The Brady Tkachuk-less Ottawa Senators have been on a scoring tear recently, putting up seven goals at home against the Boston Bruins last night. They also netted seven goals in Washington on Saturday. Tonight’s game marks their fifth outing in eight days, concluding a back-to-back set.
On the other hand, the Tyler Bertuzzi-less Chicago Blackhawks have played just two games over the past nine days and struggled offensively, managing only one goal against the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday evening. Since their eight-goal explosion in St. Louis, the Blackhawks have scored only eight goals combined over the next four games.
Note: Tyler Bertuzzi was on the ice during this morning’s optional skate for the Blackhawks, while Ilya Mikheyev was absent. Head coach Jeff Blashill stated that both players are game-time decisions. Stay tuned for updates on the lineup.
Broadcast Info
- Puck Drop: 7:45 PM CT
- TV / Streaming: CHSN
- Radio: WGN 720 AM
Expected Lineups
Chicago Blackhawks
Forwards:
Tyler Bertuzzi — Connor Bedard — André Burakovsky
Teuvo Teräväinen — Frank Nazar — Ryan Donato
Landon Slaggert — Jason Dickinson — Nick Foligno
Ryan Greene — Colton Dach
Defense:
Alex Vlasic — Sam Rinzel
Wyatt Kaiser — Artyom Levshunov
Matt Grzelcyk — Connor Murphy
Louis Crevier
Goaltender:
Spencer Knight
Ottawa Senators
Forwards:
Nick Cousins – Tim Stützle – Drake Batherson
Ridly Greig – Shane Pinto – David Perron
Michael Amadio – Dylan Cozens – Claude Giroux
Kurtis MacDermid – Lars Eller – Fabian Zetterlund
Defense:
Jake Sanderson – Artem Zub
Thomas Chabot – Nick Jensen
Tyler Klevin – Nikolas Matinpalo
Goaltender:
Linus Ullmark
Injury Report
Chicago Blackhawks
- Ilya Mikheyev and Tyler Bertuzzi are game-time decisions.
- Laurent Brossoit (hip) and Shea Weber (retired) are out long term.
Ottawa Senators
- Brady Tkachuk is on injured reserve.
What to Watch For
Ottawa enters tonight’s game playing the second half of a back-to-back, making them the third team the Blackhawks have faced this season under those circumstances. The Sens hosted Boston last night. The Blackhawks will need to jump on Ottawa early and keep the pressure on throughout the game.
Ottawa boasts a very strong special teams unit, while Chicago’s power play has struggled significantly. The Blackhawks have made a few changes to their special teams units recently—let’s see if those adjustments make a difference tonight should they get the chance on the man advantage.
Also, for those following closely, it appears the Senators will start their No. 1 goaltender tonight rather than their backup.
Get Caught Up
Tyler Bertuzzi taking the ice before the Blackhawks’ optional morning skate:
pic.twitter.com/6mXd01vfnW
Blackhawks move Teuvo Teräväinen to the second power-play unit:
PP2 set-up: Greene, Donato, Dach, Teräväinen, Levshunov
pic.twitter.com/qaz5F8FACv
