In his postgame interview, Connor Bedard put it best:
“Bit of a scrambly game out there, not much of a flow.”
– Connor Bedard
It was clear throughout the Blackhawks’ first preseason action last night against the St. Louis Blues that many players were still kicking the rust off. It’s too soon to gain any real takeaways from the preseason action, but a handful of players had notably good performances, along with a few that could use some work. We’ll take a rapid-fire look at those highs and lows as we look toward tomorrow’s continuation of the preseason.
Highs
Drew Commesso got his first taste of the NHL in the last 30 minutes of the game and proved why he’s one of the most highly touted goaltending prospects in the league right now. He saved 16 of 17 shots, including a few really nice plays when under fire. After training all summer with Bruins veteran Jeremy Swayman, it showed in his ability to get from one post to the other quickly. He did allow a score from Robert Thomas, but it was a snappy wrister that would have challenged every NHL goalie. He owned the crease and was encouraging throughout his performance.
A trio of players – Nick Lardis, Martin Misiak, and Alex Pharand – were sent back to juniors this morning, and Lardis and Misiak each got huge confidence boosts in their only preseason action last night. Misiak won all four of his faceoffs in the first period but was sent to the locker room after a high hit in the second before eventually returning. Lardis didn’t make any massive plays but was responsible for ending a St. Louis power play with a great burst of speed that drew a penalty. They’ll head back to juniors on a high note, where they’ll look to make their way back to the United Center in a more permanent fashion.
We’ve talked about it all summer, but Corey Perry and Nick Foligno showed fans exactly what they wanted to see last night in terms of veteran leadership. Perry gave us the first “fight” of the year after the hit on Misiak, and Foligno also came to his defense. Veteran acquisitions are already setting the tone for this year by sticking up for the young guy.
Connor Bedard didn’t find the net but was certainly a star of the game with two assists on the two goals of the night, including a sweet feed to Andreas Athanasiou for the game-winner. He flashed his defensive game at times, including a pickpocket play that took him to the front of the net, though he couldn’t get the puck to settle on his stick. He showed off his stick handling throughout the night, weaving through NHL-caliber defensemen. The UC was rocking every time he touched the puck. After the game, Bedard mentioned he “could’ve done a lot better”, though he played just about as well as anyone could’ve hoped. If I haven’t said it enough, I’ll say it again: the future is bright.
Lows
It was an all-around good performance for the Blackhawks last night, but a few players stuck out in not-so-good ways. Of course, it’s way too early to get nervous about somewhat poor performances, but a couple of guys will be looking to improve on their first performance.
Seth Jones was the skater who came out of the gate the slowest Thursday, committing some of the game’s most egregious errors. Wyatt Kaiser, who had himself a nice night, was often found covering for Jones on the back end. While it may seem too early to criticize Jones, he seemed to be making the same errors as last year, when he was heavily lambasted.
Lukas Reichel had himself a great night without question. He got a very prominent role to open preseason action and was all over the puck. However, Reichel didn’t exactly answer any questions about his move to center – a move that had been labeled intriguing by many. When given his shot at the faceoff dot, he went 0-for-6 in regulation before winning one in overtime. It’s early, sure, but Reichel clearly has work to do in his new role.
