The Chicago Blackhawks (21-25-9) play their final home game before the Olympic break on Monday night, as the San Jose Sharks (27-22-4) come to the United Center for the first of three meetings in the 2025-26 season.
Last time out, the Blackhawks saw their losing streak reach five games, as they were defeated 4-2 by the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday. Charlie Coyle recorded a hat trick and had a four-point game to lead Columbus to victory. Connor Bedard (1G, 1A) and Tyler Bertuzzi (2A) each had two points, while Frank Nazar scored his first goal since returning from injury. With the loss, Chicago went 1-6-1 in its final eight home games of January.
With 51 points through 55 games this season, the Blackhawks are currently the fourth-worst team in the Western Conference and sit nine points back of the Los Angeles Kings for the final wildcard playoff spot. Only the Calgary Flames (50 points), St. Louis Blues (49 points), and Vancouver Canucks (42 points) have fewer points than Chicago in the conference.
The Sharks are coming off a 6-2 road loss to the Calgary Flames in their last appearance on Saturday. Will Smith and Adam Gaudette were the two goal scorers for San Jose. Alex Nedeljkovic recorded the loss in net, stopping 39 of 42 shots faced.
San Jose enters Monday with 58 points through 53 games and is just two points back of the Kings for the second wildcard spot in the Western Conference. The Sharks are also only three points behind the Seattle Kraken for third place in the Pacific Division.
Monday marks the second-ever NHL meeting between Bedard, the first overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft by the Blackhawks, and Macklin Celebrini, the top draft choice in 2024 by the Sharks. The first matchup between the two occurred on Mar. 13, 2025, at SAP Center in San Jose. Celebrini recorded an assist in the Sharks’ 4-2 win. Bedard went without a point and received his first career 10-minute game misconduct.
Here’s everything else to note before the puck drops at 7:30 p.m. CT in Chicago.
Blackhawks Game Recaps (Last Five Games)
Arvid Soderblom had his best start in months, helping the Blackhawks steal a point against the red-hot Tampa Bay Lightning. Soderblom stopped 30 of 31 shots, while Chicago recorded only 18 of its own, in a 2-1 shootout loss to the Lightning. That’s now points in three straight games for the Hawks.
There goes the three-game point streak. Over their last seven outings, the Blackhawks have now scored only 11 goals. The offense was far too quiet once again in a 5-1 loss to the Florida Panthers.
Such a promising start gone to waste. The Blackhawks led 3-0 and were in firm control of the game, but couldn’t finish the job in the later stages. The Minnesota Wild rattled off three unanswered goals before the end of regulation and eventually beat the Blackhawks 4-3 in the shootout.
Well, that was ugly. Despicable defense in the second period led to a lopsided 6-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. That’s now four losses in a row for the Blackhawks.
The losing streak has now reached five games, as the Blackhawks were bested 4-2 by the Columbus Blue Jackets, closing out January on a sour note. On the bright side, Connor Bedard scored for the second straight game, while Frank Nazar netted his first goal since returning from injury.
Blackhawks Projected Lineup
Forward Lines
Frank Nazar — Connor Bedard – Tyler Bertuzzi
Teuvo Teravainen — Ryan Greene — Andre Burakovsky
Ryan Donato — Jason Dickinson — Ilya Mikheyev
Landon Slaggert — Oliver Moore — Colton Dach
Defensive Pairings
Alex Vlasic-Louis Crevier
Wyatt Kaiser-Sam Rinzel
Matt Grzelcyk-Connor Murphy
Scratched
F — Sam Lafferty, D — Artyom Levshunov
Injured
F — Nick Foligno (undisclosed)
***
The Blackhawks are expected to roll with the same forward lines and defensive pairings from Friday’s loss to the Blue Jackets.
Captain Nick Foligno is expected to miss a second consecutive game with an undisclosed injury.
Artyom Levshunov will be healthy-scratched for a second game in a row. Sam Rinzel skates on the second pairing with Wyatt Kaiser once again.
Sharks Projected Lineup
Forward Lines
Will Smith — Macklin Celebrini — Tyler Toffoli
William Eklund — Alexander Wennberg — Collin Graf
Pavol Regenda — Michael Misa — Philipp Kurashev
Barclay Goodrow — Adam Gaudette — Ryan Reaves
Defensive Pairings
Dmitry Orlov-Timoth Liljegren
Mario Ferraro-Shakir Mukhamadullin
Sam Dickinson-Vincent Desharnais
Scratched
D — John Klingberg, F — Zack Ostapchuk, F — Jeff Skinner
Injured
None
Projected Goaltending Matchup
Spencer Knight (15-14-7, 2.59 GAA, .910 Sv%, 3 SO) vs. Yaroslav Askarov (17-13-2, 3.47 GAA, .890 Sv%, 0 SO)
Knight will make his 38th start of the season for the Blackhawks. In his most recent outing, the 24-year-old allowed three goals on 25 shots faced, recording the loss against Columbus on Friday. Knight is 1-1-0 with a 2.50 GAA and .900 Sv% in two career games against San Jose.
Askarov is expected to make his 34th start of the season for the Sharks. The 23-year-old netminder allowed four goals on 32 shots in his last appearance on Thursday, recording an overtime loss against the Edmonton Oilers. Askarov has yet to face Chicago in his young NHL career.
2024-25 Results vs. Sharks
The home team won all three matchups between the Blackhawks and Sharks in the 2024-25 season.
Chicago has won each of the last three games at the United Center against the Sharks since Jan. 16, 2024. The Blackhawks have also earned points in five of their last seven overall games against San Jose (5-2-0).
10/17/24 — 4-2 W, United Center
10/31/24 — 3-2 L, SAP Center
03/13/25 — 4-2 L, SAP Center
2025-26 Team Stats & Leaders
Chicago Blackhawks:
Goals — Tyler Bertuzzi (25)
Assists — Connor Bedard (30)
Points — Connor Bedard (52)
GF/GP — 2.64 (27th)
GA/GP — 3.15 (19th)
PP% — 19.4% (19th)
PK% — 85.3% (1st)
FOW% — 47.1% (29th)
San Jose Sharks:
Goals — Macklin Celebrini (27)
Assists — Macklin Celebrini (52)
Points — Macklin Celebrini (79)
GF/GP — 3.09 (17th)
GA/GP — 3.43 (28th)
PP% — 20.8% (16th)
PK% — 78 (23rd)
FOW% — 47.5% (26th)
How To Watch, Listen, & Game Info
San Jose Sharks (27-22-4, 58 points) @ Chicago Blackhawks (21-25-9, 51 points)
7:30 p.m. CT — United Center
Head Coaches: Ryan Warsofsky SJS), Jeff Blashill (CHI)
TV/Stream: CHSN (Ball/Pang), NBCSCA
Radio: WGN 720 AM (Wiedeman/Konroyd)
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