Chicago Blackhawks seek first win as Utah Mammoth visit United Center

The Utah Mammoth, who relocated from Arizona ahead of last season, are off to a balanced 1–1–0 start. Their roster features a dangerous mix of youthful speed and veteran poise. Led by Clayton Keller, Dylan Guenther, Logan Cooley, and former Blackhawk Nick Schmaltz, Utah’s forward group can light up the scoreboard when given space.

Their blue line is anchored by Mikael Sergachev, John Marino, Olli Maatta, Ian Cole, and Nate Schmidt, forming one of the deeper defensive groups in the league. With Sean Durzi sidelined for several weeks due to injury, Utah has been relying on rookie Dmitri Simashev, a promising young defenseman they hope can grow into a top-pairing role.

Between the pipes, the Mammoth have a strong goaltending tandem in Karel Vejmelka and Vitek Vanecek, both capable of stealing games when their defense tightens up.

The Chicago Blackhawks know they’ll need discipline and sharp execution to break through against this lineup. Utah thrives on transition hockey, a strength that could be costly for Chicago if they continue their penalty struggles.

In their most recent game, the Blackhawks spent far too much time in the box, racking up 39 penalty minutes. Though they killed off eight of ten power plays, allowing two power-play goals in that span made it difficult to maintain momentum.

Blashill’s message heading into this matchup is clear: “Stay out of the box.” Against a fast and skilled team like Utah, giving away man advantages could spell disaster.

“We can’t keep playing short-handed that much,” Blashill noted earlier this week. “Our penalty kill has been solid, but you can’t rely on it to win every night. We need to play smarter.”

Chicago Blackhawks projected lines and key storylines

Despite their early struggles, the Chicago Blackhawks have seen strong play from their top six forwards. Connor Bedard continues to be the focal point of the offense, with Colton Dach and Andre Burakovsky rounding out the first line. Behind them, Frank Nazar has been impressive centering Teuvo Teravainen and Tyler Bertuzzi, forming a productive and balanced second line.

The projected forward lines for tonight are:

Dach – Bedard – Burakovsky
Teravainen – Nazar – Bertuzzi
Donato – Greene – Mikheyev
Foligno – Reichel/Dickinson – Lafferty

On defense, the Blackhawks are expected to roll with:

Vlasic – Rinzel
Grzelcyk – Murphy
Kaiser – Crevier

Goaltender Spencer Knight, who has been excellent so far, will get the start once again. He’s been sharp between the pipes, keeping Chicago in games despite their struggles finishing offensively.

Jason Dickinson, who missed the last game with an injury, remains a game-time decision. If he’s cleared to play, Lukas Reichel will likely be the odd man out. Meanwhile, rookie Artyom Levshunov is expected to be a healthy scratch for the second straight contest as the Blackhawks focus on managing his early development carefully.

One of the biggest keys for Chicago will be maintaining pressure late in games. Veteran Nick Foligno recently spoke about the team needing to develop a “killer instinct”.

“We’ve been in every game,” Foligno said after the loss to Montreal. “We just need to finish stronger. When we have teams on the ropes, we have to bury them.”

If the Blackhawks can find that extra edge tonight, they could finally notch their first win of the season and build some early momentum at home.

Chicago Blackhawks vs. Utah Mammoth: how to watch

Fans in the Chicago area can catch the game live on CHSN, while out-of-market viewers can stream the matchup on ESPN+. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 PM CT at the United Center.

With a talented but hungry Utah squad in town, theBlackhawks will need discipline, structure, and a bit of scoring magic from Connor Bedard to finally put one in the win column.