The Chicago Blackhawks were still smarting a little the night before on Saturday.
Not only did they lose 4–3 in overtime to the Tampa Bay Lightning—after leading 3–1—but they also felt the absence of forward Taylor Hall, whose trade to the Carolina Hurricanes was completed as the game went on. Had been.
“He was in the rink, playing sewer (ball), and then the next thing you know, obviously what happens,” Connor Bedard said after Saturday’s practice at Fifth Third Arena. “But that’s its business, I guess.
“Obviously this is useless. You’re hanging out with a guy one minute and then he’s gone and he’s not in the rink anymore. This is a strange thing. But that’s just how it is. ,
Added Jason Dickinson: “It sucks on a personal level. But the business side of it is we put ourselves in this position, so it’s unavoidable. ,
The Hawks acquired a 2025 third-round pick in a three-team deal with the Hurricanes and Colorado Avalanche that sent Mikko Rantanen heading to Carolina.
As for the Hawks, that’s what they would have done anyway, had they not traded it to the Hurricanes to acquire an additional third-round pick last summer to take Jack Pridham. It is currently projected to be 17 to 20 spots higher than the Canes’ other picks in the third round.
For the Hawks, it’s become an annual thing around trade season: Brandon Hagel, Max Domi — even Patrick Kane. And now the hall.
“We can’t expect to have buyers if we’re not in a position to win or move things forward,” Dickinson said. “So that’s the way it has to go in order to move the bigger picture forward, and in later years that these little moves that you make now can have a big impact down the line.”
Here are five things we learned.
1. The Hawks will see Hall again soon.
The Hawks visit the Hurricanes on Thursday for the second of a three-game trip.
“It’s good that we get to see him in a few days,” Bedard said. “It will obviously be strange playing with him and then, (several) days later, he is going against you. It would be fun, though. I’m excited to play against him and watch him. It’s an exciting opportunity for him to go out there and compete for a cup.
The Hawks hoped that matching Bedard with a fellow former No. 1 pick would help guide Bedard on the ice, but that plan was thwarted by injuries to Hall last season.
Hall and Bedard got some ice time this season, but the line combinations with them were as much of a defensive liability as they were a modest offensive success.
Still, Bedard soaked up what he could from Hall.
“He was really nice to me, obviously coming into our careers in a similar position,” he said. “He was always there giving me advice or questions or whatever.
“I became very close to him. It sucks that he’s gone, but obviously it’s very exciting for him – the new opportunity and everything. But we are going to miss him. ,
2. Defensive reinforcements are on the way.
Seth Jones missed Friday’s game with an illness, and he and Alec Martínez took sick days for Saturday’s practice.
But both are expected to be back for Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Wild at the United Center.
Connor Murphy (groin) has been ruled out for the game, but he returned to practice and has a shot to join the trip based on his progress.
“It’s a good sign,” interim coach Anders Sorensen said.
Murphy (93) trails only Alex Vlasic (96) in blocks despite playing in only 38 games, 10 fewer than Vlasic. That’s one of the things the Hawks remember about Murphy.
“There’s a presence, a predictability in his game,” Sorensen said. “Obviously (he) was defending well, with a big body as well.”
3. The Hawks are no closer to closing out games.
The Hawks have blown a few leads in the final minutes this season, but they took it to a new level against the Lightning.
Up 3–1 in the second period, the Bolts’ Nick Paul scored before the concession with eight seconds left.
The Hawks were outscored 17–1 in the third, but held on for the most part until Martinez’s pass to former Hawk Brandon Hagel led to Jake Guentzel’s tying goal with 41 seconds left in regulation.
Teuvo Teräväinen fouled Paul with four seconds left, and it set the stage for Nikita Kucherov’s game-winning power-play goal in overtime.
Dickinson was at a loss to explain how the Hawks could do a better job of closing out those late-period situations.
Maybe “a little frustration, a little more fight back,” he said.
“When teams start pushing you have to push back at some point,” Dickinson said. “And that’s a tough thing to do against good teams. They know how to take momentum and build on it like this. ,
4. Young skaters appearing on the score sheet.
It’s been a banner two weeks for the Hawks’ pipeline.
“Yeah, it was awesome to see all of us on the score sheet,” Dutch said. “But other people were doing their part too. So it’s good to see that we’re kind of clicking, and some people got some confidence from it. ,
Sorensen said Crevier has improved his shot selection.
“He’s very skilled at just getting the puck,” he said. “He gets it and deflects it off his stick and even if it’s not a goal, a lot of times it ends up being a scrum around the net.”
Added Bedard, who assisted on Najar’s goal on Friday: “He’s getting better every game. It’s fun to watch him progress. He’s got so much skill. He is very fast. ,
After the game, Najar was happy for DACH, although he advised, “Maybe work on the setty.”
Dach slammed himself into the glass after his goal.
On Saturday, Dutch’s eyes widened when his former Rockford IceHogs linemate said that.
“Frank said I could work on it?” He said laughing. “I don’t know if he should talk about the ceremonies. But, I mean, definitely emotions took over and (I) was just super excited.
“But I guess I’ll have to work on something and figure out a new celebration.”
5. The Last Laugh: Bedard had the quote of the day.
With one win, two overtime losses and one shootout loss, the Hawks have emerged with at least one standings point from each of the last four games.
This may be a low bar, but does it constitute a sign of things turning around for the franchise?
Bédard seemed incredulous: “When we won three games, you guys thought we won the cup. Then we lost six straight. ,
Still, they were reminded that three-game winning streaks have been in rare supply over the past five seasons.
“I know, I get it. It was just funny. It’s just the media,” he said. “If you have a big game or you win a game, you’re the best you’ve ever been. If you lose, you shouldn’t be in the league.
“It’s funny to see such reactions. But for us, you don’t want to have too high, you don’t want to have too low.