Dach gets first goal, but Hawks lose
Kirby Dach isn’t perfect. His first NHL goal wasn’t perfect, either.
But in his first two games with the Blackhawks, he has demonstrated an impressive array of promising skills. And his first-period goal Tuesday night — before the Hawks eventually crumbled late in a 2-1 shootout loss to the visiting Golden Knights — exemplified those skills perfectly.
While teammate Olli Maatta skated out to the faceoff dot, Dach smartly and quietly found a soft spot in the Golden Knights’ defense on the far side of the crease. Maatta didn’t appear to be trying to pass to him, and Dach had to awkwardly knee the puck into the net. But it did go in, and Dach celebrated madly as the home crowd erupted.
Just maybe, the kid tabbed as the future face of the franchise officially began his lease on the United Center.
“It was a pretty cool moment,” Dach said. “Grew up dreaming of playing in the NHL, and two games in, you’ve got your first goal. That’s pretty special, but at the same time, pretty disappointed that we lost.”
The Hawks (2-3-2) nearly preserved the 1-0 lead all the way to the finish line but instead allowed a tying goal with 1:33 left in regulation, then two more goals in the shootout to suffer another heartbreaking loss.
Goalie Robin Lehner was spectacular throughout the night, making 33 saves — including a miraculous two-pad stack on a Golden Knights power play in overtime. After the game, he gave a passionate statement of optimism moving forward.
“When I chose to sign with this team, it’s because I really believe in this team,” he said. “The last few games have been really, really good . . . . Washington is a good team, Vegas is a good team, and at times, we were totally dominating. It should have been 4-0 after two [periods]. Couple of posts were in the way, couple of missed bounces. That’s hockey sometimes.”
“If we just keep playing like we’re going, we’re going to get good results.”
Murphy injured
The Hawks’ excellent top pair of Connor Murphy and Duncan
Keith is no more — at least for a while. Murphy suffered a groin injury late in the second period and did not return.
Coach Jeremy Colliton said afterward that he expected Murphy to miss “a couple weeks.”
It’s already the 26-year-old defenseman’s second groin injury of the young season and comes at an unfortunate time, as he and Keith had developed a strong rapport on and off the ice.
“Obviously, that’s a blow for us,” Colliton said. “It’s an opportunity for other guys. We think we need to continue to build depth.”
Adam Boqvist, Dennis Gilbert
and Philip Holm are all plausible AHL replacements, though the Hawks could also roll without a call-up by sliding healthy scratch Slater Koekkoek into the lineup.
Saarela traded to Panthers
Forward Aleksi Saarela’s stint with the Blackhawks organization didn’t last long. The Hawks sent the 22-year-old forward to the Panthers for 24-year-old defenseman Ian McCoshen during Tuesday’s game.
Saarela was acquired from the Hurricanes in June and, shortly after, bashed the Hurricanes to a Finnish newspaper for not calling him up despite his strong 2018-19 AHL season.
During training camp, Saarela didn’t make the Hawks’ NHL roster, either, and had just one point in five games at Rockford.
In exchange, Hawks general manager Stan Bowman added another piece to his flush cast of depth defensemen. McCoshen has made 60 NHL appearances for the Panthers over the last three seasons. He has recorded four assists in seven AHL appearances so far this year.