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3 takeaways from the Chicago Blackhawks comeback victory over the Los Angeles Kings

Ryan Donato continues his impressive start to the season.

By Todd Welter |
/ Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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Add shootout hero to the list of accomplishments Ryan Donato has had during his impressive start to the season.

The Chicago Blackhawks rallied back from a two-goal deficit to beat the Los Angeles Kings 4-3 in a shootout.

Donato capped off the comeback victory with some slick stick work to clinch the Hawks two points in the standings.

Donato nearly shook Kings' goalie Darcy Kuemper out of his pads with the puck control he displayed. It was nice to see Donato celebrating as Kuemper lay sprawled out on the ice in defeat, even though the Blackhawks did not deserve the W.

Through the first two periods, it looked like Kuemper was on his way toward getting a shutout as the Hawks played lackluster hockey.

The Blackhawks looking lifeless through the first 40 minutes but responding well to the adversity they put themselves in is one of three takeaways in this victory.

The Hawks managed just 21 shots on goal. They had just four scoring chances in the second period according to Natural Stat Trick.

It looked like this would be a repeat of the San Jose defeat when they tried to score the perfect goal. The effort was not there, and this was shaping up to be a tough watch.

Then captain Nick Foligno got the Blackhawks on the board with a greasy goal in the third period. Good things happen when you put the puck toward the net, especially if you follow your shot.

After going back down 3-2, the Hawks finally got some late-game fortune when Tyler Bertuzzi found the back of the net with the game winding down.

It was Donato who put the puck toward the net and Bertuzzi was right there for the opportune clutch goal.

Still, it would have been nice had the Blackhawks displayed this type of energy over the entire game instead of the final 20.

You take the win, but can you imagine the kind of victory the Blackhawks would have had if they played with the focus and effort they had in the third period for the full 60?

Lukas Reichel continues to prove he is at least a good fourth-line player.

Craig Smith and Reichel have built up some awesome chemistry together. That is helping Reichel start to look more and more like a viable NHL player.

He certainly looked like the offensive phenom we were promised when the Hawks drafted him when he set up Smith for the first game-tying goal in the third period.

It was a thing of beauty to see Reichel confidently skate into the offensive zone, maintain the puck through a couple of chips, and then make the smooth dump-off pass to Smith, who fired a shot past Kuemper.

Reichel finished as the highest rated player according to Hockey Stat Cards.

Now, the debate will continue on whether Reichel should stay on the bottom line or if he should be given a long runway to see if he can reach his ceiling as a top-line player.

If this season is about improving the team's lot in the standings, it might be best to keep Reichel with Smith and see how much offense they can produce. Reichel does skate more confidently with Smith and Pat Maroon on the ice. Maybe it is because Maroon has the size, and Smith has the veteran savvy.

However, if Reichel is going to continue to generate offense, especially dishing out smooth passes that set up goals, you might want that skill set on the same line with Connor Bedard.

At least Reichel is proving he can play in the NHL. Something that could not be said last season.

Petr Mrazek picks up a victory during a personal milestone game.

Mrazek played in his 400th game in net, and he faced a barrage of shots as the Kings fired 40 of them at him.

He had trouble stopping Alex Laferriere, who scored the Kings' first two goals. Otherwise, he did well in the net, considering the Kings' xGF kept rising through each period.

He did manage to stop Laferriere in the shootout to set up Donato's opportunity to be the hero.

Mrazek might be the team's early-season MVP if Donato was not enough to such a hot start. His numbers might not be amazing as he is just a .3 goals saved above expected. He is 33rd in the league in goals allowed and 27th in save percentage.

What he has been good at is making just enough saves to give the Hawks an opportunity to be in the game. That was his calling card last season and it has carried over into this year.

Mrazek might have a few more wins on his ledger if the Blackhawks did consistently play strong for a full game.

His workload has increased as he has been in the net for all but two of the Hawks games this season. He will get the night off against Anaheim for some well-deserved rest.

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