The Blackhawks broke through last night, finally getting their first win in their home opener against the Blues. A big reason for that was some much needed stability on the back end.
Pretty much every defenseman had their best game of the season last night, something the Blackhawks desperately needed.
Let’s start with Artyom Levshunov. Levshunov was put on the top pair with Bowen Byram, allowing Byram to play his natural left side.
The risk with pairing those two together is that they are both offensively minded defenceman who have gaps in their defensive games.
Last night put some of that worry to bed, at least for now. Levshunov had 18:00 minutes of ice time where he put up one assist and was a +1.
Beyond just his beautiful assist, Levshunov has shown steps forward in his defensive game this season. He has been given opportunity on the penalty kill, totaling 7:58 of ice time in the first four games of the season.
With the defensive game improving, and him showing those dominant offensive flashes, Levshunov hopes to take a big step this season.
“It was good, good play by me” Levshunov told Mark Lazerus after last night’s win.
Byram had a decent game. He played 21:23, was a +1, had two shots on goal, and a block. There were moments where Byram looked dangerous, but couldn’t finish anything.
I am still waiting for a dominant game from Byram. He obviously made a great first impression in the pre-season when he recorded a hattrick, but I want to see something like that when it counts.
Alex Vlasic played arguably his best game of the season last night. He led all Blackhawks defenseman in time on ice with 21:48, was a +1, had a shot, and two blocks.
Beyond the numbers, Vlasic has been using his defensive stick much more effectively over the last two games, and has been closing gaps a lot better. He also has added to his offensive game. There have been multiple times where last year’s Vlasic would just dump the puck in. This season, however, Vlasic loves to carry the puck in, often leading to a shot on goal or some sustained pressure.
“There were a couple points in the season last year where…I’d have a couple bad games [with] a couple turnovers, a couple goals [against], and then I’m in my head, I’m not playing at that same level of confidence. This year, if something bad happens, it’s in one ear, out the other.” Vlasic told Ben Pope after last night’s win.
Vlasic has also quietly added some more physicality to his game. Playing with Ian Cole seems to be a good fit for Vlasic. Another defensive defenseman to help shut down the other team’s top scorers, but having Cole there allows Vlasic to explore that newly found offensive side of his game.
Wyatt Kaiser and Sam Rinzel were the bottom pairing for the Blackhawks last night, and they seemed to work okay together. They played the least out of all defenseman last night. Kaiser played 17:56 and Rinzel played only 17:45.
Rinzel was a healthy scratch in Buffalo after playing very poor hockey in the first two games of the season. You hope a reset like that can help a player turn things around.
Rinzel looked better on the defensive side of the puck, which was a good sign. He also scored the Blackhawks first goal of the game off a Frank Nazar rebound. Rinzel also scored in last years home opener against Montreal.
It was a much needed goal for the offensive defenseman’s confidence. Hopefully Rinzel can build on this positive momentum.
