The Chicago Blackhawks kicked off the Tom Kurvers Prospect Showcase with a 3-2 overtime win over the St. Louis Blues on Saturday night. Oliver Moore scored the game-winning goal just 24 seconds into overtime, while Stanislav Berezhnoy was remarkable in his first performance between the pipes in North America.
The Blackhawks were sloppy out of the gates on Saturday, which shouldn’t be too surprising. This was the first game-like action most of their prospects had seen in several months, while the Blues began the Showcase on Friday night against the Minnesota Wild. Naturally, St. Louis played the cleaner hockey between the two teams early on.
The Blues kicked off the scoring just 78 seconds into the game, as an errant pass from Moore in the defensive zone led to a quick goal from Otto Stenberg. Not an ideal start.
After a sluggish opening 10-15 minutes, the Blackhawks found their rhythm in the final stages of the first period and started building momentum. Blues’ starting goaltender Will Cranley kept the Hawks off the board with some incredible saves, but once he was pulled at the midway point of the game, the well opened up.
Two unlikely goal scorers struck for the Blackhawks late in the second period. Big left-handed defenseman Taige Harding tied the game 1-1 with 7:12 left in the middle frame, and then Ryan Mast put Chicago ahead 2-1 with 3:32 remaining. Suddenly, they had the lead going into the third period.
The Blues battled hard down the stretch to even up the score, and they caught a lucky break with 7:55 to go to erase their deficit. After Berezhnoy made the initial save on a shot from the right dot, the puck appeared to bounce off someone in front and trickled into the back of the net. Tie game.
Extra time was needed to determine the winner, but only 24 seconds of it. Moore raced into the offensive zone with a full head of speed, took in a pass from Nick Lardis, and stuffed home a shot to give the Blackhawks the 3-2 victory.
Game One Standouts
Sam Rinzel has the ‘C’ on his chest as the Blackhawks’ captain for the weekend, and he sure led by example on Saturday night. Rinzel’s smooth skating ability and elite offensive instincts were evident every time he hit the ice, and he dominated in terms of puck possession and zone entries. He effortlessly weaved through traffic and dodged Blues’ defenders on several occasions to generate quality opportunities. It’s so impressive how well a player of his size maneuvers around the ice.
Rinzel also made a beautiful pass to set up Taige Harding for the Blackhawks’ first goal of the game.
Artyom Levshunov was noticeable throughout Saturday’s game, as he floated around the ice making plays in all three zones, like he always does. Playing on the team’s second defensive pairing with fellow countryman Dmitry Kuzmin, Levshunov created a few good scoring chances for himself and his teammates. He also made an incredible effort on a backcheck to prevent a Blues forward from getting a dangerous shot off on Berezhnoy.
Speaking of Stanislav Berezhnoy, the 22-year-old Russian goaltender was nothing short of spectacular to earn the victory in net. The Blackhawks were on their heels in the early moments of the game and in the final stretch of regulation, but Berezhnoy came up clutch time and time again. He’s off to a great start with his new team.
Oliver Moore gets credit for being the overtime hero, but he made his presence felt many times earlier in the game. I continue to be impressed with his grit and determination, as his hustle is always on display. Oh, and then there’s his wheels. My oh my, does Moore have a different gear. The guy he left in the dust on the OT winner? That was the Blues’ 2024 first-round pick Adam Jiricek, who’s no slouch back there. Impressive stuff from Moore.
Nick Lardis was robbed of a goal while the Blackhawks were on the powerplay in the second period. Lardis made a few nifty passes throughout the game, and he easily could have had a multi-point night. The puck seems to find him often, and good things tend to happen.
Blackhawks 2025 third-round pick Nathan Behm was one of the four sleeper prospects I wrote up earlier in the week, and he didn’t disappoint in his first look with the Blackhawks. Behm had two or three grade-A chances and meshed well on a line with A.J. Spellacy and Martin Misiak. While his acceleration needs work, he moves well without the puck to put himself in prime scoring spots.
A.J. Spellacy had a strong night with Behm. It’s impossible to ignore his size and speed combination, and he’s never afraid to get into a skirmish after the whistle. Spellacy’s best scoring chance of the night came while the Blackhawks were shorthanded late in the first period.
The Blackhawks are back in action tomorrow at 3 pm CT against the Minnesota Wild. The game can be streamed at Blackhawks.com or through the Blackhawks app.
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