Despite holding the lead in four of the five games on the Western Canada trip, the Blackhawks secured just two of a possible 10 points.
The Chicago Blackhawks fell to the Winnipeg Jets at Bell MTS Place for the second time in a week on Sunday night. Patrick Kane tallied a goal and an assist, and Corey Crawford made 35 saves, but it wasn’t enough to pick up a crucial two points in Winnipeg.
With the loss, the Blackhawks have now dropped six of their past seven contests (1-4-2) and boast a 26-25-8 record through 59 games. They remain six points back of the Arizona Coyotes for the second wild-card playoff spot in the Western Conference.
“No question, disappointing not to have more points from the trip,” coach Jeremy Colliton said. “Ultimately, we had three games that were acceptable and two that weren’t good enough. We need more than that to get the points we need.”
RECAP
The Blackhawks didn’t find the back of the net in the opening minute for the first time in three meetings at Bell MTS Place this season, but they did take a 1-0 lead at 15:44 when Ryan Carpenter redirected Kane’s backhand pass top-shelf past Connor Hellebuyck for his third goal of the season. Carpenter’s last goal came on Dec. 18 vs. Colorado, which was 23 games ago.
The opening 20 minutes were filled with back-and-forth action, but only Carpenter was able to find the back of the net. Both teams had quality opportunities, but Hellebuyck and Crawford were up to the challenge early.
2ND PERIOD
Winnipeg came out of the intermission with a purpose, and Mason Appleton tied the score 1-1 at 6:38 with a redirect from the high slot. Connor Murphy wasn’t able to tie-up Appleton’s stick, and the young Jets forward was able to get a piece of Nathan Beaulieu’s shot from the point to beat Crawford.
After Kyle Connor had a goal disallowed due to video review, the Jets stayed hungry and were able to grab a 2-1 lead as Jack Roslovic beat Crawford with another redirect from the slot. This time, Nick Seeler was the culprit on defense that wasn’t able to tie-up the goal scorer’s stick in the slot, and it cost the Blackhawks once again.
The Blackhawks were on their heels for the majority of the middle frame, but Kane managed to tie the score with 53 seconds remaining in the period after a terrific three-way passing play in transition. Dominik Kubalik made a perfect pass to turn a 3-on-2 into a 2-on-1, and then Jonathan Toews swept the puck to the front of the net to find Kane for his 27th goal of the year.
3RD PERIOD
It didn’t take long for the Jets to break the tie, as Beaulieu rifled a shot from the point that redirected off Alex DeBrincat’s stick and past Crawford just 1:36 into the period. Poor Crawford stopped everything he saw on Sunday, as all three Winnipeg goals came from redirects.
“I thought [Crawford] played great for us,” Kane said. “Made some big saves. Kind of an unfortunate goal at the end there for them, but I still think we had some chances at the end to tie it up.”
The Blackhawks put just nine shots on Hellebuyck in the final 20 minutes, which was disappointing to see in such a critical contest. Even more disappointing was their effort out of the second intermission with so much on the line. They allowed the Jets to score less than two minutes into the third period. Absolutely unacceptable.
“Ultimately, I think the difference was they scored three goals on point shots, got traffic and gave themselves a chance to get a bounce,” Colliton said. “We had our chances to tie it up, but we need to find a way to generate some of those goals ourselves, especially in these types of games that are going to be this tight.”
UP NEXT
The Blackhawks get two days off to travel back to Chicago and prepare for Wednesday’s contest against the New York Rangers at the United Center. The Rangers are currently 30-24-4 through 58 games and are seven points back of the Philadelphia Flyers for the second wild-card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. They’re 7-3-0 in their last 10 games as well.
Former Blackhawks forward Artemi Panarin signed a massive contract with the Rangers this past offseason, and the ‘Breadman’ currently leads the Rangers in goals (29), assists (49), and points (78). It certainly will be fun having Panarin back in the United Center on Wednesday. Expect some pre-game shenanigans between him and Kane.
The contest is slated for 7:00 p.m. CT and is scheduled to be on NBCSN for Wednesday Night Rivalry.
For more Blackhawks news and updates, follow the author (@JackBushman2) on Twitter. Make sure to check out the author’s podcast, Talkin’ Hawkey, which can be found on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Twitter (@TalkinHawkey).
