The Hawks were back in action this time against the strong offensive Toronto Maple Leafs, and this might have been the best performance from the Hawks so far in this early season. While the Leafs would control the play for large chunks of this game, each line seemed to be ready for the task to stand tall and not make things easy for the Leafs. Between the good defensive play and the stellar performance from Soderblom, this was a great team victory. We saw a lot of firsts tonight. Kevin Korchinski picked up his first NHL assist and point when he helped set up Tyler Johnson to score the Hawks first power play goal of the year. Corey Perry also scored his first goal as a member of the Blackhawks off an absolutely gorgeous sauce pass from Vlasic that would end up being the game-winner for the Hawks.
Hawks took care of a little bit of yard work before leaving Canadahttps://t.co/SbAKOemEua#DraftKings Promo THPN#hockeytwitter #thpn #blackhawks pic.twitter.com/NkN2ijY8Ov
— WCBPodcast (@WCBPodcast) October 17, 2023
Three Takeaways Connor Bedard Growing Pains Tonight was Bedard's first game without registering a point in his young NHL career. Watching him play out there, you can see the frustration growing as he just cannot get the offense that he is used to producing on a roll. Its definitely not a lack of trying, as he put up another four shots on net, reaching the 20-shot mark in just four games. He is the fourth rookie to achieve this, and while it's a good thing to know for future trivia questions, it really doesn’t mean much when he only has one goal to show for it. As frustrated as he might be, he is still playing some very good hockey and is showing his impressive hockeyIQ out there. For only playing four NHL games, he is already putting opposing teams on notice by the way they are playing him whenever he touches the puck. The question with Bedard right now isn’t if he is going to get it going this year, but when will he get going? I think all it takes is one goal off his wicked wrist shot, and the flood gates will be open.
Alex Vlasic is That Guy. One of the storylines going into this season was who from the young defense prospect pool was going to step up and take one of the openings on the main roster. The early answer to that is Vlasic, Korchinski, and Kaiser as of now. Through four games, I think if we had to pick out of those three who has been the top dog, it would be hard not to go with Vlasic. Of course, he has had a few hiccups that all young players are going to have, but for every one thing wrong, he does three things to make up for it. He is clearly winning the trust of Coach Richardson, and his ice time shows it; through three games, he’s averaging 19:30 TOI, playing another 22:18 tonight against the Leafs. He currently has a +5 rating, which is impressive given that his partner is Seth Jones. He also has two assists, including the beautiful one I mentioned earlier, and has matched his career high in points in just four games. He has had the perfect slow build to make his way to the NHL, and with all eyes on Korchinski being the next guy, he has been able to fly under the radar. However, I think he’s going to have a hard time doing so if he keeps this play up.
Arvid Soderblom is Making His Case. Goaltending has been the weakest point on this team since Bowman decided to walk away from Corey Crawford. Bringing in vets, drafting the next big thing, and signing journeymen has been a small bandage on a large wound. With the rebuild picture becoming more clear, it is time for a younger goalie to make a name for themselves and really establish some consistency in the net. If you follow the hype, this is more than likely going to be Drew Commesso. However, Soderblom is making his case to take that spot early on in this season. Tonight was an absolutely stellar performance from the 24-year-old netminder, as he turned away 34 of the 35 shots he saw and finished this game with a.971 save percentage. He absolutely stood on his head, especially in the final 4 minutes when the Leafs pulled their goalie and spent almost the entire time in the Hawks end. He was able to keep the hottest scorer in the league, Auston Matthews, off the score sheet, which is no easy task. Both Hawks goalies have been playing fantastic, and despite the alternating starts, I think Soderblom earned a second start in a row with his performance tonight. Three Stars 1st Star: Arvid Soderblom 34 saves. 971 Save Percentage 2nd Star: Andreas Athanasiou 2 assist 3rd Star: Tyler Johnson Power Play Goal
The Hawks will now have two days off before heading to Colorado to wrap up this long five-game road trip to start the season. It will be not only the first Western Conference team they have faced this season but also the first divisional rival they will battle with. Taking four of eight points against three playoff contenders is a great start for me, and it's definitely better than I had originally expected from them. Let's get to Colorado, keep things close, maybe steal a point or two, and get back to Chicago and prepare for the home opener. That’s all for me tonight. I’ll be back with a game preview on Thursday. Check out the WCBPodcast