The Chicago Blackhawks (4-8-0) closed out their seven-game homestand on a high note, snapping the three-game losing streak with a vital 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings (3-6-2) on Tuesday.

Wyatt Kaiser scored the game-winning goal in the third period, while Roman Kantserov snapped the 0-for-17 power-play drought in the second to tie the game 1-1 after Los Angeles opened the scoring.

Connor Bedard and Patrick Kane each extended their point streaks to three games with assists. Bedard earned the primary assist on Kantserov’s goal, and Kane had the secondary helper on Kaiser’s tally.

Spencer Knight stopped 25 of 26 shots faced, recording his fourth win of the season. The 25-year-old was credited with 3.38 goals-saved above expected, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Samuel Helenius scored Los Angeles’ lone goal, and former Blackhawks netminder Anton Forsberg allowed two goals on 27 shots to record the loss in net.

The Blackhawks didn’t get off to the hottest start on Tuesday, allowing the game’s first eight shots on goal and falling behind 1-0 just 2:38 into the game. Considering the Kings were playing the back end of a back-to-back in Chicago, the sluggish start was rather disappointing.

However, the Hawks played their way into the game as the first period wore on and registered nine of the final 11 shots between the teams in the frame. While they still trailed 1-0 entering the first intermission, momentum had shifted in their favor, and it stayed with them through the rest of the night.

Over the final 40 minutes, the Blackhawks led 48-38 in shot attempts, 18-16 in shots on goal, 26-20 in scoring chances, and 2.80-2.28 in expected goals in all situations. The numbers were still relatively close, but the home side was the more threatening and cleaner team in the second and third periods.

Perhaps most encouraging was the Blackhawks’ effort in the third period with their backs against the wall. Suffering a fourth straight loss to close the homestand would have been disastrous, and the Hawks ensured that didn’t happen with a stout showing late in the game.

With the outcome hanging in the balance, the Blackhawks pushed harder for the game-winning goal and found a way to earn two points in a must-win game against a fellow bottom-feeder early in the season.

Here are highlights from the Blackhawks 2-1 win over the Kings, moving their record to 4-8-0 through 12 games in the 2026-27 campaign.

First Period

Helenius opened the scoring for Los Angeles at 2:31, cleaning up a loose puck behind Knight for his first goal of the season. 1-0, Kings. Los Angeles recorded the game’s first eight shots on goal, all occurring in the opening 4:04 of action.

The Moore-Nazar-Donato trio was the Blackhawks’ most effective line in the opening period, leading 6-2 in shot attempts and 5-0 in shots on goal at 5v5. Their best scoring chance occurred near the five-minute mark, when Oliver Moore found Patrick Kane crashing the net. Forsberg made the blocker save, keeping Chicago off the board.

Los Angeles took a 1-0 lead into the intermission, while also being ahead 13-8 in scoring chances. The Blackhawks narrowed the shots-on-goal deficit over the final 15 minutes and trailed only 10-9 in that category for the period.

Second Period

Donato’s unfortunate puck luck continued early in the second period, as Forsberg robbed him with an open net to keep Los Angeles ahead 1-0. Forsberg spun around, flailed his stick, and somehow made the save. What did Donato do to deserve this?!

Kantserov snapped the Blackhawks 0-for-17 power-play drought, scoring his team-leading fifth goal of the season to tie the game 1-1 at 16:40. Bedard extended his point streak to three games with the primary assist. It’s just the fourth power-play goal of the season for Chicago.

The two teams remained tied 1-1 through 40 minutes, with Los Angeles holding a slight 19-18 advantage in shots on goal. Chicago led 28-24 in scoring chances after two periods, though.

Third Period

After another terrific shift from the Moore-Nazar-Kane line, Kaiser netted the eventual game-winning goal at 7:17 in the third period, giving the Blackhawks their first lead of the game. Both Kane and Nazar made heads-up passes to get the puck over to Kaiser at the left circle for his first goal of the year. 2-1, Chicago.

With the game on the line late in the third period, Bedard had a clutch shot block and drew a penalty in the neutral zone to essentially seal the win. That’s the type of effort and hustle you love to see from the captain. It was also nice to see four other Blackhawks come to Bedard’s aid when Brandt Clarke created a skirmish after the whistle.

The final horn sounded at the United Center, sending the Blackhawks’ faithful in attendance home happy. The Hawks return to action next on Thursday against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena.