10 observations: Tinordi, Hawks rally to beat Ducks originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The Blackhawks rallied to beat the Anaheim Ducks 3-2 at Honda Center on Saturday.
Here are 10 observations from the win:
1. I don’t think the Blackhawks could’ve had a worse start to the game. The Ducks outshot the Blackhawks 18-1 at one point and outchanced them 16-5 in the first period. Somehow, Chicago trailed only 2-1 by the end of it.
2. Arvid Soderblom started in goal and boy was he tested early and often. He faced 41 shots and stopped 39 of them for a save percentage of .951. With Alex Stalock (concussion protocol) likely returning soon, this may have been Soderblom’s last start before he’s sent back down. If it is, what an encouraging stint it was for him. He’s given up only 12 goals on 173 shots for a save percentage of .931 in five appearances.
3. The Ducks went into the night giving up 40.4 shots per game, which was dead-last in the NHL. The Blackhawks had only five shots in the first period and finished with 22 shots total. Not ideal, but they found a way.
4. The Ducks had a four-minute power play towards the latter stages of the second period and the Blackhawks killed it off without much trouble. Sam Lafferty was really good on that kill, and they also did it without Jason Dickinson, who was out with a non-COVID-related illness. It came at a pivotal moment in the game.
5. The Blackhawks had two goals from their defensemen in the first 13 games of the season. They had three in this game alone, two from Jarred Tinordi and the other from Filip Roos, who scored his first career NHL goal. Tinordi doubled his career total from two to four, and three of his goals have come in Anaheim. Crazy.
6. The Blackhawks had only one 5-on-5 goal in their last four games. They had three in this game. A much-needed get-right game for the offense, although it was far from their best effort.
7. The Ducks generated 32 scoring chances, per Natural Stat Trick. The Blackhawks had only 17. The Blackhawks have now been out-chanced 148-71 in their last four games for a differential of -77. And yet the Blackhawks are somehow 2-1-1 over that stretch.
8. Kane ended a three-game point drought by recording a pair of assists. He has at least one point in his last 10 games against Anaheim. He has 20 points (seven goals, 13 assists) in those nine games. He also has 11 points (two goals, nine assists) in his last three games against Anaheim.
9. The Blackhawks improved to 6-2-4 all-time on the Dad’s trip. They’re 5-3-2 on the Mom’s trip, which will happen next year. Bring the parents on the road all the time.
10. After signing John Klingberg, Ryan Strome and Frank Vatrano over the summer, I don’t think the Ducks were expecting to be this bad this season. They were hoping to take the next step, but they are arguably worse than last season. Anaheim should probably embrace the tank at this point, given how strong the top end of the 2023 draft class is. The Blackhawks will have some company in the Connor Bedard sweepstakes.
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