The Chicago Blackhawks are coming off a tough loss to the Minnesota Wild. After leading 3-0, the Hawks allowed the Wild to chip away, tie the game, and win it in a shootout. They didn’t play horribly, but they were unable to lock things down in the end and win.
Now, their mini-road trip continues with a visit to eastern Pennsylvania to play the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins come in at a pleasantly surprising 26-14-11, while the Blackhawks are 21-23-9.
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This will be the second and final meeting between the two clubs this season. The first was a 7-3 win for the Penguins on December 28th at the United Center.
Scouting Pittsburgh
The Pittsburgh Penguins are having a great season, when many thought they’d be a lottery team. There is a solid mix of veterans and young players, but some of their veterans aren’t like others around the league.
Rakell-Crosby-Brazeau
Chinakhov-Novak-Malkin
McGroarty-Kindel-Mantha
Dewar-Lizotte-Acciari
Wotherspoon-Karlsson
Kulak-Letang
Solovyov-Shea
Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Erik Karlsson, and Kristopher Letang are all-time great players who will all be first-ballot Hall of Famers.
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In the case of Crosby, he is one of the five best hockey players ever to play the game, and he is still at the height of his powers in his late 30s. When the Olympics come around in a couple of weeks, he will be the captain of Team Canada in their pursuit of Gold.
Malkin is having an incredible season and is on a point per game pace once again as well. He doesn’t move like he once did, but there is no denying his scoring prowess as he’s found a way to be successful without the legs that he had in his 20s. Being smart, having a good shot, and knowing where to be at even strength and on the power play are big parts of his game.
Letang and Karlsson don’t play together as defense partners, which spreads the wealth on the back end for them. It isn’t as strong a group as it was when they were winning Stanley Cups in the 2010s, but they can move the puck well and shut down their opposition enough to win more than they lose.
Arturs Silovs will start in goal for the Penguins. They acquired Stuart Skinner from the Edmonton Oilers earlier in the year, but Silovs will be the guy for this match against the Blackhawks.
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Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Goalie For Chicago
The Chicago Blackhawks are on the moms/mentors trip, so they are trying to get everyone involved as much as they can. Colton Dach is going to suit up for Chicago in place of Landon Slaggert, which is the only change to the skater lineup. Sam Lafferty remains a healthy scratch.
Nazar-Bedard-Teravainen
Greene-Moore-Burakovsky
Bertuzzi-Dickinson-Mikheyev
Donato-Foligno-Dach
Vlasic-Crevier
Kaiser-Levshunov
Grzelcyk-Murphy
Connor Bedard, who grew up idolizing Sidney Crosby, will stick with his new line alongside Frank Nazar and Teuvo Teravainen. They were fantastic against the Wild and are looking to pick up more steam against this Penguins team that may allow some chances.
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In goal will be Arvid Soderblom, which sets up Spencer Knight for the second half of a back-to-back on Friday against the Columbus Blue Jackets at the United Center. Last time out, a shootout loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, Soderblom was on his game. An opportunity to start against Pittsburgh is another shot to keep the confidence up.
Patrick Kane Update
Earlier in the week, former Blackhawks superstar Patrick Kane tied Mike Modano for the most points by an American-born player in the history of the NHL.
Blackhawks Legend Patrick Kane Ties Mike Modano For Most Points By An American
Blackhawks Legend Patrick Kane Ties Mike Modano For Most Points By An American Chicago Blackhawks legend Patrick Kane is very close to cementing himself as the highest-scoring American-born NHL player of all time.
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While the Blackhawks are taking on the Penguins in Pittsburgh, the Detroit Red Wings will be hosting the Washington Capitals. This is Kane’s first chance to break the record.
How To Watch
The Blackhawks vs Penguins game can be heard locally on AM 720 WGN in the Chicagoland area. To view this game, it can be found on CHSN locally. Nationally, it can be found on ESPN+. The puck will drop shortly after 6:00 PM CT.
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