Final Score: Blackhawks 4 – Blue Jackets 1
Game Summary
Brandon Saad’s return to Chicago did not go as expected. Saad played 16:11 and had two shots in the loss.
Curtis McEhlhinney finally got a start and despite what the stats say I thought he played quite well. He allowed three goals but it could have been six or seven easily with the way the Blackhawks were playing. CMac made some highlight reel saves including a big glove save on Patrick Kane and stopping Artemi Panarin and Kane on breakaways.
This was a very good game by the Hawks. They showed why they are defending champs. They did a great job at limiting the Jackets chances and controlled the play. They outhsot Columbus 30-23 including 15-3 in the second period. Former Blue Jacket Artem Anisimov was a big part of this game for the Hawks. He scored the first goal, and had two shots. For his efforts he was named the third star.
Kerby Rychel made his season debut. He played on the fourth line with Clarkson and Campbell, and didn’t see much ice just 8:41. But I thought he looked good in that short time. He made some great defensive plays on the back check. His offensive game was limited but that was more due to his line mates. At this stage in his development Rychel is more a complementary player rather than someone who will create offense on his own. He needs someone to get him the puck and unfortunately neither Campbell nor Clarkson were able to do that.
I thought Cody Goloubef had another strong game. He made some nice offensive plays. He brings that little extra dynamic offensively and I think if he given consistent playing time he could have a great season. Particularly if he keeps playing alongside Ryan Murray, who has been as advertised this season. Murray hasn’t made any flashes plays but he has every little play. He’s been the bright spot in an otherwise poor defence group.
On the topic of the defence I noticed that during the 5-on-3 penalty kill Richards only used one defencemen, electing to use two forwards. He used Jenner-Karlsson-Savard, and Calvert-Campbell-Tyutin. I found this to be very interesting, why would a coach not use his defencemen in the most defensive situation? To me I take as he doesn’t trust his defensemen which honestly right now I wouldn’t either. It’s no secret the team’s strength is in its forwards; it’s good to get them as much ice time as possible.
Stat of the Night