NEWSLETTER
Well, here goes nothing.
The Chicago Blackhawks begin their thunderdome month of March with a three-game series at home against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Blackhawks are 0-2-0 against the Lightning this season, having dropped the opening two games of the 2021 season against them, while getting out-scored 10-3 in the process. 10 of the next 14 games for the Blackhawks in March are against teams ahead of them in the standings, with five of those games coming against the Lightning.
Tampa Bay leads the Central Division with 31 points through 20 games this season with a 15-4-1 record. They also lead the Division with a .775 points percentage, .070 higher than the Florida Panthers in second-place. The Blackhawks are sitting in the fourth and final playoff spot in the Central Division with a 12-7-4 record and 28 points. Chicago’s .609 points percentage is also fourth in the Central, .130 higher than the fifth-place Columbus Blue Jackets.
One-Timers
•  The Blackhawks come into the game having won just twice against the Lightning since winning the 2015 Stanley Cup in Game Six at the United Center. Chicago is 2-8-2 against Tampa since the beginning of the 2015-16 season and has lost 10 of their last 11 meetings.
•  Tampa Bay goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy has not allowed a goal in just over 200 minutes of game time. He has shutouts in his last three starts in-a-row and leads the NHL in wins (13), save percentage (.942), and GAA (1.65) among goalies with at least seven appearances, and is one of five goalies with three shutouts this season.
•  Patrick Kane enters this series after having tied his highest scoring month (24 points) in his career. After being named the NHL’s Star of the Month for the Central Division, he sets his sights on the Lightning to continue his dominant season for Chicago. It’ll be tough sledding for Kane, though, as he has four goals and four assists in 12 games against the Lightning since the 2015-16 season. He had one of the Blackhawks’ three goals scored against the Lightning in the opening series of the season back in January.
Puck Drops and Broadcast Info
•  Thursday, March 4 at 7:00 p.m. CT
TV: NBCSCH, SUN, ESPN+
Radio: WGN 720 AM / TUDN 1200-AM
•  Friday, March 5 at 7:00 p.m. CT
TV: NBCSCH, SUN, ESPN+
Radio: WGN 720 AM / TUDN 1200-AM
•  Sunday, March 7 at 1:30 p.m. CT
TV: NBCSCH, NBCSN, SN1, TVAS
Radio: WGN 720 AM / TUDN 1200-AM
Expected Lineups
Blackhawks (12-7-4, 28 pts)
DeBrincat – Suter – Kane
KubalÃk – Wallmark – Hagel
Janmark – Söderberg – Kurashev
Highmore – Kämpf – Carpenter
Keith – Mitchell
Zadorov – Murphy
de Haan – Boqvist
Lankinen/Subban
Lightning (15-4-1, 31 pts)Â
Palat – Point – Johnson
Killorn – Cirelli – Stamkos
Goodrow – Gourde – Coleman
Maroon –Colton – Joseph
Hedman – Rutta
McDonagh – Cernak
Sergachev – Foote
Vasilevskiy/McElhinney
Tale of the Tape
Powerplay
Blackhawks: 33.3% (1st)
Lightning: 26.5% (7th)
Penalty-Kill
Blackhawks: 75.0% (23rd)
Lightning: 88.6% (2nd)
Faceoffs
Blackhawks: 47.0% (26th)
Lightning: 49.0% (20th)
Goals Per Game
Blackhawks: 3.13 (12th)
Lightning: 3.55 (2nd)
Goals Against Per Game
Blackhawks: 2.87 (15th)
Lightning: 1.95 (1st)
Top Scorer
Blackhawks: Patrick Kane – 11 goals, 23 assists, 34 points
Lightning: Steven Stamkos – 10 goals, 10 assists, 20 points / Victor Hedman – 4 goals, 16 assists, 20 points
Injury Report
Blackhawks:
Brent Seabrook (IR – Lower Back)
Zack Smith (IR – Back)
Andrew Shaw (IR – Concussion)
Kirby Dach (LTIR – Wrist)
Alex Nylander (LTIR – Knee)
Jonathan Toews (LTIR – Illness)
Dylan Strome (Day-to-day – Concussion)
Lightning
Nikita Kucherov (LTIR – Hip Surgery)
Anders Nilsson (LTIR – Concussion)
Marián GáborÃk (LTIR – Indefinite)
Mitchell Stephens (LTIR – Indefinite)
Keep An Eye Out For
Lightning History. Andrei Vasilevskiy is on the verge of setting the Tampa Bay franchise record for consecutive shutout minutes played. Unless the Blackhawks score in the first two minutes of Thursday night’s contest, Vasilevskiy will pass John Grahame’s record of 202:46. Vasilevskiy sits at 200:45 with three-straight shutout performances.
Best vs Best. The Blackhawks come into the series with the NHL’s best powerplay unit. The Lightning come into the series with the second-best penalty-kill unit in the league, trailing the Colorado Avalanche by just 0.3%. Chicago has banked on their powerplay a ton this season, it’ll be a challenge to break through the Lightning’s stellar kill.
