Reported by Darren Dreger, the Blackhawks sent defenseman Isaak Phillips to Winnipeg for defenseman Dmitry Kuzmin.

Phillips, a 2020 fifth-round pick of the Hawks, split time between Chicago and the Rockford IceHogs over the last four seasons. Spending a majority of the season with the Hogs, Phillips scored one goal and tallied seven assists in 28 games. In three games with the Blackhawks this season, he managed one goal.

Kuzmin, a 2021 third-round pick of the Jets, has spent his time between the ECHL and the AHL since being drafted. In 21 games this season with the Manitoba Moose, Kuzmin scored one goal and tallied three assists.

When asked about the trade, Anders Sorensen called the trade a fresh start for Phillips. With recent Blackhawks drafts netting Chicago multiple high-end defensive prospects, Phillips got crowded out. At 23 years old, the time for Phillips to find a spot on an NHL roster is slimming. Perhaps in a less crowded room, Phillips can find his game.

Kuzmin, a 21-year-old left handed defenseman, offers both Chicago and Rockford a small but appreciated benefit: national camaraderie. Kuzmin, like Chicago’s top prospect Artyom Levshunov, hails from Belarus. They were teammates on Team Belarus during the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship Division One tournament, a team that won gold. The two also trained together last summer before the season began. Perhaps the “Belarusian Buddies” can find good chemistry that will allow Levshunov to grow his game during the remainder of the AHL season.

Kuzmin will have the opportunity to make his IceHogs debut on Jan. 17 on the road against the Iowa Wild.

The post BREAKING: Blackhawks and Jets swap AHL defensemen appeared first on The Rink.

While there have been whispers for a while regarding Blue Jackets center Pierre-Luc Dubois’ discontent in Columbus, the issue really came to a head in the Blue Jackets’ Thursday night overtime loss to Tampa Bay, when a noticeably “detached” Dubois drew the ire and eventual benching of head coach John Tortorella.

Friday, the rumor mill jumped into overdrive, with an emerging report of the Winnipeg Jets leading the pack in pursuit of the big, talented pivot.

Saturday morning, just a few minutes ago, in fact, the two teams completed a deal, with the Jets sending scoring winger Patrik Laine and forward Jack Roslovic to Columbus for Dubois and a third-round draft pick.

Almost immediately, Twitter accounts were leapfrogging one another to proclaim the deal a win for one side or the other. The Rink’s flash poll of its writers suggests this appears (on paper and in theory anyway) to be a win-win for both clubs. As with any trade, the true winner(s) are always somewhat “to be determined” based on a myriad factors: Adjustment to new coaching staffs, teammates and cities, injuries, etc.

The fact is, these were both good, typically playoff-quality teams—each missing a part or two. The Jets gain the second-line center they have been struggling to nail down. And Dubois also brings a lot of the on-ice qualities the Jets like: Big, nasty, skilled. The downside? The Jets add a guy who has now shown he can be a petulant troublemaker in the dressing room—as if they had not seen enough of that with Evander Kane.

Some want to blame Dubois’ unhappiness in Columbus on Tortorella and his old-school, red-ass style of coaching. But there was scuttlebutt that Dubois did not really care for Columbus as a place to live, either. How will he feel about living on the windswept tundra of Winnipeg? Meh, at least there is a French-speaking community in the ‘Peg.

In Laine, the Jackets somewhat backfill the prolific goal scoring from the flank that left town with Artemi Panarin heading to New York. The knock on Laine is average mobility and maybe not enough nasty, but he is plenty effective in tight spaces—and his shot is both lethal and amply proven. And he has been criticized at times for a lack of focus. However, few NHL general managers have as much or more familiarity with Laine than fellow Finn Jarmo Kekalainen.

Columbus native Roslovic is the lucky strike extra here, and could very well eventually tip the equity in this trade toward the Blue Jackets—giving Tortorella yet another high motor, coachable, skilled and versatile middle-six forward to go with the likes of Oliver Bjorkstrand and Liam Foudy.

The Blue Jackets have extended Roslovic’s contract for two years at $3.8 million total. Laine becomes a restricted free agent on July 28. However, Columbus has significant cap flexibility due to this trade and other factors.

What do you think? Comment below.

The post TRADE BREAKDOWN: Columbus acquires Laine and Roslovic for Dubois, pick appeared first on The Rink.

In the first period, the Blackhawks came out fast and furious after a late-night game in Calgary on Saturday. On the other side of the ice, the Winnipeg Jets seemed to come out sluggish. The Jets eventually gained their footing and were able to match the Blackhawks’ level of intensity for most of the first period.

With under five minutes remaining in the first period, Patrick Kane was sprung on a pass in the Jets’ zone. Kane was able to backhand a pass to Ryan Carpenter. Carpenter redirected the beautiful Kane pass under the crossbar for the lone goal of the period and a 1–0 Hawks lead.

Great feed from Patrick Kane and finish by Ryan Carpenter, who scores his third goal of the season. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/2ExfOvD28l

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) February 17, 2020

In the second period, the adrenaline wore off for Chicago, and Winnipeg started to impose its will. After winning a significant number of board battles in the first period, the Blackhawks were being beaten consistently on the boards in the second period.

Despite some heroics from Corey Crawford, the Jets eventually broke through with a goal of their own to tie the game at 1–1.

Jets finally get one past Corey Crawford on their 22nd shot of the game. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/L35j3czx4z

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) February 17, 2020

After a conversational non-goal from Winnipeg, the Jets struck again from the point. This time it was Jack Roslovic delivering a rocket near the blue line for a 2–1 Winnipeg advantage.

Roslovic gives the Jets the lead in the 2nd. pic.twitter.com/WjiNpgUU7d

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 17, 2020

After the Roslovic goal, it appeared the Jets would have a one-goal lead after two periods, but with one minute remaining in the second period, the Blackhawks drew even. Jeremy Colliton loaded up a line with Kane, Jonathan Toews and Dominik Kubalik. Toews served Kane a pass on a silver platter in front of a yawning Winnipeg cage and Kane buried it for the 2–2 equalizer late in the second period.

This was a thing of beauty pic.twitter.com/YJ7u9o67mN

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 17, 2020

Despite tying the game late in the second frame, the third period began with the Jets taking the play to the Blackhawks. After Crawford stopped several golden opportunities, Patrik Laine blasted a shot past Crawford from the point to again give the Jets the lead at 3–2.

After the Laine goal, fatigue set in big time for the Blackhawks. The team looked like they were in a slow-mo video from an iPhone late in the third period. With two minutes remaining, Chicago pulled Crawford for a sixth attacker, but was unable to generate one shot on a goal.

When the final horn sounded, the Blackhawks fell to the Jets 3–2. With the loss, Chicago is now six points out of the final wild card playoff spot.

The Blackhawks return to action on Wednesday night against the New York Rangers in Chicago. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST at the United Center.

The post Along the boards: Blackhawks succumb to fatigue and the Winnipeg Jets appeared first on The Rink.

Notably, Adam Boqvist did not dress for the game. Although he was able to practice late in the week after leaving Wednesday’s game early, Head Coach Jeremy Colliton decided to sit the young Swede and allow newly claimed Nick Seeler to make his Blackhawks debut.

The Hawks came out strong to start. After three days off, it was expected they would look well-rested and play hard in the opening period.

Not only did they come out strong, but the Blackhawks also didn’t waste any time finding the back of the net either. Just 15 seconds into the game, after a missed shot, Jonathan Toews found Drake Caggiula who had an excellent look at the net. After being denied, Caggiula slid the puck back to Dominik Kubalik in the slot and he fired home his 22^nd goal of the season.

Did someone order a good start?

This one took just 15 seconds pic.twitter.com/Mtxv4mOVM1

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 10, 2020

Not only did the goal give the Hawks the 1–0 lead early, Toews also recorded his 800^th career point in his hometown of Winnipeg.

O CAPTAIN!

