Blackhawks: Can Chicago’s Offense Match-Up with McDavid and Draisaitl?

With the return of Corey Crawford, the focus becomes how the Chicago Blackhawks’ offense matches the Edmonton Oilers’ two-headed monster of Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid.

Tonight was the first and last real game action we are going to see of the Chicago Blackhawks 2020 playoff roster before the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin. The tournament as a whole is a major opportunity for the young players to get a chance to see playoff hockey.

Most “experts” are saying the Blackhawks have no chance of winning this series against the Edmonton Oilers, but with the return of Corey Crawford, the Hawks may have a better chance than they are getting credit for. While both teams struggle on the defensive side the offense matchup will be on the most entertaining of the entire playoffs.

The Oilers are the most top-heavy team in the NHL with Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid. They ended the season first and second in points combining for a total of 207 points this season in a shortened year. The next closest on their team was Ryan Nugent-Hopkins with 61. Draisaitl and McDavid will probably start the series separately. They will only be put on the same line when they are in dire need of offense.

The Blackhawks will need to find a way to slow down McDavid like they were able to in the regular-season match up’s where they held him to 0 points and 5 shots on goal. Draisaitl on the other hand absolute worked the Blackhawks totaling 7 points in the three games.

The Blackhawks have a mixture of veterans who can still perform at an elite level with Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane and younger guys who have proven they belong in the NHL with Alex Debrincat and Dominik Kubalik. In addition to the players mentioned before the Blackhawks have seen players improvement in camp, Kirby Dach and Alex Nylander, who make this offensive group one to be feared in the NHL into the future.

The question becomes will it be feared this playoff matchup against the stars that are Draisaitl and McDavid? The question will be answered in the entertaining weeks to come. For now, we can only speculate how these two offenses will match up.