As the roster continues to take shape, the Chicago Blackhawks put forth a lineup on Tuesday night against the Detroit Red Wings at the United Center that will likely be close to what fans can expect on opening night next Tuesday. The Hawks entered their fourth preseason contest having lost their last two on the road, including 6–1 in Detroit on Sunday night. This game was also an opportunity for Hawks fans to see a familiar face, center Artem Anisimov, who is attending the Red Wings’ camp on a professional tryout agreement.
The Hawks opened the scoring when Corey Perry poked in a rebound following a Nick Foligno shot from the slot. Both Perry and Jason Dickinson crashed the net and Perry got credited with the goal at 2:09 of the first period.
̶c̶o̶r̶e̶y̶ ̶p̶e̶r̶r̶y̶ more like scorey perry 😌 pic.twitter.com/HCcZwYFiJL
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) October 4, 2023
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The Hawks would maintain a 1–0 lead after one. For the Hawks, Petr Mrazek was sharp, as he stopped all 14 shots he faced.
Exactly one minute into the second stanza, Joe Veleno tied it at 1–1. The 2018 first-round pick of Detroit fired a one-timer from the left circle past Seth Jones and into the net off a nice cross-ice feed from Jonatan Berggren.
With 4:30 left in the frame, Connor Murphy broke the tie with a nasty wrist shot from the top of the left circle that went in just under the cross bar on a feed from Connor Bedard. The Hawks regained the lead at 2–1.
connor to connor 😁 pic.twitter.com/pljr9DTySj
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) October 4, 2023
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Less than a minute later on a delayed penalty, Bedard skated in alone and tried to go five hole following some slick stick-handling, but Michael Hutchinson made the save for Detroit.
At 4:49 of the third, Veleno scored his second of the night off a give-and go-with Klim Kostin to tie the game at 2–2. On the play, Lukas Reichel was caught out of position and trailed Veleno as he shot the puck into the back of the net.
Midway through the third, Perry scored his second of the game on the power play. Taylor Hall found Perry wide open to the right of Hutchinson, took the pass and skated across the crease and fired it into a wide open net to give Chicago a 3–2 advantage. Hall and Bedard each notched their second assist of the game on the power play goal.
don’t look now, scorey perry got his second of the night 😌 pic.twitter.com/XNgZlde23w
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) October 4, 2023
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With 1:09 left and the Red Wings’ net empty, Bedard scored his first preseason goal on the power play. Following a Detroit clear, Mrazek fed Bedard at center ice, who skated up the left wing boards and fired the puck into the open cage to give the Hawks a 4–2 lead, which was the final tally.
BEDARD EMPTY NETTER 🥳🚨 pic.twitter.com/8ws2IcrrPU
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) October 4, 2023
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Analysis
The Blackhawks looked much better on Tuesday than in their previous game in Detroit. After a wide-open first where the Wings outshot the Hawks 14–12, Chicago put the clamps down and held Detroit to just five shots on goal during the final two periods. For the game, the Hawks outshot the Wings, 34–19. In addition to the defensive effort, the Hawks’ power play looked solid, with Bedard drawing two and sometimes three defenders, which created space down low for others including Hall and Perry, who would connect on the eventual game-winning goal.
The Blackhawks play their penultimate preseason contest on Thursday night at the United Center against the Minnesota Wild. Puck drop will be at 7:30 p.m. CDT and will be available on both NBCSCH and on WGN Radio 720.