NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Blackhawks defenseman Jarred Tinordi’s play this season has been disappointing, but his accountability has never wavered.
“Last year, I had success [because of my] physicality in puck battles,” Tinordi said Monday. “That’s one area that I really did well, and that’s something our team needs. I’m a guy that can bring that, so I have to bring that every night. I’ve had it some nights. Other nights, I haven’t had it. That’s on me to correct that.”
The veteran journeyman was indeed a pleasant surprise for the Hawks last season, establishing himself as a reliable second- or third-pairing defensive defenseman over the course of 44 games after getting claimed off waivers. He earned himself a one-year contract extension in April.
His biggest challenge was staying healthy, though, and that has remained a problem. After missing 20 games with a broken jaw, 12 games with a nagging hip issue and six games with a knee sprain last year, he has now missed nine games with an oblique injury and seven games with a concussion this year.
Despite shifting his offseason training to focus more on balance and mobility and to reduce stress on his 6-6, 230-pound body, being in and out of the lineup so frequently has made it difficult to rediscover a rhythm. Although he feels fully healthy now, he has logged only 17 appearances to date.
His struggles escalated Friday during the Hawks’ overtime loss in Dallas. Tinordi made errors that led to three Stars goals, each one worse than the last. After Wyatt Johnston walked him early in the third period, setting up a Jamie Benn tally, Tinordi was benched for the remainder of the night.
“I haven’t had a game like that in a while,” he said. “Nothing was really going right for me that night, and it sucks to see. You feel like you’re disappointing your team, letting your team down a little bit. I got benched in the third period, and rightfully so. I deserved that.
“You want to be part of the solution, not the problem. That’s the worst feeling in hockey. It was exciting for the guys to come back, and I was trying to do my best to stay positive and cheer them on. But at the same time, that’s a bad feeling, sitting there. I don’t want to be in that position again.”
Hawks coach Luke Richardson insisted he knew there would be “no give-up” in Tinordi and kept him in the lineup Sunday, but things didn’t go much better for him and went even worse for the team in an 8-1 defeat. The Stars again scored three goals against Tinordi, one of which deflected off his skate — plus a fourth goal on a power play following a Tinordi penalty.
Over the last three games, opponents have generated a massive 32-9 scoring-chance advantage during Tinordi’s five-on-five ice time.
So, clearly, this is a low point for him. Richardson talked to him about not retreating toward his net when things go awry just because it feels safer, urging him to instead use his long reach to get out in the defensive zone and tie up opponents’ sticks.
Tinordi, meanwhile, has focused on simplifying his on-ice approach and mindset. He pointed out more than half the season remains unplayed; there is time left to find his consistency.
“Sometimes you can get caught up [in things],” he said. “[When] we’re losing games, sometimes you feel like you’ve got to do more to help the group — maybe more than you should be doing.
“The things that I do well, I’ve got to do those things well every night. Some plays will open up and...I’ll make those plays. But when you’ve got stuff going on in your head, you’re trying to do too much out there.”