With an assist on Kubalik's tally, Jonathan Toews has recorded his 800th @NHL point! #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/wDohGxbQQH

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) February 10, 2020

#1 #800 for Jonathan Toews pic.twitter.com/oERc9cGq15

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 10, 2020

The Captain continues to add to his Hall of Fame worthy career with his 800^th point. He is now the fourth player from the 2006 draft class to record 800 points.

Jonathan Toews is the fourth member of the 2006 draft class to reach 800 career points, joining Nicklas Backstrom (915), Phil Kessel (855) and Claude Giroux (800). #Blackhawks

— Carter Baum (@CarterBaum) February 10, 2020

The Blackhawks continued to push and played a strong first period. Winnipeg definitely looked like a team who played the day before. Although the Hawks had some great chances, Connor Hellebuyck made some great saves to keep the visitors from extending their lead.

Despite the great goaltending of Hellebuyck, the second line for the Hawks capitalized on an opportunity. Nick Seeler fired a shot toward the net, which completely missed the cage. The puck bounced off the boards behind the net and right to Patrick Kane who was waiting on the right wing red line. Kane made a quick move and dished the puck to the front of the net where the red hot Brandon Saad tipped home his 16^th of the year.

Welcome to the @NHLBlackhawks, Nick Seeler!

The newest member of the squad gets an assist in his first game, on Brandon Saad's goal pic.twitter.com/z26mr5Sjx6

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 10, 2020

Corey Crawford was also excellent. He made two massive saves in the second half of the period to deny the Jets from getting on the board. The first was a great save on Scheifele in the slot and the other was a robbery on Nikolaj Ehlers, who could only look to the heavens after missing on his back-door opportunity.

CROW. MY. GOSH pic.twitter.com/CSSNIYRXIB

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 10, 2020

As the middle frame opened, the momentum did a full 180. The Jets came out as a team with a purpose in the second period, looking to catch up with the visitors.

Although the Blackhawks were on a power play, the Jets got the better of the man advantage situation. Shorthanded, Andrew Copp made a sensational saucer pass to Kyle Connor who effortlessly lifted the shot over Crawford. Connor’s 27^th of the year cut the Hawks’ lead to just one.

Jets get on the board in the 2nd. pic.twitter.com/LgLAdXtSiu

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 10, 2020

The rest of the period was much of the same. The Jets had multiple short-handed opportunities against the Hawks, but Crawford continued to bail out his teammates in front of him. The Hawks looked lackadaisical and were badly outplayed by the Jets. However, they somehow managed to escape the period without any additional damage and held on to the lead.

The third period unfortunately spelled doom for the Blackhawks. The Jets scored four unanswered goals in the third period, two being empty netters, to knock off the Hawks 5–2.

The key to the collapse was a lack of pace. The Hawks couldn’t do anything after their sensational first ten minutes. They could not do anything to outplay the Jets and the Jets took full advantage of the Hawks tonight.

Along the boards

The Hawks looked brutal for the last 50 minutes of the game. They had no urgency, no pace, and no energy. If the Hawks continue to play that way, the “p” word is not going to be in the Hawks’ future at this pace.

This season has been concerning for Alex DeBrincat. It was fair to expect a bit of a slide, as Toews and Kane are both on pace for lower numbers than last season, but still will have good numbers. Saad is on pace for over 20 goals and Kubalik may get to 50 points. The largest drop off is Alex DeBrincat. Just see the following:

Some #Blackhawks numbers coming at you……

Alex Debrincat is on pace for a 20 point slide from last season.

From 41-35-76 to 19-37-56

— Puckin Hostile (@PuckinHostile.bsky.social) (@PuckinHostile) January 30, 2020

That is a large drop-off for a player who just was rewarded a 3 year, $6.4 million AAV deal at the start of the year. A big pickup for the team’s offense would be to get more production out of their young winger.

I continue to be pleasantly surprised by Kirby Dach’s play. He has had a good season, although the offensive numbers aren’t where most would like them to be for a third overall pick. However, guys take time to develop and Dach is developing very nicely. If he continues to develop and get stronger, he’ll be a very good forward for a long time in the NHL.

I’m so excited to see Dach once he starts adding muscle to that huge frame. He’s already solid defensively and shows the offensive flash, just wait until he can start bullying people. #Blackhawks

— Ron Luce (@LuceOnTap) February 10, 2020

One fun note, Seeler was fun to watch tonight. His fight was his highlight of the night, but he played a decent game in his debut.

We like this kid. pic.twitter.com/W8p5qv3Lgm

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 10, 2020

The Blackhawks return to play on Tuesday, February 11 as they take on Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers in Edmonton. Puck drop is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. CST.

The post Along the boards: Jets soar, comeback to defeat Blackhawks 5–2 appeared first on The Rink.

6 p.m. CDT

United Center

TV/Radio: NBCSN/WGN

Projected starters

Chicago — Robin Lehner  (2018–19 statistics — 23–13–5, .930 save percentage, 2.13 goals against average)

Winnipeg — Connor Hellebuyck (2–1–0, .927 save percentage, 2.68 goals against average)

Team statistics

Power play
Chicago (25%, 12th)
Winnipeg (9.1%, 25th)

Penalty kill
Chicago (50.0%, 30th)
Winnipeg (77.8%, 17th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (30.5, 21st; 36.0, fifth)
Winnipeg (33.4, 10th; 36.4 third)

Shooting percentage
Chicago (11.5%)
San Jose  (10.8%)

Face off percentage
Chicago (46.9%, 31st)
Winnipeg  (50.0%, 14th)

Average height and weight
Chicago — 6-foot-1, 198 pounds
Winnipeg — 6-foot-2, 203 pounds

Projected lines and pairings

Chicago Blackhawks

Alex DeBrincat — Jonathan Toews — Drake Caggiula

 Andrew Shaw — Dylan Strome — Patrick Kane

Brandon Saad — David Kampf — Dominik Kubalik

Alexander Nylander — Zack Smith — Ryan Carpenter

Duncan Keith — Connor Murphy

Olli Maatta — Brent Seabrook

Slater Koekkoek — Erik Gustafsson

Winnipeg Jets

Patrik Laine — Mark Scheifele — Blake Wheeler

Kyle Connor— Andrew Copp — Nikolaj Ehlers

Mathieu Perreault — Jack Roslovic — Mason Appleton

Gabriel Bourque — Adam Lowry — Mark Letestu

Josh Morrissey — Neal Pionk

Ville Heinola — Tucker Poolman

Anthony Bitetto — Dmitry Kulikov

Analysis

The Blackhawks fell to 0–2 on the season with a heartbreaking loss to the San Jose Sharks on Thursday. For the second consecutive game, the Blackhawks have been let down by a poor defense and a 30th-ranked penalty kill.

Following the two losses, head coach Jeremy Colliton is shaking up his lines. After going to the Yahtzee shaker, Colliton has broken up lines one, three and four in search of consistent play. He only left the third line intact from Thursday’s season opener. The third line of Saad, Kampf and Kubalik showed that they can dominate shifts and generate high danger scoring chances. Kubalik had a very impressive game and was noticeable on the ice. In addition to changing the lines, Colliton is also making a change in net, as Robin Lehner will get his first start in net. The Vezina Trophy finalist was brought in on a one-year contract to split time with Crawford this season.

Lehner’s debut comes tonight against the Winnipeg Jets. Lehner is likely to face a lot of pucks in this game because the Blackhawks yield a high number of shots and Jets produce a high number of shots. Their top line of Laine, Scheifele and Wheeler have generated 23 of the Jets’ 45 points this season. While the Jets are riding high on a three-game winning streak, they do have their own set of problems. Winnipeg has suffered significant losses on their blue line from last season via free agency, trades and former Blackhawk Dustin Byfuglien’s absence from the lineup. This has led to their young and inexperienced blue line to surrender a significant number of shots.

This game figures to have more shots than the song “Shots” by LMFAO featuring Lil Jon. Will the Blackhawks get their first win?

