Blackhawks News: Finally lost a game, Bruce Boudreau drama, and more

The Chicago Blackhawks are on a little bit of a hot streak which isn’t really all that good of news because they would be much better off trying to have the best pick they can get in the 2023 NHL Draft.

Everyone knows the potential that Connor Bedard has once he reaches the NHL. The Hawks don’t want to mess up the opportunity to get him or one of the other top players from the draft.

The Hawks finally did end their recent hot streak with a loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday night.

They lost a very close game by one goal to a team that believes they will be heading to the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs with a chance to make it far.

They have been scoring a lot more goals lately but they just didn’t come against the Kings and it cost them a victory. Again, that is probably a good thing in the long term.

The Chicago Blackhawks have a long second half ahead of them in 2023.

Bruce Boudreau Drama

The Chicago Blackhawks probably won’t finish with as many points in the standings as the Vancouver Canucks but they are a much better-run organization with a much brighter future. Now, these two teams are set to meet on Tuesday night.

This will be the first game that the Canucks play since letting go of their coach Bruce Boudreau. Of course, there is a lot of drama surrounding that firing as it was reported to be happening a week in advance and the Canucks just let him sit there and wonder what is happening next.

It was also reported a week in advance that Rick Tocchet would be Boudreau’s successor but again, Vancouver let multiple games pass before they finally did it. It was horrible to see them treat a legendary coach like that.

Well, now the Canucks are hoping that things finally get better for them with the Hawks coming to town. We will see how that goes for them.

Other NHL News:

Johnny Gaudreau made his long-awaited return to Alberta to take on the Calgary Flames for the first time since leaving them in free agency. It was an outstanding game but Gaudreau’s return was spoiled by Calgary as they won 4-3 in overtime.

Johnny Hockey did find a way to collect two assists but he missed on a penalty shot that he was awarded. The crowd booed him during warmups and every time he touched the puck during the game.

However, they did cheer him during the first TV timeout when the Flames played a welcome-back video on the jumbotron. It was definitely a really cool night for NHL fans.

Elsewhere around the league, teams are trying to separate themselves and determine whether or not they are buyers or sellers. The trade rumors are small right now but they will certainly start heating up soon. It will be fun to see how the Blackhawks fit into all of it as sellers.