The Chicago Blackhawks had a very tumultuous week surrounding American Thanksgiving. They suffered arguably the worst loss of the season the Wednesday before the holiday (7-3 to the Columbus Blue Jackets) and received some bad news on a few different fronts. Yet they showed their resiliency with a bounce-back 4-3 overtime win to the Toronto Maple Leafs (Nov. 24), before blowing yet another contest with a 4-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Sunday (Nov. 26).
It’s been an up and down season for the Blackhawks, to say the least. They’re now the only team left in the NHL without two consecutive wins. While the highs are really fun, the frustration is mounting as the Blackhawks continue to struggle. Here are some thoughts from this crazy weekend.
Taylor Hall Out for the Season
We found out on Thanksgiving Day that forward Taylor Hall will undergo right knee surgery for a torn ACL, and will be out for the rest of the season. The 32-year-old has had a tough go of it as a Blackhawk, only suiting up for 10 games this season due to various injuries.
This is a big blow for Hall and also for the Blackhawks. Hall was brought in specifically to be a mentor and linemate to the young Connor Bedard. Now that’s all out the window. With Hall gone, the Blackhawks have gone to the “kid line” of Lukas Reichel, Bedard and Philipp Kurashev. There’s a lot of talent on this line, but no veteran presence. They will likely have some growing pains moving forward that would have been minimized if Hall was around. The top-six could have been more spread out, with either Kurashev or Reichel on the second line.
Now the Blackhawks have a big hole in their lineup, which no doubt will pose some problems moving forward.
Uncertainty Surrounding Corey Perry
Even more bad news is that Corey Perry was listed as a healthy scratch for the Nov. 22 game versus the Blue Jackets. He practiced with the team that morning, but didn’t participate for that game or the next game.
On Saturday, Nov. 25 general manager Kyle Davidson held a press conference, saying Perry is away from the team for the “foreseeable future,” and that it was the team’s decision for Perry to be away from the team. His agent then released this statement,
Statement from Pat Morris of Newport, who represents Corey Perry: pic.twitter.com/AnlCmKglaT
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) November 25, 2023
A few thoughts on all of this.
First off, kudos to Davidson for having a press conference and addressing the media, instead of just leaving it to head coach Luke Richardson. That needed to be done, even if Davidson didn’t give much information.
Secondly, we don’t know what’s going on. So I’m not sure we can just scream for transparency. The organization might be doing this for a very good reason. When it eventually comes out perhaps that will make more sense. But I’m not going to condemn the Blackhawks for not sharing. They might have a good reason to keep things private.
Related – Blackhawks’ GM Says a lot but Reveals Little in Latest Presser
Finally, I don’t believe it’s contradictory what the Blackhawks are saying and what Perry’s agent is saying. Of course Perry’s agent is going to spin it positively for his client. Perry really has “stepped away”, no matter whose decision it was.
Plus, we can’t control any of it. So why get all worked up? Prayers to Perry and his family that everything is ok. But beyond that, I’d personally rather just focus on the team that is here. This is an exciting team to watch. If nothing else, this can add to their resiliency and further benefit their growth and development.
One Rough Loss, a Bounce-Back Win, Another Rough Loss
The roller coaster continues. As already mentioned above, the Blackhawks can’t string together two consecutive wins. The overall theme of inconsistency continues. Let’s consider the three games over the holiday weekend.
Blackhawks Lay an Egg in Columbus
The Blackhawks played one of their worst games on Oct. 22 against the Blue Jackets. This was a team that was below the Blackhawks in the standings before the contest, so the general thought was Chicago could snap out of their four-game losing streak. It didn’t work out that way.
The Hawks came out flat, and never really did anything to redeem that. Sure, they scored three goals, but two were basically garbage goals after the contest was already out of hand. Giving up seven goals to another struggling team was not ideal. The defense was porous, and the team had to ice both netminders as they dealt with their struggles.
We don’t really know what the team knew about the Perry situation, but I would assume it’s more than they’re letting on. Perry was a leader, and technically a father figure on this team. So whatever’s going on might be why they played so bad in Columbus, as they were still in a bit of shock that Perry was scheduled to play and then abruptly wasn’t there.
Redemption Against the Maple Leafs
It looked like it could be more of the same against the Maple Leafs. The Blackhawks were down 3-1 in the second frame before they rallied. A hat trick by Jason Dickinson and an overtime goal by Kevin Korchinski sealed the deal, and the Blackhawks walked away with a 4-3 overtime win.
Related – 4 Things Blackhawks Fans Should Be Thankful For in 2023
This is a game where the depth players really stood out. The third line of Dickinson, Nick Foligno and Joey Anderson (freshly called up from the Rockford IceHogs) accounted for all the 5-on-5 goals. It was Dickinson’s first hat trick of his career, and Anderson earned his first assist of the season in his very first game. That line was heavy on the forecheck, and led by example with a very physical game.
