Bedard has 2 goals, assist for Blackhawks in win against Coyotes

CHICAGO -- Connor Bedard had two goals and an assist for the Chicago Blackhawks in a 7-4 win against the Arizona Coyotes at United Center on Sunday.

Colin Blackwell had a hat trick for the Blackhawks (17-43-5), who were coming off a 4-1 loss at the Washington Capitals on Saturday. Seth Jones had four assists, and Arvid Soderblom made 32 saves for his second victory against Arizona this week (5-2 on Tuesday).

“Lot of determination by the guys,” Chicago coach Luke Richardson said. “So, really good on them after playing and traveling. It’s not easy, but every team does it, and you have to be prepared to do that. They showed some real good resilience as a team, and we didn’t implode and start yelling and slamming doors on the bench. I think we just got down to business and got it done.”

Clayton Keller scored twice for the Coyotes (26-34-5), who have lost three of four. Nick Schmaltz had a goal and two assists, and Connor Ingram made 34 saves.

“I think we were loose with the puck, myself included,” Schmaltz said. “I thought I made some bad plays. I think as a group we thought it was going to be easy. We thought we could just kind of make plays whenever we wanted. They’re a hardworking team. They’re going to force you to make it, and if you don’t make it, they’re going to capitalize on the opportunity.”

Keller put the Coyotes ahead 1-0 at 6:09 of the first period with the teams playing at 4-on-4. He cut across the right face-off circle and beat Soderblom with a wrist shot in the slot.

Keller scored 11 seconds into the second period to make it 2-0, taking a lead pass from Schmaltz and scoring on a breakaway.

Bedard cut it to 2-1 at 5:28, banking the puck off Coyotes defenseman J.J. Moser’s leg from behind the net.

“I needed a miracle to put one in, so that was nice,” said Bedard, who hadn’t scored in his previous eight games. “But it doesn't matter, obviously, how you get them. It's about getting them, so that was nice to see that one go in. I don't know how or who it went off of, but it was nice.”

Blackwell tied it 2-2 at 6:57 when he put in the rebound of Alex Vlasic's shot from the point at the right post.

Bedard scored his second of the game during a 5-on-3 power play to make it 3-2 at 10:05. He took a pass in the right circle, cut into the slot and beat Ingram with a wrist shot.

Dylan Guenther tied it at 3-3 at 13:57, putting in a rebound in front after Victor Soderstrom’s shot caromed off the end boards.

Tyler Johnson put Chicago back in front 4-3 with a power-play goal at 17:50, scoring with a one-timer from the bottom of the right circle off a cross-ice pass from Bedard.

“I think our execution was off,” Coyotes coach Andre Tourigny said. “We played solid in the first, but then I don’t think we played as hard in the second. We were outside of our structure in every aspect defensively.”

Blackwell made it 5-3 just 33 seconds into the third period, putting in the rebound of Jones’ backhand shot.

Schmaltz cut it to 5-4 at 6:51 with a snap shot from the left circle after Soderblom saved his initial attempt from the same spot.

Ryan Donato pushed it to 6-4 at 8:00 with a wrist shot from the right circle.

Blackwell completed his hat trick with an empty-net goal at 17:24 for the 7-4 final.

“It's nice, I feel like, just to get a couple dirty ones,” Blackwell said. “I'm grateful playing with [Jason Dickinson] and [Joey Anderson]. They just play the game the right way and they put me in really good situations to succeed. I think they did a lot of the hard work on the majority of those goals.”

NOTES: Bedard became the first 18-year-old in Blackhawks history with three three-point games. ... The Blackhawks scored six goals in a game for the first time since March 14, 2023 (a 6-3 victory against the Boston Bruins). … The Blackhawks agreed to terms with forward Landon Slaggert on a two-year, entry-level contract. The 21-year-old had 31 points (20 goals, 11 assists) in 36 games with the University of Notre Dame this season. He could join the Blackhawks on Tuesday and take part in the morning skate, but he will not play against the Anaheim Ducks, Richardson said.