After Chicago’s loss to the Boston Bruins, the Chicago Blackhawks decided to fire head coach Luke Richardson.
In doing that, they named Rockford IceHogs head coach Anders Sorensen as the interim HC. He became the first Swedish-born coach in NHL history with this hire.
On Saturday afternoon at United Center, Sorensen made his NHL debut with the Hawks against the Winnipeg Jets.
As per usual, things started okay for the Blackhawks. They took a 1-0 lead at 9:01 on a power play goal scored by Alex Vlasic. This was the second game in a row where Vlasic scored the first goal of the game.
It didn’t take long for Winnipeg to respond though as Gabe Vilardi tied it up at 13:31. Despite looking like they were going to hit the first intermission tied, Alec Martinez scored his first as a Chicago Blackhawks player at 19:47 to give them more life.
Martinez has scored a couple of big goals at the United Center in the past but now he is on the board while wearing the red sweater.
Halfway through the third, the Jets took over. Nino Niederreiter scored at 13:10 of the second to tie the game at 2. The Hawks and Jets took that 2-2 tie into the final frame.
At 10:18 of the third, Mark Scheifele scored to give the Jets the lead for good. After Mason Appleton threw one into the empty net, the 4-2 score stood as the final.
You can tell that the Hawks played more of an up-tempo style under Sorensen but they were still outshot 29-14.
Some things still need to be worked out with the new system but it may take some time. Those are troubles you deal with when you fire a coach mid-season.
The Jets are also now 20-8-0 for 40 points which is tied for the most in the NHL so it’s not like they’re easy to beat anyway.
Now that Sorensen has his first game under his belt, he’s going to be looking for that first win. His next opportunity will come on Monday against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.
Related: Blackhawks Made Correct Decision To Not Push for Patrick Kane Return
