Recap: Jets 3 - Blackhawks 2
Recapping the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2 overtime loss to the Winnipeg Jets.
The Chicago Blackhawks lost to the Winnipeg Jets 3-2 in overtime. A more annoying loss than anything else. The Hawks played mostly decent hockey for the duration of the night until they decided to turtle it up a bit with five minutes to go in the third. As Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times pointed out, this marks the ninth time the Hawks allowed a game-tying/game-winning goal in the remaining four minutes of the game.
Tonight marked the NINTH time this season the Blackhawks have allowed a game-tying/game-deciding goal in the last 4 minutes of the 3rd period.
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) March 4, 2026
That's a huge factor holding them back from being a bubble team. pic.twitter.com/4BIkREkbeZ
In terms of puck possession, the Hawks kept things fairly close with a 50 percent shot attempt share at 5v5 (Corsi) in the first and a 48.15 percent Corsi in the second. The Jets dialed up the pressure with a 70.97 percent Corsi in the third, and even though they only had one high danger chance through the first two periods, Winnipeg had six at 5v5 in the third frame.
One reason is that Chicago dialed back their forecheck in the third period. Now, I'm not saying they were a forechecking machine most of the night, but their forecheck was better than what we've seen recently. In the offensive zone, I noticed the Hawks use the 2-1-2 at times instead of a more passive 1-2-2. In the third period, I noticed the Hawks used a more passive 1-1-3 neutral zone forecheck, and it seemed like the defense was just in survival mode. Breakouts weren't clean, and they faced a ton of pressure (as you can see from the numbers in the previous paragraph).
Connor Bedard had another excellent night with two assists, bringing his season total to 32 assists and 57 points. Bedard had four shot attempts and three shots on goal. His line with Andre Burakovsky and Ryan Greene had a 50 percent Corsi and a 54.62 percent expected goals share (xG). Greene was very noticeable by just being in the right place at the right time, as evidenced by his goal. He also gave the Hawks a 57.73 percent xG when he was on the ice.
GOAL: Ryan Greene with a perfect shot off a pass from Connor Bedard. pic.twitter.com/FssMokltSS
— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) March 4, 2026
Another youngster worth talking about was Ethan Del Mastro. After getting yo-yo'd between the Rockford IceHogs a couple times with only two games to show for it, Del Mastro played his third game last night thanks to the Connor Murphy trade. I thought he looked alright, and he finished with a 53.57 percent Corsi and a 65.97 percent xG in 15:07 minutes. Kevin Korchinski watched this one from the press box as Matt Grzelyck got the draw. I am questioning how this organization handles the development of their defensemen. Korchinski should not be sitting in favor of a vet who was signed via PTO. Sam Rinzel finished with a 51.52 percent Corsi, a 65.18 percent xG, and was pink misted into the boards.
Frank Nazar had a couple of good looks and did an excellent job of creating the power play goal for Teuvo Tervainen (who now has three goals in two games). While the analytics aren't pretty for Nazar (sub 50 percent in both Corsi and xG), he looked better with four shot attempts and one shot on goal.
GOAL: Frank Nazar finds Teuvo Teravainen who buries his 13th of the season. pic.twitter.com/F5HszFwpHD
— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) March 4, 2026
The Hawks take on the Vancouver Canucks on Friday at 5:30 pm CT. I'll be doing the preview, game thread, and recap over at Second City Hockey, so be sure to tune in over there. You can read their recap on the Jets game below.
Dave Melton