It was déjà vu for the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday night. For the second time in five days, the Columbus Blue Jackets came out on top, following Saturday’s 4-2 win in Chicago with a dominant 4-0 shutout in Columbus. The loss marked Chicago’s sixth defeat in their last seven games, while the Blue Jackets continued their red-hot stretch with 10 wins in their last 11 outings. As if the result wasn’t discouraging enough, the Blackhawks also lost Wyatt Kaiser and Colton Dach to injuries during the game, adding to an already difficult night. It was the fourth time this season Chicago was shut out, underscoring the growing gap between two teams heading in very different directions.
Game Summary
Rookie goaltender Jet Greaves delivered a calm and confident performance, stopping all 21 shots he faced to earn the shutout. It marked Columbus’ second straight shutout with a different goalie after Elvis Merzlikins blanked New Jersey the night before, highlighting the team’s strong defensive structure and goaltending depth.
The Blue Jackets opened the scoring early in the first period when Zach Werenski fired a shot from the left circle that deflected off Chicago defenders and found its way past Spencer Knight at 4:46. The goal was Werenski’s 20th of the season, the most among NHL defensemen.
Columbus doubled its lead later in the period as Ivan Provorov finished a cross-ice pass with a wrist shot from the low left circle. The Blue Jackets continued to control play in the second period, extending the lead to 3–0 when Danton Heinen beat Knight short side off a setup from Charlie Coyle, who finished the night with two assists.
Sean Monahan added an empty-net goal late in the third period to seal the 4–0 victory.
Columbus has now won 11 of its past 12 games and is 10-1-0 since Rick Bowness took over behind the bench in mid-January. The Blue Jackets have allowed just one goal over their past two games and have not surrendered a goal since midway through the second period of Saturday’s win over St. Louis.
For Chicago, Spencer Knight made 16 saves in the loss as the Blackhawks struggled to generate sustained offense. Chicago has now dropped six of its past seven games, continuing an inconsistent stretch leading into the break.
The Blackhawks also saw injuries impact their lineup, with defenseman Wyatt Kaiser leaving in the first period after getting tangled up along the boards, while forward Colton Dach exited in the second period following a heavy check.
With the win, the Blue Jackets head into the Olympic break playing some of their best hockey of the season, while the Blackhawks will look to regroup and reset as they continue their push to stay competitive in the playoff race.
My Observations
1. The Olympic break comes at the perfect time for Chicago
The Olympic break could not come at a better moment for the Blackhawks. Chicago has now lost 10 of its last 14 games, and the lack of offense has become a serious concern for Jeff Blashill’s group.
Over that 14-game stretch, the Blackhawks scored two goals or fewer in 10 games, and that simply isn’t a winning formula in today’s NHL. Several players are no longer producing at the same level they showed earlier in the season, and the offensive confidence looks fragile night after night.
The power play is another major red flag. Chicago has scored just three power-play goals on 39 opportunities during that stretch, a 7.8% success rate. In the NHL, special teams can decide games, and right now the Blackhawks’ power play is costing them points in the standings.
Injuries to Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar haven’t helped, but the issues go deeper than that. When you look closely, it’s also about system execution and the lack of a true quarterback on the blue line. Chicago doesn’t have a defenseman like Zach Werenski, Quinn Hughes, or Cale Makar who can control the pace and create consistently from the back end. Artyom Levshunov has potential, but he’s not at that level yet.
General manager Kyle Davidson will need to address this problem over the next few months.
2. Andrei Burakovsky has to be better
If the Blackhawks are struggling to score, it’s fair to look directly at the top-six forwards, and right now Andrei Burakovsky is not delivering.
Burakovsky has no goals and just two points in his last 14 games, and the numbers are even more concerning when you dig deeper. In nine of those 14 games, he recorded one shot or no shots on goal. That’s not enough impact from a player brought in to boost offense.
Chicago acquired Burakovsky hoping he would bounce back after a disappointing season in Seattle. Early on, it looked like that bet was paying off — he had 28 points in his first 37 games. But over the last month, his production has fallen off sharply, and the Blackhawks need more from him if he’s going to remain part of the long-term plan.
3. A critical stretch before the trade deadline
The Blackhawks now have five games before the trade deadline and 25 games remaining overall, and Kyle Davidson is heading into one of the busiest stretches of his rebuild.
Chicago will be sellers, but the real question is who stays and who goes. Several players are in the final year of their contracts, and Davidson must decide which ones fit into the future and which can bring back assets.
Those next five games will be crucial for evaluating trade value, while the final 25 games should be about development. Prospects like Levshunov, Rinzel, Greene, and Moore need consistent NHL games to gain experience. There’s also a strong case to call up players from Rockford, including Kevin Korchinski and Nick Lardis, to see how they handle bigger roles.
Big decisions are coming fast for Kyle Davidson, and how he navigates the next few weeks will shape the next phase of the Blackhawks’ rebuild.
Notes
The Olympic break officially began Wednesday at 3:00 p.m., and NHL teams are now in a roster freeze period. No trades can be completed until February 22 at midnight.
Teams are allowed to resume group activities and practices starting February 17, as players begin returning from the break. The NHL trade deadline is set for March 6, giving general managers just over two weeks to finalize their plans once the league resumes.
Over the next three weeks, enjoy the Olympics. I’ll continue to cover Blackhawks news, prospects, and Olympic-related storylines as the break unfolds, with a close eye on how everything ties into Chicago’s rebuild and upcoming trade deadline decisions.
KEEP READING:
Blackhawks October Report Card
Blackhawks: November Report Card
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