The Hawks return to action after putting an end to their most recent three-game losing streak by defeating the Ducks 1-0. This was one of those games that I was just happy for Mrazek, as he has been working his butt off this season and keeping this team in more games than they probably should be. He played a perfect game, stopping 37 of 37 shots, and the Hawks were able to get their lone goal thanks to their struggling power play finally connecting after Kurashev put away his fifth goal of the year. Bedard picked up his 10th assist on the goal as well, giving the rookie 21 points through 25 games this season.
Tonight the Hawks welcome their central division rivals, the St. Louis Blues, to the United Center for their second meeting of the year. For those who might have forgotten, the first meeting back on November 26th saw the Blues take down the Hawks 4-2. The Blues got a good performance from their headcase goalie Jordan Binnington, who allowed just two goals on 29 shots. This game was the follow-up to the 4-3 overtime win against the Leafs that we had all hoped would give this team some momentum going forward; however, as the theme of this season continues, they came out flat, fell behind early, and just never could catch up. The Blues are coming into this game on the back end of a back-to-back that saw them lose to the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-2.
Projected line-ups
#Blackhawks projected lineup vs. Ducks:
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) December 7, 2023
Beauvillier-Bedard-Kurashev
T. Johnson-Guttman-Raddysh
Foligno-Dickinson-Anderson
Reichel-Donato-Entwistle
Korchinski-Jones
Murphy-Zaitsev
Vlasic-Crevier
Mrazek
Söderblom
Extras: Katchouk, R. Johnson, Tinordi (conc. protocol)
As of writing, there is no word on what the line-up is going to look like tonight; however, after the victory on Thursday, you have to assume there will be little to no changes. This will be the third game Beauvillier skates with Bedard and Kurashev, and right now it's been one really good game and one game that left us with an unfulfilled feeling. Growing pains are expected, especially when you join a new team after the season has begun, so here's hoping they are given the necessary time to develop some chemistry because I believe this could be a very good line. With the Hawks playing again tomorrow against the Washington Capitals, I think we might see Soderblom in net tonight, and then Mrazek will get to face Ovi and the Caps.
UPDATE:
Blackhawks have placed Kevin Korchinski on the non-roster list and called up Isaak Phillips from Rockford.
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) December 9, 2023
As soon as i posted this, I get a notification that Kevin Korchinski has been played on the Non Roster list and the Hawks have recalled Isaak Phillips. There isnt much information right now with that is going on with Kevin but hopefully everything is alright.
As I mentioned earlier, this team has absolutely struggled to put together back-to-back good games this season. While there are no expectations from this team other than to see positive growth from the rookies and younger players, it is still frustrating to deal with the lack of consistency. If there was ever a time for two good games in a row, playing against your biggest rival would be it. Only time will tell, and we are just a few hours away from getting an answer. Puck drop is at 7 p.m. Central time, and as always, Let's Go Hawks.
Check out the latest WCBPodcast