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

And, be sure to look for the internet’s most robust recap of the game tomorrow morning on The-Rink.com.

The post Preview/Game thread: Chicago Blackhawks vs. Winnipeg Jets appeared first on The Rink.

The 6-foot-4, 215-pound Sweden native was selected by the Blackhawks in the second round (51st overall) of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft and worked his way through the system to become a seventh defenseman for head coach Jeremy Colliton last season. During the 2017–18 season, Dahlstrom was named to the 2018 AHL All-Star Classic with teammate Matthew Highmore. He finished that season with 28 points (three goals, 25 assists).

Last season, he played in 60 games between the AHL and NHL, scoring 14 points (one goal, 13 assists). He joins a decimated Winnipeg defensive corp thanks to former Blackhawks assistant general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff.

The somewhat unexpected move leaves the Blackhawks with Calvin de Haan, Erik Gustafsson, Duncan Keith, Slater Koekkoek, Olli Maatta, Connor Murphy and Brent Seabrook  on the NHL roster, with Nicolas Beaudin, Adam Boqvist, Lucas Carlsson, Dennis Gilbert, Philip Holm, Chad Krys, Jack Ramsey, Jake Ryczek and Joni Tuulola in the AHL with Rockford.

The post BREAKING: Carl Dahlstrom claimed by Winnipeg Jets appeared first on The Rink.

The Chicago Steel kept up with their opponents chasing them for second place in the Eastern Conference beating the Waterloo Black Hawks 3–1. Steel goaltender Reilly Herbst stopped 36 shots to lead Chicago in Waterloo, Iowa.

The evenly matched game remained tied at 0–0 halfway through the second period. Herbst and Waterloo goaltender Jared Moe both made a few spectacular saves early on in the game. Moe, a Winnipeg Jets sixth-round draft pick in 2018, would be the first to break when forward Josiah Slavin beat Black Hawks defenseman Hank Sorensen to the outside and slipped a shot five-hole for the 1–0 Chicago lead.

Ok Josiah Slavin, we get it, you've got skillz. @chicagosteel #WhosNext pic.twitter.com/QWkdGUnlY2

— USHL (@USHL) April 6, 2019

The first goal, at the 16:36 mark of the second period, would be followed up less than a minute later when forward Gunnarwolfe Fontaine buried his 20^th goal of the season. The goal, assisted by forward Adam Robbins, extended the Chicago lead to 2–0 as both teams went into the second intermission.

Defenseman Owen Power opened up the scoring in the third period, on the power play, beating Moe for his 10th goal of the season. Assisted by forward Mathieu De St. Phalle and Robbins, extended the Steel lead to 3–0.

Waterloo forward Ryan Drkulec beat Herbst at the 8:07 mark of the third period to cut the Steel lead to 3–1, but that would be the only goal for Waterloo. With the victory, Chicago extended their lead over Cedar Rapids and Youngstown to three points heading into their Saturday night matchup with the Dubuque Fighting Saints.

Dubuque 5, Chicago 0

On Saturday, Dubuque Fighting Saints goaltender Matthew Thiessen stopped a team record 44 saves in shutting out the Steel 5–0 in Dubuque, Iowa. The Vancouver Canucks draft pick stood on his head all night, stopping 31 shots through two period before whitewashing the Steel on 13 shots in the third period.

Fighting Saints forward Matias Maccelli, a potential 2019 NHL draft prospect, scored twice to reach the 30 goal mark this season. Dubuque also received goals from defenseman Chris Lipe, forward Bram Scheerer and forward Dylan Jackson.

Chicago returns to home ice on Friday, April 12 for Fan Appreciation Night for a 7:05 p.m. puck drop. The Steel then finish up the regular season in Muskegon, April 13, for a 7:15 p.m. start. Chicago clings to a one-point lead for the second-place spot in the Eastern Conference, which comes with a first-round bye.

Click here to see the Eastern Conference Playoff Race information.

The post The Steel Deal: Chicago splits weekend, big weekend ahead in playoff race appeared first on The Rink.

There were a couple milestones to note as Patrick Kane participated in his 900th NHL game and Artem Anisimov his 700th. While the Blackhawks have not been mathematically eliminated yet, they are still making some changes to the lineup to take a look at next season. John Hayden and Brendan Perlini were inserted into the lineup while David Kampf and Chris Kunitz were scratched.

First period

There was some feeling out and back and forth play to start the game until Mathieu Perreault was called for holding Patrick Kane at 3:29. It took less than a minute for the Blackhawks to capitalize on the power play. Jonathan Toews (34) scored on a shot that redirected off of Jacob Trouba’s stick and snuck through Connor Hellebuyck’s five-hole.

The Blackhawks would start to take control in the shots category but it was the Jets who struck next at 10:49. Adam Lowry (12) beat Corey Crawford short side after a nice drop pass from Brendon Tanev (15) to even the game up 1–1.

The Jets would head to the power play less than two minutes later as Duncan Keith was called for tripping Nikolaj Ehlers. The Blackhawks were able to kill the penalty without giving up any quality chances to the Jets.

It was more of the same as the Blackhawks held the shot advantage as the period went on. Once again the Jets were able to come through. At 19:26 Jack Roslovic was able to strip Gustav Forsling and score from an improbable along along the goal line for his eighth goal of the season. The period would end there 2–1 Jets.

Second period

The second period started with some excitement as Toews was called for hooking Mark Scheifele on a breakaway which resulted in a penalty shot. Scheifele was unable to convert on his first career penalty shot as he tried to go five-hold on Crawford.

Only 10 seconds later, Erik Gustafsson was called for delay of game after putting the puck over the glass. A little more than halfway through the penalty kill Patrik Laine was called for slashing Keith. Neither team was able to convert on their shortened power plays.

Roslovic was able to tally his second of the game and ninth of the season at 5:13 by beating Crawford top-shelf glove side. That snipe made the score 3–1 in favor of the Jets.

Just over a minute later at 6:23, the Blackhawks were able to respond. Dylan Strome made an errant pass to Patrick Kane that actually came back to him in front of the net. Strome (18) was able to sneak it past Hellebuyck to cut the Jets’ lead to one at 3–2.

The Jets really started to pick up the pace of play and took advantage in the shots column for the game. Forsling was called for holding Andrew Copp at 11:40 as the Jets continued to pepper Crawford but were unable to convert on any chances.

At 18:36, the Blackhawks headed to their third power play of the game following a Blake Wheeler high-sticking of Alex DeBrincat. They were unable to take advantage before the end of the period but would have 36 seconds remaining to start the third period.

The Jets doubled the Blackhawks shots on goal in the second period 14–7 to take a 23-19 advantage in the game. It was 3–2 Jets going into the final frame.

Third period

The Blackhawks were unable to convert on the remaining power play time from the second period. Both teams started to tighten things up in the final period and there were only a combined six shots on goal through eight minutes of the period.

At 8:23, Gustafsson was called for hooking Ehlers and the Blackhawks headed to the kill. They would once again kill off the penalty, the fourth of the night.

The Jets looked to have extended their lead to two at 3:00 on a Scheifele goal, but it was waived off for interference. It was still 3–2 Jets with 3:14 to play in the game. Crawford was pulled for the sixth attacker at 3:00.

The Blackhawks got the puck into the offensive zone and the Jets could not clear it. After a couple chances with no success, the Blackhawks were able to get it back to the Keith at the point. He passed it to Gustafsson who made a nice fake-shot pass to Toews net-side and then got it to Strome (19) for his second of the game. That tied the game at 3–3 with 2:20 left.

That was it for the scoring but with 12 seconds left, Dustin Byfuglien dummied Drake Caggiula with a check at the blue line. This resulted in a little fight that ended in Byfuglien getting the best of Caggiula some more.

Regulation ended 3–3 and headed to overtime.

Overtime

It was fast and furious for both teams but Crawford stood on his head until he could not thwart the Jets’ attack anymore. He made four A+ saves until Kevin Hayes (19) was able to sneak one past for the game-winning goal with 1:22 remaining in overtime to hand the Blackhawks a 4–3 loss.

