Blackhawks fall 4-1 to the Red Wings in embarrassing outing; are big changes ahead?

The Chicago Blackhawks made it through the first 12 games of the 2026-27 season with a 4-8-0 record, and they currently rank 31st in the league. That's obviously not the start they were looking for.

But a 2-1 win over the LA Kings on Tuesday (Oct. 27) was a welcome respite. The team wanted to keep things rolling as they headed out on their annual Dad's trip, with the first stop against the 5-4-3 Detroit Red Wings on Thursday, Oct. 29. It was also Patrick Kane's first contest against his former club. In other news, Dylan Larkin did not suit up for the Red Wings, as he's been suspended for not playing while seeking a trade.

Unfortunately, the Blackhawks did not carry over the momentum from their previous win. As a matter of fact, they looked pretty listless in this embarrassing 4-1 loss.

Let's get to the lineup details, as well as game notes and some notable stats.

Blackhawks lineup and special teams

Teuvo Teravainen - Connor Bedard - Roman Kantserov

Tyler Bertuzzi - Anton Frondell - Ryan Donato

Oliver Moore - Frank Nazar - Patrick Kane

Cole Smith - Ryan Greene - Jordan Greenway

Alex Vlasic- Ian Cole

Wyatt Kaiser - Artyom Levshunov

Kevin Korchinski - Sam Rinzel

Spencer Knight/Arvid Soderblom

Extras: Andrew Mangiapane, Ethan Del Mastro, Bowen Byram (upper body)

The forward lines remained the same as they were at the end of last game. Head coach Jeff Blashill told us he swapped Teuvo Teravainan (now top line) and Ryan Greene (now fourth line) mid-game for more of a four-line threat.

Alex Vlasic did not participate in the morning skate due to illness (per Blashill), but he did suit up in the game.

Spencer Knight made his eighth consecutive start in net.

Power play units

PP1: Bertuzzi, Kane-Kantserov-Bedard, Teravainen

PP2: Greene, Nazar-Donato-Frondell, Rinzel 

Penalty kill contributors

Greenway, Smith, Kaiser, Levshunov, Vlasic, Teravainen, Cole, Greene, Frondell, Rinzel, Nazar

Blackhawks game notes

• The Blackhawks got the scoring started first, their third time in the last four games. Wyatt Kaiser joined the offense with a shot on goal and Connor Bedard corralled the rebound. Roman Kantserov was credited with the secondary assist. 1-0 Blackhawks.

• Chicago was lucky to take this lead into the first intermission, as they weren't defending very well. Shots on goal reflected an even 8-8, but according to Natural Stat Trick the Red Wings led in shot attempts 23-16. Detroit also had the only power play of the period, where they registered two shots on goal.

• In the second frame, the Red Wings were peppering netminder Spencer Knight with shots. It was only a matter of time before one went in. Sure enough, Viktor Arvidsson tied it up at the 7:31 mark of the second. Assists were provided by William Wallinder and Alex DeBrincat. At the time of the goal, Detroit was up 6-0 in shots.

• Later on in the second, Frank Nazar turned on the burners for a breakaway attempt. He was awarded a penalty shot on a hooking call from Andreas Englund. Alas, John Gibson thwarted Nazar's attempt.

• The rest of the period was pretty much all Red Wings. The shot discrepancy was 13-3 for the home team. Kudos to Knight for making the stops to keep the Blackhawks in the game.

• At the beginning of the final frame, the Red Wings were awarded their fourth power play of the game (high-sticking penalty by Kane). Lucas Raymond wasted no time cashing in to make it 2-1 for Detroit. Apples were courtesy of D-man Moritz Seider and Arvidsson.

• The Red Wings continued to dominate, and at the 15:26 mark of the third frame Arvidsson scored his second of the night, assisted by DeBrincat and J.T. Compher.

• In one last ditch effort, the Blackhawks emptied their net with just over four minutes to go in the game. It resulted in an empty net goal by Arvidsson, which also gave him a hat trick on the night (helper provided by Emmitt Finnie). Not a good look for Teuvo Teravainen on the pass that led to the goal.

• Once it was all said and done, the Blackhawks fell 4-1 in this contest. It was one of the most embarrassing outings of the season, and that's saying something. Total shots on goal were 29-19 for the Red Wings, and scoring chances 60-44. The Blackhawks now fall to 4-9-0 on the season. They haven't won a single game of the road.

Notable stats

There's not much positive to take from this game, but I'll provide some decent stats just so we can all feel a little better.

• Knight stopped 27-of-30 shots for a .900 save percentage. Things could've been much worse if it wasn't for the netminder doing his job in the crease.

• Oliver Moore won 8-of-9 faceoffs for an 89% success rate. This is interesting because he's on a line with Nazar centering. Nazar won 4-of-8 faceoffs for 50%.

• Jordan Greenway registered zero shots on goal but five shot attempts. Kudos to Greenway, but if your fourth line winger has almost the most shot attempts then something is not right. For what it's worth, Bedard led the team with four shots on goal and six shot attempts.

Coach Blashill didn't mince words postgame. It might be his last words...

It's safe to say things aren't pretty in Chicago right now. Are some big changes on the horizon? I wouldn't be surprised.

The Blackhawks will continue the Dad's trip with a date against the Boston Bruins on Saturday, Oct. 31. This will be a noon puck drop, so it shouldn't interfere with any trick-or-treating or Halloween plans! That is, if you choose to watch another game. The team will then head back to Chicago to host the Colorado Avalanche on Monday, Nov. 2 (7 p.m. puck drop).

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