The San Jose Sharks are the worst of the three California teams these days so losing to them didn’t feel good for the Chicago Blackhawks. They knew a big rebound would be needed to beat the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks.
The Kings hosted Chicago on Saturday night and the Hawks prevailed in a gutsy comeback effort. That set the stage for them to try and get a second win in Southern California with the Ducks ready to host.
Anaheim outshot Chicago 8-1 out of the gate but Arvid Soderblom stayed strong in the Hawk net. Chicago then scored first at 12:57 despite being outplayed up to that point. Isaak Phillips scored his first goal of the season after Connor Bedard set him up with a lane to shoot.
Teuvo Teravainen scored a power-play goal a few minutes later to give the Hawks a 2-0 lead. Taylor Hall made a beautiful pass to find Teravainen who didn’t miss. Alex Vlasic collected an assist on the goal as he is looking good as a power-play quarterback.
In the second period, Seth Jones scored the only goal of the period to make it 3-0. Connor Bedard put it in a tee for Jones to unleash his blast. Lukas Reichel, who has been outstanding lately, also earned an assist on the play.
Anaheim’s Brock McGinn cut into Chicago’s lead midway through the third period. The Hawks ultimately sealed the win, however, when Ryan Donato scored a goal thanks to a hard-working play at the net mouth by him and Bedard. Mason McTavish found a goal with two seconds left so the final score reads 4-2.
The story from this game, much like the game prior, was how goaltending kept Chicago in it until they found their legs. After having Petr Mrazek make 37 saves on 40 shots one night prior, Arvid Soderblom made 37 saves on 39 shots.
Before the weekend even began, Chicago made it known that Petr Mrazek would go against the Kings and he was great. Arvid Soderblom was named the starter for this Anaheim game which marked his first start in seven games despite playing well in limited action.
Soderblom answered the bell in a big way with all of those saves. He kept the Hawks in it early, he held them ahead late, and he deserves praise for it. There is no reason for him to sit for six straight games anymore. He may still be the backup to Mrazek but he deserves a chance to continue proving himself.
Without their goaltending, the Hawks would not be walking out of Southern California with two victories. They played a little bit better overall against Anaheim but Soderblom was the star.
The Blackhawks have a couple of days off now but these two goalies will be needed this week. They have another back-to-back situation as they host the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday before a trip to the Dallas Stars on Thursday. If they get this level of goaltending again, they will have a chance.
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