Jim’s Daily: Hawks Lose, Matchup with Dallas, Lafrenière Contract

The Chicago Blackhawks lost yet another home game last night. Luckily, losing at home won’t be a problem for the next five games – as the Hawks are now on the road for a west coast trip into November.

The Hawks won’t have to wait long to shake off last night’s blown lead and loss to the Predators. In just a matter of hours the Dallas Stars will host Chicago for their first matchup of the season, and it should be interesting to see.

With three straight losses at home, the Blackhawks are turning a couple of bad periods into a costly losing streak. Richardson spoke postgame of finding the determination to get back in the win column.

“I think we have to have the determination like we did, let’s say, after the Winnipeg game,” Richardson said postgame. “That was a little deflating. We played so well all game, and they scored the end to tie, and obviously we know what happened in overtime. Similar kind of feeling tonight, and we might not have been even as good as the Winnipeg game, but we played the next night, and I think that’s probably a really good thing.”

Richardon pointing to the Winnipeg loss is interesting. For starters, after that loss, the Hawks wen’t out and played their best game of the season, beating the Edmonton Oilers 5-2. Now, the Hawks have another opportunity to shake off a bad loss and start a road trip on a positive.

“I know we have to travel, and we did that last time and played one of our better games all year – complete 60 minutes,” Richardson said. “So that’s what we have to look for tomorrow and have that desire that you’re not going to take no for an answer tomorrow (kind of) attitude.”

Dallas should be a big test for the Blackhawks, finding a way to compete against a deep skilled team should pose a big challenge – especially on the second day of a back to back. We do not know just yet who will be starting in net for the Hawks. Petr Mrazek and Arvid Soderblom were expected to split the games, with Mrazek playing Friday and Soderblom on Saturday. But an illness to Soderblom kept him out of the lineup and brought Drew Commesso up to the NHL. Check back at CHN for updates on the Hawks lineup going into tonight’s game.

Blackhawks News You May Have Missed:

• Hear directly from the Blackhawks locker room, including Alex Vlasic and Connor Murphy, following the disheartening loss to the Nashville Predators on Friday.
• Brooke LoFurno shared four thoughts from the Blackhawks 3-2 loss to Nashville. While Connor Bedard finally broke through, the Hawks joy was short lived thanks to a Predators rally.
• Kyle Davidson went out and addressed the lack of depth in the Hawks organization this past summer. Now, the team has options for the lineup, and it’s time for Richardson to shake things up on the top line.

News from around the National Hockey Now Network:

Detroit Hockey Now: Despite a three game win streak, the Detroit Red Wings have problems to address.

Montreal Hockey Now: While it might still be early, the Montreal Canadiens have some options when it comes to early trade options.

Florida Hockey Now: The Florida Panthers might be a Stanley Cup favorite, but there is always time to improve the farm system. On Friday, the Panthers announced the team had signed a top prospect.