The Chicago Blackhawks will have a much different look as they try to snap a two-game skid against the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday at Gila River Arena.
Chicago (20-13-4) has struggled offensively lately, scoring only one goal in its past two games. The Hawks were shut out 4-0 at Dallas a week ago then Brent Seabrook scored with three seconds left to avoid back-to-back shutouts in a 2-1 home loss to Carolina.
To generate a spark, coach Joel Quenneville moved Andrew Shaw up to the top line in place of Teuvo Teravainen, who has been regulated to the third line with winger Andrew Desjardins and rookie center Phillip Danault.
On defense, rookie Erik Gustafsson has been recalled will be the third pairing with Michal Rozsival. In six games with Chicago earlier this season, Gustafsson registered three assists. The Hawks placed David Rundblad, who was a healthy scratch for the majority of the season on waivers, and he has cleared them, too.
Corey Crawford will remain in net. He is 2-1-1 with a 2.18 goals-against average in his last four appearances against Arizona. Chicago has won six of its last seven games in Arizona.
Lines:
Shaw-Toews-Hossa
Panarin-Anisimov-Kane
Desjardins-Danault-Teravainen
Bickell-Rasmussen-Garbutt
Defensive pairings:
Keith-TVR
Hjalmarsson-Seabrook
Gustafsson-Rozsival
Opponent Breakdown
Arizona Coytoes | Record: 17-15-3 | 2nd in Pacific Division | Goal Differential -14
Arizona is 3-0-1 in its last four, and is coming off a 2-1 overtime win over Colorado.
Mikkel Boedker is one of the the Coyotes’ dominant players as of late. He scored the game-winner against Colorado and had four assists in a 4-3 overtime loss against Los Angeles. Former Blackhawk center Antoine Vermette and Max Domi — one the league’s top rookies — join Boedker on the top line. Domi ranks second on the team with 26 points (10 goals and 16 assists) in 35 games.
Another 20-year-old in Anthony Duclair also has 10 goals with 19 points this season. He is centered by another former Blackhawk, Viktor Tikhonov, who the Coyotes claimed off waivers this season.
Arizona defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson is a key building piece for the Coyotes. He has nine goals, including two power-play goals against Los Angeles. He’s also an instrumental special team player with a +12 penalty differential and 190:34 of ice time on the power play.
Anders Lindback made 37 saves in the win against Colorado. Both Lindback and Louis Domingue are sharing the net minder duties while Mike Smith is out with a core muscle injury for the next two months. Lindback is 0-3 with a 4.69 GAA against Chicago.
Lines:
Domi-Vermette-Boedker
Rieder-Tikhonov-Duclair
Martinook-Richardson-Doan
Chipchura-Dauphin-Cunningham
Defensive Pairings:
Ekman Larsson-Murphy
Grossmann-Stone
Dahlbeck-Michalek
Injuries
Blackhawks: Marcus Kruger
Coyotes: Boyd Gordon, Martin Hanzal, Mike Smith, Joe Vitale, Dylan Reese, Chris Pronger
How to watch
When: 8 p.m. CT
Where: Gila River Arena; Glendale, Ariz.
TV: CSN