The Chicago Blackhawks have not scored more than one goal in regulation since they played Anaheim on November 3.
Will Tuesday’s game against the Ducks help fix their struggling offense? Chicago certainly hopes so.
The Blackhawks have been outscored 15-6 in their last five games, losing four of them. Now, they’re back home looking for a spark. Their short road trip to Seattle and Vancouver didn’t do much to improve their offense.
Ilya Mikeheyev scored 6:50 into the game against the Canucks on Saturday, but Chicago couldn’t keep up the momentum and lost 4-1.
“Our quality scoring chances were up,” said Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson. “Just can’t find the back of the net. Lack of drawing penalties, too. We can’t seem to get enough chances there, which would probably help a little bit in production.”
Connor Bedard, the Calder Trophy winner, has been particularly eager to contribute. Although he leads the team with 10 assists and 13 points, Bedard hasn’t scored a goal since October 26 against the Dallas Stars.
He has just four points in the last nine games, including three assists during the Blackhawks’ 4-2 win in Anaheim.
Philipp Kurashev, who was the team’s second-leading scorer last season, has only four points this season, while Teuvo Teravainen has just one point in his last 13 games.
“We have to just start looking at the simple part of our game, (so) that can add more offense,” Richardson said. “I don’t think we’re a team built yet to open it up and go back and forth, like Edmonton or Colorado can.”
Anaheim has won three of its last four games, including a 4-2 road win against the Stars on Monday.
Defenseman Olen Zellweger put the Ducks ahead just 56 seconds into the game, and Brett Leason scored at 5:44. That early lead helped Anaheim play with more confidence behind goalie Lukas Dostal, who made 34 saves.
“We came out, we played a solid, 200-foot game, kept pucks going north. And I thought that’s why we had a 2-0 lead after the first 10 minutes,” said Cutter Gauthier, who had a goal and an assist. “The more we do that to start off games, the better it’s going to be for us moving forward.”
Brock McGinn left the game for Anaheim with a lower-body injury, but the Ducks showed their depth and won back-to-back games for the first time this season.
Leason also added two assists for his first career three-point game.
“Kind of just play as hard as I can every day. Just do the simple things. Do everything correctly,” he said. “Do everything that coach asks of me. Give it my all, pretty much.”
Taylor Hall assisted on two goals in the first game between the Blackhawks and Ducks, but he was a healthy scratch against Vancouver. Hall said the decision surprised him, but he expects to play against the Ducks after speaking with Richardson.
“I just want to play better and be better for our team,” Hall said.
After Tuesday’s game, the Blackhawks and Ducks won’t face each other again until March 1, when they finish the season series in Anaheim.
