Following a 5–1 loss to the Florida Panthers, the Chicago Blackhawks had three days off to prepare for their matchup against the Edmonton Oilers. Due to this game being broadcasted on TNT, fans would have to wait until nearly 9 p.m. for the opening faceoff.
Blackhawks head coach Anders Sorensen decided to shake up his forward group, putting Ryan Donato and Landon Slaggert up on the first line with Connor Bedard. Young center Frank Nazar was given the third-line center role. Arvid Soderblom was tasked with protecting the net against the Oilers’ high-octane offense.
First period
Despite the impressive offensive showing from both teams, the first period remained scoreless. Edmonton fired 12 shots toward Soderblom, while Chicago managed 15.
Chicago looked far more effective early throughout the first than they did in their last contest against the Panthers. Moving Slaggert and Donato up with Bedard helped prevent the Oilers’ top line from finding offensive form.
Second period
The second period was a more defensive-minded period compared to the first. Both squads settled into a sparring match, limiting high-danger chances from the other team.
The second period started off with a scary injury for Chicago. Five minutes into the period, center Jason Dickinson got tripped up by Oilers forward Vasily Podkolzin. In immense pain following the play, Dickinson had to be helped off the ice. He did not return to the game.
The scoring began a few minutes following the injury. From the left circle, Edmonton forward Viktor Arvidsson lifted a shot over Soderblom’s right shoulder. A surprising shot from his angle, Arvidsson gave the Oilers the lead at the 8:51 mark of the period.
It looked as though Chicago would remain off the score sheet going into the third. However, thanks to an effective entry by Teuvo Teravainen, and a smart decision by Lukas Reichel in parking himself in front of Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner, the Blackhawks tied the game with six second left in the second.
An evenly matched period, Chicago and Edmonton went into the third tied at 1–1, with the Blackhawks outshooting the Oilers 23–21 after two periods.
Third period
The tie did not last for long. Just over a minute into the third, Oiler forward Jeff Skinner took the open space in front of Soderblom to take the 2–1 lead for Edmonton.
Seven minutes later, Edmonton extended its lead over Chicago. After a turnover in the defensive zone by Reichel, Oilers superstar Leon Draisaitl gave his team a 3–1 lead with just over 10 minutes left in the game.
With hope seemingly lost, the Hawks found themselves on the power play following a Podkolzin interference. With 7:48 left in the third, Donato tipped in a strong pass from Teravainen, cutting the Oiler lead to one.
With less than five minutes remaining, Chicago turned up the intensity. Getting stronger on the forecheck, Bedard pinned the puck in Edmonton’s zone, allowing Donato to take the puck from Connor McDavid. After the turnover, Donato made an impressive pass to Martinez, who fired a hard shot into the net, giving Martinez his greatest career goal in the United Center — no, that cannot be disputed.
Thanks to Chicago’s late push, overtime was required in Chicago.
Overtime
With 3-on-3 hockey on the menu, Sorensen went with a defensive strategy. The Blackhawks started overtime with Bedard sharing the ice with defensemen Seth Jones and Alex Vlasic.
Despite the defensive mindset, Chicago found themselves in penalty trouble when Teravainen played the puck while Bedard was still on the ice, leading to a too-many-men penalty.
Edmonton, a very strong offensive team, took full advantage of the overtime power play, with McDavid finding goal-scoring forward Zach Hyman in front of the net to end the game in overtime.
Analysis
Despite the loss, Chicago kept up with a strong Oilers team for three periods plus overtime. Despite the criticism from panelists during the game, the first line of Slaggert-Bedard-Donato out-shot, out-chanced and out-scored Edmonton’s deadly top line.
In injury news, Sorensen confirmed the morning after the game that Dickinson suffered a high-ankle sprain, a tough injury, but proves that Dickinson avoided major damage, which is good news for a team that desperately needs Dickinson’s defensive play. Although he did not practice the next day, Chicago did not make any immediate call-ups, indicating confidence that the injury may be relatively short term.
The Blackhawks will look to halt their current three-game losing streak this Friday against the Nashville Predators in Chicago.