NEWSLETTER
The Blackhawks hit the road for Detroit after a morning skate at Fifth Third Arena. Here’s the important information from today’s skate and Luke Richardson’s media availability.
Korchinski and Savoie Back in the Lineup vs. Red Wings
The back half of a preseason back-to-back means that we won’t be seeing many of the regulars tonight in Detroit (more on how you can see who is playing shortly). But you will see Kevin Korchinski and Samuel Savoie, who both played pretty well last night in their pseudo-NHL debuts.
Luke Richardson said after today’s practice that playing Savoie and Korchinski was pre-planned, citing the front office’s desire to see them and his desire to get them their repetitions early in the schedule before other teams run out lineups closer to their regular season look.
“They wanted to get those guys in a couple games early and see if we want to keep them and get them more games or make a decision on them,” Richardson said of the decision to play Korchinski and Savoie again tonight. “I think it’s smarter to get them in earlier. There are more varied lineups, so it’s not like a full NHL lineup that’s overwhelming. It gives them a chance to go out and do what they do well.”
As far as how Richardson thinks the two 2022 draft picks played in their first taste of NHL action, Richardson likes what he saw, complimenting Savoie on his willingness to mix it up and agitate the other team, and Korchinski’s speed and ability to transition in the blink of an eye.
“I thought both of them did very well. I think Savoie played, he’s not afraid to mix it up. He drew a penalty and gave us a chance on the power play. He skated well, took pucks to the net, finished his check. And Korchinski, you seen him, I think the one play that Patrick made to him in the second period, that’s his game. We’re defending in our zone and about 3 1/2 seconds later he’s at the other crease, making a play at a net. I think that was a good sign to show that he’s got the confidence to do it at this level.”
Here’s who will be joining Korchinski and Savoie in Detroit tonight:
Regarding who will be skating with whom tonight, Lukas Reichel will be centering the top line flanked by Boris Katchouk and Philipp Kurashev. Sam Lafferty will center the second line, and local product David Gust will play on the fourth line with Sam Savoie and Reese Johnson.
Lukas Reichel will also man the PP1 unit with Kurashev and Katchouk, with Kevin Korchinski and Riley Stillman as the top defensive pairing on the PP1 unit and otherwise.
Here’s a look at the lines from practice this morning:
Blues Thoughts, No One Exempt from Constructive Criticism
Luke Richardson touched on last night’s loss to the Blues this afternoon, complimenting the guys understanding of what went well and what didn’t last night.
“We saw some good things in our systems, 5-on-5, not a lot of breakdowns. We worked on a little bit of D zone and neutral zone today and moving the puck quick. We’re just going to keep that theme up until we get more repetitions and more comfortable with it. the guys are asking questions and nodding their heads and getting used to it, so I think it’s sinking in and it’s working.”
Richardson made it clear that no one is exempt from criticism on this team, pointing out that he opened today’s meetings with a clip of his top line last night (Athanasiou-Domi-Kane) making some mistakes to open the second period.
“I think even today, first clip, it’s the start of the second period. It’s not to embarrass anybody, but Patrick and Domes and double A, they kind of turn the puck over a couple times. We spun our wheels for almost two minutes, and it was just to show the difference. Then we showed them later, them doing a great job in the D zone and three, four seconds later, getting an opportunity at the other end. That was the Korchinski one. I think Domi had a similar chance from Patrick. And they created. We just don’t have to be risky to create. Especially a line like that, they’re good enough and fast enough. They’re going to create without being risky. I think just treating everybody the same.
“The young guys see it, oh, I can show a clip of our No. 1 line last night maybe making a mistake or a poor decision, first shift, we spun our wheels for a while and it took a while to get our feet back under us, that’s a good thing. That’s just honest. It’s not centering anybody out. It’s just what happened in the game. And then going from there, everybody can take constructive criticism evenly. I think that makes it a team. “
You can read more about last night’s game in Tab’s takeaways:
Captains, Roster Cuts on the Way
We know that Jonathan Toews will wear the C on his sweater for the 14th consecutive season, and Patrick Kane will again be his first alternate captain. Seth Jones will wear the second alternate A for home games, and Connor Murphy will wear it on the road as he did last season.
“Patrick and Jonathan obviously earned the right to be the leaders of this team and they’ve proven that over and over again and I know Murphy’s been here quite a bit over the years and he’s a really good pro, good veteran. He’s been No. 1 in the fitness testing the last two years, that shows the dedication he has and the commitment he has.
“He’s going to be our guy on the road, he has a little more veteran leadership than maybe Seth there. he’s been here longer, so maybe put him on the road where it’s a little harder to get the referee’s attention and Seth at home. Seth is a big part of the organization and I think it’s time for him to take a step, be even a bigger leader in the dressing room.”
Regarding roster cuts, Richardson said that cuts would likely come in “one or two waves” and that he will be speaking with Kyle Davidson during the team’s scheduled off date tomorrow regarding the first wave of cuts.
How to Watch Tonight’s Game
There will be no local broadcast tonight, but if you’re an ESPN+ subscriber (and honestly, if you’re a hockey fan, it’s a no-brainer), you’ll be able to tune into the Detroit home broadcast of the game.
I leave you with this little nugget: Detroit has Elmer Soderblom listed as one of their forwards for tonight’s game. Elmer is the younger brother of Arvid Soderblom, who will be in net for the Blackhawks tonight. Arvid will get the full boat tonight with Jaxson Stauber backing him up, with no planned time split as we saw between Mrazek and Stalock last night.
