NEWSLETTER
Remember in November and December when the Blackhawks would give us 20 good minutes and then disappear for an entire period (or two)? Yeah… that team got off the bus in Detroit tonight. In fact, I would argue the only guys that got off the bus were our first two stars of the night. They got away with a mediocre first period and then should have been down after the second.
Star 1: Alex Stalock
I know he allowed two goals in the second period, but the skaters in front of him did nothing for 20 minutes. After saving his team’s @$$ for 20 minutes in the first period, there was only so much he could do as the Blackhawks were getting out-shot 19-3 in the second. How bad was it? The Blackhawks went 15 minutes between shots on goal in the second period, but Stalock kept them ahead by one. This game could/should have been 4 or 5-2 by the end of 40 minutes if not for Stalock. Put it another way: he faced 19 shots in the second period alone; the skaters in front of him put 19 shots on net in 59:54 of game time. Stalock stopped 37 of 41.
Star 2: Taylor Raddysh
Raddysh hadn’t scored in 15 games before Wednesday night. After watching a few of his teammates get back in the box score against Ottawa, he broke that drought in style with a power play goal and an even strength goal in the first period. For a guy who never had more than 19 goals in an AHL season with the Tampa organization, he now has 16 in the NHL for the Blackhawks this year. And he’s under contract for next season with a cap hit of only $758,333!
Star 3: Joey Anderson
In his first five games with the Blackhawks after being acquired from Toronto, Anderson was credited with three shots on net. His first goal for Chicago gave the Hawks a lead in the third period. He was also the forward leader with two blocked shots in the game. Anderson has been asked to play a fourth line role and he’s been effective in that so far. It was great to see him score his first.
Takeaways
- Robby Fabbri left the game late in the first period for Detroit and did not return. It appeared his leg got twisted when he got hit by Tyler Johnson on the play that ended up with Raddysh’s even-strength goal.
- Andreas Athanasiou was credited with an assist on Raddysh’s power play goal in the first period. He now has a point in five of his last six games (two goals, four assists).
- Caleb Jones scooped a puck out of the crease with his hand with 42 seconds left in the first period and the Red Wings were awarded a penalty shot (Dylan Larkin was denied). It looked like Caleb got away with a second one in the second period. There were a few scrambles in the paint but you can’t cover the puck with your hand in there, Caleb.
- Just to reinforce how much Stalock kept his team in the game through two periods, I offer the following:
