Morning Skate Update: Reichel, Vlasic sent to Rockford; Stalock starting
The latest information on line combinations, starting goalies and more as the Blackhawks face the Wild on Saturday night in Seattle.
A few updates ahead of the Blackhawks games against the Minnesota Wild at the United Center on Monday night.
As reported earlier, Lukas Reichel and Alex Vlasic were reassigned to the Rockford IceHogs Monday morning. The IceHogs have lost four of their last six games – including their most recent game on Saturday – so they're now just one point above the Chicago Wolves for the final playoff spot in the AHL's Central Division.
Good luck to Lukas, Alex and the @goicehogs as they make a playoff push ‼️ pic.twitter.com/w3mVx3vJrr
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) April 10, 2023
The Blackhawks also recalled Buddy Robinson because they just need bodies to play at this point and he's not really a loss to Rockford.
#Blackhawks have officially reassigned Lukas Reichel and Alex Vlasic to AHL’s Rockford IceHogs.
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) April 10, 2023
Buddy Robinson has also been recalled.
Robinson slotted into Reichel's spot on the second line, but the rest of the forward lines remained the same from the Seattle game.
On defense, Nikita Zaitsev and Anders Englund will draw back into the lineup in place of Vlasic and Jarred Tinordi (who was injured last game).
All sons on the right… pic.twitter.com/ZUjJPnXovh
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) April 10, 2023
Alex Stalock will be the starting goalie Monday. He is also the Blackhawks' nominee for the 2023 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.
#Blackhawks’ Alex Stalock has been nominated for 2023 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) April 10, 2023
The award is annually given to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey: https://t.co/Bazt4TU2FQ
Coach Luke Richardson spoke after practice about how the Blackhawks have worked hard this season on creating a team identity around work ethic while subtly acknowledging the team just didn't have the talent to perform well this season. He mentioned that latter part could change with an influx of young talent in the coming years.
Richardson: "What we worked on all year is our work ethic, and it’s been there all year long.
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) April 10, 2023
We’ve created that identity for ourselves. We don’t have enough yet to overcome...in the win column. That will come with adding more youthful talent over the next few years."
Captain Jonathan Toews also spoke briefly about how he and his family are still discussing what will come next for him in terms of his hockey career:
Jonathan Toews said his parents are helping him think through things regarding his career future.
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) April 10, 2023
He added about his mom, grinning: "Even after my worst games, she always tells me how good I played. So I usually know where she stands on things."
This comes after Toews spoke to the media this week about how he's treating the final two games at the United Center as his last with the Blackhawks:
Monday vs. Minnesota
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) April 9, 2023
Thursday vs. Philadelphia
Jonathan Toews' final two Blackhawks games at the United Center. And then farewell.
"For myself, I’m taking it as if these are my last games in Chicago."
New story: https://t.co/cJIAQpVEcL
As for the Wild, several players did not make the trip to play against the Blackhawks on Monday. There is a slim chance Minnesota could still get second in the Central Division, but it seems the team prefers resting their stars rather than pushing too hard for home ice.
With the math saying the #mnwild are finishing third in division, sounds like the team left Kaprizov, Spurgeon, Brodin and Zuccarello back in Minnesota.
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) April 10, 2023
The Wild will have reinforcements in two of their most highly touted prospects, as they did the following this weekend:
- Recalled forward Marco Rossi from the Iowa Wild on Saturday, as noted in the game preview
- Signed defenseman Brock Faber on Sunday. Faber was most recently a member of the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers, who lost in the NCAA Championship on Saturday.
Locked in Brock! ✍️
— x - Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) April 9, 2023
We've signed defenseman Brock Faber to a three-year, entry level contract. #mnwild
Because of the above, Minnesota's lineup will look pretty different than normal:
Brock Faber will make his NHL debut tonight vs. #blackhawks #mnwild lines
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) April 10, 2023
Johansson-Gaudreau-Boldy
Nyquist-Steel-Foligno
Petan-Rossi-Hartman
Duhaime-Dewar-Reaves
Middleton-Addison
Goligoski-Faber
Merrill-Klingberg
Dumba extra
Of note: Matt Dumba is with the team in Chicago but was skating outside the top-six on defense, so he's not likely playing Monday night.
In net, Filip Gustavsson will start – apparently the first time a goalie has played two games in a row for Minnesota this season. He has a .932 save percentage for the season.
Filip Gustavsson will start tonight for the #MNWild.
— Dane Mizutani (@DaneMizutani) April 10, 2023
