Andrei Vasilevskiy has become the Blackhawks' biggest modern-day nemesis

The Chicago Blackhawks are an Original Six franchise, with more than 100 seasons of tormenting goalies. According to statistics on NHL.com, 562 netminders have suited up for a game against the club, with Hall of Famer Terry Sawchuk owning an insurmountable 109-61-22 record. For perspective, he’s 33 wins ahead of Harry Lumley, who had 76 victories against the Blackhawks, and 86 wins ahead of Connor Hellebuyck, the active leader in the category, thanks to a 23-8-1 record.

As special as Hellebuyck’s record is, there’s another active netminder who is an even bigger nemesis to the Chicago fans: Tampa Bay Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy. Although he ranks fifth among active puckstoppers regarding wins against the Blackhawks, Vasilevskiy has only lost once to the team, posting a 14-1-0 record through 15 regular-season games with a .928 SV% and 2.11 GAA.

Vasilevskiy made his Stanley Cup Final debut against Blackhawks

Long before Vasilevskiy won the Vezina and Conn Smythe Trophies en route to two Stanley Cup championships, he actually started his first playoff game in Game 4 of the 2015 Stanley Cup Final, which Chicago won 2-1 to even the series 2-2. He got the nod after finishing out Game 3, earning his first-ever playoff win in a relief appearance that lasted 9:13, stopping all five shots. As of 2026, it’s the only time that the now-31-year-old has faced the Blackhawks in the playoffs.

Vasilevskiy did not face Chicago again until January 24, 2017, when he picked up a 5-2 win, picking up an assist on a third-period Tyler Johnson goal. In the rematch on March 27, he secured a 5-4 overtime win to improve to 2-0-0. One year later, he defeated the Blackhawks 3-2 in overtime on November 22, 2017, before securing a 40-save shutout to pick up another victory, 2-0, on January 22, 2018.

Somehow, Vasilevskiy did not play against Chicago in 2018-19 or 2019-20; instead, he made up for lost time during the shortened 2020-21 when he played and defeated the Blackhawks seven times. Yes, that is not a typo; Vasilevskiy improved to a perfect 11-0-0 with dominating performances versus Chicago during the shortened 2020-21 campaign.

• January 13, 2021 - 5-1 win (22 saves)
• January 15, 2021 - 5-2 win (35 saves)
• March 4, 2021 - 3-2 overtime win (35 saves)
• March 7, 2021 - 6-3 win (22 saves)
• March 18, 2021 - 4-2 win (19 saves + assist)
• March 20, 2021 - 4-1 win (30 saves)
• April 27, 2021 - 7-4 win (36 saves)

When the NHL resumed a regular 82-game schedule, with every club facing each other at least twice, Vasilevskiy continued to win in contests against the Blackhawks, earning a 6-3 victory on March 6, 2022, followed by a 5-2 win on April 1. By the end of the 2021-22 season, the two-time Vezina Trophy winner was a perfect 13-0-0.

Blackhawks finally slay a demon in 2026

Vasilevskiy did not play against Chicago during the 2022-23, 2023-24, and 2024-25 seasons, finally returning to the rivalry on October 23, 2025. That night at Benchmark International Arena, the Blackhawks got two goals from Ryan Donato and a power-play tally from Frank Nazar to secure a 3-2 victory, their first against Vasilevskiy in regular-season play, more than a decade after their first meeting. He finished the night with 22 saves, for a .880 SV%, getting outduelled by Spencer Knight, who had 31 saves and a .935 SV% in the win.

In their last meeting at the United Center on January 23, 2026, Vasilevskiy and the Lightning picked up a 2-1 win via the shootout. In the first period, Ryan Greene gave Chicago a lead, but Nikita Kucherov tied it in the second, eventually forcing overtime and a shootout. After stopping Nick Lardis and Connor Bedard, Nazar scored in the third round, followed by Louis Crevier to extend the shootout. After Oliver Moore failed on his attempt, Tampa Bay's Dominic James scored to end it, extending Vasilevskiy's record to 14-1-0.

Considering the Blackhawks might not get another chance to face the Lightning and Vasilevskiy in the Stanley Cup Final, he’s become one of Chicago’s biggest nemeses with a near-perfect record in the regular season. Throughout history, many legendary goalies have produced impressive win totals against the Original Six franchise, but right now, Vasilevskiy is in a class of his own.

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