The Chicago Blackhawks was impressive as they clinched a 4-2 win over the San Jose Sharks in their home opener on Thursday night in the United Centre. The win was an early boost to the season for the Blackhawks who demonstrated great offence and determination to defend their goal in the match.
The Blackhawks did not take long to impose themselves on the game, and Taylor Hall put the first goal into the net in the first period after only five minutes. Hall, a former Boston Bruin, capitalized on a breakaway opportunity created by TJ Brodie’s precise pass, beating the Sharks’ goaltender with a well-placed shot between the pads.
Heading into the last five minutes of the first period, Tyler Bertuzzi made it 2-0 with a power play goal for the Blackhawks. Bertuzzi made the goal when only 49 seconds were left in the period in which he deftly tipped the pass by Teuvo Teravainen, showing how strong the team was in the specialization matches.
The visitor’s power play was once again lethal in the second period, and Nick Foligno made it 3 – 1 for the Blackhawks only 43 seconds into the second period. The goal came out of a terrific tic-tac-toe play by Connor Bedard, who made a no-look pass across the ice to Teravainen, who returned the pass and found Foligno for the deflection of the puck.
Even though the Sharks went in an equaliser spree in the second period, particularly in the last few minutes when Tyler Toffoli scored, the Blackhawks kept calm and unruffled the game. Jason Dickinson doubled the lead to 4-1 mid through the third period in a fine display of individualism which included a toe-drag move that saw him find the back of the side netting.
The Sharks were able to come back, though, with a delayed penalty, and Fabian Zetterlund scored on a precise tip-in of a shot from Mikael Granlund, making it a 4-2 game. Still, the Blackhawks’ good defensive work from the last several minutes dictated the team’s win.
Mrazek saw only 22 shots in this match, but when it mattered he stood up to the challenge. While Arsenal would only manage to score two goals, both goals that were scored by Mrazek’s misconduct were definately due to deflections and these always prove very challenging to the goaltender.
The game also revealed one of the displays by the most important players. Teuvo Teravainen and Connor Bedard both registered two assists in the game to show how they can create scoring chances for themselves and for teammates, for goals. Their efforts, along with the team’s overall strong showing, earned them recognition as two of the game’s three stars.
Of course, people had nothing but joy when their team triumphed, but some people started questioning the lineup choices. Lukas Reichel, who is a young player, did not ice much as he played in a position that can be regarded as out of place for him. This has led to some debate amongst both the fans and the analysts on how best the team can manage the development of young players on the team during their reconstructing process.
One particularly cannot overlook the fact that there was no sellout crowd at the United Centre Wednesday night. Due to such an unanticipated situation in a home opener, many questions have arisen about the causes of this, including those related to the ongoing problems with the broadcast of matches on TV and in legal Internet streams for lovers of viewing the team.
Moving forward, Blackhawks expect to increase on this foundation as they next play against the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday. The performance of the team in they’re home opener is without a doubt has set to expectations and the sense of anticipation that is anticipated for the upcoming season.
While the Blackhawks are continuing to build around fresh acquisitions and youth, such games are quite illustrative of what the team’s future could look like. Chicago hockey fans have plenty of reasons to be hopeful about the Blackhawks and their future after the balance between experienced players and newcomers.