Blackhawks in the Blue Jackets February 13, 2021 NHL recap: scores, stats, videos, highlights

The Blackhawks entered Saturday’s rematch with the Blue Jackets in search of redemption, after wasting two goals in the last game. This time, it was the Blackhawks who played spoiler, scoring a few minutes remaining in regulation and again in extra time out of yet another goal from Alex Debrincat in the 3-2 victory.

Patrick Laine opened the scoring at 6:39 in the first with a bar spipe and down in the top corner. Just a nice shot. The Jackets scored first in 12 of the 16 games.

Later in the first, Brandon Hagel checked Jack Roslovic hard, and Laine inexplicably decided to defend his honor. Hagel and Laine each have five to fight, but the Blackhawks come with the opportunity to play power as Laine took an extra interference penalty.

The first period seemed to be just a continuation of the last game with the Blue Jackets dictating, but the Blackhawks gained momentum after a couple of strength games that did anything but score.

The Blackhawks finished with 14 shots against 9 of the Jackets, but still lost 1-0 at the end of the period.

That momentum would pass into the midfield, and after some offensive time extended to the Blackhawks, Nicolas Beaudin scored his second in so many games to draw 1-1.

In a scary moment, Mattias Janmark took a record on his head and went to the locker room with 8:40 left in the second. Fortunately, he would return to the bank not long after.

Cam Atkinson broke the tie with 5:13 remaining in the second period, deflecting a shot from Zach Werenski. This was Atkinson’s sixth point in the last two games against the Blackhawks.

The Blackhawks pressed hard after the second goal and had several chances in the final minutes of the period. Dylan Strome had perhaps the best, but Joonas Korpisalo came in great to keep the Blue Jackets ahead.

Although the Blackhawks controlled much of the game in the first 40 minutes, they lost 2-1 in the final period.

The third period would be the antithesis of the first two as the Blue Jackets trapped through the neutral zone to drown out the Blackhawks.

However, the Hawks are nothing more than resilient and scored the equalizer goal at 3:45 in the end of the game. Philipp Kurashev made a great move to knock the puck out for Carl Soderberg, who scored his first goal of the season.

The regulation ended with Blackhawks and Jackets tied at 2 and then they are in overtime again.

Fortunately, Debrincat ended the game quickly, scoring just 35 seconds in overtime with beautiful hand-eye coordination. Patrick Kane also got his third assist in the game. These two are really feeling the chemistry.

HAWKS WIN! HAWKS WIN!

Grades

• It almost seems redundant at this point, but the Blackhawks kids really are doing well. The team is being led by the vets in Kane and Keith, but the young players are each impressive in their own ways and it is a pleasure to watch them.
• Speaking of impressive, Nicolas Beaudin not only scored his second goal in the NHL, his constant game with and without the puck is becoming his trademark. Beaudin demonstrates a wonderful level of comfort to see, considering that he turned 21 just a few months ago.
• Hagel was quick to become a fan favorite thanks to his work ethic and relentless pursuit of the record, and he probably just became more beloved by dropping his gloves against Laine. Hagel is a spark plug that needs Andrew Shaw to guide him on how to convert that energy into production.
• Kurashev was also a catalyst in this game. He drew the first penalty of the game – which rocked the momentum in favor of the Hawks – and took Werenski’s pocket to assist in the equalizer.
• DeBrincat and Kane have always worked well together, but this season they seemed to have taken it to another level. They are having the puck well in their 128 minutes of time on the ice, along with a 52% share in attempts to shoot and 63% in goals scored while on the ice. Kane made his seventh multipoint game of the season.
• There has been a lot of discussion about the substandard Blackhawks playing 5 on 5, but they were much better in the first 40 minutes tonight. Part of this is due to scoring effects, and they didn’t get anything in the third – seriously, the Hawks only had a 7.95 percentage of goals expected for that period – but you have to be happy with the improvements from the last game.
• On the other hand, power play failed to score for the first time in six games. It still looked dangerous, but the streak had to end sometime.

Game graphics

Three stars

1. Alex Debrincat (CHI) – GWG
2. Patrick Kane (CHI) – 2 assists
3. Kevin Lankinen (CHI) – 29 saves in 31 shots

What is the next

The Blackhawks face the Detroit Red Wings on Monday at the American Little Caesars Arena for a 6:30 pm start.