Chicago Blackhawks: An elite team is invading United Center

The Chicago Blackhawks are staying affloat with a pretty depleted roster. They weren’t really good, to begin with, and then injuries and COVID-19 protocol started to hit their lineup even more. Now, they are trying to win games with this lineup that isn’t good enough but they find ways to stay in games. Their loss to Columbus on Saturday snapped a five-game point streak and they got back on track with a win on Sunday. One of the biggest tests they can have this season is coming to town in the form of the Carolina Hurricanes.

The Chicago Blackhawks will play a great team in the Carolina Hurricanes at home.

Make no mistake about it, the Carolina Hurricanes are one of the best teams in the National Hockey League. A lot of people have the Tampa Bay Lighting pegged to win the new-look Central Division but it would surprise no one of the Hurricanes come out on top. They have a very deep forward group, one of the best defenses in the NHL, and coaching good enough to get them over the top.

Their forwards are led by the trio of Andrei Svechnikov, Sebastian Aho, and Teuvo Teravainen. They are all stars that score/create goals with the best of them. It doesn’t end there as they have a lot of depth but those three drive the bus offensively for them. Blackhawks fans might remember Teravainen as he was traded to Carolina to get rid of a bad contract. That was one of many terrible Stan Bowman trades as Teravainen did turn into the star he was drafted to be.

Their defense is one of the best in the NHL, as mentioned before. They have guys like Dougie Hamilton, Brady Skjei, and Brett Pesce leading the way right now. The Hawks will catch a break in this one as Jaccob Slavin won’t be ready to play following a stint on the COVID-19 list. This is a hard group to play against so Chicago’s forwards will need to press hard.

It seems like every game needs Patrick Kane to step up along with the power play. It is even better when those two forces come together to help them score. The Blackhawks have the sixth-best power play in the NHL as they are clicking at 33.3 percent. Carolina, unfortunately, has the second-best penalty kill in the league at 91.3. Their power play is also pretty good at 11th in the league (26.9 percent).

When you think about all of the positives about the Carolina Hurricanes that have just been laid out for you, their record of 5-1-0 makes a lot of sense. They have a legit shot at the Stanley Cup. With that said, the Chicago Blackhawks are a pesky group that has a lot of pride. They are a shell of their dynasty teams from a few years ago but they compete hard and make their more talented opponents work.

This is a good chance to prove that they aren’t as bad as people think. The Tampa Bay Lightning outscored them 10-3 in the first two games of the season. It would be nice to see them play a little better than that against a team just as good.