GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Blackhawks had 10 days to prepare for an Arizona Coyotes team that occupies the second wildcard spot in the Western Conference. It was a game they knew they needed to win to set the tone coming out of the break and going into the stretch run.
Before the hiatus, the Blackhawks had won 11 of their last 16 games and five of their past six. They were feeling themselves and rightfully so. Not only were they getting the desired results, but they were playing their best hockey of the season.
After resting and recharging their batteries, the Blackhawks picked up exactly where they left off and came out flying on Saturday to defeat the Coyotes 3-2 in a shootout. And what a game it was.
The Blackhawks recorded a season-high 45 shots on goal and generated 33 scoring chances. The Coyotes registered 42 shots on goal and 34 scoring chances. Former teammates Corey Crawford and Antti Raanta traded off big save after big save, many of which were timely and none bigger than Raanta’s "scorpion" Save of the Year candidate to deny Brandon Saad the hat trick with 5:31 left in the third period to preserve a 2-2 tie.
Crawford finished with 40 saves. Raanta had 42. It was a goaltending clinic that made for an entertaining night at Gila River Arena in a game that carried a lot of weight for both teams.
"That was probably the most exciting game this year, I would say," Crawford said after earning up his third consecutive victory. "It was a good job by our guys not to panic after they come back. We had a ton of chances, but Raants played unbelievable tonight. It was nice to get that win in a shootout."
Said Saad: "It was exciting. It felt like a playoff game almost, so that was a lot of fun."
Echoed head coach Jeremy Colliton: "It was a good game. People got their money's worth tonight, no question.”
More importantly, the Blackhawks came away with the much-needed second point and jumped both Nashville and Winnipeg to pull within three points of the Coyotes with two games in hand. Meaning, the Blackhawks control their own destiny for the time being.
"It's huge," Saad said. "They made a push and for us, it's a big character win with sticking with it. Sometimes in the past we kind of falter, but that second point's huge, especially in this race."
With Saturday's win, the Blackhawks improved to 8-1-0 in their last nine road games, 12-5-0 over their last 17 and 6-1-0 in their last seven. The sample size of the recent hot stretch is growing larger and larger.
And because of it, the Blackhawks can start talking about the playoffs again with a straight face. No, seriously.
After the game, AC/DC's "It's a Long Way to the Top" could be heard blaring through the speakers inside the locker room. It's too early to know whether this could become a rallying song like "Gloria" was for the Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues last season, but this was the first time all season where you could feel the postseason vibes around the group.
The Blackhawks are hungry to bring playoff hockey back to Chicago and if they didn't fully believe it could happen before Saturday, they do now. Or at least they should.
"The excitement's high," Saad said. "We've been winning ... and any time you're winning you feel good. We know what we have to do to finish off the season. It's going to be a tight race all the way out, so for us it's taking it day by day, game by game and collecting as many wins as we can."
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