The Chicago Blackhawks are on the verge of being eliminated from the playoffs, and the team knows it. Before tonight the Blackhawks were back from the second wildcard playoff position by 6 points to the Arizona Coyotes. The Hawks were taking on the Toronto Maple Leafs and came to play.
The Chicago Blackhawks ended the first period with a lead 4-0. They were dominating the entire first period playing faster than Toronto and not making silly errors like in the past for Blackhawks hockey. The second period ended 5-1 in favor of the Blackhawks. Toronto would scare the Blackhawks late in the third period making the score 5-4 in favor of the Blackhawks. The Blackhawks in the third period gave Toronto 29 shots in the period and the Hawks played bad defense to allow Toronto to come back. The Blackhawks would hold on to win 5-4.
The Blackhawks need to win out if they are going to have a chance to make the playoffs. The Blackhawks are 4 games out of the second wildcard position with 12 games remaining. The Hawks will have to face Colorado Avalanche twice, Arizona Coyotes once, and Dallas Stars once. These games are really important because they are the teams in front of the Blackhawks in the wildcard chase. If the Blackhawks keep playing like they did in the first two periods then they have a solid chance of making this chase very interesting.
Go follow @NHLBlackhawks to get updates on the Blackhawks during the chase to the playoffs.
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