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Arvid Soderblom amazes in goal as Chicago Blackhawks settle for unwanted moral victory against Winnipeg Jets

He almost had a shutout until a late goal in the third tied the game. The Jets went onto win in overtime.

By Todd Welter |
/ Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Arvid Soderblom finally turned in a performance in goal that never happened much for the Chicago Blackhawks last season.

Soderblom was one of the biggest disappointments of the 2023-24 season. The hope was he would nail down the No. 1 goalie spot for the rest of the decade. Instead, he was one of the worst netminders in the NHL.

He was so bad that it appeared the Hawks were moving on from Arvid after signing Laurent Brossoit this past offseason. Soderblom's NHL career got a second life when Brossoit needed offseason surgery on his knee that would sideline him to start the season.

Soderblom turned in possibly his best performance with the Blackhawks in his first start this season against the Winnipeg Jets.

He stopped the first 33 shots he faced through almost 59 minutes of action.

Allowing second-chance shots to slip through was not a problem for him either.

It was the type of performance that made you wonder where was this last season. He outdueled Connor Hellebuyck for almost 59 minutes too!

This is the Winnipeg Jets we are talking about here. They will find a way to score, and that is what happened as Mark Schiefle tied the game with 1:04 left in regulation. Thankfully, the Hawks had a goal on the scoreboard when Ryan Donato got a puck past Hellebuyck in the second period.

At least the Hawks were able to salvage a point out of this one, as the only problem Soderblom had in this game was stopping Schiefle at the end. It was Schiefle who sent the Winnipeg faithful home happy when he slipped a shot past Arvid in OT.

The Hawks had to settle for a moral victory which is something the veterans are getting tired of doing.

Soderblom seems destined to go to Rockford once Brossoit comes off IR. At least for one night in covering for Brossoit's absence, Soderblom looked like a capable NHL goaltender.

It is just too bad that Schiefle's two late shots beat him. Otherwise, Soderblom would have gotten a well-deserved shutout.

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