The Chicago Blackhawks have underperformed expectations to begin this season, even if there wasn’t a ton. The team made some strong additions this off-season in order to be able to be more competitive. After starting the season 2-2-1, it has not looked good since with a 1-5-0 stretch.
The Blackhawks’ latest loss came in regulation to the San Jose Sharks who, through their first nine games, were winless. Though the Sharks are now on a three game win streak, they are still very much in a rebuild and behind the Blackhawks in that regard.
Chicago finished 2023-24 with four more wins and five more points than the Sharks, but the Blackhawks were very banged up and the team looked a lot different than it does now.
By bringing in players like Tyler Bertuzzi, Teuvo Teravainen, TJ Brodie, Alec Martinez, Laurent Brossoit, Pat Maroon, Craig Smith, and Ilya Mikheyev to go along with better health, the Blackhawks might not have been seen as a playoff contender just yet, but should be improved.
As it stands, the Blackhawks are last in the NHL after the loss to who should be the worst team in the league, the Sharks. A team never wants to be one of the early losses to another team that is struggling greatly out of the gate, and that’s what Chicago allowed to happen.
Chicago finished with a record of 23-53-6 last season and had a -111 goal differential. Their win percentage was just .317. With how much better the Blackhawks are on paper this season despite a couple of injuries, the team is just 3-7-1. That’s a win percentage of just .318 despite a much better goal differential of -7 in 11 games.
The Blackhawks have a number of good pieces on their team, both less experienced and more, so it is a group that has to start figuring things out. Even if the team doesn’t make the playoffs, they can’t fall flat in games against other bottom-feeders if the Blackhawks don’t want to remain one themselves all season.
It is easier said than done to get wins in the NHL as the Sharks know after losing nine consecutive games to begin 2024-25. The Blackhawks have the talent and ability to win 30+ games this season, especially if some of the players who need to be contributing start doing so.
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There may seem like a lot of time to turn things around, but as the losses start piling up and the wins gets harder to come by, another season will be lost in no time. There has to be improvement and losing to the Sharks should be somewhat of a wakeup call for the Blackhawks.
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