The Chicago Blackhawks picked up a victory in regulation over the Minnesota Wild for the first time since 2019.
The Chicago Blackhawks took on the Minnesota Wild for the second time in a week on Thursday night. This was the fourth and final meeting between the two, and the first three were all 4-3 wins past regulation in favor of the Wild.
The Blackhawks came in looking like a team that was desperate for a win over their Central Division rival. They broke through at 16:22 of the first period, when Andrew Mangiapane made a great play to find Ilya Mikheyev at the net-mouth for a 1-0 lead.
That would be the end of the scoring in the opening frame. In the second, Connor Bedard made a beautiful play to make it 2-0 for the Blackhawks. After stealing the puck and creating a breakaway for himself, he held off the defender to create space and made a sensational move to score.
Bedard's goal was his 28th of the season, which ties him with Tyler Bertuzzi for the team lead. For all of the time that he's missed due to his mid-season injury, it's impressive to see him reach these goal-scoring heights.
Watching where he takes his totals over the final 14 games will be a storyline to follow as the season comes to a close.
The Wild got themselves on the board when Nico Sturm scored at 15:47. The Blackhawks still skated into the third period with a 2-1 lead.
Although the Wild came very close to scoring with less than a second remaining in regulation, Spencer Knight made one final save (with help from Alex Vlasic) to preserve the 2-1 victory for the Blackhawks. Knight made 28 saves on 29 shots.
This is Chicago's first win in regulation over Minnesota since December of 2019. That ends a 19-game point streak (18-0-1) in the head-to-head matchup for the Wild. They also haven't won in Minnesota since November of 2017.
March has been a decent month for the Blackhawks. They are 4-2-2 during the month, which is a win for a young team beginning to improve. Most of those games have come post-trade deadline, meaning it is an even younger team, making it an even more impressive stretch.
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What’s Next For The Blackhawks?
The Blackhawks will be back in action again on Friday night. The Colorado Avalanche, who have been the top team in the NHL all season, will be at the United Center.
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