And the chain goes to ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/LrjqC4MnGr
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) November 24, 2023
It was icing on the cake when the youngsters got it done in overtime. Korchinski earned his second goal of the season, and Bedard and Kurashev were credited with the assists. It was a game the Blackhawks really needed after all the drama of the previous few days.
Blackhawks Slow Start vs. The Blues
It was kids day at the United Center and the perfect environment to win again. But alas, the Blackhawks were too little, too late against the Blues on Sunday. They got down early, giving up three goals in the first period and only answering with one of their own.
The team regrouped and played hard for the rest of the game, but they just couldn’t seem to find the back of the net. This time it was the Blackhawks’ fourth line that was the driving force for most of the game. Ryan Donato scored in the first period to give the team some hope, cutting the Blues’ lead to 2-1. Donato and his linemates Reese Johnson and Boris Katchouk seemed to have the advantage every shift they played, and many times tilted the ice for the top line to come in and gain even more sustained offensive pressure.
Katchouk has been especially fun to watch this season when he’s been on his game. He’s had numerous breakaway chances, including this one at the end of the matchup against the Blues.
He was so due#Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/dJijJxzBsj
— Mario Tirabassi (@Mario_Tirabassi) November 26, 2023
The 25-year-old forward was finally rewarded with a goal, even if it was at the ending of a losing effort.
Soderblom Soaking It Up
Netminder Arvid Soderblom has been a busy man of late. He relieved Petr Mrazek against Columbus after the latter gave up five goals on 18 shots. Soderblom then started in the Toronto game, stopping 34-of-37 shots with an excellent performance. Believe it or not, this was only Soderblom’s second win of the season, the first one being another win over the Maple Leafs (4-1 victory on Oct. 16). Dickinson, the hat trick man, was pretty surprised by this.
Obviously our record is what it is, but we should be playing a lot better for him, because he’s getting us everything. He has stood on his head a lot of nights, and we haven’t been able to come up with something for him.
Well, this win earned Soderblom the start against St. Louis, but the Blackhawks unfortunately couldn’t come up with enough to earn him another win. Soderblom had a bit of a shaky start, but then settled in and played a solid overall game. His timely saves in the second and third periods kept the Blackhawks in the game until the end.
Soderblom should be soaking up the experience from this trio of games, and will undoubtedly built his confidence moving forward. It will be interesting to see how the Blackhawks utilize Soderblom and Mrazek moving forward.
Message to Young Blackhawks Remains the Same
The Blackhawks held a players-only meeting after a 4-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Nov. 5. At the time, Seth Jones and Perry were the veterans that met with the media afterwards, with Foligno being referenced as a leader in the discussion. The over-arching message was to hold each other accountable and support each other.
Well, it appears a similar meeting might have taken place after the recent loss to the Blues. The media once again had to wait an extra long time before being allowed in the locker room. It’s quite apparent that Foligno has become the de-facto captain of this team. Here’s his statement to the press after the wait.
“We’re just one win, one loss, one win, one loss. It’s a frustrating road to be on. But we have to understand why we're in it.”
— Phillip Thompson (@_phil_thompson) November 26, 2023
Nick Foligno on the Blackhawks’ 4-2 loss to the Blues pic.twitter.com/TQgwFBzIpU
Foligno stressed that the team’s inconsistencies are unacceptable. They have to find a way to work together and find ways to win. He’s demanding a commitment from everyone towards this common goal. He further stated,
There is a pride in each individual player…Your hair should be on fire this whole year because you can be a big part of building this and being a part of the future of this. There is no excuse for that. And that’s what we have to get out of our game and make sure that every time we step on the ice, find your motivation, what(ever) it might be.
Having people like Foligno in the Blackhawks’ dressing room is going to keep the young players from becoming complacent and getting too used to losing. He’s essentially a player’s coach helping Coach Richardson preach the culture and identity of this team. He wants to instill a winning mentality. Foligno’s contributions, and those of other remaining leaders such as Jones, Connor Murphy and Tyler Johnson are priceless. They can keep the team headed in the right direction despite their many obstacles.
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The Blackhawks will have little time to dwell on things. Their busy schedule continues, with matchups on Tuesday (Seattle Kraken), Thursday (Detroit Red Wings), along with back-to-back games against the Winnipeg Jets and Minnesota Wild over the weekend (Dec. 2nd and Dec. 3rd). They might not have the most optimal lineup, and they’ve endured a lot of adversity just in this past week alone. But the show must go on. Let’s see if the Blackhawks can regroup, focus on the positives and attain some wins as their 2023-24 campaign continues.