Anders Sorensen watches his team from the sidelines
Anders Sorensen’s first game as the Blackhawks’ interim coach looked very similar to when Luke Richardson was still in charge. There wasn’t enough offense in another loss.
Sorensen became the interim coach after Richardson was fired on Thursday. The 49-year-old Sorensen, who came up from Rockford in the American Hockey League, had only one practice with the team before facing Winnipeg on Saturday.
The Blackhawks had a season-low 14 shots on goal in their fifth straight loss, losing 4-2 to the Jets. In the final two periods, the Blackhawks were shut down by Winnipeg and had only six shots in the last 40 minutes.
“I thought they hemmed us in because they were (taking) a lot of shots and recovering a lot of pucks and we got kind of back on our heels a little bit,” Sorensen said, the first Swedish-born head coach in NHL history. “You know we have to turn around and find pucks constantly. It’s a tough way to play.”
Sorensen had an early problem when goaltender Petr Mrazek left the game in the first period with what appeared to be a groin injury.
Anders Sorensen speaks to the reporters
“He’ll be out a little bit,” Sorensen said, though he didn’t give a specific timeline.
The Blackhawks used a 2-1-2 defensive setup but often had a defenseman move up into the offense when they brought the puck into the Winnipeg zone. However, they missed many chances.
“We’ve had one practice,” said captain Nick Foligno. “We obviously understand the urgency. It’s just not going to turn around in one day. He wants us to be a real tenacious go-ahead team. You could see that tonight when we were playing on our toes.”
The next game for Chicago is a three-game trip starting Monday against the New York Rangers. The Blackhawks are 4-9-2 on the road this year.
“We’re trying to find our game and understand what we do a little bit better,” Foligno said. “I think the first period we did a lot of good things. We had pace, played the way Anders wants us to play. It’s disappointing we didn’t get the job done.”
Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson reached a breaking point after a 4-2 loss to Boston on Wednesday night.
That’s when he decided to replace head coach Luke Richardson.
“I don’t think once you cross that threshold in your own mind, you can go back,” Davidson said. “And so I crossed that point after the Boston game the other night.”
The results of that decision began on Friday, when Chicago practiced for the first time under interim coach Anders Sorensen, just one day after the Richardson firing was announced by the team.
Sorensen’s main challenge is turning around a team that wasn’t built for a playoff run this season but one Davidson believes is better than its current 8-16-2 record, which is the worst in the NHL. The Blackhawks, who struggle offensively, have lost four straight games and eight of their last ten, heading into Saturday’s game against Winnipeg.
“I don’t believe this is a last-place group. And that’s where we find ourselves,” Davidson said during his first media session since Richardson was fired. “Do I believe we deserve better in some games that we didn’t get a point or two points out of this year? Yes. But dissect that.
Anders Sorensen talks to the players in the practice
Why didn’t we get those points? I feel like there were things that could be cleaned up. And maybe some things kept popping up here and there that, again, probably should have been improved upon.”
Richardson, 55, had a 57-118-15 record in his two-plus seasons with the Blackhawks. The coaching change comes with Chicago preparing to host the Winter Classic on Dec. 31 against the St. Louis Blues at Wrigley Field.
In a statement released by the team, Richardson said he was grateful for the chance to coach the Blackhawks and wished the team and fans the best for the rest of the season.
Sorensen, 49, was previously the head coach of the Rockford IceHogs in the AHL, making him a familiar face to many Blackhawks players. He was hired by the organization as a development coach before the 2013-14 season and became an assistant coach with the IceHogs in 2018-19.
Sorensen becomes the first Swedish-born head coach in NHL history.
“I think for me, I’ve been a big believer in where my two feet are is where I’m going to work and try to get better and we’ll see what happens,” Sorensen said. “Obviously, like you said, you want to strive to improve and get up to higher levels. It’s surreal right now, trying to digest.”
Chicago Blackhawks and Toronto Maple Leafs
When asked what he needs to do to secure the job long-term, Sorensen laughed and responded, “Win games.”
“We want to see progress with a lot of our younger players,” he continued. “We want to make sure we’re kind of building off this and progressing and that’s the biggest thing.”
Connor Bedard’s development has been the key focus for Chicago this season, and it seemed like his progress had slowed a bit with Richardson as coach, especially offensively. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft has five goals and 14 assists in 26 games, compared to 11 goals and 10 assists at this point last season.
Although he has improved defensively, Bedard and the Blackhawks were hoping for more offensive output from him in his second season.
