The Arizona Coyotes fell in an overtime thriller on the road to the Chicago Blackhawks 4-3 on Friday night. Caleb Jones scored the game-winning goal in the extra frame for Chicago.
The matchup between the two teams at the bottom of the Central Division got off to an entertaining start in the first period. Clayton Keller scored his 19th goal of the season to get the Coyotes on the board just 1:28 into the game. Later on in the period, Nick Schmaltz scored off a nice feed from Keller to double the Arizona lead. However, the 2-0 lead would not last long.
Just over a minute after Schmaltz scored, Seth Jones would find the back of the net to cut the Coyotes lead in half. The score was 2-1 in favor of Arizona heading into the second period, but it would be Chicago who would make its mark in the frame. Andreas Athanasiou netted his 11th goal of the season to tie the game for the Blackhawks. The score would remain tied late into the third period, and this is when the game got gripping.
Chicago’s Colin Blackwell found twine for just the second time this season, and it seemed like that would be the winning tally. However, Nick Bjugstad would have something to say about that. Bjugstad wristed a shot past Blackhawks goaltender Jaxson Stauber to level the score at three, stunning the United Center crowd.
The thriller would need three-on-three overtime to decide a winner, and in the end it would be Caleb Jones who would emerge as the hero for Chicago. After Athanasiou was denied on a breakaway by Coyotes netminder Connor Ingram, Jones shot the puck five-hole through Ingram’s pads to win the game for the Blackhawks.
The loss continues the alternating win-loss pattern that the Coyotes have had since their win against the Vegas Golden Knights on Jan. 22. For the Blackhawks, this win provides some overtime redemption for them after losing to the Anaheim Ducks 3-2 in extra time on Tuesday.
The Blackhawks will play next on the road on Saturday night against the Winnipeg Jets. The Coyotes will also be playing away from home on Saturday night, taking on the St. Louis Blues in the Gateway City.
Coyotes fall to Blackhawks in overtime 4-3
