Chicago Blackhawks: Jonathan Toews helps avoid a scare

The Chicago Blackhawks have been relying on their captain to lead them for over a decade and he came up big last night in Ottawa.

The Chicago Blackhawks are one of those teams now that need every point they could get. That is especially true when they are playing a team like the Ottawa Senators who are pretty low in the overall standings. When you are low in the standings, you need to beat the few teams who are lower than you if you want any hope of climbing back into the playoff picture. That was the opportunity presented to the Blackhawks when they traveled to Ottawa.

That is why going down 2-0 early was a bad look for the Blackhawks. It would be one thing to lose to the Ottawa Senators but to get blown out by them would be terrible. Luckily, they stormed all the way back to tie the game and then win it in overtime. It was an impressive win despite the opponent because they showed that they aren’t a team that gives up. They do what they need to do despite the score. That shows that they have the proper leadership in place to try and make something of this season.

Nobody is more of a leader in the entire National Hockey League than Jonathan Toews. He was the major factor in all three Blackhawks goals in the comeback. He assisted on the two goals that helped them tie it and then scored the game-winning goal in overtime. He was pivotal to the team getting back in the game and then made a spectacular play to win the game for Chicago. He also had some help from Patrick Kane, who had two assists in the game himself.

Those two have been leading the way for a long time. They can’t really afford for that to not be the case this year because the Hawks aren’t as deep as they once were. They are also getting some help from Dominik Kubalik who has been on fire lately. He scored two goals in this game to give him 18 on the season. These three playing well together literally allowed the Blackhawks to win the game.

They are going to need to be better in their next game as the opponent gets a little bit better. They are going to Quebec to take on the Montreal Canadiens. This is the second game of the three-game Canadian road trip and the second hardest game. This would be a good chance to make sure the Hawks have a successful road trip in Canada. Robin Lehner had the start last night so it will be interesting to see Corey Crawford go tonight.

They need more of the same from the three players who helped them get it done in this game as far as creating chances. It would also be nice to see some others step up because the Canadiens are a little bit deeper of a team than the Senators are. They have more forwards and defensemen who can make an impact so the Blackhawks will need to be on their toes.