“He’s one of those guys we have to get him up the ice and get skating,” Sorensen said. “That’s when he’s at his best. We all see what he can do when the puck’s on his stick. We have to get a way for him to get the puck in motion. That’s the biggest thing right now.”
Bedard called Richardson “a really good guy” and said he was sad to see him go, but he’s also looking forward to working with Sorensen.
Anders Sorensen talks to Jason Dickinson in the practice
“It’s good to have the first skate and get comfortable and talk to him,” Bedard said. “It’s good we all know him a little bit from being at training camps and stuff like that, so it was a good first day.”
While Bedard is the main focus, Chicago’s offensive struggles go deeper than just their young center. The Blackhawks signed Tyler Bertuzzi and Teuvo Teravainen in free agency, but the two forwards have combined for just 11 goals and 11 assists.
Chicago is averaging 2.42 goals per game, ranking No. 31 in the NHL, ahead of only Nashville, heading into Friday’s games. The Blackhawks finished last season with a league-low 178 goals.
“Everyone needs to take ownership of this,” captain Nick Foligno said. “The sad part is one person maybe takes the fall, but it’s all of us that need to be better in here. We’re excited to get to work with Anders, and I think Luke would want us to forge ahead, too. He cares a lot about this group and this organization, so the best we can do is get moving ahead here and show we can be that team.”
Chicago Blackhawks head coach Luke Richardson, center top, talks to his players during the third period of an NHL hockey game
The Chicago Blackhawks fired coach Luke Richardson on Thursday, showing their frustration with the progress of the team’s rebuilding effort.
Chicago has lost four straight games, bringing their record to a league-worst 8-16-2 for the season. They were outscored 41-27 during a 3-9-1 stretch over their last 13 games.
Anders Sorensen, who had been coaching the team’s minor league affiliate in Rockford, was promoted to interim head coach.
“Today I made the difficult decision to move on from Luke as our head coach,” general manager Kyle Davidson said in a statement. “We thank him for his efforts and contributions to the organization and our community.
As we have begun to take steps forward in our rebuilding process, we felt that the results did not match our expectations for a higher level of execution this season and ultimately came to the decision that a change was necessary.”
The Blackhawks had hoped to be more competitive in Richardson’s third season. They signed players like Tyler Bertuzzi, Teuvo Teravainen, Alec Martinez, and Craig Smith on the first day of free agency this summer. They also had Connor Bedard returning for his second season after winning the Calder Memorial Trophy as NHL rookie of the year.
Chicago Blackhawks and Toronto Maple Leafs
However, Bertuzzi and Teravainen have struggled, and Martinez has been hurt. Bertuzzi has five goals and five assists in 26 games, while Teravainen has only three goals and two assists in his last 21 games.
The most important player for Chicago is 19-year-old Bedard. His lack of production may have contributed to Richardson’s firing. Bedard, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft, has shown some positive development but has had a hard time scoring.
He ended a 12-game goal drought with a score against Dallas on Nov. 27. He has five goals and 14 assists in 26 games, compared to 11 goals and 10 assists at the same point last season.
“We’re not happy with the record, for sure,” Richardson said after his last game, a 4-2 loss to Boston on Wednesday. “The guys are trying to work within the system and the right way and unfortunately, like I said before, we don’t seem to have one kind of Achilles’ heel.
There’s not one problem with our team. It’s like one night there’s one area — maybe our defense or our forward or one player — and the next night it’s another area, like a different player.”
While Chicago has had many issues, their biggest problem has been offense. They are averaging 2.42 goals per game, ranking 31st in the NHL, ahead of only Nashville. Last season, the Blackhawks finished with the fewest goals in the league, with 178.
Richardson, 55, had a 57-118-15 record in Chicago. He was a former NHL defenseman and had been an assistant coach with Montreal before being hired by the Blackhawks in June 2022. In the 2021 playoffs, he briefly took over as coach for Montreal when Dominique Ducharme tested positive for COVID-19 and helped lead the Canadiens to their first Stanley Cup Final since 1993.
This change comes just ahead of the Winter Classic on Dec. 31, where Chicago will face the St. Louis Blues at Wrigley Field. Before the coaching change was announced, the NHL released a design of how the rink will look at the home of baseball’s Chicago Cubs.
Sorensen, 49, is a familiar face for the Blackhawks. He first joined the organization as a development coach in 2013. He has a 117-89-16-7 record in 229 career AHL games, all with Rockford.
