Blackhawks Postgame Chatter: “It was a big win, especially at home”

CHICAGO — The Chicago Blackhawks home opener started with a red carpet and ended with a celebration. From start to finish, the Blackhawks looked like the better team against the San Jose Sharks. What would have been a close game last season shows just how improved the Hawks are in the new year.

The Blackhawks beat the Sharks 4-2 on Thursday night, and following the win moods were high in the locker room. Teuvo Teravainen registered two assists.

“It was a big win, especially at home,” said Teravainen. “We have to be great at home, use the fans. Just overall a great first game at home.”

Teravainen was a star in the Hawks home opener. Out of all the offseason additions, he has been the most productive to star the year with seven points in the first five games of the season. Teravainen and Bedard have been a great duo for the Hawks – especially on the power play.

“It’s getting better and better,” Teravainen said of the power play. “We are still going to get some reps in and games in and just move the puck and make some plays. Today we had a lot of power play and we made a nice couple of plays.”

Bedard and Teravainen came together on two different goals tonight – both on the power play. One was from Tyler Bertuzzi and the other was from their linemate Nick Foligno. Following the win, Bedard spoke of the strong connection with both of his linemates.

“I think we are just trying to find each other a lot,” said Bedard of playing with Teravainen. “You have to throw [Foligno] in there as well. He’s going to the net, he’s going to the corners and me and Teuvo are really benefiting off of that. He’s getting in the open space and I am looking for him and he’s looking for me.”

tic-tac-gooooooooal❌ pic.twitter.com/v2yvlGdfxj

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) October 18, 2024

Teravainen is currently playing at an above a point per game pace, something he has not done in his career. While Teravainen was a big part of the Carolina Hurricanes the last few years, he has taken on a bigger role in Chicago. Head Coach Luke Richardson sees the skill he possesses.

“He just sees the openings,” Richardson said. “He knows exactly what the next play is before he gets it on his stick.”

Lukas Reichel finished the night with 8:31 minutes of ice time, going 1 for 4 in the faceoff dot with one shot on goal. With so much time spent on the man advantage, Reichel might not have gotten as much ice time as he should have in a regular game. Following the game, Richardson spoke positively of Reichel’s game.

“I thought he had some good plays,” Richardson said. “I thought he was hard in the faceoff circle and blocked a shot in the third period and really showed initiatve to take some hard strides in there whether it was tracking back which helps our defense or on the offense and on the forecheck. It was a good start for him.”

For more Blackhawks News, visit Chicago Hockey Now, subscribe to our YouTube and like our Facebook page.

Follow us on 𝕏:

@CHIHockeyNow, @JimRLynch

And on Threads:

@JimRLynch