It’s rare for this Blackhawks team to pass an opponent, but Chicago had as many shots in the second third (14) as the Coyotes had in the first 40 minutes of the game. Alex Stlock was quite good in testing, allowing a goal through a canopy that was tilted forward; His skaters scored 35 seconds into the competition and then we desperately needed the caffeine to kick in.
Star 1: Clayton Keller
Blackhawks fans had been asking for the team to lose a game (or five). Keller put on an excellent offensive performance, picking up points on Arizona’s first three goals and leading the Yotes to victory. Because he excelled the most in winning Arizona, he gets a star in the tank’s name.
Star 2: Jujhar Khaira
His line with Joey Anderson And Boris Katschuk been absolutely on fire lately. Anderson and Khaira came on with five points each in their last five games; Katchouk had five points in his last four. So it shouldn’t have surprised anyone that this line was in the starting XI and scored the Blackhawks’ first goal after just 35 seconds. Khaira has been credited with redirecting a Jarred Tinordi shot in the net.
Star 3: Wyatt Kaiser
Kaiser appropriately made his NHL debut in a collegiate arena on Saturday night. And I think for his first professional appearance he showed himself very well. Obviously, Kaiser has some strong offensive instincts and is good at skating. He was paired with Nikita Zaitsev (not ideal) but there were flashes of really good play from the rookie. Kaiser was credited with one blocked shot and one goal and was down one at 16-11. They reported during the show that his parents and girlfriend were able to get to Arizona in time to see his debut, which is great.
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Jason Dickinson had a great night in every way except the whole minus two line. He won 14 of his 17 faceoffs and was among Chicago’s team captains with six shots on goal in the game.
Depending on your perspective, the Blackhawks’ second goal was incredibly “lucky.” Caleb Jones shot the puck straight at Arizona goalie Ivan Prosvetov, but the replay showed the blade ricocheted off the goalie’s right skate and he couldn’t push himself off to get back in the path of the puck. The goal gave Chicago a 2-1 lead with 15:46 in the third period.
The Blackhawks’ power play was dog water. I understand there isn’t much high-end skill left on the roster, but execution can trump creativity — especially against a mediocre team that takes a lot of penalties (Arizona had suffered the most in the league). Yes, Caleb’s goal came from an advantage, but that was luck (see above).
The Coyotes went on the net more than eight minutes between shots in the third period. They had just 19 shots in the net as they went 3-2 up late in the third.
Source : www.bleachernation.com