Blackhawks still last but feeling better entering clash with Hurricanes

Having snapped a losing skid in their last outing, the last-place Chicago Blackhawks will strive to build off that victory over a top-tier team when they play host to the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday.

The Blackhawks ended a four-game slide in style with a 5-3 victory over the visiting Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday. Chicago remains at the bottom of the league standings but received a huge boost by dropping the Pacific Division-leading Golden Knights.

"It was good for the group coming off that Nashville loss (a 3-2 shootout setback), where we felt we played well enough," Chicago interim coach Anders Sorensen said. "Our first period was really good (Saturday). The second, we kind of fell back a little bit again, but the response in the third was really good to see as a group, to be able to kind of fight through that."

Chicago not only erased an early deficit, but staked a 3-1 lead. Vegas pulled even, but the Blackhawks regrouped with a pair of goals, including Tyler Bertuzzi's second man-advantage marker of the clash.

"I'm starting to feel better, just coming into games and being better prepared," Bertuzzi said. "Our chemistry, me and Connor (Bedard), just keeps kind of growing as we go. The biggest thing for us, and we talk about it, is being better defensively. The last few games we have, and we need to continue to do that."

Bedard, the 2023 first overall draft pick, struggled offensively in the first couple of months of his sophomore season but has found his stride, having recorded points in 12 of the last 13 games and netting six goals and nine assists in that span.

Coincidentally, the Hurricanes also are coming off a victory over the Golden Knights to snap a skid. Carolina claimed a 3-2 victory over Vegas on Friday and has now posted a 3-1-1 mark in its last five outings.

Like the Blackhawks, the Hurricanes believe their victory is one to build from, having cued up a comeback.

"After the first 10 minutes or so in the first period, we started getting a lot more chances, then throughout the second and third (periods), I think we really found our game," forward Jackson Blake said. "That was a really fun game. To come out on top means a lot for us."

Blake's early third-period goal not only broke a tie, but is his 10th of the season, a nice start to the rookie's career. And he won't complain it was a shot that banked into the net off a defender.

"That's one where you don't ask how," Blake said. "I don't mind those once in a while. Those ones feel just as good."

Carolina will receive a boost during its quick two-game trip that also includes a clash with the Dallas Stars on Tuesday. Veteran goaltender Frederik Andersen is expected to play one of those games, his first since having knee surgery in November. Andersen's next game will be the 500th game of his NHL career.

Having Andersen back in the fold gives the Hurricanes a stronger duo between the pipes. Pyotr Kochetkov has delivered plenty of strong games in the breach and was a key part of the win over Vegas, starting with his 13-save first-period performance.

"(Kochetkov) kept us in it," Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "Their first period was good. We were trying, but they were putting it on us. That's what a goalie can do, keep us in it."

--Field Level Media