Blackhawks changes coming? Kyle Davidson's situation after 9-2 loss

Ben Pope reports the Blackhawks have to change after a 9-2 loss in Carolina, and Kyle Davidson is the man on the clock.

Chicago got routed by the Hurricanes on Saturday night, finishing an 0-3 trip with its most lopsided defeat in almost three years. The Blackhawks are 4-13-1 and sit 31st in the NHL.

Pope wrote that the pressure on the general manager to make changes this week has grown to the size of Mt. Everest, and that the Hawks cannot play another game in their current form.

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The coach is part of that conversation. Jeff Blashill said he isn't thinking about his job security and believes there is trust between him and the players, and between him and management. He had already been critical of the group after the Detroit loss, and this one was worse.

Still, he admitted the four-day break has to mean something. "We've got to make this a bottom point in the year, and we've got to find a way to claw our way out of this," Blashill said.

Unlike most nights this season, he didn't defend the effort. Connor Bedard didn't either, calling it an "embarrassing" loss.

The Hawks held a players-only meeting after the final horn. According to Wyatt Kaiser, they vented, floated ideas for changes and tried to "get to the reality" of where they stand.

The reality is six straight losses and an 0-8-1 record on the road.

Pope pointed to three Hurricanes goals as especially ugly. On the third, the fourth line of Jordan Greenway, Dillon Boucher and Cole Smith got carved up on the forecheck, and Jordan Martinook finished a two-on-one.

On the fifth, Roman Kantserov turned the puck over in the defensive zone and Andrei Svechnikov buried his own rebound while nobody bothered to stop him. Kaiser's pass into the slot led to Sebastian Aho's goal on the sixth.

Kaiser finished the night at minus-6. He is at minus-17 on the season.

Will Davidson buy or sell?

Elliotte Friedman reported Saturday that the Hawks are very active on the trade market. They are shopping the Oilers' and Panthers' first-round picks they own, along with a pile of second-rounders.

Friedman also mentioned that pending free agents Teuvo Teravainen and Jordan Greenway are being shopped, presumably to clear room for players coming in. Davidson was already working the market before the Carolina loss.

Selling the pending free agents makes sense. Spending more assets to chase a respectable finish does not, not at 4-13-1 with more than three quarters of the season left. Chicago is better off using those picks to build something real.

The Hawks have Sunday off and practice Monday before the annual season-ticket member party that night. Buffalo visits Thursday, and by then Davidson will have a lot of explaining to do if the lineup looks the same.

Quick hits

COLORADO AVALANCHE: Martin Necas said it plainly after the 4-0 win over the Red Wings on Saturday night: special teams get them going. Hard to argue with a shutout.

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VANCOUVER CANUCKS: Brock Boeser pulled Vancouver within one late in Edmonton, but the Canucks lost 4-2 for their fifth straight defeat. A late goal doesn't fix a slide this long.

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EDMONTON OILERS: Jason Gregor says Connor McDavid is up to 47 points in 18 games after the Oilers beat Vancouver 4-2. That is the other side of Saturday's Alberta scoreboard.

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NEW YORK RANGERS: Mollie Walker reports Pavel Dorofeyev scored in Seattle, his second goal in as many games. The Rangers will take the early production.

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SAN JOSE SHARKS: Will Smith scored, but the Sharks still lost 4-3 in Dallas for their fifth straight defeat. Giving up an early lead keeps costing them.

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