Andre Burakovsky and Teuvo Teravainen are leaving too much on the table

The Chicago Blackhawks regressed from a team that looked like potential playoff contenders earlier season into a dysfunctional unit. One reason is that they haven't played well when they have the puck, and their inability to turn sequences into goals has been migraine-inducing to watch.

Somebody must step up and help this team turn their fortunes around in the offensive zone while there's a chance for this team to contend for the postseason. Who's going to step up and remedy this situation before the Hawks start playing for a lottery pick again? Luckily, they have two players with an outstanding track record when they get the puck to the net.

Andre Burakovsky and Teuvo Teravainen have shown a good ability to score when they shoot the puck, with shooting percentages of 22.2 and 17.1, respectively. These numbers rank second and fourth on the Blackhawks among players who have appeared in at least 28 games this season.

While they're borderline elite shooting percentages, there's one major issue. When you see that Burakovsky has just 36 shots on goal through 28 games and Teravainen has 35 through 32 games, you can't help but ask why they're not shooting the puck more.

If you're Blackhawks coachJeff Blashill, and two of your better scorers have only gotten pucks to the net 71 times combined, you need to stand up and say something isn't right. What's even more interesting is that Burakovsky and Teravainen are both top-six players, averaging at least 17:15 of ice time per game, so it's not like a lack of playing time is the problem. 

What's likely causing Andre Burakovsky and Teuvo Teravainen's lack of scoring chances?

At 5-on-5, the Blackhawks have a Corsi For of just 47.7, significantly lower than the average score of 50 percent. In all situations, they're also shooting much lower than the average team, having logged just 843 shots on goal, low when compared to the league average of 934. 

Connor Bedard alone accounts for 103 of those shots. The number drops significantly after Bedard, with Tyler Bertuzzi and Frank Nazar having contributed 64 of them apiece. The Blackhawks have also struggled with creating scoring chances, doing so at a rate of just 45.8 percent at 5-on-5. They're in the same boat with high-danger chances, creating them just 45.1 percent of the time.

With fewer chances overall, it's another factor affecting Burakovsky and Teravainen. They're ranked 12th and 14th on the Hawks in shots on goal. With top-six ice time, they should be getting more pucks to the net. While a lower number of scoring chances is an issue, there's more to the story.

One of the two is historically selective when shooting the puck

Historically, Andre Burakovsky doesn't take many shots. He has never logged over 149 shots on goal in his career, and that career-high came when he hit a career-high in goals scored. That came in 2022 with the Colorado Avalanche, when he found the net 22 times and logged 61 points.

Across 724 career games, Burakovsky has just 1,188 shots on goal, or 1.64 per game. Before that outburst of 149 shots on goal in 2021-22, Burakovsky had never taken over 126 shots in a single season.

As for Teravainen, he has no excuse but to start getting more pucks to the net. Through 784 contests, he has 1,592 shots on goal, or 2.03 per game. Not the highest number out there, but certainly someone who should have at least 64 at the moment, where he'd be right up there with Tyler Bertuzzi and Frank Nazar.

While the Hawks collectively aren't generating enough scoring chances, Teravainen especially has to step it up. But with Bedard out for the foreseeable future, Burakovsky also needs to get more pucks to the net if it means revitalizing Chicago offensively.