Blackhawks avoid errors, hold on to upset Panthers

When Panthers coach Paul Maurice examines the Blackhawks, he’s not sure why there’s so much angst over their struggles early this season.

“They battle, skate and work hard, and they’re going to go through the inconsistencies of youth; that’s all it is,” Maurice said Thursday. “They have good young players; they have a superstar. It’s just a matter of time.”

Coming from Maurice, who leads all active NHL coaches in career victories, that perspective carries weight. It might be influenced, however, by the fact that Luke Richardson’s Hawks have given the Panthers some trouble even during these last few rebuilding seasons.

The Hawks’ 3-1 win Thursday was their third straight over Florida at the United Center. It also means they, somehow, have already beaten last season’s Stanley Cup finalists — they toppled the Oilers back on their opening road trip.

Teuvo Teravainen took a much-needed step toward breaking out of his slump with an early power-play goal, and Craig Smith buried a breakaway to increase the lead. Goalie Petr Mrazek made 32 saves, helping the Hawks hold on during a nerve-racking third period to earn only their third home victory of the season.

“We had a commitment to winning hockey tonight,” Nick Foligno said. “It wasn’t perfect — it never really is — but [we were] not making blatant errors and taking the life out of our own game. That’s where we were better.”

Odd combo

The strange first line of Jason Dickinson centering Connor Bedard and Joey Anderson had a much quieter offensive night than they did Tuesday. None of them had any shots on goal, and the Hawks were outshot 33-20.

They were solid defensively, however, against the Panthers’ top two star-studded lines. That’s common for Dickinson — even though he “gutted out” a hand injury that caused him to miss most of the second period — but not for Bedard.

“We didn’t get [Bedard] here to be a defensive specialist, but the responsibility of playing against good lines comes first,” Richardson said. “It just didn’t bounce for him on the offensive side tonight, but he did everything right on the defensive side of the game against one of the top centers in the league, playing against [Aleksander] Barkov’s line.”

Before the game, Maurice said he understands Richardson’s decision to move Bedard to wing, mentioning how he has done the same thing in years past with young Panthers forward Anton Lundell and once-young Jets star Mark Scheifele.

“It’s highly normal for a young player to come into the league as a center and spend quite a bit of time on the wing,” Maurice said. “Understanding the different positions is very, very important.”

Savoie clicking

Down in Rockford, three rookie forwards whom the Hawks took in the first three rounds of the 2022 draft — Samuel Savoie, Gavin Hayes and Paul Ludwinski — are all adjusting to the AHL together, at times forming an entire line together.

Of the three, the sneaky and feisty Savoie has stood out the most. That’s true statistically — Savoie has five points compared to Hayes’ three and Ludwinski’s one — and visually.

“A lot of [Savoie’s] attributes as a player transfer well to this level and even the next level,” Rockford coach Anders Sorensen said. “His energy on the ice is infectious, and he gets into people’s faces and he’s talking. He’s learning the pro game and what you can and can’t do, but when he moves his feet and uses his speed, he’s fun to watch.”