The Blackhawks fell to the New York Rangers 7-1 at the United Center on Sunday and dropped their 10th straight home game.
Here are 10 observations from the loss:
1. Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews became the 11th set of teammates in NHL history to appear in 1,000 career games together. They received a standing ovation from the United Center crowd during the first TV timeout and gave each other a quick embrace. What a ride it's been for them.
2. The Blackhawks had a pretty decent start, but they gave up the first goal for the 25th time in 30 games this season. Kind of crazy when you think about that. Then the Blackhawks found themselves down 3-0. They didn't have an answer for the Rangers' transition game.
3. The last time these two teams met, Jacob Trouba blew up Andreas Athanasiou and it sparked a big scrum. Well, Trouba found the back of the net in this game and after he scored, Trouba shouted at Athanasiou: "You want the puck?" Jake McCabe shoved Trouba after it. The hate continues to brew.
4. This was a weird game. It felt like the Blackhawks played well for the most part before the wheels fell off in the third period. At one point in the second period, the Blackhawks were skating circles around the Rangers. Good teams find a way to capitalize on their chances. It probably helps when you have one of the best goaltenders in the world Igor Shesterkin, too.
5. Arvid Soderblom wasn't terrible, but he wasn't great either. His winless skid is now at nine games. He's 0-8-1 over that span. The good news? There's a chance Alex Stalock, who's been out since Nov. 1 with a concussion, returns before the Christmas break. That would be huge for the Blackhawks. They need to get Soderblom back to Rockford so his confidence doesn't take a hit if it hasn't already.
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6. On the Rangers' third goal, Ben Harpur cross-checked Kane along the boards but no call was made. Kane didn't like it, and the Rangers went the other way and scored seconds later to make it 3-0. Kane gave it to the official after the goal was scored and even did it again after the first period ended.
7. Vincent Trocheck had a goal and an assist. Artemi Panarin had one goal and two assists. Mika Zibanejad had two assists and Adam Fox had three. Even Filip Chytil, Kaapo Kakko and Alexis Lafreniere had multi-point outings, and Vitali Kravstov and Braden Schneider each scored a goal. The big guns showed up for the Rangers, but so did the kids, which hasn't been the case too much this season.
8. Jarred Tinordi took a skate to the face on Dec. 9 vs. Winnipeg and had between 50-100 stitches under his chin area. Early in the second period of this game, he got hit with a puck right in the mouth. Of course it was the first game he shed the protective cage. He immediately took off his helmet, went to the locker room and did not return. There was a trail of blood on the ice. Brutal luck.
9. The Blackhawks have gone 420 straight minutes without holding a lead, a span of seven games. The last time they held a lead was, ironically, Dec. 3 against the Rangers when they won 5-2.
10. The Rangers have won seven in a row and have a +18 goal differential over that stretch. They've really turned their season around. Things looked so bleak a few weeks ago.
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