The Chicago Blackhawks looked to get back into the win column on Monday night with an Original Six matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. This was the Hawks’ second game in as many nights following a 6–3 loss at home to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday. Arvid Soderblom got the start in net for the Hawks against Toronto’s Anthony Stolarz.
First period
The Leafs lit the lamp first when Auston Matthews scored his sixth of the season. Oliver Ekman-Larsson started a rush up ice from behind his own net, fed William Nylander, who entered the zone and fed Matthews, who skated in alone and flipped one past Soderblom at 15:35 to give Toronto a 1–0 lead after one.
Second period
At the 11:59 mark, John Tavares scored his 11th of the season to give Toronto a 2–0 lead. Tavares fired a shot from the half boards that pinballed in off Alex Vlasic’s stick to extend the Leafs’ lead. Toronto would take the 2–0 lead into the locker room after 40 minutes.
Third period
The Blackhawks cut the deficit in half on a Lukas Reichel tally. Former Maple Leaf defenseman TJ Brodie shot the puck from the left circle, which Stolartz stopped, but Reichel was at the doorstep to poke in his third of the season at 3:26. The Hawks trailed 2–1.
Net battle 💪 pic.twitter.com/0G73znGPSb
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 3, 2024
Just 21 seconds later, the Leafs regained a two-goal lead when Fraser Minten scored his second of the season. A shot from the point by Conor Timmins missed the net and took a fortunate bounce off the boards past a bewildered Wyatt Kaiser right out in front to Minten, who beat Soderblom from in close to give a Toronto a 3–1 lead at 3:47.
The Leafs added an empty-net tally by Matthew Knies at 18:15 to give Toronto a 4–1 advantage and that would be the final. For Knies, it was his 10th of the season.
Analysis
For most of the game, the effort was there as the Hawks outplayed the Leafs. Stolarz stood tall and kept the Hawks off the scoresheet for the majority of the game. In fact, for the first time since Nov. 6, the Hawks outshot their opponent, as they finished with a 28–22 advantage in shots on goal. After the Hawks cut it to 2–1 only to give the goal right back 21 seconds later, the wind was taken out of their sails and the Leafs cruised to the win.
The Hawks look to end their current three-game losing streak on Wednesday night against the Boston Bruins at United Center. Puck drop is at 6:30 p.m. CST on TNT and on CHSN with the radio call on 720 AM WGN.