The Blackhawks’ 1-5 start has left plenty of room for blame, but the team keeps circling back to one specific issue: they’re making the game harder on themselves.
That was the thread after Chicago’s 5-2 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Oct. 10, and it carried right into practice the next day. The problem isn’t some mystery in the Blackhawks’ eyes. They’ve been talking about self-inflicted mistakes, and they know those errors are piling up fast.
Patrick Kane said it plainly after the Carolina game: “Obviously, the first period is all right, and we give up one in the last minute, and then we get a power play, we get a couple looks, actually, and then all of a sudden we got another look and a broken stick, and they come down, and it's hard not to get frustrated when things are snowballing like that.
“It seems like you get some bad breaks. But we're also doing it to ourselves too, right?
I think we put a lot of pressure on ourselves because we haven't been good with the puck, and we turn it over, and then you got to play d-zone, and then you're a little bit tired because you're backchecking; you're coming back into your end when you should be going the other way. So, I think we can make it a little bit easier on ourselves.
I mean, obviously we gave up a lot in the d-zone tonight, so, [we] need to get better with that. But I think it starts with being better with the puck, too.”
That theme was front and center again when head coach Jeff Blashill spoke at practice on Oct. 11.
He said, “We had a tough meeting this morning, but they came out and had good attitudes and competed hard, and I think we understand that a lot of our issue right now is self-inflicted. So, we just got to cure that self-infliction.”
Dominic Toninato echoed the same idea when asked about what he’s seeing during this stretch. “We got a great team.
We got a good group of guys, good players, and we're piecing it together right now. The big thing I think we've been talking about, and that's happening, is we're kind of shooting ourselves in the foot.
Playing hard. But like I said, the little mistakes, simple mistakes, are costing us in the end.”
The Blackhawks know the fixes have to start with the details. Kane pointed to better puck management, and Blashill said the larger answer is maturity.
“I would say maturity. And the question for our guys is, 'How quickly do we want to mature?'
And that's just the reality of it. Like, are we going to mature in it quicker than teams that are kind of established teams?
We played the two Stanley Cup finalists last year in Carolina and Vegas. They don't do a lot of beating themselves.
Those players have gotten to a point in their careers where they take what's given and they understand risk/reward. But it takes time to get to that point.
“We got a whole bunch of guys on our team that are trying to learn that, and so, learning, taking what's given, learning risk/reward, and there's a line to it, and as I've said to our team lots, like this group's going to win. We're going to win when we mature.
How quickly do we want to do that, and how long do we want to wait? So, hopefully we can learn those lessons sooner than later.
But I can't guarantee that. It's just something that as we go through it... there's not like a magic pill that you can give them for it.
They just have to learn that.”
For Chicago, the lesson is simple even if the fix isn’t. Cut down the turnovers.
Don’t let a goal against snowball into another mistake. Make the little plays cleaner.
Those details have been hurting them, and they’re the ones the Blackhawks have to clean up first.
There is at least some reason for optimism heading into their game against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Oct. 13. The Blackhawks had two strong practice days before that matchup, and Alex Vlasic said the group’s desire hasn’t gone anywhere.
“I think we have a lot of compete in our group. I think... it obviously sucks to be losing some of these games, but we all have a burning desire to win, and you can definitely see the frustration for some of us just because we do want to win so badly, and it's something that we're kind of using to our advantage. You know, use our frustration and turn it into momentum, turn it into some motivation to keep getting better and working on our game every single day.”
In Other News...
Blackhawks Forward Hits Early Crossroads As Bedard Returns
Connor Bedards return to active play has already nudged the Blackhawks into making a familiar sort of roster call, one that speaks as much to the organizations depth chart as it does to the excitement around its centerpiece. To clear space after activating Bedard from the injured non-roster list, Chicago sent forward Nick Lardis to the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL, a move that gives the young winger a chance to keep developing after an uneven start to the season.
For Lardis, the assignment is more of a reset than a verdict, with the Blackhawks leaving the door open for a future recall if his game catches up with the opportunity. It is also a reminder that Chicagos forward group is competitive enough to make even short-term roster decisions feel meaningful, especially when a player like Bedard is back in the lineup and the pressure to sort out roles only gets sharper. [Read more 🡒]
Alex DeBrincat Just Gave Blackhawks Fans A Tough Detroit Reminder
Alex DeBrincat is staying put in Detroit, and for Blackhawks fans it is the kind of reminder that lands a little harder than most. The 28-year-old winger has built a productive NHL career across Chicago, Ottawa and now the Red Wings, and Detroit has moved to secure him for the foreseeable future after bringing him in in 2023.
For Chicago, the name still carries extra weight because DeBrincat once looked like one of the franchises most reliable homegrown scorers before moving on. His success since then only sharpens the what-could-have-been feeling around a player who was drafted by the Blackhawks and went on to become one of the leagues more dependable offensive threats, now locked in as part of a division rivals long-term core. [Read more 🡒]
Bowen Byram Suddenly Looms Large In A Huge Night For Chicago
The Blackhawks meeting with the Penguins on Oct. 13 already carries a little extra weight, with Connor Bedard expected to make his season debut as Chicagos new captain. But the night may matter just as much for Bowen Byram, the offseason addition who arrived with expectations of shoring up the blue line and helping steady a club that has stumbled out of the gate. For a team looking for any sign of traction, the spotlight is suddenly shared.
Byram has had a quiet opening stretch in Chicago, and the Blackhawks would love for this matchup to give him a chance to reset in a meaningful way. Pittsburgh has long been a familiar test for him, and this is the kind of game where Chicago could use a defenseman finding his timing at the same moment its star center is back in the lineup. If the Blackhawks are going to start turning early-season noise into momentum, nights like this are where it has to begin. [Read more 🡒]