Jeff Glass' head must have been spinning in the opening minutes of Friday's game.
The Blackhawks were down a goal, on a twice-deflected shot, and Glass made 11 saves in the first seven minutes. Vegas finished with 21 shots in the first period en route to a 5-4 win.
It’s safe to say giving up more than a shot per minute is less than ideal. It’s also the third time in four games that the Blackhawks gave up at least 19 shots in the first period.
Wednesday’s 5-2 win against the Rangers was the exception, where the Blackhawks came out with a 14-6 shot edge in the first period despite the score being tied 1-1. However, the two previous games, a 4-3 overtime loss in Calgary and a 4-3 overtime win in Edmonton, featured 19 shots in the first period for the opposition.
Shots aren’t everything and the Blackhawks didn’t even trail against the Oilers after a period despite getting outshot 19-11, but it’s not a good sign, especially while Corey Crawford isn’t between the pipes to make the necessary saves.
After Friday’s loss to Vegas, Joel Quenneville lamented the team’s sloppiness throughout the night. When asked where the breakdowns were happening defensively, Quenneville responded simply: "It was all areas today."
Glass, making his fourth straight start with Crawford out, finished with 38 saves. The 32-year-old rookie is seeing a lot of shots come his way in four games with 152 shots against him in his four games (38 per game).