Chicago Blackhawks
Morning Chirps: Thompson Propels Denver, IceHogs Roll in Grand Rapids
The Chicago Blackhawks will have back-to-back afternoon games this weekend. They are in St. Louis to take on the Blues today, and we’ll have your early preview well before the 2 pm puck drop. Then, they will return home to play the Philadelphia Flyers tomorrow afternoon. The Rockford IceHogs picked up a big win, while some college prospects had big nights.
Blackhawks Chirps
- The elbow injury suffered by Colton Dach on Thursday was not nearly as bad as first feared. Get the full update from yesterday’s practice recap.
- Aidan Thompson scored the game-winning goal in Denver’s 4-2 win over Arizona State in Friday’s NCHC Semifinal. He also had an assist and six shots on goal.
- Denver will play Western Michigan in tonight’s NCHC Championship Game after they beat North Dakota 4-2. Sacha Boisvert had both goals for the Fighting Hawks. North Dakota is ranked 17th in the country, so they might get one of the at-large bids for the upcoming NCAA tournament, but that’s not a guarantee.
- In the OHL, Marek Vanacker scored his 24th goal of the season, and Nick Lardis recorded two assists in the Brantford Bulldogs’ 4-0 win over the Kingston Frontenacs. The Bulldogs clinched the East Division championship with the victory. They will wrap up their regular season against the Ottawa 67’s on Sunday.
- Michael Misa, who could be a Blackhawks prospect soon, scored his 60th goal of the season last night. He is tied for the fourth-most goals by a draft-eligible player in OHL history.
IceHogs Chirps
- The IceHogs used a three-goal outburst in the second period to roll to a 4-1 victory over the Grand Rapids Griffins. After Gerry Mayhew scored in the opening period, Jackson Cates, Andreas Athanasiou, and Zach Sanford scored in the middle frame. Prospects Kevin Korchinski, Samuel Savoie, and Gavin Hayes picked up assists. Goaltender Drew Commesso was 13 minutes away from his fifth shutout of the season before allowing a goal to Hunter Johannes. He stopped 24 of the 25 shots he faced to earn his 13th win. These two rivals will meet again later tonight.
NHL Chirps
- A fun stat from the AP’s Stephen Whyno: on Thursday, the Washington Capitals became the first team since 1979-80 to be the first to clinch a playoff spot after being the last to get in the previous season.
- The Edmonton Oilers will be without the services of their superstar duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl for up to a week. They could miss their next two games against the Dallas Stars and Seattle Kraken.
- Staying in Edmonton, the Oilers will have to wait at least two more weeks for Trent Frederic to make his team debut, per team reporter Tony Brar. Frederic was traded to the Oilers by the Boston Bruins on March 4 but has been sidelined with a lower-body injury.
- The Minnesota Wild reassigned defenseman David Jiricek to the AHL on Friday, which means their top blueliner, Jonas Brodin, will likely return to the lineup tonight against the Buffalo Sabres.
