Blackhawks Lose To Senators On Controversial Overtime Goal

CHICAGO - The Chicago Blackhawks came into Wednesday night’s game winners of two straight games. Could they make it three straight games with the Ottawa Senators in town? 

It didn’t start well for Chicago as Brady Tkachuk scored at 2:25 of the first period. If you’ve been following hockey at all levels over the last month or so, you know all about Brady Tkachuk’s ability to make an impact early in games. 

At 11:38 of the first, Ryan Donato stayed hot with his 23rd goal of the season to tie the game. Remarkably, he only has one fewer goal this season than Tkachuk. 

Not long after that, the Blackhawks power play went to work. A lucky bounce combined with some hard work allowed Teuvo Teravainen to give the Blackhawks the lead at 12:22. 

To complete the goal-scoring run in the second half of the first period, David Perron took advantage of another lucky bounce on their end by batting one into the net out of midair. The 2-2 tie would make its way to the first intermission. 

In the middle frame, only one goal was scored. A beautiful passing play by Ottawa found its way to the back of the net off a beautiful one-time shot by Josh Norris. They took that 3-2 lead into the second intermission. 

Early in the third period, Pat Maroon made a beautiful play to deke a defender for a nice attempt on the net. He found the rebound and got it to Craig Smith who buried one from the slot. At 1:47 of the third, the game was tied again. 

From there, neither team wanted to give up much. Each squad earned a point by reaching overtime. It was then that a controversial goal changed the entire outlook of the evening. 

Tim Stutzle scored the game-winner that was reviewed for being kicked in and goaltender interference. The war room in Toronto deemed it a good goal which sent the United Center crowd home upset. The boos could be heard as they went for the exits. 

"It seems like we've been on the other side of those a lot this year, unfortunately." Pat Maroon said after the game when asked about it. "Those calls can go either way, it seems like they're not going our way this year for some reason." 

Maroon didn't seem too upset at the referees or the process with the call but he made it obvious that he doesn't agree. 

"I think it's frustrating". Landon Slaggert said about the OT winner postgame. "That call could go either way, it didn't go our way tonight. They send that one over to Toronto and they make their decision. I thought we deserved better, we played a hard game and didn't come out with it tonight".

The Blackhawks seem to have a good attitude about it following the tough loss. They know that they played well in this game and had a chance to win but the last bounce or decision didn't go their way. As they start to develop, they will find themselves on the right side of these calls. 

"We thought it was goalie interference." Interim head coach Anders Sorensen said on the topic. "They called it a good goal on the ice and they looked at it and that was it."

Sorensen also went on to mention that the kicking part of the discussion was more of an accident. From a spectator's view, it looked like that was the issue but they saw goalie interference as the problem on the Chicago bench. 

Chicago has now taken five out of six points in their last three games and has played well. They'd like to keep this going down the stretch toward the end of the season. Their next game will close out the three-game homestand. The Utah Hockey Club is coming to the United Center for the first time. 

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