Notes

• Toews tied his career high in goals (34) and with that goal reached his career high in points as well (77). He added an assist later in the night.
• Crawford was pelted with shots all night and made 35 saves on 39 shots.
• The Blackhawks successfully killed all four penalties on the night.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks lose to Jets 4–3 in overtime appeared first on The Rink.

7:30 p.m. CST

STAPLES Center

TV/Radio: WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Corey Crawford (14–18–4, save percentage: .908, goals against average: 2.94)

Winnipeg – Connor Hellebuyck (32–23–2, save percentage: .913, goals against average: 2.92)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power play

Chicago (20.5 percent, 12th)

Winnipeg (25.5 percent, Fourth)

Penalty kill

Chicago (72.7 percent, 31st)

Winnipeg (79.0 percent, 23rd)

Shots for/against

Chicago (32.5, 11th; 34.5, 30th)

Winnipeg (31.0, 19th; 33.7, 29th)

Shooting percentage

Chicago (10.0 percent, Ninth)

Winnipeg (10.7 percent, Fourth)

Faceoff percentage

Chicago (49.4 percent, T-20th)

Winnipeg (50.7 percent, 11th)

Average height and weight

Chicago 6’1”, 195 lbs.

Winnipeg 6’2”, 201 lbs.

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Brandon Saad–Jonathan Toews–Dylan Sikura

Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Dominik Kahun

Drake Caggiula–Artem Anisimov–Patrick Kane

Chris Kunitz–David Kampf–Marcus Kruger

Duncan Keith–Erik Gustafsson

Gustav Forsling–Brent Seabrook

Slater Koekkoek–Connor Murphy

Winnipeg Jets

Nikolaj Ehlers–Mark Scheifele–Blake Wheeler

Kyle Connor–Kevin Hayes–Patrik Laine

Brandon Tanev–Adam Lowry–Bryan Little

Matt Hendricks–Andrew Copp–Mathieu Perreault

Nathan Beaulieu–Jacob Trouba

Dmitry Kulikov–Tyler Myers

Ben Chiarot–Sami Niku

Analysis

The Blackhawks’ playoff hopes have all but come to an end. The last few games now continue the tryout for spots on next year’s roster. Notables that will continue auditioning for positions include Brendan Perlini, Slater Koekkoek and John Hayden (assuming Hayden ever gets into a game).

The concerns for this team were put on display in Saturday night’s loss to the Los Angeles Kings. Defensemen being out of position was the highlight of the loss. It is clear what the primary need for this team in the offseason is.

The remaining schedule for the Blackhawks consists of four division rivals. Three home games against the Winnipeg Jets, St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars, followed by the season finale at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. If these remaining games are good for anything, it will be to measure where they stand against the playoff-qualifying Central Division teams.

The Jets are in a tie with the Nashville Predators at the top of the Central Division, with the Blues only two points back of both teams. The next week of play for the Jets will determine whether or not they earn a Central Division title or if they fall into a spot against either the Blues or Predators.

Although still a good team, the Jets have cooled off since their early season tear. This is a chance for the Blackhawks to play spoiler against the Jets. Winnipeg is arguably the most complete team in the division, however, the Blackhawks have a golden opportunity to take the Jets down a notch in the standings with a win on Monday evening.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

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

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

The Blackhawks found a winning combination on Wednesday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins. After scoring six goals and getting the win, head coach Jeremy Colliton trotted out the same lines on Friday night against the Jets:

Saad – Toews – Kahun

DeBrincat – Strome – Kane

Sikura – Kampf – Perlini

Hayden – Kruger – Martinsen

Keith – Jokiharju

Gustafsson – Seabrook

Dahlstrom – Murphy

Crawford

The only change to the lineup vs the Jets was the insertion of Erik Gustafsson to replace Brandon Manning.

First Period:

Early in the period, the Blackhawks allowed a quality chance, giving fans the impression it might be another long night, similar to Tuesday in Winnipeg. The potential agony continued when Brandon Saad missed a wide open tip-in on an errant pass.

In spite of the chaotic early minutes, the Blackhawks looked good. The team brought a lot of energy early, pacing play against the loaded Jets. However, numerous missed chances and bad plays almost cost them. One such play included a Connor Murphy turnover right in front of Corey Crawford that led to a grade A chance for the visitors. Crawford made the big save to cover up for Murphy’s error.

https://twitter.com/johndietzdh/status/1073757918749700096

Late in the period, Jonathan Toews took a hooking penalty, sending the potent power play unit out onto the ice for the Jets. Roughly forty seconds into the man advantage, Blake Wheeler set up on the right half wall looking for an open teammate, and sent a screaming pass through the middle of the ice, finding teammate Mark Scheifele, who gave the Jets the 1-0 lead.

The goal marked the 12th time in 13 games where Blackhawks’ opponents scored first.

Despite some quality chances from Winnipeg in the waning minutes of the period, it looked like the contest would enter the first intermission with the Jets leading 1-0. But as the Jets tried to make a pass to their point in the offensive zone, Brandon Saad intercepted and began up ice on the left wing. After crossing the Winnipeg blue line, Saad dropped a pass to Duncan Keith who quickly found Jonathan Toews in the high slot. Toews made a quick move to create an open shot and fired a high wrister to tie the game with ten seconds remaining in the period. The period would in fact enter intermission tied 1-1 against the Jets.

Second Period:

The opening half of the second period was marked by some near misses and good defense. Dylan Sikura had an opportunity for his first goal after a Keith wrister took a funny bounce off of Jets goaltender Laurent Brossoit. The puck bounced just out of Sikura’s reach, otherwise the young forward would have had a wide open net for his first career goal.

The two most notable players for Chicago were Brandon Saad and John Hayden. Hayden was strong on the puck and playing his role consistently all night. Saad was making plays on both ends of the ice, saving what could have been a goal in the latter half of the middle frame by not quitting on a play and getting a stick on a wide open shot from the Jets.

Another defensive play led to the Blackhawks’ next tally. Murphy made a huge block on a quality chance from the Jets that sent the Blackhawks down the ice the other way. Carl Dahlstrom found Saad, after a bad pinch by a Jets’ defenseman, before Saad found Toews once again on a beautiful saucer pass, setting up a one-timer to give the home team the lead.

Jonathan Toews has his second goal of the game … and it was a beauty. 2-1 #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/3dd2bIZifr

— Cristiano Simonetta (@CMS_74_) December 15, 2018

The lead didn’t last for long. A little over two minutes later, Jets winger Patrick Laine ripped a deadly top shelf snapshot from the mid slot to beat Crawford high blocker side. The tally was Laine’s 23rd of the season and tied the game at two goals a piece.

.@PatrikLaine29 ties the game. pic.twitter.com/N1lH0eGyHz

— NHL GIFs (@NHLGIFs) December 15, 2018

Things began looking up for the Blackhawks as Brandon Saad drew a late penalty on Mathieu Perreault. The Hawks would ultimately waste the power play and give the Jets a late opportunity after a defensive breakdown. Perreault was able to sneak behind a Chicago defensemen on a breakaway. The Jets forward capitalized on the chance and gave the away team the lead, 3-2, with seventeen seconds remaining in the period. 

Third Period:

The third period featured a steady pace of play. Neither team could crack the opposing goaltender and the scored remained at 3-2. Chicago did find some momentum early, after killing two consecutive Jets power plays in the first five minutes of the third period. The Jets could have put the game out of reach, but the Blackhawks hunkered down and killed two big penalties.

With under four minutes remaining, the Blackhawks went to the man advantage looking to capitalize on a late Jets penalty and send the game to overtime. However, John Hayden high sticked Tyler Myers in front of the Jets net around forty seconds into the power play, negating the advantage for Chicago. The Blackhawks had to kill the penalty and make something happen with under a minute remaining.

