In a Saturday matinee matchup, the Chicago Blackhawks (8-17-2) hosted the Winnipeg Jets (20-8-0) at the United Center. It was the Blackhawks’ first game since firing head coach Luke Richardson and inserting interim coach Anders Sorensen. The Jets snapped a four-game losing streak last night against the Buffalo Sabres. Both teams were looking to generate momentum after encountering inevitable in-season adversity.
The Jets came out on top 4-2, looking much more like the team that took the NHL by storm to start the season. The Blackhawks’ disappointing effort was not enough to carry Sorensen to his first NHL win.
Game Recap
The first period had a little bit of everything: controversy, a goalie swap, and scoring. The Jets started the game controlling much of the play and shutting down the Blackhawks for the first nine minutes. After a controversial delay of game penalty on the Jets, Alex Vlasic fired home a one-timer from the point, finding its way through Connor Hellebyuck’s pads.
Just as it looked like the Blackhawks found their footing, Petr Mrazek left 11 minutes into the game after making an awkward save. Arvid Soderblom replaced Mrazek and made some important saves immediately thereafter. But Gabe Vilardi tied the game with a beautiful deflection goal on a shot that would have missed the net by three feet.
A tie seemed certain heading into the first intermission, but Alec Martinez ripped a shot past Hellebyuck with 12 seconds left in the period, giving the Blackhawks a 2-1 lead.
Related: Thoughts on the Luke Richardson Firing & the Blackhawks Future
Unfortunately, the Blackhawks could not capitalize on the momentum from Martinez’s goal. They killed a penalty early in the second and narrowly avoided a tie game when Brad Lambert missed a wide-open net five minutes into the period. Nino Niederreiter eventually tied the game on a precise backhand, top-shelf shot with 6:50 remaining in the period. Truthfully, the Blackhawks were lucky to escape that period tied, as the Jets were the better team.
SCHEIFS IS JOHNNY ON THE SPOT 😎 pic.twitter.com/3OwbYD3rgU
— Winnipeg Jets (@NHLJets) December 7, 2024
A somewhat mundane third period proceeded until Mason Appleton hit the post with 13 minutes left, triggering a rush the other way from which Tyler Bertuzzi almost netted the go-ahead goal. Instead, Mark Scheifele scored his 14th of the season with about 10 minutes left to give the Jets the lead. This was the game-winning goal even though the Jets’ Appleton tapped in an empty netter with 1:41 remaining. Final score: 4-2.
The Jets Deserved This Win
The Jets deserved this win, outshooting the Blackhawks 29-14. The Blackhawks stayed with the Jets for the first period, but the Jets remained structurally sound, allowing few chances and taking advantage of their own. Hopefully for Jets fans, this is a return to what they are used to watching. For Blackhawks fans, it unfortunately looked like much of the same despite the coaching change.
The Blackhawks will head to New York to take on the Rangers Monday, while the Jets will be back home in Winnipeg tomorrow to take on the Columbus Blue Jackets.
