawks finally drew their first power play of the game. The pressure was there for the Hawks, but they were not able to get many shots to the actual net. As a result, the power play was successfully killed by the home team.

Just a few moments later, Richard Panik drew another Oilers penalty after he was caught from behind on a breakaway. This time the Blackhawks capitalized on their man advantage. Duncan Keith made a brilliant play, turning away a potential Oilers shorthanded rush, and fed Nick Schmaltz back the other way. Schmaltz waited out the Oilers goaltender and dumped the puck off to Alex DeBrincat, who snapped a shot five-hole past Talbot for a rare Blackhawks power play goal.

The period ended with the Blackhawks leading 2-1 and leading the period in shots 14-12.

An Oilers third period too-many-men penalty, with about eleven minutes remaining in the game, quickly turned into Jordan Oesterle’s first NHL goal. He snapped a long shot past Cam Talbot that rang solidly off the post. The shot hit Talbot in the back and dribbled into the net, just seconds into the power play.  An even more rare second power play goal.

With 2:19 remaining the Oilers cut the Blackhawks lead to one goal on a weird long shot that changed direction and ended up eluding Glass. Under a minute and a half after that, Leon Draisaitl chipped a rebound past Glass to tie the game with just under a minute remaining. As a result, this game was sent to overtime.

In overtime, Patrick Kane put the “Jeff Glass Feel Good Story” on his shoulders and put the cherry on top of the 32 year old sundae. The Construction Cones never controlled the puck in the extra period, while Duncan Keith and Nick Schmaltz held possession.  Keith finally deferred to Kane, who put a little shake-n-bake move on Draisaitl and drove in one-on-one with Talbot.  Kane put a pretty incredible move on the Oilers goalie but was initially stopped by Talbot’s left leg.  He followed up the rebound, though, and poked it into the net for a Blackhawks win.

Pluses

• Once again, I call out a Blackhawks player and he answers the bell. For the second time this season Alex DeBrincat ended his goalless streak the game following a call out.
• Jeff Glass was incredibly composed for his first NHL game.  He wasn’t perfect, by any means, but he was generally very solid, which is exactly what this team needed.  42 saves is nothing to sneeze at.
• Once again, the Pat Kane line carried the team. Hartman and Kane each had a goal, while Schmaltz had three assists.
• While he was slightly under 50%, David Kampf is listed as have taken 22 of the Blackhawks 59 faceoffs, which is almost unbelievable.

Minuses

• Those orange home Oilers jerseys are terribly hideous.  The moron that thought those were a good idea should be fired.
• John Hayden looks to be in Q’s doghouse after playing a team low 10:46
• Speaking of the doghouse, the Kempny and Franson pairing barely played 10 minutes each on defense.
• Lets not all get our knickers in a bunch just yet.  The Blackhawks played a struggling team alright, but blew a late two goal lead.

The post Recap: Blackhawks at Oilers 4-3 OT Win appeared first on The Rink.

Chicago Blackhawks (17-14-5) at Edmonton OIlers (17-18-2)

8PM Central/9 Mountain

RADIO: WGN 720

TV: NBC Sports Chicago

PROJECTED GOALIES:

Chicago:

Anton Forsberg (1-5-3, 3.33 GAA, .902 SV%)

Edmonton:

Cam Talbot (14-11-1, 2.89 GAA, .907 SV%)

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS:

Chicago

Saad-Toews-Hartman

DeBrincat-Schmaltz-Kane

Sharp-Kampf-Hayden

Bouma-Wingels-Panik

Keith-Oesterle

Forsling-Rutta

Murphy-Seabrook

Edmonton

Lucic-McDavid-Puljujarvi

Kaira-Draisaitl-Strome

Maroon-Nugent Hopkins-Caggiula

Cammaleri-Letestu-Kassian

Nurse-Russell

Sekera-Benning

Davidson-Larsson

STATISTICAL COMPARISONS:

Power play:

Chicago 13.9% (29^th)

Edmonton 21.9% (9th)

Penalty kill:

Chicago 82.8% (11^th)

Edmonton 73.7% (31st)

Corsi For % (5-on-5):

Chicago 52.9% (6^th)

Edmonton 53.0% (4th)

Faceoffs:

Chicago 48.5% (24^th)

Edmonton 49.4% (20th)

SUMMARY:

From bad to worse?

Coming off their third straight loss, the Hawks are packing up and heading from the temperate rainforest of Vancouver to the frozen (quite literally) tundra of Alberta to face the Oilers tonight.

Compounding matters, center Artem Anisimov appears to be out for “a while” according to Head Coach Joel Quenneville last night. Expect either Richard Panik or Vince Hinostroza to play tonight. Maybe both if Q decides to “rest” someone else.

Chicago did not play well last night, and they really haven’t their last two games. Tonight, they face a fast team on a fast ice surface. The key for the Hawks will be to play their game, without leaving themselves vulnerable by forgetting their defensive responsibilities.

A win would do a lot for this team’s psyche and confidence. Another loss? Well, it pushes the entire organization a tick closer to some hard conversations and tough decisions about what can be realistically achieved this season.

We’ll recap tomorrow AM.

Follow: @jaeckel

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