… And it happened…

The Blackhawks were able to pull Corey Crawford for the extra attacker with about twenty-five seconds remaining in the contest. The home team set up in Winnipeg’s zone and tried to find the open shot. Duncan Keith put a perfect pass on a platter for Erik Gustafsson, who walked into a one-timer and tie the game with seven and a half seconds left. Redemption for Gustafsson, who made a poor decision leading directly to Perreault’s earlier goal.

The game went to overtime with the teams tied 3-3.

OT ahead thanks to this blast! pic.twitter.com/ut6ogd4aIy

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 15, 2018

Overtime:

Extra time started well in favor of the Blackhawks. Patrick Kane, Toews and Duncan Keith were able to occupy the offensive zone for a solid shift before the Jets re-gained possession.

After a puck got in deep behind Crawford, a two-on-two scrum ensued along the boards. The Jets won the board battle and Mark Scheifele was able to walk out in front of Crawford and fire a laser to win the game for the Jets.

Final score, 4-3 Winnipeg.

Quick Hits:

• John Hayden and Brandon Saad both looked very good in this game. Although taking a penalty late, Hayden was effective along the boards, handled the puck well and sparked some energy for Chicago. Saad was everywhere, making plays all over the ice on both offense and defense while picking up two assists along the way. Seeing these two be that noticeable was an encouraging sign for Blackhawks fans everywhere.
• The defense looked better than usual, but the Perreault mistake really cost them. The defense allowed him to slip behind them after the Jets killed the penalty on Perreault. If that doesn’t happen, who knows how this game goes. The Carl Dahlstrom insertion seems to be paying some dividends.
• This team finally is starting to look like a team with purpose. Despite the loss tonight, they had more fight in them than they did the last time they played in Winnipeg on Tuesday night. The Penguins game on Wednesday could be a glimpse of how this team will play under Colliton in the future. Their largest problem was coming out of the gate slow and playing from behind. This game, they came out firing and competing hard without falling behind by a huge margin early, which is quite the improvement over past games as mentioned before. If they can add more talent this offseason, there’s a chance this team can begin to compete again sooner rather than later.

The Blackhawks will remain at home as the San Jose Sharks come to town on Sunday, December 16th. Opening puck drop is scheduled for 6:00pm CST.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks Tie It Late, Grounded by Jets 4-3 in Overtime appeared first on The Rink.

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

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Corey Crawford (6–14–1, SV%: .903, GAA: 3.20)
Winnipeg – Laurent Brossoit (6–1–1, SV%: .932, GAA: 2.27)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (12.1%, 31st)
Winnipeg (30.4%, 1st)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (73.2%, 29th)
Winnipeg (81.9%, T-9th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (32.0, 14th; 33.8, 27th)
Winnipeg (32.7, T8th; 31.8, T-19th)

Shooting %
Chicago (8.8%, 27th)
Winnipeg (11.0%, 6th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (50.1%,16th)
Winnipeg (51.8%, 6th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 197lbs
Winnipeg 6’2” 202lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks
Brandon Saad–Jonathan Toews–Dominik Kahun
Alex DeBrincat–Dylan Strome–Patrick Kane
Dylan Sikura–David Kampf–Brendan Perlini
John Hayden–Marcus Kruger–Andreas Martinsen
Duncan Keith–Henri Jokiharju
Brent Seabrook–Erik Gustafsson
Carl Dahlstrom–Connor Murphy

Winnipeg Jets
Nikolaj Ehlers–Mark Scheifele–Blake Wheeler
Kyle Connor–Bryan Little–Patrik Laine
Mathieu Perreault–Adam Lowry–Brandon Tanev
Brendan Lemieux–Jack Roslovic–Mason Appleton
Josh Morrissey–Jacob Trouba
Ben Chiarot–Dustin Byfuglien
Dmitry Kulikov–Tyler Myers

Analysis

The Blackhawks meet the Jets tonight, at home, for the second time in four days. Winnipeg defeated the Blackhawks 6 – 3 on Tuesday, in Winnipeg.

Chicago snapped an eight-game losing streak Wednesday, helped by scoring from the fourth line. Continued scoring depth, Andreas Martinsen and Marcus Kruger had those goals, will be key for Chicago to compete with top-level teams in the league.

The Jets qualify as a top-level team. Having won 6 of 7 games, Winnipeg has crawled their way up to within a point of the Central Division lead. Chicago will have their hands full tonight.

Another night of Chicago scoring first would keep this game competitive. The Jets took their foot off the pedal on Tuesday, after leading 3 – 0 in the first period, allowing the Blackhawks fans to think the team was closer than they really were.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

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

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

7:30pm CST,
Bell MTS Place
TV/Radio: NBCSCH/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Cam Ward (4–3–0, SV%: .888, GAA: 3.91)
Winnipeg– Laurent Brossoit (5–1–1, SV%: .935, GAA: 2.16)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (11.6%, 31st)
Winnipeg (28.7%, 3rd)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (74.4%, T-28th)
Winnipeg (82.2%, 9th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (32.0, 13th; 33.5, 26th)
Winnipeg (32.4, 9th; 31.9, T-21st)

Shooting %
Chicago (8.5%, 27th)
Winnipeg (10.6%, 7th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (50.4%,T-14th)
Winnipeg (51.5%, T-10th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 197lbs
Winnipeg 6’2” 202lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks
Brandon Saad – Jonathan Toews – John Hayden
Dominik Kahun – David Kampf – Patrick Kane
Alex DeBrincat – Dylan Strome – Brendan Perlini
Alexandre Fortin – Marcus Kruger – Chris Kunitz
Duncan Keith – Henri Jokiharju
Brent Seabrook – Brandon Manning
Connor Murphy – Erik Gustafsson

Winnipeg Jets
Nikolaj Ehlers – Mark Scheifele – Blake Wheeler
Kyle Connor – Bryan Little – Patrik Laine
Mason Appleton – Adam Lowry – Brandon Tanev
Brendan Lemieux – Jack Roslovic – Nic Petan
Sami Niku – Jacob Trouba
Ben Chiarot – Dustin Byfuglien
Dmitry Kulikov – Tyler Myers

Analysis

Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook play their 1000^th game together tonight. The pair become the first defensemen to do so, and seventh pair of teammates to reach 1000 games together. Hopefully the pair play like it’s 2010 tonight.

Patrick Kane tallied two goals on Sunday, versus the Canadiens. The winger has a team-high 15 goals on the year. Kane also led all skaters with eight shots, at some times appearing to be the only offense on Sunday.

Center Artem Anisimov did not travel with the team to Winnipeg. The 30-year old was placed in concussion protocol after being injured on Sunday. Newly acquired Brendan Perlini is expected back in the lineup.

Winnipeg starts Laurent Brossoit tonight in net. The 25-year old has been excellent in his seven appearances this season, sporting a .935 save percentage. Chicago looks to backup Cam Ward to stop a seven-game losing streak.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

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

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

The Jets were coming off a tight loss versus the Pittsburgh Penguins, also on Tuesday night, in which they blew a 3-2 lead heading into the third period.  They were missing their big defenseman Dustin Byfuglien, but the Blackhawks needed more help than that.

For the struggling Blackhawks, Chris Kunitz (remember that guy?), Alexandre Fortin and Henri Jokiharju spent the night watching from the Jeremy Colliton Chicken Finger and Popcorn Buffet in the pressbox.

This was your Blackhawks starting lineup:
Brendan Perlini- Jonathan Toews – Brandon Saad
Alex DeBrincat – Dylan Strome – Patrick Kane
Dominik Kahun – David Kampf – John Hayden
Marcus Kruger – Artem Anisimov – Andreas Martinsen

Duncan Keith – Gustav Forsling
Erik Gustafsson – Jan Rutta
Brandon Manning – Brent Seabrook

From the puck drop the Blackhawks were pinned in their own end of the ice, but they were only able to hold off the Jets until the 1:43 mark of the game. Patrik Laine found a fat rebound off the pads of Corey Crawford, and deposited it over a fallen Brent Seabrook and a, still down, Corey Crawford.

