That was wild.
Not just the chaotic third period of the Chicago Blackhawks’ 5-4 overtime loss to the Vegas Golden Knights Saturday afternoon, but the trip overall.
The Hawks nearly pulled off an improbable three-game sweep that included wins against the Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings — and they swept the season series against the Ducks. But the Hawks were done in by a disastrous third period in which the Knights scored four goals to force overtime before Evgenii Dadonov sank the game-winner against Kevin Lankinen.
The final two periods ran in stark contrast to the first two when the Hawks dominated the Knights.
The whole affair underscored why the Hawks can bust out like world-beaters for spurts and then fold just as quickly. Games like this explain why they’re 24-32-10.
“A very entertaining game, (the kind of game) our fans would like to see,” Blackhawks coach Derek King said. “Not so much as a coach.”
Dominik Kubalik opened the scoring with a first-period goal, ending a nine-game drought.
“He played a real good game,” King said. “Their line was solid. Stromer’s line, they were buzzing, they could’ve had three or four goals.”
Jonathan Toews and Dylan Strome padded the lead in the second.
But the Knights roared back with goals by Chandler Stephenson, William Karlsson and Jack Eichel in the first 3 minutes, 16 seconds of the third — and just like that, the Hawks’ 3-0 lead had evaporated.
Logan Thompson had previously frustrated Alex DeBrincat, but DeBrincat roofed one to put the Hawks up again at 4-3. That lead was short-lived: Alex Pietrangelo evened it again 47 seconds later.
The Hawks had at least three opportunities in overtime but came up empty.
“Could’ve went either way,” King said. “But again we’ve got to learn from that third period, protecting a lead and how to play the right way when we have that (lead).”
With each score, the Knights regained confidence and kept pushing, and the Hawks let them. King said his players just became spectators to the carnage.
King said the lesson from this loss is about “adding to our identity, what type of team we’re going to be, and we have to learn composure. When you get on your heels, how to turn the tide, tilt the ice back the other way.
“Overall, good road trip.”
Here are four takeaways.
1. Kubalik’s benching seemed to snap him out of a funk.
Kubalik returned to the lineup after a one-game scratch and scored the opening goal midway through the first period.
Kubalik had hard luck recently or tried to force some offense but got a gift of a goal that broke his scoreless streak.
Toews won the faceoff and Jake McCabe delivered the puck from the point to Kubalik in the high slot. Kubalik’s wrister ricocheted off Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore’s stick and slipped through Thompson’s five-hole. Thompson had closed into a butterfly but reopened just in time for the puck to shoot through.
King scratched Kubalik on Thursday against the Los Angeles Kings to give him a chance to “reset” after scuffling through a 21-game stretch in which he produced a goal and four assists.
King said he wanted Kubalik “just to work. Keep working how he is but work a little smarter, be a little patient.”
Kubalik rejoined the lineup playing on the second line with Toews and Taylor Raddysh. Against the Boston Bruins, he had sunk to the fourth line with Philipp Kurashev and Henrik Borgström.
King said before the game that Kubalik has to learn “when he has the puck, shoot it.”
“I have no worries about him,” King said. “It’s more or less just a reset for him ... clear the mind a little bit and come back fresh.”
His first shot against the Knights did the trick.
“Nice to see him get back on the scoresheet,” Strome said. “We’ve all seen how well he can score goals, so hopefully he can ride this little hot streak and keep going. He had tons of chances tonight.”
Kubalik finished with five shots on goal.
Asked about whether he was keeping a shooting mentality, Kubalik said: “Yeah, obviously trying to. But the pucks were coming (to me), too, which is huge for me.
“Sometimes you’re sitting in the slot and you’re not open, there’s somebody or the other guy makes a different play, and today I felt that I was in the right moment, in the right spot and I know that’s one of my strengths and I need to do it more often.”
2. King’s third-period timeout didn’t stop the bleeding.
After the Knights’ Chandler Stephenson and William Karlsson rolled off two goals within the first 2:23 of the third — 59 seconds apart — King called a timeout.
“It was more or less (telling them to) come back in our D-zone and stop it in the house,: King said. “We were swinging it a little bit and they were coming right through the gut.”
Eichel’s goal at 3:16 of the third tied the game at 3.
“Opportunity after opportunity, chances on net and they went out and scored right after the timeout,” King said. I’m going to have to come up with some different lines to motivate them, I guess.”
Strome said it was just tough to slow the Knights’ momentum — and how many times this season has momentum rolled over the Hawks?
“It’s just like, ‘Take a deep breath.’ The building is going crazy — this has to be the loudest rink in the NHL — so they get one, they get two, and then it’s a tough thing to stop,” Strome said. “Just try to get a whistle or ice it or I don’t even know.
“I wish I knew, I would’ve done it out there to try to stop it. They were playing desperate, and it sucks to lose that way, but you’ve got to take the positive.”
3. Kubalik showed frustration after a letdown, but he wasn’t the only one.
As much credit Kubalik and his line received for a great overall game, he had moments when he had a chance to be the hero, but he tried something out of his comfort zone and came up short.
During overtime, Strome had a takeaway and set up Kubalik with a centering pass — but he missed wide.
“I thought it was a good chance,” Strome said. “We had a 3-on-2 first and then just missed the first pass, and then second one I just laid it in there and he just missed it going forehand.”
Kubalik vented by slamming his stick against the boards on the way to the bench. Seconds later, Dadonov scored the game-winner on the other end.
“You always want more, right?” Kubalik said about his first-period goal. “You don’t want to stop at one. I want to show that I’m still able to score and create those chances and help the team like that.
“Especially in overtime when I get it from Stromer, I was overthinking again. I should just get it and shoot it, but I was trying to make a move, which is not my game, so then I lost it. I’ve got to stick with what I’m doing best and that’s shooting.”
Kubalik’s wasn’t the only chance the Hawks had to pull out the win. Seth Jones and Raddysh had shots on goal, and DeBrincat had a 2-on-1 chance bounce over his stick.
King can live with missing on scoring chances, but letting them see you sweat isn’t. King said he’ll have a conversation with Kubalik again.
“You played a good game, there’s no reason to get frustrated,” King said. “That’s one of the best games he’s had for opportunities to shoot the puck and score some goals.
“Now he scores a goal, (then) he’s got some good opportunities and they’re not going in, they’re getting blocked or the goalie makes a save and he’s getting frustrated. That’s stuff we have to learn individually, but we (also) have to learn as a team.
“There’s a lot of sticks being busted — probably I’d say about close to $2,000 worth of hockey sticks out there today. But this is what you learn: Don’t show the other team you’re frustrated and keep it within each other. And don’t allow it to creep into our locker room or on the bench that they’re slamming doors, breaking sticks or what have you. But that’s just young, immature mistakes we make, and we’ll learn from it hopefully.”
4. Don’t expect open season for depth players.
Alex Vlasic sat the entire trip after playing his two NHL games.
King wants the young defenseman to watch and learn.
“Just the pace, the quality of play,” he said. “Watching our D, watching Seth Jones, (defense) on the other team, how they play, how their gap is, how they move the puck, just getting a feel for the league and watching.”
Just because the Hawks are on the outside of the playoff picture looking in doesn’t mean they are going to turn into the Rockford IceHogs and give heavy minutes to the end the end of the bench and call-ups.
“No, they’ve got to earn it still. There’s still that accountability,” King said. “I’m not just going to throw ice time at guys because this isn’t developing, it’s giving them an opportunity to be in the lineup. It’s up to them what they do with it.”
