Blackhawks Gameday Preview: Blackhawks hoping Lightning doesn't strike twice

Chicago Blackhawks (15-29-5, 35 pts) at Tampa Bay Lightning (26-19-3, 55 pts)
6:00 p.m. CT – Amalie Arena
TV: CHSN (Ball/Pang)
Radio: WGN 720 AM (Wiedeman/Murray)

Didn’t we just do this? The Chicago Blackhawks and Tampa Bay Lightning meet for the second and final time this season in the span of four days. But, there’s a lot that has gone on since the last time these teams met.

That Friday night game, a 4-3 overtime loss for the Blackhawks, was overshadowed by the blockbuster deal in the NHL that Chicago had a small part in with Taylor Hall being traded to Carolina along with Mikko Rantanen. In that game, the three goal-scorers were Colton Dach, Frank Nazar, and Louis Creiver, with Nazar and Creiver notching two-point nights and Connor Bedard getting the primary assist on Nazar’s goal. Only Ryan Donato tallied a point that night as a player above the age of 22 years old. It was a positive sign for the rebuild and youth movement in Chicago, even in a game they blew a lead late and lost in overtime.

Ahead of Chicgao’s last game on Sunday, the team recalled forward Landon Slaggert from the Rockford IceHogs and he looked to be joining a roster and lineup that began the season as the fifth-oldest in the NHL and was about to play nine players 23-years-old or younger. Unfortunately that won’t be the case as Slaggert enters the lineup in place of Dach and T.J. Brodie re-enters the lineup in the place of Nolan Allan on the blue line. At morning skate, interim head coach Anders Sorensen said scratching Dach was based on his need to be more physically present when in the lineup. Dach recorded three hits in 15 shifts on Sunday night.

The move also comes the day after Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson met the media for his mid-season press conference and touted how well the rebuild has been going, pointing to the development of the young players both in the professional and junior ranks. The optics of the move stink and no one is benefitting from seeing T.J. Brodie back in the lineup.

Seth Jones enters this game on a five-game point streak and has two goals and seven points over that stretch of games. Nazar also enters the game on a four-game point streak of his own with goals in back-to-back games and five points total over that span.

Arvid Söderblom gets the start tonight and will again face the Lighting after making 36 saves on 40 shots faced in the game last Friday.

Season Series

1/24/25 vs TBL – 4-3 OTL
1/28/25 at TBL

Blackhawks Team Leaders

G-Tyler Bertuzzi (17)
A-Connor Bedard (30)
P-Connor Bedard (43)
PPG-Tyler Bertuzzi (8)
SOG-Connor Bedard (115)
PIM-Pat Maroon (67)

Lightning Team Leaders

G-Brayden Point (27)
A-Nikita Kucherov (50)
P-Nikita Kucherov (73)
PPG-Brayden Point, Jake Guentzel (12)
SOG-Nikita Kucherov (163)
PIM-Emil Lilleberg (76)

Blackhawks Team Stats

GF/G-2.59 (31st)
GA/G-3.45 (30th)
PP%-23.7 (9th)
PK%-80.9 (11th)
SOG/G-24.8 (32nd)
SA/G-31.3 (30th)
FO%-45.1 (30th)
PIM/G-8:31 (20th)

Lightning Team Stats

GF/G-3.54 (1st)
GA/G-2.81 (10th)
PP%-27.9 (4th)
PK%-81.9 (7th)
SOG/G-29.0 (13th)
SA/G-28.4 (17th)
FO%-50.4 (16th)
PIM/G-8:41 (21st)

Blackhawks Probable Lines

Forwards
Frank Nazar-Connor Bedard-Tyler Bertuzzi
Teuvo Teräväinen-Jason Dickinson-Ilya Mikheyev
Landon Slaggert-Lukas Reichel-Nick Foligno
Pat Maroon-Ryan Donato-Philipp Kurashev

Defensemen
Alex Vlasic-Louis Crevier
Alec Martinez-Seth Jones
Ethan Del Mastro-T.J. Brodie

Scratched:
Colton Dach, Nolan Allan

Injured:
Laurent Brossoit (IR), Connor Murphy (OUT), Craig Smith (IR)

Lightning Probable Lines

Forwards
Jake Guentzel-Brayden Point-Nikita Kucherov
Brandon Hagel-Anthony Cirelli-Conor Geekie
Zegmus Girgenson-Nick Paul-Gage Goncalves
Mitchell Chaffee-Luke Glendening-Michael Eyssimont

Defensemen
Victor Hedman-Darren Raddysh
Ryan McDonagh-Erik Cernak
Declan Carlile-Nick Perbix

Scratched
Cam Atkinson, Emil Lilleberg (Suspended)

Injured
J.J. Moser (IR)

Probable Goaltending Matchup

Arvid Söderblom (6-11-3, .906 SV%, 2.97 GAA, 0 SO) vs Andrei Vasilevskiy (20-15-2, .915 SV%, 2.34 GAA, 2 SO)

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