This was not the start the Blackhawks need to be successful, and one of their enormous problems in recent games. They have been digging themselves huge holes that they simply do not have the talent or ability to dig themselves out of.

Just over a minute after the Laine goal, the Blackhawks forth line took advantage of some lazy defensive zone coverage and tied the game back up at one goal. Marcus Kruger got credit for the goal, but Andreas Martinsen did the hard work to pick the puck off the end boards and try to jam it past Connor Hellebuyck. The first couple of hacks and whacks didn’t pay off, but Kruger eventually ended up with the goal.

Unfortunately, less than a minute after the Blackhawks tied the game, the Jets came right back down the ice and snatched the lead back. Duncan Keith and Gustav Forsling were easily worked around during a Jets 3-on-2 which resulted in Nikolaj Ehlers getting fed on the back door for an easy goal. Forsling made a realling irresponsible play which left Duncan Keith alone to defend a two-on-one.

Shortly after the eight minute mark of the first period the Blackhawks third line fought back tie the game. As Eddie Olczyk would say, David Kampf was “shot out of a cannon” in the neutral zone, splitting the defenders and ending up one-on-one with Hellebuyck. The Winnipeg netminder stopped the original shot but John Hayden drove to the net and chipped the rebound into the net.

This was potentially a look into what Jeremy Colliton sees that he likes so much in the young Czech center.

John Hayden follows up David Kampf’s drive to the net and evens the score in Winnipeg! #CHIvsWPG pic.twitter.com/a0aptTTfZ0

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) November 30, 2018

The first power play of the game was a result of Mark Scheifele out-skating Gustav Forsling and getting in one-on-one with Crawford. Forsling made a nice play to recover and disrupt Scheifele enough for Crawford to make the save, but it put the Jets second overall rated power play on the ice against the Blackhawks forth worst penalty kill.

Apparently, the NBC crew didn’t even want to watch the power play, as the visiting television feed cut out several times and so often that eventually they had to switch to the home feed for about 25 seconds. Even the Blackhawks television network struggles get their act together.

Eventually the Blackhawks killed off that first shorthanded situation, which was certainly a very important small victory in a season full of glaring losses.

With two and half minutes remaining in the first period it was the Blackhawks’ turn to try their power play prowess. A power play that is, by far, the worst in the entire NHL. It doesn’t take a wizard to predict how that power play went. Uneventful, frustrating and ineffective.

The period ended with a 15-13 shot advantage in favor of the home team.

Sixty-one seconds into the second period, the Jets took the lead for the third time in the game. Nikolaj Ehlers, who was struggling mightily coming in, scored his second goal of the night as the Blackhawks defense back way deep into their own zone and allowed the speedy forward to cut across the high slot unobstructed and snap a shot over Corey Crawford’s blocker.

Just forty-five seconds after the second Ehlers goal, the Jets struck again. This time defenseman Jacob Trouba jumped into the play and found a loose puck to Crawford’s right and chipped it into the net after Crawford over-slid to his left.

Prior to the mid-point of the second period, the Blackhawks ended up with their second power play of the night and, as they regularly do, generated almost zero pressure. Like clockwork.

Moments after the power play expired, the Jets made and egregious turnover in their own end that left Jan Rutta all alone with the puck just inside the blue line and right in the middle of the ice. He wasted little time sliding the puck ahead, swinging his hips around and firing a clapper through the glove of Hellebuyck.

Spot on, Jan!#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/MCrcQ1GnKy

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) November 30, 2018

The rest of the period was fairly tame, with the Jets out shooting the Blackhawks for the period, once again, 12-5.

The theme for the night was the Blackhawks starting each period sloppily, and the third period was no different. Duncan Keith took a slashing penalty twenty one seconds into the third and Patrik Laine made the Blackhawks pay for it.

Jan Rutta turned the puck over to Laine as he came around the Hawks net, and Gustav Forsling was late coming over to cover. As a result, the young Jets sniper ended up with his second goal of the game and the Jets had a 5-3 lead.

At the ten-minute mark of the third period, Ehlers finished off his hat trick. He picked off an awful high risk Erik Gustafsson pass at the Jets blue line and took it the other way for a break-a-way, eventually beating Crawford.

With 6:50 remaining in regulation, Dominik Kahun atoned for his called back goal against the Golden Knights by grabbing a puck that was flipped through the Jets slot, dropping it to his stick and beating it past Hellebuyck. This goal cut the Winnipeg lead to 6-4.

Three minutes after the Kahun goal, the Blackhawks caught the Jets in disarray and the makeshift line of DeBrincat/Anisimov/Kane worked a really nice three-on-one, with Anisimov eventually scoring the goal. The play was set up by a nice effort from DeBrincat, who poked a 50/50 puck past Jacob Trouba and began the odd man break from the Winnipeg blue line in.

A work of Arty#CHIvsWPG pic.twitter.com/cf8LggzeTz

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) November 30, 2018

The Blackhawks pulled Corey Crawford and had some sustained pressure, but time ran out on them and they eventually fell to the Jets 6-5. With a solid 13 shot third period the Blackhawks were only out shot 33-31 in the game.

Pluses

• It was good to see a few player that had been ice cold, lately, get some goals. Kahun, Rutta, Kruger, and Hayden all broke out of their slumps.
• Speaking of Kahun, he also had four shots on net.  He has been invisible for quite a while and, if the Blackhawks want to succeed, they will need him to be playing better
• For the game, the Blackhawks actually had more high danger chances, 18-14, and won the possession battle (Corsi 64-50 / Fenwick 46-40)
• Anisimov, Kahun, and Hayden all had Corsi numbers over 70%.

Minuses

• The stupid NBC Sport Chicago broadcast was brutal. It kept going to a black screen, and it was about as reliable as the Blackhawks defense. This is not the first time that the broadcast has done this, either. It is 2018 and this billion dollar media conglomerate can’t figure out how to get a relatively reliable feed to the audience. Not once, but twice they had to switch to the TSN feed. The second time, towards the end of the second period, they had to stay with the TSN feed for the rest of the game. Pretty pathetic.
• Marcus Kruger only played six minutes for the entire game.  I know he went off gingerly after a collision but he should have been over 6 minutes by that point already.
• Dylan Strome had the work possession numbers of any Hawks player at 36.11% Corsi.
• The big spot where the Blackhawks were abysmal was faceoffs.  They lost 60% of the draws they took.

The post RECAP: Blackhawks Comeback Falls Short in Winnipeg appeared first on The Rink.

7:00pm CST
Bell MTS Arena
TV/Radio: NBCSCH/WGN

PROJECTED STARTERS

Chicago – Corey Crawford (5 – 9 – 1, SV%: 0.906 GAA: 2.98)
Winnipeg– Connor Hellebuyck (9 – 7 – 1, SV%: 0.907 GAA: 2.98)

TEAM STATISTICS

Power Play
Chicago (12.3%, 31st)
Winnipeg (29.8%, 2nd)

Penalty Kill
Chicago (75.0%, 2T-27h)
Winnipeg (81.8%, 9th)

Shorts for/against
Chicago (32.6, 12th; 33.5, 28th)
Winnipeg (32.2, 14th; 32.3, 20th)

Shooting %
Chicago (8.3%, 28th)
Winnipeg (10.4%, 8th)

Faceoff %
Chicago (49.8%,16th)
Winnipeg (51.5%, T-10th)

Avg. height/weight
Chicago 6’1”, 197lbs
Winnipeg 6’2” 202lbs

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS

Chicago Blackhawks

Brandon Saad – Jonathan Toews – Brendan Perlini
Alex DeBrincat – Dylan Strome – Patrick Kane
John Hayden – David Kampf – Dominik Kahun
Alexandre Fortin – Marcus Kruger – Artem Anisimov

Duncan Keith – Gustav Forsling
Erik Gustafsson – Henri Jokiharju
Brandon Manning – Brent Seabrook

Winnipeg Jets

Nikolaj Ehlers – Mark Scheifele – Blake Wheeler
Kyle Connor – Bryan Little – Patrik Laine
Mathieu Perreault – Adam Lowry – Brandon Tanev
Brendan Lemieux – Jack Roslovic – Nic Petan

Josh Morrissey – Jacob Trouba
Ben Chiarot – Cameron Schilling
Tyler Myers – Sami Niku

Analysis

Coming off the worst loss of the season, and that’s saying something this year, Chicago travels to Winnipeg to take on the Jets. That loss, 8 – 3 to Vegas, was difficult to watch. Tonight’s response to the loss will be interesting.

