Talkin’ Bout Last Night, Domi Stays Strong, Colton Dach Returns, Sharks For Sale, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

Did I just hear another whistle? The Blackhawks and Oilers spent more time in the sin bin last night than I can remember for two teams at the United Center in years. The game was competitive to the point it lost control on both sides. The second period became a marathon of guys taking a seat in timeout. But it was entertaining, no? Let’s start our Friday bullets talking about last night…

  • Reese Johnson skated 10:22 in Vegas in the Blackhawks’ second game of the season and then took a seat in the press box for two weeks. Head coach Luke Richardson had talked about wanting to get him some run, and the door opened for his opportunity when Tyler Johnson suffered a sprained ankle against Florida.
  • Reese jumped into the lineup and… skated less than six minutes against the Oilers. But he made it count; he scored his first goal of the season at a big time for the Hawks. Hopefully he can get more ice time in future games that are more normal than the penalty parade we watched on Thursday nights because he’s a wrecking ball on the fourth line.
  • Max Domi was a stud last night. He had three points (one goal, two assists) and won nine of 12 faceoffs. I went over to NHL.com after the dust settled from the game on Thursday night and looked at the league’s faceoff leaders. Among players who have taken at least 60 faceoffs thus far, Domi leads the NHL at 66.4 percent. And, for what it’s worth, Jonathan Toews ranks tenth at 60.9 percent. Those two leading the way at the dot is a big reason the Blackhawks have been able to drive play and compete almost every night.
  • Seth Jones skated 14:55 on either the power play or penalty kill last night.
  • Oh, and 88 did the thing — again.
  • Colton Dach has been in concussion protocol (for the second time this season) with Kelowna (the first was with the Blackhawks during training camp) but we saw good news on Thursday afternoon. He’s back on the ice skating! He hasn’t returned to game action yet, but he had a really good summer and has made some big strides forward in developing into a professional so I was hoping for a full, healthy year. He’ll hopefully get back on track quickly.
  • On Thursday night’s edition of “Insider Trading” on TSN, Pierre LeBrun reported the San Jose Sharks have already put up the For Sale sign. Basically anyone/everyone other than maybe Tomáš Hertl is apparently on the market. They have a new general manager, a new head coach and very little chance of chasing a playoff berth this year.
  • It’s interesting they’re already putting it out there that they’re ready to do business because there are some significant injuries around the NHL (they mention Josh Norris in the segment below as well) and some teams looking at potential gaps to fill in but… it’s still soooo early. This could also either set a market or undermine the market for later if teams can address their needs earlier in the season. Something I’ll be keeping an eye on moving forward for sure.
  • Speaking of teams being open for business in an effort to improve their draft profile, Blackhawks defenseman Jack Johnson had some thoughts about the tank before Thursday’s game.
  • Finally, the Bears and Cowboys play on Sunday. Can our guys ride their momentum off a great win at the Patriots into another upset? The Blackhawks have a vibe… it would be fun to see the Bears have one, too.
  • written by

    Tab Bamford has been writing about the Chicago Blackhawks for almost two decades. He joined Bleacher Nation as the lead Blackhawks writer in May 2022. Tab is a member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association and is the author of two books about the Blackhawks: "100 Things Blackhawks Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die" (Triumph Books) and "Chicago Blackhawks: An Illustrated Timeline" (Reedy Press, 2021). Find him on Twitter/X/Instagram/Threads at @The1Tab

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