Blackhawks' Tinordi has puck luck versus the Ducks
In his 123rd NHL game, Jarred Tinordi doubled his career goals total.
He now has 4.
Tinordi scored twice against the Anaheim Ducks Saturday night. It was his first multi-goal game, his 17th point, and his second game-winner as the Blackhawks erased a 2-0 deficit and went on to win 3-2.
"He had a great game for us," head coach Luke Richardson said after the game. "He was the only one that was really into the game other than our goaltender early. It got our feet under us, that goal kinda got us some momentum."
The Blackhawks claimed Tinordi off the waivers from the New York Rangers on Oct. 10, and he's played in all 14 games for the team, which has also doubled from his seven appearances with the Rangers in the 2021-22 season.
In those seven games, however, Tinordi did record 1 goal: On Jan. 8, 2022, the Rangers-Ducks game was tied in Anaheim when the home team experienced their first bout with Tinordi luck. He ripped a one-timer, and Ducks right-winger Jacob Perreault deflected it into his own net. The goal put the Rangers ahead 2-1, and they went on to win 4-1.
Fast forward 11 months to Saturday night, and Tinordi is back in the Honda Center skating for the Blackhawks, who found themselves down 2-0 in the first period. It could be that Tinordi's hockey gods are headquartered in Anaheim, because it happened again.
With 6 minutes to go in the first, Tinordi, a 6-foot-6, 230-pound defenseman, joined an odd-man rush with Max Domi, who sent one over to Tinordi with enough space to go forehand, backhand and to wrap it around Anaheim goalie Anthony Stolarz's left leg pad for the goal.
"You never want to start the game down 2-0," Tinordi said after the game, "so any time you can get one after that, it gets you feeling good, it gets things moving in the right direction ... A one-goal game sounds a lot better than a two-goal game."
Filip Roos tied the game in the second period, but then the real magic happened with less than three minutes to go. From the same spot as the lucky goal with the Rangers, Tinordi sent one toward the net, but the puck took a couple turns, bouncing off two Ducks players before it finally rested past the goal line.
"I think last year, I had a lucky bounce like that in this building too," Tinordi said of the Rangers goal, "so maybe it's the building that's giving me some good vibes out there."
He finished the game with 5 hits, now leading the team with 61. The next closest on the team is Connor Murphy with 35. Tinordi is second in the NHL in that category, 8 behind Luke Schenn of the Canucks.
"He's been good," Richardson said about a week before the Ducks game. "He knows what he is. He doesn't try to be flashy. He plays hard ... He's a vocal guy, and he doesn't stand for mediocrity in himself or the team, and he says it. It's good to have some authority around like that."
Tinordi knows he isn't a goal-scorer. He's a big defenseman in charge of roughing up the opposition a little bit while getting his own guys energized.
But he was a goal-scorer Saturday night.
Twice.