CHICAGO- Before Monday night’s game between the Chicago Blackhawks and Edmonton Oilers, news broke that Connor Bédard would not play. This has nothing to do with injury. He contracted the “stomach bug” that the entire team dealt with last week.
Colton Dach, who was initially expected to be a healthy scratch, ended up slotting into the lineup in place of Bedard. With Connor Bédard dealing with a shoulder issue, the team began to learn how to play as a team without him. His absence will never be an excuse in this match.
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In the first period, Connor McDavid ended his career-high 19-game point streak with a goal that gave Edmonton a 1-0 lead. He sent a pass to Evan Bouchard, who centered the puck into Zach Hyman’s net. That 1-0 score would hold until the end of the first.
16 seconds into the second period, Evan Bouchard slipped behind Spencer Knight to make it 2-0. Connor McDavid also had an assist on this goal. That would be the end of the scoring in the middle frame.
In the final third, it looked like the Oilers were about to leave Chicago with a shutout victory. However, Tyler Bertuzzi brought life back to the United Center by scoring his 24th of the season on a rebound from Wyatt Kaiser.
The Blackhawks couldn’t do anything with that momentum. Finally, Bouchard scored his second of the game into an empty net to make the score 3-1. It wasn’t enough for Edmonton, however, as Leon Draisaitl took advantage of a Wyatt Kaiser turnover in front of the net to make it 4-1 twelve seconds after the empty net.
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It’s hard enough to beat the Oilers when they have forwards like McDavid and Draisaitl leading the way, but you can’t give them easy chances like that and expect good results.
The score doesn’t indicate how close the Blackhawks came in the end, but they didn’t feel like they played well either. Many passes went through the seams without the sticks being properly placed by the defenders.
There were also long stretches where Edmonton controlled the game and prevented Chicago from getting zone time. Their work in the neutral zone was the key to their victory.
Both goalkeepers were magnificent in this one. Connor Ingram made 29 saves on 30 shots, while Spencer Knight made 33 saves on 36 shots.
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One positive note about the Blackhawks is their numerical penalty. For one thing, they only allowed the Oilers two power plays. Second, they haven’t given up a power play goal, which is far and away tops in the NHL. Chicago’s penalty kill remains in the top three.
Teuvo Teravainen left the game after the first period and did not return. It was thought he may have also contracted the illness, but Jeff Blashill confirmed it was an upper body injury. He didn’t say he’ll miss any time beyond this game and that he’ll know more on Wednesday.
With everyone who was sick last week and back this week at morning skate, it looked like they were going to have a healthy group for this game against the Oilers. Then Connor Bédard got sick to put a stop to that. Only time will tell if anyone else will be affected before their next practice, which will be Wednesday instead of Tuesday.
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What’s next for the Blackhawks?
The Blackhawks are back in action Thursday night at the United Center. Alberta’s other team, the Calgary Flames, will be in town.
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