10 observations: Hawks’ win streak snapped by Ducks originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The Blackhawks’ five-game win streak came to an end following a 4-2 loss to the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on Monday.
Here are 10 observations from the loss:
1. Sam Lafferty and Jake McCabe were traded to Toronto before the game. Jack Johnson was dealt back to Colorado on Sunday. And Patrick Kane was still held out for roster management reasons. Philipp Kurashev didn’t play because of an illness. The lineup looked almost unrecognizable. Just wait until after Friday.
2. The Ducks scored in the final minute of both the first period and the second period, the latter of which turned out to be the game-winning goal. That one hurt. Those late-period goals have been a killer for the Blackhawks this season.
3. The Blackhawks have scored a power-play goal in three of their last four games after failing to find the back of the net on their previous 22 opportunities. They’ve scored four goals on their last 11 opportunities, converting twice in this game thanks to Andreas Athanasiou and Tyler Johnson, who has two of those four power-play goals. Slowly starting to turn a corner in that department.
4. You know who was flying yet again? Max Domi, who extended his point streak to seven games. He has 14 points (four goals and eight assists) over that stretch. He also had eight shot attempts (four on goal), including two breakaways. He’s red-hot.
5. Newly-acquired forward Joey Anderson and defenseman Andreas Englund made their Blackhawks debuts after recent trades. Kudos to Anderson, who flew to Anaheim just in time for the game. I thought Englund stepped in pretty seamlessly. He had four shots on goal, which doubled his previous career high of two.
6. Jason Dickinson won 10 of 12 faceoffs for a win percentage of 83.3. The rest of the team combined lost 28 of 44 draws for a win percentage of 36.6.
7. Jujhar Khaira returned to the lineup after missing 26 games with a back injury. Same with Jarred Tinordi, who had been out six games with a knee sprain. I was a little surprised that Tinordi didn’t score a goal. Three of his four career NHL goals have oddly come in Anaheim.
8. Colin Blackwell suffered a groin injury in the second period and did not return for the third. Head coach Luke Richardson said after the game that he’s expected to be out “a while.” The hits keep coming for the Blackhawks, who seemingly keep losing bodies the second they start gaining some back.
9. Kane has an 11-game point streak against Anaheim. He also has 12 points (two goals, 10 assists) in his last four games against them. Fortunately for the Ducks, they did not have to face him.
10. The Ducks have won three straight in regulation after having only seven regulation wins in their first 58 games. Their 10 total regulation wins is the fewest among any NHL team this season. The next-fewest? Chicago with 13. The two of them will be competing for the best odds at landing the No. 1 overall pick the rest of the way.
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