Pittsburgh Penguins at Chicago Blackhawks
· National Hockey LeagueMikheyev, Nazar and Knight lead the Blackhawks to a 3-1 win over the Penguins
Rickard Rakell scored on a power play and Alex Nedeljkovic made 28 saves for the Penguins, who have lost five of their last seven games.
After a scoreless first period, Nazar gave Chicago the lead with a short-handed goal at 18:55 of the second. It was Nazar's ninth of the season and came off Teuvo Teravainen's 42nd assist.
Mikheyev stretched the Blackhawks' lead to 2-0, scoring on a wrist shot at 9:40 of the third. Connor Bedard and Sam Rinzel assisted. He added an empty-netter with 56 seconds remaining.
Rakell pulled Pittsburgh within a goal at 14:36 of the third, matching his career high with his 34th goal of the season. Bryan Rust and Ville Koivunen picked up assists.
Blackhawks: Entered the game having lost 12 of their last 13 games. Chicago won for the first time since beating Philadelphia 7-4 on March 23.
CHI leads series 1-0
Scoring Summary
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Goal | 2nd Period 18:55 | Frank Nazar Goal (9) Wrist Shot, assists: Teuvo Teravainen (42) |
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Goal | 3rd Period 9:40 | Ilya Mikheyev Goal (19) Wrist Shot, assists: Connor Bedard (40), Sam Rinzel (1) |
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Goal | 3rd Period 14:36 | Rickard Rakell Goal (34) Snap Shot, assists: Bryan Rust (31), Ville Koivunen (2) |
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Goal | 3rd Period 19:04 | Ilya Mikheyev Goal (20) Wrist Shot, assists: Nick Foligno (19), Joseph Veleno (8) |
Statistics
PIT |
CHI |
|
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Blocked Shots | 10 |
| 27 | Hits | 19 |
| 9 | Takeaways | 7 |
| 29 | Shots | 31 |
| 1 | Power Play Goals | 0 |
| 3 | Power Play Opportunities | 1 |
| 33.3 | Power Play Percentage | 0.0 |
| 0 | Short Handed Goals | 1 |
| 0 | Shootout Goals | 0 |
| 26 | Faceoffs Won | 17 |
| 60.5 | Faceoff Win Percent | 39.5 |
| 22 | Giveaways | 21 |
| 1 | Total Penalties | 3 |
| 2 | Penalty Minutes | 6 |
Chicago Blackhawks Injuries
| NAME, POS | STATUS | DATE |
|---|---|---|
| Connor Bedard, C | Out | Dec 13 |
| Laurent Brossoit, G | Out | Dec 13 |
| Shea Weber, D | Injured Reserve | Sep 30 |
Pittsburgh Penguins Injuries
| NAME, POS | STATUS | DATE |
|---|---|---|
| Brett Kulak, D | Injured Reserve | Dec 13 |
| Stuart Skinner, G | Injured Reserve | Dec 13 |
| Harrison Brunicke, D | Out | Dec 9 |
| Blake Lizotte, C | Injured Reserve | Dec 9 |
| Evgeni Malkin, C | Injured Reserve | Dec 9 |
Game Information
United Center
Location: Chicago, IL
Attendance: 20,487 | Capacity:
Location: Chicago, IL
Attendance: 20,487 | Capacity:
2025-26 Metropolitan Division Standings
| TEAM | W | L | PTS | OTL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Carolina |
20 | 9 | 42 | 2 |
NY Islanders |
19 | 11 | 41 | 3 |
Washington |
18 | 10 | 40 | 4 |
Philadelphia |
16 | 9 | 37 | 5 |
New Jersey |
18 | 13 | 37 | 1 |
Pittsburgh |
14 | 8 | 36 | 8 |
NY Rangers |
16 | 13 | 36 | 4 |
Columbus |
13 | 13 | 32 | 6 |
2025-26 Central Division Standings
| TEAM | W | L | PTS | OTL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Colorado |
22 | 2 | 51 | 7 |
Dallas |
21 | 7 | 47 | 5 |
Minnesota |
18 | 9 | 41 | 5 |
Utah |
15 | 15 | 33 | 3 |
Chicago |
13 | 13 | 32 | 6 |
Winnipeg |
15 | 15 | 31 | 1 |
St. Louis |
12 | 14 | 31 | 7 |
Nashville |
12 | 14 | 28 | 4 |




PIT
CHI
Carolina
NY Islanders
Washington
Philadelphia
New Jersey
Pittsburgh
NY Rangers
Columbus
Colorado
Dallas
Minnesota
Utah
Chicago
Winnipeg
St. Louis
Nashville