Newly acquired center Dylan Strome scored his first goal with the Blackhawks, his fourth of the season overall. In one short showing, Strome did find himself in the “greasy” areas that are not always occupied by Blackhawk forwards. A small positive to take away from the Tuesday night.

Keep an eye on the line combinations tonight. Jeremy Colliton spread the minutes around on Tuesday, easy to do when being blown out, but chemistry is lacking.

Winnipeg, off a 4 – 3 loss at home to Pittsburgh, has been looking for better goaltending from Connor Hellebuyck, signed to a 6-year deal this past off-season, as their franchise backbone. The 25-year old Hellebuyck has struggled to a .907 save percentage and 2.98 goals against average.

The offensive firepower from the Jets can be impressive any given night. Winger Patrick Laine leads the team in goals (19), while, captain Blake Wheeler leads in assists (25) and points (29). The Blackhawk’s defense cannot play on their heels tonight, equally as important, the forwards need to be better in support.

Comment below in our live game thread tonight!

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

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

TIME: 5:00PM Central/6:00PM Eastern
RADIO: WGN 720
TV: SN, WGN

PROJECTED GOALIES:

Chicago:
Jeff Glass (3-6-0 W-L | 3.31 GAA | 0.898 SV% | 0 SO)

Winnipeg:
Connor Hellebuyck (43-11-0 W-L | 2.38 GAA | 0.923 SV% | 6 SO)

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS:

Chicago:
Patrick Sharp – Nick Schmaltz – Patrick Kane
Dylan Sikura – Victor Ejdsell – Alex DeBrincat
Brandon Saad – Artem Anisimov – Andreas Martinsen
David Kampf – Vinnie Hinostroza

Duncan Keith – Brent Seabrook
Erik Gustafsson – Connor Murphy
Jordan Oesterle – Jan Rutta/Blake Hillman

Winnipeg:
Kyle Connor – Mark Scheifele – Blake Wheeler
Nikolaj Ehlers – Paul Stastny – Patrik Laine
Mathieu Perreault – Andrew Copp – Bryan Little
Brandon Tanev – Adam Lowry – Joel Armia

Josh Morrissey – Tyler Myers
Joe Morrow – Dustin Byfuglien
Ben Chiarot – Tucker Poolman

STATISTICAL COMPARISONS:

Power Play:
Chicago 16.0% (28th)
Winnipeg 23.3% (4th)

Penalty Kill:
Chicago 79.2% (20th)
Winnipeg 81.7% (7th)

Corsi FOR % (5-on-5):
Chicago 52.48% (4th)
Winnipeg 51.42% (10th)

Faceoffs:
Chicago 49.4% (19th)
Winnipeg 52.3% (5th)

SUMMARY:

We all made it without jumping off the Michigan Avenue bridge.  The final game of the Blackhawks’ 2017-18 season is upon us.  It was always possible that they would fall off the table and miss the playoffs, but no one thought it would happen this fast.

To the same token, the league and fans have waited for Winnipeg to finally get over the hump and show that they are better than their recent production.

That day is here.

While they have not played the Blackhawks well, they have rolled through much of the league.  They are about to hit the playoffs with (possibly) the second best point total in the league.

Join our discussion below and look out for a recap following the game or tomorrow.

Follow me on Twitter @PuckinHostile

The post Chicago Blackhawks at Winnipeg Jets Preview & Game Thread appeared first on The Rink.

However, recent startup goalie Collin Delia was a surprise starter as well. And, oh yeah, it was the 1000^th NHL game for career Blackhawk and 3-time Cup winner, Brent Seabrook.

The Hawks’ lines and pairings were:

Brandon Saad-Nick Schmaltz-Patrick Kane

Dylan Sikura-Viktor Ejdsell-Alex Debrincat

Tomas Jurco-Artem Anisimov-Andreas Martinsen

Patrick Sharp-David Kampf-Vince Hinostroza

Duncan Keith-Brent Seabrook

Erik Gustafsson-Connor Murphy

Jordan Oesterle-Jan Rutta

Coming off a couple of performances that ranged from mostly solid to outstanding, Anton Forsberg was supposed to occupy the Hawk net for a third straight game. However, Forsberg incurred an undisclosed injury during warmups—accelerating the timetable for Delia’s debut. Someone named Scott Foster was signed as the emergency backup. Could Gatekeeper be next?

First period.  In a matchup of inexperienced goalies, it seemed like the whole building was waiting to see which ‘tender would cave first. At 16:16 of the first, it was Winnipeg netminder Eric Comrie who let a Patrick Kane shot slip through his pads, after an ill-advised Dustn Byfuglien pinch led to a Hawk 3-on-1. 1-0 Chicago  Then, Brandon Saad made it 2-0 at 2:53 with a slick stickhandling move around Comrie, assisted by Nick Schmaltz. Delia did what he had to in the first, making a few nice saves in the latter portion of the period, and getting a nifty break—when a rebound of a Byfuglien point blast floated up over his head and landed just on the edge of the top of the net. Shots were 14-14 for the period.

Second period. The two teams traded a few chances early on in the second until, at 15:34, Tomas “6 Weeks” Jurco further exposed a struggling Comrie with a bank-in goal from behind the Winnipeg net. 3-0 Chicago. And on a strange night, it was none other than Jurco who stretched the lead to 4-0 after a nice pinch and feed through the slot from Erik Gustafsson at 8:47. Winnipeg finally solved Delia at 5:36, when Byfuglien lobbed a point shot through traffic to beat the Hawk netminder. 4-1. Just prior to this score and immediately after, the Jets appeared to be taking over play for longer stretches, keeping the Hawks pinned in their own end at times. But it wouldn’t be long before Gustafsson broke free and gathered a long Alex Debrincat feed, beating Comrie to push the lead back to four goals at 2:33.  A few ticks later, Winnipeg’s Kyle Connor set up Mark Scheifele on a bang-bang play at 1:09, in what was developing as more of a rat hockey game at the Polar Dome in West Dundee—Delia had no chance. 5-2 Chicago. Shots were 29-23 Chicago after 2 periods.

Third period. Alex Debrincat  blasted a shot past Comrie from the left circle at 17:39. Rookie Dylan Sikura picked up his second assist of the night on the goal. That made it 6-2 Chicago. At 14:01 of  the period, things got both interesting and borderline comical. Delia sustained an obvious leg injury and had to be helped from the ice, necessitating that emergency backup goalie, 36 year old former Western Michigan University Bronco Scott Foster has to quickly dress and go into the contest. In a The-Rink.com exclusive report, Stan Bowman was overheard at that point whispering to Al McIsaac, “Do you have that Osgood guy’s number.? Wait . . . Os-born? Are you sure?!” As fate would have it, it wouldn’t be long before “Bananas” Foster—who stopped all 7 shots he faced—would become shrouded in a haze of Blackhawk Myth and Legend, in one of the strangest games anyone can remember.

The good. Gustafsson was up and down, but more up than down overall. He is a player who does great things coming up the ice as part of the offensive play. It’s playing actual defense where he struggles and gets pushed around quite a bit. You have to give credit where it’s due. Jurco has worked hard the last handful of games, and he was rewarded with a couple of easy/fluky goals in this one. Delia, for the most part was pretty good in his NHL debut. And Scott Foster getting first star? Why not?

