The Blackhawks wrapped up the NHL Prospect tournament with a 6-1 win Tuesday in Traverse City, Michigan.
MacKenzie Entwistle, Tim Soderlund and Michal Teply each had a goal and an assist, and free agent invitee Sean Josling (OHL Sarnia) had two assists. Alexis Gravel made 27 saves and held a shutout until 2:03 left in the game when Minnesota’s Connor Dewar scored.
Four Blackhawks prospects, including Kirby Dach and Adam Boqvist, left the game with “minor” injuries and were held out for precautionary reasons, but the team is hopeful they’ll all be ready for training camp Friday in Chicago.
Dach scored the opening goal 4:19 into the game, and his WHL teammate Riley McKay doubled the lead by pouncing on a loose puck in front at 7:42.
Kirby Dach with authority to give the #HawksProspects a 1-0 lead off the rush. Entwistle with the assist. https://t.co/XkEF8QGl6D pic.twitter.com/Ctoq66DYSo
— Carter Baum (@CarterBaum) September 10, 2019
Josling picks the pocket of a defenseman behind the goal and Riley McKay capitalizes on the loose puck. #HawksProspects pic.twitter.com/6FoiWr932N
— Carter Baum (@CarterBaum) September 10, 2019
Shortly after McKay’s goal, Dach exited the game after he was hit by Darian Pilon, who was given a boarding penalty. McKay, who led the WHL in penalty minutes each of the past two seasons, dropped the gloves for a second time in the tournament to scrap in retaliation for the hit on Dach. But McKay found the wrong Pilon as he threw down with Derek Pilon and not Darian.
The nasty boarding penalty that sent Kirby Dach to the locker room. #HawksProspects pic.twitter.com/AiNSwgm8KL
— Carter Baum (@CarterBaum) September 10, 2019
After things calmed down, Entwistle added a power-play goal off a feed from Nicolas Beaudin to give Chicago a 3-0 lead.
MacKenzie Entwistle makes it 3-0 Hawks with this power play tally #HawksProspects #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/sWkmwkADDY
— Four Feathers Podcast (@FourFeathersPod) September 10, 2019
The second period saw Boqvist (upper-body contusion) and forwards Philipp Kurashev (upper- and lower-body) and Mikael Hakkarainen (teeth) leave the game. The Wild continued to dish out a physical style of play and often checked Chicago prospects from behind into the boards.
Minnesota’s Damien Giroux was ejected after his boarding hit against Kurashev that caused the Swiss forward to be curled in the fetal position on the ice before a trainer came to his aid. Kurashev skated off the ice with assistance and went to the locker room. Hakkarinen lost some teeth late in the second from a high stick.
Soderlund, Dylan McLaughlin and Teply added goals in the third period that was far less physical than the middle frame.
Soderlund intercepted a pass to start a rush with Teply for his goal then picked up the puck at the blue line and weaved his way through the zone before finding Teply at the right faceoff dot.
Tim Soderlund with the intercept in his own zone and finishes a give-and-go with Michal Teply to give the #HawksProspects a 4-0 lead early in the third. Second of the tournament for the 2017 fourth rounder. pic.twitter.com/YMMKHaELrW
— Carter Baum (@CarterBaum) September 10, 2019
Cross-ice feed from Sean Josling and Dylan McLaughlin roofs it from a difficult angle for a 5-0 lead. Second assist on the afternoon for free-agent Josling. #HawksProspects pic.twitter.com/eAOUto0gQQ
— Carter Baum (@CarterBaum) September 10, 2019
Soderlund and Teply team up again to take a 6-0 lead. Former does the leg work to find the latter. #HawksProspects pic.twitter.com/mCGYsIxNsj
— Carter Baum (@CarterBaum) September 10, 2019