Three takeaways from the Blackhawks’ game against the Red Wings

For the second time in three days, the Chicago Blackhawks played the Detroit Red Wings in what was the final meeting of the season between the two teams.

The Blackhawks came into the month of April knowing that they had to make significant improvements if they had any hope of making the playoffs. Unfortunately for Chicago, they had only won three out of their last seven games going into tonight’s matchup, including a disastrous 4-1 loss to the Wings this past Thursday.

However, the ‘Hawks were determined to come out tonight with all cylinders firing, and they did exactly that in a decisive 4-0 victory tonight. Although there were definitely areas for improvement, as there are in any game, Chicago played very well overall, and easily dispatched their historical rivals.

The shot differential may not have been ideal, especially throughout the first two periods of the game, but the Blackhawks were able to find the back of the twine when it mattered, and their scoring trends continued. At the other end of the ice, the defense and goaltending were able to hold off the Red Wings, who have the third-worst offense in the NHL, from scoring any goals.

The Blackhawks must now look forward to the remainder of this month’s schedule, which will not provide them any smooth sailing. Next week will see the team play three straight games against the Nashville Predators, whom they are fighting for the final playoff spot. If the ‘Hawks performance against the Preds is anything like tonight, then they will likely be able to put up some more in the win column.

Before the team takes on the guys from Music City, let’s go through a quick recap of tonight’s game. Here are three key takeaways from the Blackhawks’ victory against the Detroit Red Wings.

While the Blackhawks came away with a resounding victory tonight, there is still a looming problem that they need to correct: their discipline.

The ‘Hawks went to the penalty box five times in this game, including a first-period double-minor for high-sticking against Duncan Keith. I sometimes feel like a broken record when I talk about Chicago’s lack of discipline this year, but giving any opposing team that many chances on the powerplay is rarely going to work out in the Blackhawks’ favor.

Luckily for the Blackhawks, they were playing a Detroit team that not only has the third-worst offense in the league, but also the second-worst powerplay percentage. While Chicago’s penalty kill did play well tonight in not allowing many chances, they simply have to be more disciplined and learn to stay out of the box. Not every team that they face is going to have a horrendous offense like the Wings, and at some point, their luck is going to run out.

This isn’t to say that they are completely off the rails, but there were a few bad penalties tonight that simply shouldn’t have occurred, such as Ian Mitchell’s cross-check in the third period. To put it plainly, staying out of the sin bin is a key aspect of any good hockey team, and the ‘Hawks have to be better at it.

They will have plenty of chances to take fewer penalties next week, as the end of the season inches closer. Despite tonight’s win, their playoff hopes are still teetering on the brink. Hopefully, we will be seeing fewer calls against Chicago going forward.

Malcolm Subban was playing in his first game since March 28, so it wouldn’t be too surprising if he was a bit rusty. That certainly wasn’t the case tonight.

After not starting in goal for nearly a month, Subban skated onto Detroit ice and shut out the Red Wings decisively. He made a number of terrific stops in this game, including a terrific cross-crease glove save against Wings forward Darren Helm, keeping a puck out of the net that would’ve probably gone in nine times out of ten.

With his victory tonight, Subban has his second shutout of the season, stopping all 29 shots he faced. While I have been a bit hard on Subban in the past, I also think that part of the reason for his previous bad performances was due to his ice time. He just doesn’t have that much experience, and starting in net once a month isn’t going to get him that far. In my opinion, he should’ve started in at least a few games before tonight, if only to take some of the pressure off of Kevin Lankinen.

The truth is that Malcolm Subban is likely never going to be a starting NHL goalie. However, that does not mean that he cannot be an extremely reliable backup. While he is not all that consistent, when he is on top of his game, he is nearly impossible to beat, and that held true tonight.

If nothing else, hopefully Subban gets a few more chances to start before the end of the season, because his performance tonight proves that he can compete in this league. He just needs to be more consistent, and if he can find a way to do that, then I think we can expect more shutouts from him in the future.