For the Chicago Blackhawks, the good news is that they’re surviving their defensive lapses. The bad news is that it’s pretty difficult to keep jumping through such hoops over and over again, even with a roster as loaded with explosive offensive talent as Chicago boasts.
CSNChicago.com provides a great take on the Blackhawks’ troubling penchant for allowing barrages, noting that Chicago has allowed three goals in a single period on five different occasions this season (including coughing up a three-goal lead in an eventual Game 1 win against the Minnesota Wild).
“We don’t want to give you that many goals, that quickly, but after it happens there’s not much you can do about it,” Saad said. “It’s an even game there. It’s considered 0-0 and you have to score. We have to regroup. Regardless of what happened, obviously it’s not how we want to play but we have to regroup, refocus and get the job done.”
Much of that story seems to show the Blackhawks taking those bewildering bursts in stride, but if you expand the scope to their defensive struggles as a whole, the picture gets a little more unsettling.
(For one thing, it’s already documented that Chicago is worried about its penalty kill.)
So far in these playoffs, Chicago has 3.50 goals for per game and 3.43 allowed. Back in 2014 they allowed 2.90 per contest and generated 3.05. It’s positive that the Blackhawks are coming out on top, and it’s not shocking that the margins are small in the tough West and playoffs in general ... but one would assume that Joel Quenneville’s stomach must get a little upset seeing his team trade hay-makers over and over again.
In a low-scoring league, it only seems like a matter of time before you pay for taking all of those body blows.
