The Blackhawks‘ offense looks as toothless right now as it did during the stretch last season when Connor Bedard was out of the lineup — except this is with Bedard playing.
After 3-1 and 4-1 losses to the Kraken and Canucks, respectively, the Hawks have now gone five consecutive games scoring just one regulation goal.
Even when including Philipp Kurashev’s overtime winner last Sunday, they’ve scored only six goals in a five-game span. The franchise didn’t do that once between 2006 and 2016, but they’ve now done it nine times in the last two years — including notably twice during the 14 games Bedard missed last January and February.
They now rank last in the NHL in scoring chances and 29th in goals during five-on-five play. In November, they rank last in both categories by sizable margins.
It’s true that the Hawks’ best recipe for wins in their current form involves playing low-event games, but their offense is so derelict at the moment that something must be done to try to revive it.
Coach Luke Richardson, a former defenseman who usually prioritizes defense, doesn’t think that something is changing his system. He made that much clear Saturday after the defeat in Vancouver.
“We have to just start looking at the simple part of our game [so] that can add more offense,” Richardson said. “I don’t think we’re a team built — yet — to open it up and go back and forth like Edmonton or Colorado can.”
Richardson’s subsequent comments on the subject brushed even closer to outright admitting he doesn’t believe the roster that general manager Kyle Davidson has given him, even though theoretically improved from last year, is good enough.
“There’s not really much we can do,” Richardson added. “We can’t start seaming passes. I don’t think we have the guys that are the strong J.T. Millers of the world that we saw tonight [on the Canucks].
“With our group makeup right now, we have to play straight on and slash and support. Everybody can do that. … We showed we had some more sustained ‘O’-zone time tonight. If we can continue to do that, I think we’ll get better at burying those chances.”
So, in lieu of any systemic changes, what can the Hawks do to generate more goals? Here are a few ideas:
Get Bedard going
Bedard has officially fallen into the deepest rut of his young career to date. He has gone nine straight games without a goal, he has just one point in his last five games, and he has zero points and only four shots on goal in his last three.
There was a rush in the second period Saturday where he forced a cross-ice pass to a trailing defenseman that came to nothing. It was a forgettable play but also a clear sign of his jarringly low confidence. When he’s playing like himself, he probably glances over and then rips a no-look wrist shot toward the top corner in that situation.
“For him, it’s the same as everybody: When we have a chance, we shouldn’t be looking for another pass,” Richardson said.
It’s imperative, from both a short- and long-term perspective, that the Hawks snap Bedard out of this as soon as possible. If that requires temporarily moving him from center to wing, so be it. Facing the porous Ducks on Tuesday could help, too.
Consistency with lines
Richardson’s tinkering with the line combinations has become a little ridiculous, even though the reason for it — the fact nothing is clicking — is understandable. The Hawks have 11 regulation losses in 18 games, and Richardson has altered the forward lines after all 11.
Scratching Taylor Hall on Saturday when Seth Jones, the team’s best offensive defenseman by far, had already been involuntarily removed from the lineup due to injury was especially perplexing.
Hall hasn’t been great, but other forwards have been worse. Tyler Bertuzzi, the Hawks’ $22 million summer signing, has tallied one five-on-five goal all season. Teuvo Teravainen, a $16.2 million signing, has one point in his last 13 games. Kurashev, the team’s second-leading scorer last season, has four total points.
The four lines Richardson deployed Thursday in Seattle — Bedard with Kurashev and Teravainen; Nick Foligno with Hall and Bertuzzi; Jason Dickinson with Joey Anderson and Ryan Donato; Lukas Reichel with Pat Maroon and Craig Smith — have all been analytically decent this season. Why not stick with them for a few weeks to see if chemistry solidifies?
More net-front traffic
Richardson’s constant commands to shoot the puck more will be most fruitful if the Hawks get more traffic around the net, because NHL goalies will save almost every shot they can see clearly.
Donato is the one Hawk who has mucked things up effectively. That’s exactly what Bertuzzi was signed to do, and he has done it on the power play, but he needs to find a niche at five-on-five. The same goes for Maroon. And even the less gritty players can still push down low more often for rebounds and scramble chances.
Smarter dump-ins
After two of the last four games (losses to the Stars and Kraken), the Hawks discussed how many of their dump-ins rimmed around the boards directly to the opposing goalie, who was able to stop and pass the puck before their forecheck arrived.
It’s a small thing, but better-placed dump-ins — or even simply being mindful about placing the dump-ins — could make the north-south offensive strategy Richardson is dedicated to more effective. That typically means putting them in the corners, outside of the goalie’s trapezoid.
“We’ve got to be slashing across and have guys coming to the puck,” Foligno said Thursday. “It seems like we’re really spaced out [when] we’re trying to do the rim, and if you’re trying to rim from that far out, the goalie…can read it.”
Another tweak could involve encouraging the defensemen to carry the puck up to the red line and dump it in themselves, giving all three forwards more time and freedom to set up a more aggressive 1-2-2 forecheck.