The Chicago Blackhawks came into Monday night’s game on a four-game losing streak. There were moments during that streak that they looked like they were out of the funk but they always got right back in it.
In this game against the Colorado Avalanche, who had won five in a row coming in, the Hawks were able to win 5-2. It didn’t go completely the way that Chicago would have imagined it but it worked.
Coming into the matchup, it appeared like this could be a trap game for Colorado. The Hawks had every reason to believe that they could get it done.
Philipp Kurashev opened the scoring with a nice goal off a great play made by Alex Vlasic on the power play.
The lead didn’t last long though as Casey Mittlestadt scored less than two minutes later. The good thing for Chicago is that they took the lead right back less than a minute after the Colorado goal.
Lukas Reichel scored the goal off a deflection on Craig Smith’s shot. He probably didn’t draw his first goal of the season up like that in his mind but he’ll take it anyway. He’s been great since his call up and you can’t help but wonder if his AHL days are done for a while.
This wild first period continued and Ryan Donato gave the Hawks a 3-1 lead shortly after.
Before the period was over though, reigning Hart Trophy winner Nathan MacKinnon scored a beautiful goal. When you have players like MacKinnon on the other side, the game can change in an instant.
This goal scored by MacKinnon wasn’t just some goal. It was an incredible play by an incredible player. It’s not a typical 5-on-3 power play goal, but it’s a typical MacKinnon “do something special” goal.
Colorado had an avalanche of chances in the second period, but they were unable to get one past Petr Mrazek in the middle frame. His heroic goaltending gave the Hawks a great chance to win the game. No goals were scored for either team in the second after that wild first period had a total of five.
In the third, Ryan Donato and Ilya Mikheyev added empty-net goals with under a minute remaining in regulation. It sealed a hard-fought victory for a team that so desperately needed it.
For Donato, his two goals increased his team lead to five. His incredible start to the season is encouraging for the Blackhawks who have lacked depth for a few years. If Donato can keep this up, they won’t be as handcuffed offensively.
Donato’s career high in goals is 16 which he reached in 2021-22 with the Seattle Kraken. He also had a career-high in points that year with 31. There is no reason he can’t eclipse both of those totals in 2024-25 with Chicago.
Following the win, the Hawks will continue their Western Conference road trip as they will visit the San Jose Sharks on Thursday night. This is a chance for Chicago to turn their four-game losing streak into a two-game winning streak.
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