Upon further review the Blackhawks are... not good

The Chicago Blackhawks began their trip in Eastern Canada with a... Yeah, it was a great start, probably one of the best 55 minutes they've played all year. However, with two goals in the final moments of the third period, they choked the two-goal lead they had in the first. Jeff Blashill did get his guys ready to go, however, they didn't stay ready. This is one of many things this team has to learn and fast.

The Central Divison is a gauntlet

The Blackhawks will have to fight the Utah Mammoth for a wildcard position more times than not in the coming future, but the Central has been a gauntlet since the Blackhawks began their dynasty. Back then, it was the St. Louis Blues, Minnesota Wild, and Nashville Predators (generally), and those series were always a grind. Things haven't changed, and with the Minnesota Wild picking up Quinn Hughes, things won't get much better. The point is, the Blackhawks have to learn how to keep a lead and earn those two points if they want to make the playoffs any time soon.

A good team comprises many parts, and I have identified a few simple things that a good team must have: two or three star players, a solid goaltender, and the ability to keep fans interested regardless of the situation. Good teams should be able to come back from a multi-goal deficit, and they should be able to win high-scoring games. They should be able to win close games separated by a goal. Essentially, in every way there is to win, they should be trusted to find a way to win. The Blackhawks do not have that yet.

This is the NHL, and earning team points is always going to be hard. However, some divisions are more unforgiving than others. I'm sorry, but the difference between the Central and the Pacific Divisions is huge. Because of that, the Blackhawks cannot afford to lose points in the manner that they did last night, whether Connor Bedard is injured or not. Even if they had a horrible ten minutes in the third period, they should have been able to maintain the tie and earn one point, reset, then try to earn the extra. Instead, the team experienced lapses that caused them to lose two points, despite their efforts.

This team needs to figure it out

This team lost its superstar, and no one has stepped up in his absence yet. Frank Nazar is still snake-bitten, last scoring in October; Teuvo Teravainen has been invisible, as has Tyler Bertuzzi, and Andre Burakovsky has yet to prove that he can produce without Bedard. The defense is young, and mistakes are bound to happen, but the mistakes that continue to happen seem to be fundamental errors that the team has to address. Artyom Levshunov was scratched and, from what I heard, Blashill wasn't too happy with him during practice when he forgot his cue on a drill. This team needs more urgency, not just waiting for the bounces to come to them.

The Blackhawks were a playoff contender earlier in the season (and the season is still early), but they fizzled out after the first twenty games. Outside of the maybe fifty-minutes they played against the Maple Leafs, they don't play with the same speed they once did. They don't forecheck hard, allowing the defense to make breakout plays easily. They don't hit or check, allowing the opposition to handle the puck in their own zone. I thought Blashill wanted the team to play like the 2024-25 Florida Panthers, but they are giving up too much time and space to have an "aggressive" style of play.

The Blackhawks began this season with an identity and followed it, for the first month and a half, I knew what I was going to watch: A fast, young, skilled team that plays to their strengths. I have not seen that since, and with Bedard out for at least this and most of next month, they'd better figure this out quickly before the chance at a wild-card position becomes out of reach.