The Chicago Blackhawks are off to a brutal start. Head coach Jeff Blashill has a couple of cards he could play to create a spark.
The Chicago Blackhawks are 0-2-0 to start the season. They didn't just lose to the Vegas Golden Knights and Utah Mammoth. They were blown out in both games by a combined score of 11-2. They didn't show any improvement from the first game to the second either. In fact, they got worse.
Now, the Blackhawks can't lie down and let the season slip away before it even starts. They have a match on the East Coast against the Buffalo Sabres to close out the three-game road trip to start the season. After that, they are headed to Chicago for the home opener.
"I have tons of belief in these guys," head coach Jeff Blashill said following the Utah game. "This is two games, neither more nor less. Does that mean there is urgency? Yes. We have urgency to go play a good hockey game on Saturday. My focus is us getting better as a group. That doesn't change. We are super young; it can't be an excuse. These guys have to step up."
Ahead of that game in Buffalo, Blashill may be looking for something to spark the team. There are a handful of routes he can go, and one of these three would make the most sense and be the most realistic:
1. Insert Kevin Korchinski and/or Ethan Del Mastro
The Chicago Blackhawks have been lousy defensively, especially when they are skating around their own zone. Protecting the house is paramount to winning hockey games, and they have done a poor job of it over two games.
The Blackhawks are never going to bench Bowen Byram or Alex Vlasic, who had the two worst nights of any defenders on the team against Utah. They are their two highest-paid blue-liners, so they will be relied on to figure out their game.
However, Sam Rinzel is a second-year player with plenty of development left. He could be someone who takes a seat in favor of Kevin Korchinski or Ethan Del Mastro. Although Artyom Levshunov has had flashes in the first two games, he is a candidate to watch a game from the press box as well.
Jeff Blashill was asked about the possibility of getting either Korchinski/Del Mastro into a game, and he left every door open.
"I’m not there. Probably," Jeff Blashill said when asked if he'd make a switch like that. "We’ll see. We consider everything, so we’ll look at it and see if we think the two other options are better than the options that played."
If those first two games aren't a reason to insert either Korchinski or Del Mastro, then why are they on the team? They were each solid in the preseason and earned their spots. Between that and the team's performance, why not now?
2. Change pairings in general
Jeff Blashill can also change up the pairs, regardless of who else gets inserted in. Bowen Byram and Alex Vlasic played poorly enough on Thursday to warrant splitting them up to see if that creates a spark. He changes the forward lines with ease, but why not the defensive pairs more?
If they get another game together to see if they can work through it, the logic is sound. However, they should be on short leashes based on their play. What was on display against both the Golden Knights and the Mammoth, but especially the Mammoth, is unacceptable in the NHL for any sustained period of time.
3. Create forward lines and leave them be
In the same vein, the forward lines have been in the blender a lot since training camp started. That hasn't been a recipe for success in the NHL, especially for the Blackhawks so far this season.
Everything will settle down when Connor Bedard, their best forward, returns. Until then, they have to find the right mix. It could come down to creating four balanced lines and leaving them be for a while. Injuries, like the one that Andrew Mangiapane is going through, can and will change things, but letting players develop chemistry is important.
So far, Chicago's best line has been their fourth line. Cole Smith, Jordan Greenway, and Ryan Greene make up that line, and they have yet to be separated. They play well together and are clearly getting used to each other. It may be time to allow the top three lines to do so as well.
Chicago has only scored two goals in two games. Greenway scored one of them, while Patrick Kane scored the other. For Greenway, it's a result of feeling good about his role on the team with that line. For Kane, his pure skill took over on one play.
"I don’t think there’s any lack of belief in our group," Blashill said. "We’re 0-2; that’s the fact of it. We haven’t played our best. But it’s neither more nor less than that."
Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive, and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.
