The Vibes Are HIGH!

The Vibes Are HIGH!

Not too long ago, a Blackhawks team in this spot would have unraveled. Last year’s team would have found a way to lose this game in regulation. But Jeff Blash’s Hawks didn’t blink. They stuck to their game, stayed patient, and beat the Ducks two to one in overtime, extending their point streak to four straight. Frank Nazar broke the ice midway through the third, giving Chicago the one- nothing edge. But Anaheim clawed back on the power play late to force overtime in the final minute. Rather than collapsing, the Hawks regrouped, hit the gas, and slammed the door shut. Donado ripping home the gamewinner off a filthy setup from Connor Baddard. And let’s just take a minute and give this man Jeff Blashel his flowers for what we’re seeing from Tyler Batusi. Under Blastel in Detroit back in 2022, Bratusi hit careerh highs with 30 goals and 62 points. And that confidence looks alive again. Through six games, he’s been dialed in on both sides of the puck, earned a bump up to the top line, and is playing like a guy who wants to be a difference maker every night. And the ripple effect of that confidence showed up again on Sunday. The new top line of Bertusi, Burikovski, and Badard wasted no time setting the tone. On their opening shift, they generated a pair of quality looks right off the hop. And from there, they controlled the run of play. In just 13 minutes of five-on-ive action, the trio led in shot attempts 18-11, shots on goal 10 to four, scoring chances 9 to5, and high danger opportunities 4 to3. It felt like every time they hopped over the boards, something dangerous was brewing. Individually, Bert turned in another work first detailheavy performance. The stat sheet shows just one shot off five attempts, but his fingerprints were everywhere. Heounded pucks on the forche, won battles along the wall, went straight to the dirty areas, and clogged up lanes in the defensive zone. It was just one of those nights where you could feel his presence shift the momentum even when he wasn’t the one finishing the play. It wasn’t just the top line pulling weight either. Chicago continues to get big minutes from one of their most quietly effective players to start the year, Elia McKv. Coming into the night, he was tied for the team leading goals with three and has arguably been their most reliable defensive forward. At five on five, the Hawks have outscored opponents four to one with him on the ice. And the extra layer of offense he’s brought has been a welcome boost to his already well-rounded game. Blahill clearly took notice, too. He bumped McKay up into Bertusi’s old spot on the second line with Nazar and Terravinan, hoping to spread out some of that two-way reliability. I’m not going to lie though, the early returns were rocky. The line spent way too much time pinned in their own zone, posting just a 19.05 course 4% at five on five and getting stuck defending for the first 2 minutes and 36 seconds of the second period. By the time they finally escaped, they’d manage only four shot attempts while surrendering 17 the other way. While the second line struggled at even strength, McKay still made his presence felt on the penalty kill. In just under 5 minutes of short-handed ice time, he nearly turned the tide himself with a short-handed breakaway early in the first period. Spending so much time killing penalties inevitably cut into his five-on-ive minutes and overall impact. Another reminder of why the Hawks need to stay out of the box. It’s been their biggest problem so far this season as they’ve already become the most penalized team in the NHL. Now, let’s talk about the hero, our Knight in shining armor, Spencer. His 100th career NHL game turned into one for the highlight reel. Knight made 38 saves and came within 36 seconds of his sixth career shut out, standing tall when the team needed him the most. And maybe the performance shouldn’t have been a surprise. In four career starts against Anaheim, he’s unbeaten at 40 and0 with two shutouts, allowing just four goals on 125 shots for a staggering 968 save percentage. His 957 even strength save percentage ranks sixth in the entire NHL, proving he’s becoming as clutch as they come. So far this season, Knight has been everything the Hawks could have hoped for and then some. His consistency, composure, and sheer presence between the pipes have given Chicago a backbone they’ve been missing. Bard, meanwhile, was an absolute stud. He fired nine shots on goal and racked up 11 attempts overall, creating four individual scoring chances at five on five. But the moment everyone will remember came in overtime. After following up his own shot and digging out the rebound, Badard showed ice cold awareness, skating behind the net and calmly flipping the puck right onto Ryan Donado’s tape for the gamewinner. His nine shots didn’t find the back of the net this time, but with that shoot first mentality, it’s only a matter of time before the goals start piling up. There were plenty of reasons to celebrate the win, but it had to feel especially sweet for Wyatt Kaiser. Expect a full breakdown on him soon, boys. He played a standout game. Sure, his delay of game penalty led to Anaheim’s game-tying goal, but moments like that don’t define him. Earlier in the third, he made a diving shot block to stop what looked like a certain goal during one of the rare occasions Knight was beaten. Kaiser continues to grow more confident with each outing. Smart, steady, and razor sharp in reading plays. He’s quickly becoming a reliable presence on the back end for this team. Frank Nazar had a rough first 40 minutes. A few whiffed passes and defensive lapses made it feel like something was off, but he showed up when it mattered most. In the third period, he opened the scoring with a goal that highlighted his determination. Not just keeping the puck under control, but showing the awareness to stay with the play until the perfect moment. Nazar also led the charge at the faceoff dot, winning 10 of 17 draws and helping the Blackhawks post a 55.6% success rate there. There were plenty of moments on Sunday night where it looked like the Hawks might crumble, but this team showed its built differently. Anaheim dominated in the second. Yet, Chicago stayed composed and answered with a brilliant third period. Even surrendering the game tying goal with just 36 seconds left in regulation. Didn’t rattle them. They kept pushing. Nazar nearly scored in the final seconds. Overall, the team refused to let a late setback define the night, and the vibes are high. What’s good, boys? I just wanted to take a little minute here at the end to just say thank you. Thank you for all of your support on both channels. I don’t know why it took me so long to do a face reveal, but the timing just feels right now. When I call you guys boys, it’s not just me trying to sound like a stereotypical hockey guy. I really do consider you guys my friends, my community, my boys. 1,200 subscribers in a month may not seem like a lot to some of you, but to me, it’s just insane. I love that we’re building this little community together, and without you guys, there would be no MSAD. So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you all for the support. And the best part is we’re just getting started here. I’ll see you boys in the next one.

Not too long ago, a Blackhawks team in that same situation would’ve crumbled, probably more than once in the same night. Honestly, even last year’s group likely wouldn’t have made it to overtime, let alone found a way to win it. But Jeff Blashill’s Blackhawks stayed the course, kept their composure, and beat the Anaheim Ducks 2-1 in overtime to push their point streak to four games. #nhl #chicagoblackhawks #blackhawks #chicago #connorbedard #franknazar #spencerknight
Audio credit @WhiteBatAudio
Main channel @MSZFilms