Blackhawks impress vs. NHL’s hottest team

Do you believe in miracles?

Because that's what it was going to take for the Blackhawks to defeat the sizzling-hot Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night.

Here we had a Hawks squad that had lost 18 straight road games facing an Oilers squad that had won 14 straight. That's three shy of the all-time NHL record, by the way.

The Hawks had been outscored 82-29 on the road since Nov. 9, while the Oilers hadn't yielded more than 2 goals in 12 straight games.

This was Connor McDavid vs. Jason Dickinson. Leon Draisaitl vs. Philipp Kurashev. Zach Hyman — and his 29 goals — vs. Taylor Raddysh.

In other words, David vs. Goliath.

In the end, there was no miracle as Edmonton prevailed 3-0 on 2 goals by McDavid and another from Hyman. The Hawks, who were shut out for the third time in five games, tied the franchise record for longest road losing streak at 19.

These Oilers are what the Hawks — who are without Connor Bedard for another 5-6 weeks — aspire to become. It's a group that possesses world-class speed, pinpoint passing ability, deadly shots, smooth moves and a defensive awareness that few teams possess.

Shockingly, the Oilers were slipping and sliding all over the place at the start of the season, going 3-9-1 in the first 13 games. That prompted management to fire Jay Woodcroft and bring in Kris Knoblauch, who has certainly had the Midas Touch.

Edmonton became the fifth team to put together a 15-game winning streak, joining the 1992-93 Penguins (17), the 2016-17 Blue Jackets (16), and the 1981-82 Islanders and 2012-13 Penguins (15).

While many figured this game would devolve into a 6-1, 7-2 or even 9-1 nightmare for the Hawks, that's not at all what happened as Edmonton led just 1-0 after two periods.

Luke Richardson's squad was extremely sharp in the first period, with Jason Dickinson backchecking to break up a rush chance for McDavid and moments later tying up McDavid for about 10 seconds along the boards. The two looked like a pair of World Wrestling Federation combatants, and they were rewarded with two minutes in the penalty box for their efforts.

“Just out there battling,” Dickinson told NBC Sports Chicago after the first intermission.

The Hawks had numerous scoring opportunities, with the best coming when MacKenzie Entwistle was awarded a penalty shot with 1:36 remaining in the second period. Entwistle's attempt didn't have much of a chance, however, and was soaked up by goaltender Calvin Pickard.

Entwistle also nearly scored in the first period, but his shot clanged off the crossbar. Zach Sanford and Kurashev also impressed offensively but just couldn’t solve Pickard.

Petr Mrazek kept up his strong play in net, denying Ryan McLeod in the first period on a dangerous snap shot and gloving a quick backhander by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins midway through the second.

Defensemen Seth Jones, Jarred Tinordi (3 blocks each), Isaak Phillips (5 hits), Kevin Korchinski and Alex Vlasic all impressed by thwarting scoring chances time and time again.

This is the kind of inspired hockey the Hawks need to play on a nightly basis. They did it in Chicago during a 2-1 loss against Edmonton on Jan. 9 when they held the Oilers to 15 shots on goal — the lowest total since McDavid was drafted in in 2015. They also held their own on Dec. 12 in a 4-1 loss to Edmonton.

Now let’s see that kind of determination and desperation in Calgary on Saturday. Do that and maybe — just maybe — this road losing streak will mercifully come to an end.

∎ After sitting two games as a healthy scratch, forward Lukas Reichel was reinserted in the lineup. He had just 1 shot on goal in 13:46 of ice time.