The Chicago Blackhawks have a day off before they face off against the Minnesota Wild tomorrow night, looking to finally clinch a win in their season series. The Blackhawks have pushed the Wild to overtime in all three encounters this year, but victory has eluded them each time. Last night was no different, as they rallied to force overtime but couldn't seal the deal.
Despite the loss, there were bright spots worth noting. Artyom Levshunov had a standout performance, and Louis Crevier’s powerful play was a highlight. I shared these insights on the CHGO Blackhawks Postgame Show, where we broke down the game’s positive takeaways.
In other team news, Ty Glenn shed some light on what the Blackhawks hope to achieve with Sacha Boisvert. However, his debut is on hold pending immigration paperwork.
On the international front, Anton Frondell made an impact in his SHL postseason debut, scoring the overtime winner to lead Djurgardens over Malmo Redhawks. They’re now up 1-0 in their series, with a chance to close it out soon.
Historically speaking, today marks some interesting moments for the Blackhawks. Back in 1940, they became the first NHL team to charter a flight, heading to Toronto for a playoff game.
Fast forward to 1956, Hall of Fame coach Dick Irvin secured his final career win as the Blackhawks edged out the Bruins. And in 1967, Bobby Hull made history with back-to-back 50-goal seasons.
More recently, in 2019, Patrick Kane joined the elite ranks of Blackhawks players with multiple 100-point seasons.
Celebrating birthdays today are former Blackhawks Billy Gardner and Kimmo Timonen.
Around the NHL, the Edmonton Oilers announced that star forward Leon Draisaitl will miss the rest of the regular season due to a lower-body injury. The Oilers managed a 5-3 victory over the Sharks in their first game without him, with newcomer Connor Murphy netting his inaugural goal for the team.
Seth Jones made his return for the Florida Panthers after a long injury hiatus. Despite his solid 20:16 on the ice, the Panthers fell 5-2 to the Canucks. This result is particularly relevant for the Blackhawks, who hold the Panthers’ first-round pick this year.
The Montreal Canadiens will be without Kirby Dach for the next two to four weeks due to an upper-body injury from a recent game against the Ducks.
Meanwhile, the Columbus Blue Jackets are surging under new head coach Rick Bowness, extending their point streak to 10 games. They’re now just a point shy of a wild card spot, showing impressive form with only two regulation losses in their last 23 outings.
Today’s NHL birthday roll call includes notable names like Bob Nevin, Guy Lapointe, and Zdeno Chara, among others.