The Chicago Blackhawks made easy work of the Ottawa Senators with a 5–0 shellacking on home ice. The victory is the first since the trade deadline and halted Chicago’s losing streak at four games. Alex Stalock was the star of the show, stopping all 35 shots he would face. After two periods of play, Chicago was being outshot 27–14, but Stalock stood tall for his second whitewashing of the season.
- Seth Jones scored twice to reach double-digit goals for the season. Jones has shown a propensity for the offensive zone that we all knew he had in his game. Since the breakdown of the NHL roster in Chicago the past few weeks, Jones has found himself in deep in the offensive zone trying to create more offense. It is almost like he is a forward playing on defense.
- Youngster Lukas Reichel scored his second goal of the season late to finish off the barrage of goals for the Blackhawks. Reichel does a lot of things well on the ice and can use his speed to create in the offensive zone. The one thing that goes unnoticed is his ability to work and make plays along the boards, a skill that many do not have or are not willing to do, and his positioning in both zones. Reichel is rarely out of position in his own zone; he is young, so mistakes will happen, and gives himself an advantage when shielding off the defender in his own zone to either control the puck or get position to take advantage of the rebound.
- Anders Bjork recorded a trio of assists in 14:27 of total ice time. The Mequon, Wisconsin, native has been playing with a jump in his stride since joining the team and it is noticeable the 26-year-old is trying to showcase his best with his new-found opportunity since coming over from the Buffalo Sabres. Bjork will not wow you with any one skill, but when given a fresh start, it is a nice sign to see a player try and take advantage of his future.
- Philipp Kurashev and Jason Dickinson both scored their ninth goals of the season. Kurashev’s goal was the first of the game that found the net behind Senator goaltender Mads Sogaard. Sogaard would manage to stop only 16 of the 21 shots he would face after showing a nice three-game stretch he was having in net.
- Chicago scored early and often and that took the wind out of the Senators’ sails. The one thing that has been mentioned and should not go unnoticed is the effort Luke Richardson’s teams have been playing on a nightly basis. Think back to the Jeremy Colliton era and how a team with a sprinkling of talent looked so disinterested and lost on most nights, and this was with multiple ready-to-win talents in the lineup, and how well Richardson’s teams are prepared on the ice each night with a fraction of the talent. Kudos to Richardson for teaching these kids how to be pros and how to prepare for games, which is not easy when you are trying to tank. This is what an organizational approach to development looks like, fans.
- Of course, the game was also former Blackhawk Alex DeBrincat’s first time back to the United Center as a member of the Senators. Needless to say, DeBrincat’s revenge game did not quite go as he would have hoped.
Chicago is back in action on Wednesday when they travel to Michigan to take on the Detroit Red Wings at 6:30 p.m. CST on TNT.
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