CHICAGO - The Chicago Blackhawks came home after a quick one-game trip to play the Carolina Hurricanes. Down in Raleigh, they took down one of the best teams in the NHL in a shootout. It is better known as "The Oliver Moore birthday game".
On Friday night, they returned to the United Center for a match against another top NHL team, the Tampa Bay Lightning. Tampa came in on a 14-game point streak, even with all of the injuries that they have been dealing with.
Despite mostly being outplayed by the Lightning in the first period, Ryan Greene found a lane to the net and made it 1-0 with a beautiful move and shot. It isn't easy to beat Andre Vasilevskiy clean like that, but Greene made it happen. The dynamic duo of Oliver Moore and Nick Lardis collected the assists on the play.
The Blackhawks weren't much better in the second period. Arvid Soderblom was able to keep them in the game, but Nikita Kucherov did tie it up late with a nifty backhand after receiving a neat pass from Brandon Hagel.
In the middle frame as a whole, the Blackhawks were outshot 13-2. In the game overall up to that point, Tampa led 21-6 in shots. Chicago came into the third knowing they needed a much better effort if they were going to escape with one point, let alone two.
The play was much more even in the third period. Tampa and Chicago exchanged chances, but both Vasilevskiy and Soderblom warmed to the task. Bonus hockey was required for the second night in a row.
In overtime, the Blackhawks had their one stretch of dominance. They had multiple grade-A chances, but Vasilevskiy stood tall as he always does.
A shootout was required in consecutive games as well. Like the one on Thursday, it went to extra frames. Frank Nazar and Louis Crevier scored for Chicago, but Tampa scored just one extra goal and took the second point.
Arvid Soderblom, despite taking the tough loss, was excellent. He was the only reason that the Blackhawks had a chance to win in the first place.
“We owe a lot of credit to [Soderblom]," Ryan Greene said of his goalie. "I thought he was unbelievable. I don't think that game goes overtime without him playing the way he did.”
Soderblom made 31 saves on 30 shots during regulation and overtime. Playing in place of Spencer Knight once every few games isn't the easiest role in the world of hockey, but he has done it with class and respect for the game.
Although they don't want to keep taking penalties, their kill continues to be excellent. Add another 3/3 performance in this one, moving their NHL lead up to 85.4 percent. Again, Soderblom played a key role in that success, along with some of the young defenders.
That's three points out of four against two top teams for the Blackhawks. It wasn't perfect at times, but they continue to battle hard and find ways to collect points.
Chicago, however, must clean up their play if it is going to keep getting these aforementioned points. Being outchanced 72-40 is not the way, but their goalie and some luck allowed them to nearly win.
Watch Every Chicago Goal
the Greene machine👊 pic.twitter.com/E1Jfbahuxr
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) January 24, 2026
What’s Next For The Blackhawks?
The Blackhawks are back in action on Sunday night when the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers will be at the United Center.
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