Frustration Boils Over After Another Blackhawks Loss

The Utah Hockey Club played like a team desperate for points in their 2-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks. They are fighting for a playoff spot, and the Blackhawks could not match their desperation. Even though the score was close, the Blackhawks were dominated at 5v5 while taking five penalties. Tonight was the third straight sub-par effort coming out of the 4 Nations Face-Off break, and the frustration is showing. The three-game road trip continues Thursday night at the Vegas Golden Knights.

The Blackhawks had to kill off three penalties in the first period, two on some questionable calls. They were up to the task, while the power-play unit cashed in on their only opportunity of the opening frame. Seth Jones carried the puck down from the point, looking for a passing lane, then realized he had an open shot, so he fired a wrist shot just inside the far post.

Utah finally got on the scoreboard in the final minute of the second period. Connor Murphy was hit with a Michael Kesselring shot at the same time he got checked by Clayton Keller, who located the loose puck and quickly swept it past Arvid Soderblom.

Lawson Crouse gave Utah a 2-1 with less than eight minutes to play by firing a backhand shot through an inadvertent Alec Martinez screen.

The Blackhawks pushed over the last few minutes and had a couple of good looks with the goalie pulled but could not draw even.

Seth Jones Vents Frustration

After Jones went public about his wishes to play for a contender, he added that he would continue to give a full effort for however long he remains with the Blackhawks. There was no doubting his effort in Salt Lake City tonight. He played a team-high 25:27, scored the only goal, and had eight shot attempts, five hits, and four blocked shots. Late in the game, with his net empty, he raced down the ice at the end of an over two-minute shift to get an icing call.

One thing I have always appreciated about Jones is his brutal honesty. That was on full display during his postgame media scrum, where he vented some of his frustrations.

“We’re the exact same team right now as we were in game one,” he said. “It’s pretty evident out there. We haven’t made any strides to be a better, more simple hockey team, and it shows. We don’t get a lot of wins because of that.”

Jones wants out, and it’s hard to blame him. This is not what he signed up for. Since being acquired, he’s played for two general managers and four head coaches and done a lot of losing. He made sure to point out that it has been this way for four years.

General manager Kyle Davidson has a tough job ahead. Moving Jones’ contract before the trade deadline won’t be easy. A trade will likely be easier in the summer when the salary cap increases. It’s been reported that Davidson does not want to retain any salary in a deal, which makes a trade before March even harder to complete. He doesn’t have to trade Jones now, in the summer, or ever. But these types of venting sessions force the team’s hand even more.

Incomplete Grade for Top Line

The revolving door for Connor Bedard has been non-stop all season long. He’s been on 36 different line combinations through the first 57 games. This is a huge problem that needs to be fixed this summer. One of those combinations that has worked is Bedard with Tyler Bertuzzi and Frank Nazar. That trio was back together tonight.

“They’ve had some good games together in the past,” interim head coach Anders Sorensen said. “We haven’t scored a lot in the last couple of games here, and we want to get some production, so we’re switching it up.”

In their eight games together this season, they produced 40 scoring chances, 12 high-danger scoring chances, and five goals at 5v5. Bertuzzi had his best run of the season playing with Bedard.

“When he was at his best, he was around the net a lot and winning a lot of pucks back,” Sorensen said. “We saw that last game. He needs to play to his strengths. He’s best when getting pucks off the back wall and getting them to the net.”

With all the penalties called, only 43:17 of 5v5 ice time was played tonight. That makes it challenging to get into any real flow and adequately judge how the line played. In 8:39 of ice time, the trio produced four shot attempts, allowing 12, and had no scoring chances.

Bertuzzi led the team with four shots on goal, but one came on the power play. Two of Nazar’s three shots came on special teams, while Bedard had no shots on goal and only one shot attempt.

“It’s hard to judge after a game like that because we didn’t create much,” Sorensen said after the loss. “There were a lot of penalties, and they never got into a rhythm. I thought they were better in the third period.”

There is no reason to split this line up again. We are 58 games into the season. There is no magical combination out there that will make this team an offensive juggernaut. Let these three play together for the next few games and see what the roster looks like after the deadline.