Brad Marchand scored two goals in the second period just 2:05 apart, and Morgan Geekie also netted two goals, while Jeremy Swayman made 20 saves to help the Boston Bruins beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-2 on Wednesday.
Boston won its sixth game in the last eight, extending its season-best winning streak to three games under interim coach Joe Sacco after coming back from an early deficit.
Marchand had his second multi-goal game of the season, while Geekie recorded his first. Justin Brazeau, Mason Lohrei, Jordan Oesterle, and David Pastrnak each had two assists.
Marchand’s first goal came at 2:58 of the second period when he was left alone to receive a backdoor pass from Pastrnak, scoring from the right circle.
Marchand scored again shortly after, picking up a rebound of a shot from Pastrnak and backhanding it past Blackhawks goalie Petr Mrazek to give the Bruins a 3-1 lead.
Chicago took a 1-0 lead just 1:23 into the game when Alex Vlasic scored his first goal of the season off a wrist shot from the right circle following a pass from Nick Foligno.
Columbus Blue Jackets and Chicago Blackhawks
However, the Blackhawks couldn’t hold on to the lead, as they lost their fourth straight game, matching their worst losing streak of the season.
Boston tied the game at 12:17 of the first period when Geekie followed up his own shot, putting in the rebound after Mrazek couldn’t control the puck.
The Blackhawks got back within 3-2 late in the second period when Jason Dickinson scored on a wrist shot from the left circle, assisted by Connor Murphy.
Chicago had a chance to tie the game early in the third period, with two shots on goal, a blocked shot, and a missed shot over a 19-second stretch. However, Boston restored its two-goal lead at 5:02 of the third when Geekie scored on a breakaway from a long pass by Brazeau.
With 1:55 left, the Blackhawks were called for too many men on the ice after putting an extra attacker on too quickly.
The Chicago Blackhawks are on their third losing streak of at least three games this season, and it’s been a tough stretch recently.
The Blackhawks will return home on Wednesday night to play the Boston Bruins after suffering back-to-back losses by three goals to the Columbus Blue Jackets and Toronto Maple Leafs.
On Monday, an empty-net goal late in the third period sealed a 4-1 victory for the Maple Leafs.
“Second and third period, we created chances,” said Chicago forward Lukas Reichel. “It wasn’t Grade A, but we were in the offensive zone buzzing, we went to the net, but unfortunately we didn’t get a good bounce to put (enough) in.
“We just have to find ways to win the game when it’s 2-1 or when we are down one goal. It’s pretty tough right now.”
Reichel scored the only goal for Chicago on Monday, cutting the deficit to 2-1 at 3:26 of the third period, but the Maple Leafs’ Fraser Minten answered just 21 seconds later, putting Toronto up by two goals again.
“We had some great chances. We worked them down low pretty good. That was the game plan,” said Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson. “Unfortunately, we just didn’t connect on a few of them. There were a couple loose pucks in there that we couldn’t get our hands on. … There were a couple tough bounces on us tonight.”
The Bruins will look to extend their winning streak to three games as they continue a busy stretch of playing three games in four days.
Dallas Stars and Chicago Blackhawks (NHL)
Boston defeated the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 on Tuesday, with Pavel Zacha scoring in overtime after a pass from David Pastrnak at 2:15.
“It’s really important,” said Zacha. “It’s one of those games where you have to win those if you want to have a good season. So that was something. We had a good penalty kill, something we can build on, and now we have to play better the next game.”
Boston improved to 5-2-0 since Joe Sacco became the interim coach after Jim Montgomery was fired last month. Zacha credited a shift in mindset for helping the Bruins build momentum.
“I think there’s been a little more shot volume, a little more structure in the defensive zone,” he said. “I think that has helped this team be really good defensively and then go from there. I think that’s working for us.”
Nikita Zadorov, who scored Boston’s first goal on Tuesday, added, “I think we’re playing with passion. I think we’re playing with pride. I think we’re playing for each other. I thought we were disconnected before. That’s what wasn’t working. I don’t think we fixed much Xs and Os.”
The Blackhawks’ leading scorer, Connor Bedard (19 points), saw his three-game point streak come to an end against the Maple Leafs.
Bedard scored one goal and had a minus-1 rating in two games against the Bruins last season.
Sean Monahan scored a goal and added an assist for the Columbus Blue Jackets, who extended their point streak to six games with a 6-3 win against the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday.
