Veteran blueliner Calvin de Haan left the game late in the first period after re-injuring his right shoulder during a collision with Vegas’ forward Mark Stone.
The Chicago Blackhawks lost another game in humiliating fashion on Tuesday night, falling to the Vegas Golden Knights 5-2 at T-Mobile Arena. To make matters worse for the Hawks, defenseman Calvin de Haan injured his right shoulder early in the game and did not return. De Haan had surgery this offseason on that same shoulder, giving the organization much cause for concern.
Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton told the media “It’s not good,” while discussing de Haan’s injury during his post-game interview. Colliton also stated that de Haan will fly back to Chicago for further evaluation.
As for Tuesday’s tilt with the Golden Knights, the Blackhawks hung in there for nearly half the game with just five defensemen. Two of those being Dennis Gilbert and Adam Boqvist, who were playing down in Rockford less than a week ago. With Keith and Maatta already out of the lineup, de Haan’s injury couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Blackhawks.
The lack of depth on defense finally cost the Blackhawks on the penalty kill near the mid-point of the second period when Reilly Smith scored off a rebound of a Nate Schmidt shot from the point to make it 1-0. David Kampf lost the faceoff, and Connor Murphy got caught up too high to allow Smith to get all alone near Crawford. Both Erik Gustafsson and Boqvist were called upon by Colliton to kill the penalty, which is not something either player usually does.
It wouldn’t take long for Vegas to double their lead as Deryk Engelland roofed a shot over Crawford’s blocker to score his first goal of the season. Boqvist had trouble in the defensive zone and coughed the puck up to give Vegas the opportunity.
Late in the second period, the Blackhawks had a chance to shift momentum in their favor as Alex Tuch took a lousy penalty. It had been an ugly middle frame so far, but the Hawks had a chance to get right back in the game. Instead, Alex DeBrincat turned the puck over at the Vegas blueline, which resulted in a William Karlsson shorthanded goal to make it 3-0. Reilly Smith made a beautiful feed on a 2-on-1 to give Karlsson an open net.
After a horrendous effort in the second period, the rest of the game was essentially damage control for the Blackhawks. It seemed like they were just trying to ride out the storm without suffering any more injuries.
Vegas tacked on two more goals in the third period with Pacioretty making it 4-0 at 3:17, and Reaves adding insult to injury at 12:59. Reaves’ goal, in particular, was another ugly look for the Blackhawks’ defense. Poor Adam Boqvist played a career-high 17:42 in his first game back from Rockford and was not ready for that role. The 2018 first-round pick was caught all alone in front of Crawford with his back towards the play as Reaves scored.
To much surprise, the Blackhawks finally managed to beat Vegas’ goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury with 27 seconds left in the third period to ruin his shutout. Dominik Kubalik ripped a shot past Fleury on the powerplay to score his eighth goal of the season. With the goal, Kubalik is now tied with DeBrincat for second on the Blackhawks in goals.
The Blackhawks had been trending in the right direction after picking up a point in three consecutive games, but Tuesday’s troublesome loss was another step back. Through 31 games this season, consistency throughout the lineup remains a key issue. 12-13-6 is not where the Hawks want to be nearing the halfway mark of the season, but the reality is beginning to set in. The Blackhawks just aren’t as competitive of a hockey team as everyone hoped they’d be coming into the 2019-20 campaign.
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