TAKEAWAYS: Blackhawks Fall Late in Third to Jets

While Connor Murphy kicked things off for the Chicago Blackhawks in the second period, the team couldn’t protect their lead late in the third against the Winnipeg Jets. 

With two back-to-back Jets goals to take over the matchup with over a minute left in the game, the Blackhawks suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 loss. 

“It's unacceptable on our part to give up goals and grade A chances in the last 10 [or] five minutes,” Murphy said. “We even had a chance when we were given up big ones, and then we kept giving up big ones and we paid for it.” 

This loss also marked the 15th straight road loss for Chicago.

Throughout the night, the Blackhawks maintained its lead with the help of Petr Mrazek, who made 26 saves on 28 shots faced. As head coach Luke Richardson described it as a disappointment that they couldn’t earn their veteran netminder a win. 

“We got to try and get him a little more gold support and definitely protect him a little better at the end of games,” Richardson said. 

The Jets found their momentum late in the third to tie the game up and the Blackhawks tried to find a way to send it to overtime. However, with a quick goal from Winnipeg’s Nikolaj Ehlers to make it 2-1, this caused a scramble for Chicago’s offense. 

Richardson shared his frustration with the loss, especially against a forceful team like the Jets, who won their eighth straight victory. 

“They wanted a little bit more than us at the end of the game, and we just couldn't contain them and hold them,” Richardson said.

At the end of the matchup, Murphy felt it showcased the team’s struggle to maintain their leads and compete with strong teams. 

“It's hard to win games against good teams,” Murphy said. “Any team is going to pour it on you at the end if you're trying to defend a lead. You got to know how to play, and we clearly didn't show that we knew how to play with it.”