Are the Blackhawks good, or are they a flawed team defying the math?

Chicago Blackhawks head coach Jeff Blashill has declared his club a good team.

He has every right to make that claim with the Blackhawks in the thick of the playoff race with a third of the season already completed. They are currently in the final Western Conference wild-card spot ahead of preseason Stanley Cup favorites such as the Winnipeg Jets and the Edmonton Oilers.

Enough of the season has passed that Blashill might be correct in asserting that the youthful Blackhawks are no longer a collection of losers.

The Blackhawks have been so impressive after years of losing that even the harshest critics of the tanking during this rebuild are coming around to feeling that all the losing was worth it.

However, general manager Kyle Davidson told the Athletic's senior NHL writer Mark Lazerus he is not ready to take a victory lap.

Certain offensive metrics support why Davidson (and even Blashill) should be cautious about declaring the Blackhawks a good team at this juncture of the season.

An unsustainable path to victory?

Chicago Sun-Times beat writer Ben Pope recently tackled whether the Blackhawks could maintain this playoff-contending winning pace. The argument against the Blackhawks winning enough to make the playoffs is that they are in the league's bottom five in offensive zone puck possession and expected goals ratio, while being in the bottom ten in shot attempts in five-on-five situations.

The club is defying the odds by being efficient with its scoring chances. Per Pope, Chicago ranks fourth in the NHL in scoring per shot attempts and is plus-2 in 5-on-5 goal differential. The Blackhawks have a plus-7 goal differential in all situations.

It also means goalie Spencer Knight is blocking just enough shots to give the Blackhawks a chance to win.

If Knight can continue to play at this level and stay healthy, the Blackhawks have an opportunity to continue to pull out victories.

It also helps that Connor Bedard is playing up to his generational talent potential. His shot and playmaking ability are a big reason the offense has been so efficient with the limited scoring chances the team has had.

Another reason the Blackhawks can continue to win this way is because of Blashill's system per Pope.

The defensemen are being instructed to ensure Knight has clear sightlines on the puck. The feeling is that it is better to have the goalie with a clear line of sight; try to make the save rather than a defenseman fronting to block a shot attempt. Having too many blueliners in front of the goalie's vision could lead to the netminder losing track of that puck. If a shot slips through a defender trying to block the shot, it could find the back of the net with the goalie unable to locate the puck.

Blashill also prefers creating more scoring chances rather than just producing a high volume of shots. The old-school logic is to put the puck on net as much as possible to increase the chances of scoring. However, that leads to trying a lot of goals off rebounds or via that "greasy" method of sneaking the puck past the opposing netminder.

That could also backfire if the opposing goalie is limiting rebound opportunities or the defense clears the puck immediately.

Therefore, Blashill is asking his forwards to hunt for more opportunities to produce a better likelihood of getting a good shot off and cash in on a quality shot on goal.

The Blackhawks have constructed the offense to function that way.

It feels like everything boils down to Knight and Bedard playing well and getting solid contributing performances from everyone else. It is a lot to put on their shoulders, but they seem up for carrying that weight.