Preview: Coyotes at Blackhawks

[January 20, 2015]  SportsDirect Inc.
 
 The Chicago Blackhawks look to avoid their third straight home loss when they face off against the Arizona Coyotes in the finale of their four-game homestand on Tuesday. Chicago suffered its third defeat in four contests at United Center on Sunday, when it dropped a 6-3 decision to Dallas. Brandon Saad scored his second goal of the night in the second period to forge a 3-3 tie, but the Blackhawks surrendered three tallies in the third to fall for the fifth time in eight overall games this month.

Arizona is aiming to snap a losing streak that reached five games with Sunday's 4-3 shootout setback at Winnipeg. Lauri Korpikoski and Tobias Rieder scored 2:49 apart late in the third period to knot the contest, but the Coyotes were unable to convert in the bonus format and dropped to 1-5-1 in their last seven. Captain Shane Doan returned after missing two games with a lower-body injury and notched two assists as Arizona fell to 0-1-1 on its franchise-record eight-game road trip.

TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, FSN Arizona, CSN Chicago
 

ABOUT THE COYOTES (16-24-5): Arizona will be without Mikkel Boedker for the immediate future as the 25-year-old Dane is listed as week-to-week with an upper-body injury suffered in Sunday's loss. Boedker, who leads the team with 14 tallies, netted five during a four-game streak before being kept off the scoresheet in each of his last two contests. "He's a good offensive player and it just seems like he's playing with a lot of confidence right now," coach Dave Tippett told FSN Arizona. "He'll certainly be missed out of our lineup."

ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS (28-15-2): Chicago also will be missing a regular as Daniel Carcillo received a six-game suspension on Monday for cross-checking Winnipeg's Mathieu Perreault three days earlier. The 29-year-old Carcillo, who has recorded four goals and three assists in 31 contests, will miss the next five games after sitting out Sunday's loss. Saad's two-goal performance against the Stars was his second in four contests.

OVERTIME

1. Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews has collected seven assists during his five-game streak but has gone 11 contests without a goal.

2. Coyotes G Mike Smith has lost nine of his last 11 decisions (2-8-1).

3. Arizona's Oliver Ekman-Larsson entered Monday tied for the league lead in goals among defensemen with 12.

PREDICTION: Blackhawks 6, Coyotes 3

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