The bad. Comrie. His team didn’t help him much, but he was pretty rocky all night.

The ugly. Winnipeg. The Jets looked like garbage. Semi- to uninterested much of the night. Even NBC Sports Chicago color guy Eddie Olczyk remarked earlier on that the Jets looked like they were out enjoying the nightlife the evening before the game—and their play at times, and especially on the Hawks’ fourth goal, spoke to that possibility.

Summary. This game will have zero impact on standings—and it only hurts the Hawks’ potential draft position—but it was also memorable, and somewhat fun to watch as a Hawk fan. As first reported last night on the Twitterz by would-be Hawk emergency goalie, Gatekeeper, Delia left the game with cramps. He’ll be OK.

Please comment below.

Follow: @jaeckel

The post Recap: Blackhawks Rout Winnipeg, 6-2 appeared first on The Rink.

7:30PM Central

RADIO/TV: WGN 720/NBCS CH

PROJECTED GOALIES:

Winnipeg:

Eric Comrie (1-1-0, 2.98 GAA, .885 SV%)

Chicago:

Anton Forsberg (10-16-4, 2.97 GAA, .908 SV%)

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS:

Winnipeg:

Connor-Scheifele-Wheeler

Ehlers-Stastny-Laine

Perreault-Copp-Little

Tanev-Lowry-Armia

Morrissey- Myers

Enstrom-Byfuglien

Chiarot-Morrow

Chicago:

Saad-Schmaltz-Kane

Sikura-Ejdsell-Debrincat

Jurco-Anisimov-Martinsen

Sharp-Kampf-HInostroza

Keith-Seabrook

Gustafsson-Murphy

Oesterle-Rutta

STATISTICAL COMPARISIONS:

Power Play:

Winnipeg 23.3% (4^th)

Chicago 16% (28th)

Penalty Kill:

Winnipeg 82% (10^th)

Chicago 79.9% (19th)

Corsi FOR % (5-on-5):

Winnipeg 51.7% (7^th)

Chicago 52.8% (4th)

Faceoffs:

Winnipeg 52.3% (5^th)

Chicago 49.7% (17th)

SUMMARY:

The 2018-19 Chicago Blackhawk auditions continue tonight versus a team that’s gone from the league’s also-rans to one of its best seemingly overnight. Not really, but the Jets are proof of how high draft picks—and hitting on high picks—will ultimately pay off.

As a result, for the Jets, tonight’s game is about honing their game for the postseason. For the Hawks, it’s about how high their probability will be in the draft lottery—and taking stock of several rookies: Viktor Ejdsell, Collin Delia, Blake Hillman and Dylan Sikura.

None of these players, including the much-hyped Sikura, is what you’d call an elite prospect—like a Patrik Laine or a Nikolaj Ehlers. But clearly, the Hawks are trying to sort through what they have to work with in rounding out their roster next season.

We’ll recap tonight or tomorrow AM. Join the conversation below!

The post Chicago Blackhawks vs Winnipeg Jets Preview & Game Thread appeared first on The Rink.

7:00PM Central

RADIO: WGN 720

TV: TSN3, NBCSCH

PROJECTED GOALIES:

Chicago:
Anton Forsberg (9-14-3, 2.94 GAA, .908 Save%)

Winnipeg:
Connor Hellebuyck (35-11-9, 2.36 GAA, .925 Save%)

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS:

Chicago:

Saad-Toews-Kane
DeBrincat-Schmaltz-Hayden
Jurco-Anisimov-HIghmore
Sharp-Kampf-Hinostroza

Keith-Murphy
Gustafsson-Seabrook
Oesterle-Rutta

Winnipeg:

Connor-Little-Wheeler
Ehlers-Stastny-Laine
Perreault-Copp-Armia
Dano-Roslovic-Tanev

Morrissey-Myers
Chiarot-Byfuglien
Poolman-Morrow

STATISTICAL COMPARISONS:

Power Play:
Chicago 15.9% (28^th)
Winnipeg 24.1% (3^rd)

Penalty Kill:
Chicago 80.4% (15^th)
Winnipeg 83.0% (4^th)

Corsi FOR % (5-on-5):
Chicago 52.88% (4^th)
Winnipeg 50.89% (15^th)

Faceoffs:
Chicago 49.8% (T-18^th)
Winnipeg 52.4% (5^th)

SUMMARY:

Did someone say winning streak? Coming off Sunday’s impressive 3-1 home victory over the Boston Bruins, the Blackhawks looks to make it two straight tonight. In order to do so, they will have to defeat one of the best teams in their division, the Winnipeg Jets, on the road.

Winnipeg has lost three straight, but are fast, physical, and featuring deadline acquisition Paul Stastny, so they are still very dangerous.

The biggest thing I would like to see in tonight’s game, and each of the remaining games, is improvement from guys who will be on this roster next season. Erik Gustafsson, Jan Rutta, Connor Murphy, Vinnie Hinostroza, John Hayden, and Alex DeBrincat, among others, need to keep improving and performing at a higher level every night. That is the only way this team will have any chance to contend next year, regardless of any off season acquisitions.

We’ll recap tonight or tomorrow AM. Join the conversation below!

Follow: @CoachMajewski

The post Chicago Blackhawks at Winnipeg Jets Preview & Game Thread appeared first on The Rink.

Chicago Blackhawks (15-11-5) at Winnipeg Jets (18-8-5)

7:00PM Central

RADIO: WGN 720

TV: NBC Sports Chicago

PROJECTED GOALIES:

Chicago:

Corey Crawford (14-7-2, 2.20 GAA, .933 SV%)

Winnipeg:

Connor Hellebuyck (16-3-4, 2.44 GAA, .920 SV%)

PROJECTED LINES/PAIRINGS:

Chicago

Saad-Toews-DeBrincat

Schmaltz-Anisimov-Kane

Sharp-Hinostroza-Hartman

Bouma-Wingels-Hayden

Keith-Oesterle

Forsling-Kempny

Murphy-Seabrook

Winnipeg

Connor-Scheifele-Wheeler

Ehelers-Little-Laine

Copp-Lowry-Tanev

Perreault-Hendricks-Armia

Morrissey-Trouba

Kulikov-Myers

Chiarot-Poolman

STATISTICAL COMPARISONS:

Power play:

Chicago 15.2% (29th)

Winnipeg 25.9% (4th)

Penalty kill:

Chicago 83.8% (5th)

Winnipeg 79.5% (22nd)

Corsi For % (5-on-5)

Chicago 52.4% (9th)

Winnipeg 48.9% (20th)

Faceoffs:

Chicago 48.8% (25th)

Winnipeg 52.7% (3rd)

SUMMARY:

Here, on the road against a very good divisional opponent, the Hawks’ recent “improvement” is put to the test. This year’s Jets team is big and nasty (as always) but also mobile and skilled. I’ve seen them play once in person this year and they were very impressive in all phases.

Dustin Byfuglien and Tobias Enstrom are out tonight for Winnipeg, and that’s good news for the Hawks who may find some advantage versus a more patchwork Winnipeg blueline corps.

Jan Rutta did not travel with the Blackhawks to Winnipeg and it looks like Michal Kempny will take his place in the lineup tonight.

Joel Quenneville is putting Michal Kempny back in the lineup after the defenseman has been scratched in each of the last 13 games. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/Hou2wmnIYh

— Eric Lear (@BHTVeric) December 14, 2017

If you follow me on Twitter, you probably saw the trade discussion rumor I posted this morning, that has the Hawks talking to Ottawa about Michel Kempny and a Rockford blueliner. Bear in mind, Ottawa is rumored to be talking to several teams about several players. Still, all indicators, both this rumor and a steady robust presence of opposing clubs’ senior scouts in Rockford suggests the Hawks are in conversations with perhaps a handful of teams. To date, two I have heard are Buffalo and Ottawa. Stay tuned.

We’ll recap tonight or tomorrow AM.

Follow: @jaeckel

The post Preview: Blackhawks at Jets appeared first on The Rink.