Goaltending Is Everything!

The Winnipeg Jets continued their quest in pursuit of a playoff spot and helped themselves by blitzing the hapless, Vegas Golden Knights. I say hapless because Vegas is truly trending downward and may play themselves out of a playoff spot with their spotty play and weak goaltending. The Jets meanwhile scored seven goals and are starting to heat up at the right time. They've won four of their last five games and won two in a row against teams higher in the standings. Are the Jets rounding the corner?

Meanwhile, the Chicago Blackhawks played a rematch against the Boston Bruins with both of those games decided by a single goal with the Bruins winning. Instead of losing the game in the last minute, the Hawks took the Bruins to overtime to at least get a point (not that it matters anymore), but still lost. 

Quick takeaways:

• Goalies are important: It's no secret that in the playoffs you have to be riding a hot goaltender. I can't think of a team that went deep without an outstanding performance from their goalie(s). Approaching the trade deadline I'm positive there will be some goalie movement. As witnessed at the Jets game, the Knights were done in by inadequate netminding. Former Jet, Laurent Brossoit and Logan Thompson were brutal last night (they faced 23 shots between them) and without starter, Robin Lehner this team is in big trouble. In Chicago, though well out of the playoff race, Marc Andre Fleury faced 46 shots and he was outstanding only allowing two goals in regulation and OT. The Hawks were out-shot 46-20 and this was definitely a goalie earned point. Whether Fleury will be dealt to a contender before the deadline is a mystery, but I'm sure GM Kyle Davidson is receiving plenty of calls. The Knight on the other hand must be regretting dumping Fleury in the off-season, ignoring the fact Lehner has not been durable and injury-free for much of his career. The Maple Leafs have suffered inconsistent goaltending all season, but last night, rookie, Erik Kallgren recorded a shutout in his first NHL start...more false hope for the Leafs?
• Gordie Howe Hat-trick: After the Jets, Logan Stanley got into a scrap and assisted on Kyle Connor's goal in the first period, I jokingly said, "If he scores he can get a Gordie Howe hat-trick!", as unlikely as that could be. Low and behold, Stanley turned the trick and scored his FIRST goal of the season mid-way through the second. He was even first star! Lol!
  

Trust me, the puck did go in the net. See that bulge on the top of the net.

• Hot scorers: Kyle Connor notched his 38th goal of the season and has scored in five straight games. He's now fourth in the league in goals and only trails Matthews, Draisaitl and Kreider. The Cat didn't score for the Hawks (he sits at 34), but Brandon Hagel scored his career high 21st goal and has scored in four straight games and a five game point streak.

Up next: With the trade deadline just around the corner, as in next Monday, I'll be watching for possible action (if any) there could be with the Hawks (sellers) and Jets (sellers?/buyers?). Stay tuned!

Hawks & Bruins: 17 Seconds, But...

Chicago Blackhawks fans will remember the film, 17 Seconds that chronicled the Hawks Stanley Cup win in 2013 against the Boston Bruins. In game six of the finals, the Bruins led game six, 2-1 with 76 seconds left in the third period. The Hawks pulled goalie, Corey Crawford hoping to score the equalizer goal, but what followed is known as the "greatest 17 seconds in Chicago sports history. The Blackhawks scored two goals in 17 seconds to not only tie the game, but the go-ahead goal that stood as the Stanley Cup winning goal. This goal will be forever associated with the Boston Bruins and though it didn't have the same important significance of a cup winning goal, the 17 seconds was reversed tonight. The Bruins broke a 3-3 tie with a goal from David Pastrnak with 17 seconds left in the third period to beat the Hawks 4-3. 

Takeaways:

• Chicago played a pretty solid road game, keeping the Bruins at bay 5 on 5 and defensively played well. Alec Regula was steady and didn't look out of place with about 12 minutes of ice time, while the top 4 (Jones, Murphy, McCabe and de Haan) each played over 20 minutes. It took a fluky, lucky bounce to produce the game winner and as Colby Cohen pointed out on the broadcast, a missed call on the previous face-off (before the icing) where the puck was gloved by the Bruins, Eric Haula near the face-off dot, which should have been a penalty. Bad luck and a heartbreaking loss!

• The power-play produced goals for both teams, the Bruins finished 2/3, while the Hawks were 1/3. The Hawks had two man advantages in the first period and the referees pulled the usual "even up" plan of issuing the next three penalties against the Hawks. This was costly as the Bruins scored twice on those power-plays, a team that is ranked 7th in league. The takeaway is stay out of the penalty box! The Hawks did get a power-play goal in the third from Hagel to tie the game at three.
• Alex DeBrincat remains hot, he scored his 34th goal of the year putting him 6th in the league for goals and he's scored in his last 4 games. With Patrick Kane's assist on the goal, he has 12 points in his last 5 games.
  
• Brandon Hagel continues to be a force, scoring his 19th and 20th goals of the season. His first goal was a beauty, using his speed to score on a wraparound. Hagel's tireless effort is attracting the attention of contending teams and there's reports of teams offering a 1st rounder and more (?). As a late round draft pick he has exceeded all expectations and to trade this underdog will be a disappointment. He personifies the type of player the Blackhawks sorely need more of, an important player to build around. He's the hardest worker on the team and finally his effort is being rewarded this season contributing significantly to the offensive. I'm definitely on Team Hagel!
  

• Kevin Lankinen played well and made some huge saves to keep the score even in the third. If it wasn't for the late goal, he could have been a star. In his last six starts, he has given up 4 or more goals and has won only one game since November. It's not that he's played badly, it's more a combination of tough luck and unfortunate bounces.

Up next: Hawks travel to Canada, more specifically in Ottawa for a Saturday night game against the Sens for a 6:00 pm CST start.