After a short east coast road trip, the Chicago Blackhawks return to Chicago to host the Winnipeg Jets on Friday evening at the United Center with puck drop set for 7:30 p.m.
The Blackhawks were able to snap a lengthy eight-game losing streak to start their road trip but have since lost their last two games, putting them at 7-14-4 on the season.
The Jets feature a balanced attack and sound defensive scheme under new head coach Rick Bowness. The former Stars coach has led his current team to a 17-7-1 record, which is good enough for first place in the Central Division.
A trio of Jets skaters are over point-per-game, including Pierre-Luc Dubois and Josh Morrissey, each with 28 points in 25 games as well as Kyle Connor who has 27 points in that span.
Winnipeg’s starting goalie, Connor Hellebuyck, has also been very good, owning a 14-5-1 record with a .932 save percentage in that 20-game span. However, its his back-up, “Big Save” Dave Rittich who is expected to get the start against the Blackhawks on Friday. Rittich has not posted the numbers that Hellebuyck has, going 3-2 in only 5 games played, with a save percentage of .881.
Regardless of who starts in net, the Hawks have their work cut out for them. Winning the possession battle should be the main objective, one that has evaded the Hawks for the majority of their season.
The Hawks enter this division match-up missing a slew of players to injury. Tyler Johnson and Jared Tinordi both remain out, as do net minders Alex Stalock and Petr Mrazek. Jonathan Toews, who missed time with illness, remains a game-time decision. On a positive note, Sam Lafferty, who missed time with a back injury, is expected to play on Friday night. Arvid Soderblom is expected to get the call in net.
The Blackhawks have an uphill battle on Friday evening. If they want to come away with points, they’re going to need all the help they can get to put together a complete 60-minute game.
Tale of the tape (statistics from this season)
Blackhawks — Statistic — Jets
41.38% (32nd) — 5-on-5 Corsi For — 56.5% (2nd)
41.39% (30th) — 5-on-5 Expected goals for — 60.32% (1st)
2.54 (30th) — Goals per game — 3.36 (11th)
3.58 (25th) — Goals against per game — 2.52 (4th)
56.2% (1st) — Faceoffs — 48.1% (24th)
25.3% (11th) — Power play — 23.5% (15th)
74.7% (23rd) — Penalty kill — 83.8% (4th)
Projected lineups (subject to change)
Blackhawks
Athanasiou — Toews (?) — Kane
Kurashev — Domi — Raddysh
Khaira — Dickinson — Entwistle
Blackwekk — Lafferty — R. Johnson
J. Johnson — S. Jones
C. Jones — Murphy
McCabe —Mitchell
Söderblom
Stauber
Jets
Connor — Dubois — Eyssimont
Perfetti — Scheifele — Wheeler
Harkins — Lowry — Maenalanen
Jonsson-Fjallby — Gustafsson — Barron
Morrissey — Demelo
Dillon — Pionk
Schmidt — Stanley
Rittich/Hellebuyck
How to watch
When: 7:30 p.m. CT
Where: United Center, Chicago
TV: NBCSCH
Radio: WGN 720
Live stream: Sling TV