The Blackhawks response will be big for them as they look to turn the tide against the Panthers

The Chicago Blackhawks are 4-10-1.

As frustrating as the record is, it can't be changed, and all they can do is move forward the best they can.

While they are on a tough three-game road trip, the one thing they can focus on is their response.

Blackhawks have been in position to win some games

My colleague Gail Kauchak wrote a piece on her thoughts about the state of the team, and I agree with her that I don't think the Blackhawks have an effort issue. They show up to practices with good attitudes and work hard on a daily basis.

And as frustrating as the results have been, something head coach Jeff Blashill said after their loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Nov. 2 seems significant:

"Is there concern about results? Of course, there is.... We'd like to be 15-0. You know what I mean? So that I get for sure. But we've had enough games where we've been in position to win games. We haven't won enough of those. If you continuously do it over and over and you get incrementally better, at some point you look back, and you say, 'We did a good job climbing out of that,' and that's what we're going to have to do."

Blashill is right about them having been in position to win games. Obviously, they were leading 4-2 with six minutes left against the Boston Bruins before losing 5-4 in overtime. They were in position to beat the Avalanche as well, having taken an early 2-0 lead before losing 5-2.

When captain Connor Bedard was asked about what was lacking, he responded, "I think it's little blips of the game. I think I was saying that before. We'll have pushes, we'll have stretches, and then we'll kind of sit back a little bit, maybe, and maybe there's too many ups and downs in our play, and once we find our consistency... We've seen it in games this year where we have it, and we're a tough team to play. We just gotta find it for the whole duration of the match."

"Consistency" has been a big buzzword with the Blackhawks this season because, to Bedard's point, they do play well in stretches. They tend to take early leads, but they have struggled to close out games.

As frustrating as it is to know they have had those opportunities to win some of these games, that is actually what they should focus on.

Blackhawks pushback needs to continue

Something that stood out to me about the Avalanche game was that the Avalanche scored with 10 seconds left in second period to make it 4-2. That is deflating for any team, especially a team like the Blackhawks where those moments seem to pile up.

But their response was admirable. They had a great third period where they battled and outshot Colorado 9-4. They were unable to come back, but it was good to see their resilience in that moment.

The Bruins game on Oct. 31 was the same way; coming off a bad 4-1 loss to Detroit, they could have let that result fester, but they played a great game.

As they face the Florida Panthers tonight (Nov. 4), it's also a reminder that the last time they faced the Panthers on Oct. 25, they were in position to win. Unfortunately, they had seven power plays that went unscored on. However, it remained 2-2 until the Panthers scored and won late in the third period 3-2.

I know it might sound like shoulda, woulda, coulda, and highlighting good responses don't mean much if they don't reflect in the standings.

But Patrick Kane mentioned early on this season that how they compete is something they can control. They can't control their record as it sits right now. But if they continue putting performances like that together, where they at least give themselves a chance, the hope is that one of those games will pay off.

The team has seemed to find a way to push back over the last couple of games. They'll need that mentality on this road trip as they play without Kane and continue to be without Byram (both upper-body injuries).

But as Bedard said, they just need to find consistency throughout the game, close out their games, and keep battling.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow