10 observations: Blackhawks swept by Jets in season series originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The Blackhawks fell to the Winnipeg Jets 4-1 at Canada Life Centre on Saturday.
Here are 10 observations from the loss:
1. The Blackhawks were swept in the season series by the Jets, who won all four games and outscored them 18-4. I’m sure Winnipeg is bummed Chicago isn’t on the schedule for the rest of the season.
2. The Blackhawks were, for the most part, outplaying the Jets in the first 25 minutes or so. But the game turned in the second period when Tyler Johnson committed a tripping penalty with 21 seconds left on the power play and Sam Lafferty was handed a four-minute double minor penalty 16 seconds later that put Chicago on the penalty kill for an extended period of time, which included a 5-on-3 disadvantage. The Jets eventually capitalized to make it 2-0. It was a deflating moment.
3. Separate thought: I’m not sure how Lafferty’s high-sticking penalty on Nate Schmidt wasn’t ruled a follow-through. The officials reviewed it and deemed it wasn’t, which I was surprised by. Was it because he didn’t make contact with the puck on the shooting motion? It would have been the right call if Lafferty hacked at a bouncing puck, but that’s not what happened. He had possession of it and the puck got poked away in the process of the shot attempt. Maybe I’m wrong, but I didn’t agree with it and it ended up swaying the game.
4. Josh Morrissey opened the scoring 1:16 into the second period for his 11th goal of the season. He also added an assist. He was a Blackhawk killer this season, with nine points (two goals, seven assists) in four games against them. I’ve got to be honest: I didn’t think he would hover around the Norris Trophy conversation this long, but he has, and it’s well-deserved. Only Erik Karlsson (70) and Rasmus Dahlin (56) have more points among NHL defensemen than Morrissey (55).
5. The Jets went 7-for-15 on the power play for a percentage of 46.7 against Chicago this season. The Blackhawks went 1-for-11 for a percentage of 9.1. Special teams played a massive role in all four meetings.
6. Jarred Tinordi returned to the lineup after missing the last 20 games with facial fractures. He did so without wearing a protected face shield, and then inexplicably dropped the gloves with Adam Lowry at the beginning of the third period. Dude is built differently.
7. Tyler Johnson had only one shot attempt in the first period, yet he finished with five shots on goal and 11 attempts and also scored the Blackhawks’ only goal. It was the first time since Feb. 3, 2021 that he recorded at least five shots on goal in a game. He was with Tampa Bay at the time.
8. When Chicago’s fourth line of MacKenzie Entwistle, Reese Johnson and Boris Katchouk was on the ice at even strength, the Jets led in shot attempts (12-3), shots on goal (5-0) and scoring chances (8-1), per Natural Stat Trick. That trio has been playing well together, but they had an off night.
9. The Blackhawks fell to 0-7-0 on the second of back-to-backs this season. They’re being outscored 24-8 over those seven games for a goal differential of -16.
10. How about a positive prospects update: Blackhawks first-round picks Kevin Korchinski and Frank Nazar each scored a goal with their respective teams. Saturday was just the second game of the NCAA season for Nazar, who missed several months because of an injury.
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