10 observations: Jason Dickinson’s line leads Blackhawks to win over Flames originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Presented by Nationwide Insurance Agent Jeff Vukovich
The Chicago Blackhawks knocked off the Calgary Flames 3-1 on Tuesday at the United Center.
Here are 10 observations from the win:
1. Blackhawks head coach Luke Richardson put his team through a bag skate at practice on Monday after a disappointing three-game road trip despite the epic four-goal comeback win over San Jose. The first periods were particularly poor in the three games. The Blackhawks responded with a much better start, outscoring the Flames 2-0 and out-chancing them 14-5, per Natural Stat Trick. It was one of their best first periods of the season.
2. The Blackhawks’ first power-play came 47 seconds into the game, and wow were they zipping it around. They had 46 seconds of 5-on-3 time, too. They recorded 13 shot attempts total and eventually converted. It was fun to watch.
3. Jason Dickinson’s offensive production has cooled off of late, but he got the monkey off his back by scoring two goals to hit the 20-goal mark for the season, which snapped an eight-game goal drought. He had only one goal in his previous 16 games. Joey Anderson set him up on both goals.
4. What a roller-coaster of a game for Landon Slaggert, who recorded two secondary assists for his first career points in the NHL and came so close to scoring twice as well.
In the second period, Jacob Markstrom left his net to chase the puck that had bounced away from him and Slaggert almost had a wide open net but his shot got blocked.
In the third period, it looked like Slaggert finally did score after the horn went off, the official signaled good goal, and the United Center went crazy. But after video review, the replay showed the puck hit the post and never crossed the goal line. Slaggert’s family had an epic reaction.
5. Seth Jones had zero goals on 60 shots in 27 games before suffering a shoulder injury, which is an average of 2.22 shots per game. Since returning to the lineup, he has 93 shots in 30 games for an average of 3.10. He’s definitely made a conscious effort to shoot more, and it paid off again when he scored on the power play to open the game. All seven of his goals this season have come post-injury.
6. Ryan Donato was promoted to the top line with Connor Bedard and Philipp Kurashev after coming off his best game as Blackhawk in San Jose in which he registered three points. They didn’t have a great game as a trio, but Bedard had eight shot attempts in the first period, four of which were on goal. He was flying and creating early, especially on that first power play.
7. Petr Mrazek was excellent. He stopped the first 30 shots he faced before Calgary finally made him crack. He finished with 40 saves on 41 shots for a save percentage of .976. He’s been particularly terrific at home this season.
8. Nick Foligno won 10 of 11 faceoffs for a win percentage of 90.9. Bedard lost all eight of his.
9. Had a great conversation with Jarred Tinordi, who quietly underwent major hip surgery over the offseason that’s typically a six-month recovery. He talked about the mental challenges this season has taken on him and admitted “I feel like I’ve let the bad games linger a little bit more than they should and I’m not super happy about that.” You can read the full story here.
10. Colin Blackwell (upper body), Reese Johnson (concussion protocol) and Connor Murphy (groin) all skated in a non-contact jersey on Tuesday morning. Blackwell suffered an upper-body injury a week ago while Johnson has been out since March 12. There are only 10 games left, but Murphy is hoping to return before the season ends.
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