Damon Severson recorded three assists, while Cole Sillinger and Zach Werenski each had two assists for the Blue Jackets, who are now 5-0-1 in their last six games. Elvis Merzlikins made 28 saves in goal.
Connor Bedard had a goal and an assist, and Petr Mrazek made 30 saves for the Blackhawks, who have lost six of their last eight games.
Bedard gave Chicago a 1-0 lead at 2:59 of the first period with a power-play goal. Ryan Donato collected a rebound in the slot and passed it to Bedard in the left circle for the score.
Ivan Provorov tied the game 1-1 at 4:27. Monahan passed the puck to Provorov, who took a shot from above the right circle and beat Mrazek on the blocker side.
Johnson gave Columbus a 2-1 lead at 11:23 with a one-timer from the right circle that went past Mrazek on the short side.
Columbus Blue Jackets and Carolina Hurricanes
The Blackhawks tied the game again at 2-2 just three minutes into the second period with another power-play goal. Craig Smith redirected Taylor Hall’s shot from the slot inside the right post.
Chicago almost took the lead less than 30 seconds later, but Merzlikins made a toe save on Lukas Reichel’s shot off the rush.
Monahan gave the Blue Jackets the lead again when he fired a wrist shot from the left faceoff circle under Mrazek’s right arm at 4:50 to make it 3-2.
Dante Fabbro extended the lead to 4-2 at 3:08 of the third period with a shot from the right circle off the rush, using Blackhawks defenseman Alec Martinez as a screen.
Nick Foligno made it 4-3 at 8:08 with a power-play goal, tipping Teuvo Teravainen’s shot-pass on a 5-on-3 advantage.
Kirill Marchenko intercepted a clearing attempt by Wyatt Kaiser and scored from high in the right circle at 10:52, putting Columbus up 5-3.
Dmitri Voronkov sealed the win with an empty-net goal from his own end at 18:31, making it 6-3.
The Dallas Stars and Chicago Blackhawks have both struggled with keeping leads in recent games. They will try to improve on this when they play each other on Wednesday night in Chicago.
The Stars lost 6-4 to the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday. Dallas had a 3-1 lead after the second period, but they allowed three goals in the first 8:09 of the third period and two more in the final 2:07.
“Next one’s always big after a loss,” said Stars forward Jamie Benn. “Obviously, we want to end this road trip with a win.”
The Blackhawks lost 3-2 in overtime to the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday. Chicago had a 2-0 lead going into the third period but let it slip away and gave up the winning goal just 1:06 into overtime.
The Blackhawks are now 6-1-2 when leading after the second period.
Chicago defenseman Alec Martinez, who has won three Stanley Cup titles, said confidence is key in keeping a lead.
“If you have experience where you’ve held those leads and been successful in that, then you fall back on your experience,” Martinez said. “There’s a knowing that, ‘We’re going to get this job done.’ It’s a process. Every team goes through it.”
Martinez also mentioned that players need to balance being aggressive and playing with caution while holding a lead.
“You’ve got to keep attacking,” he said. “If you just sit back and allow them to enter the zone, you increase the sample size. You give them more zone time and the odds are further and further stacked against you.”
Dallas Stars players celebrate after a goal
Chicago coach Luke Richardson agreed, saying that holding a lead is about managing the puck and staying out of your own defensive zone.
“Eventually, it’s too much and it wears out all your good energy playing defense (rather) than creating offense, which is part of our problem offensively,” Richardson said.
The Stars are also hoping to improve their power play, which has been struggling. They’ve scored on only 1 of 15 power-play chances in their last six games, dropping them to 25th in the NHL for power-play efficiency (16.1 percent). Last season, they ranked sixth with a 24.2 percent success rate.
“It starts with breakouts,” said Stars forward Tyler Seguin. “More pucks to the net, for sure.”
In addition, the Stars’ penalty kill has been a problem. They gave up one short-handed goal and two power-play goals to Carolina.
“I liked most of our 5-on-5 game all night, but the special teams were a disaster,” said Stars coach Pete DeBoer. “(One) short-handed goal, two power-play goals by them. You’re not going to win if your special teams look like that.”
If the Stars can win in Chicago, they will face a busy schedule in December, with nine home games and five on the road.
Dallas has been much better at home this season, with a record of 8-2-0, compared to 5-5-0 on the road.
“We’ve got to go out and execute,” said Benn. “The power play can make a big difference on the road. We just need to go out there with the confidence to make a difference in the game.”
