Just a few hours ago, the Columbus Blue Jackets finally snapped their four-game losing streak in style, rolling over the Chicago Blackhawks with a 5-1 win on Saturday. Zach Werenski put on a show, racking up a goal and two assists, while Kent Johnson went off with a two-goal performance. Denton Mateychuk and Adam Fantilli got in on the action with a goal each, and Dmitri Voronkov dished out two assists like he was serving up magic. Meanwhile, Elvis Merzlikins stood tall between the pipes, stopping 27 shots in his team’s return from the 4 Nations Face-Off break.
On the flip side, Craig Smith was the lone goal-scorer for the Blackhawks, while Petr Mrazek faced a rough night, making just 16 saves. But let’s talk about the real gut punch—Connor Bedard almost had his moment, but nope, the refs weren’t having it. His goal got waved off for goalie interference, making an already tough loss sting even more. And to make things even more frustrating, Blackhawks coach has now dropped a little bombshell.
Ben Pope, the Sun-Times Blackhawks beat reporter, jumped on X mid-game on February 22 to break down a wild challenge situation. Sorensen spilled that the refs put the team on the spot, making them rush a decision. “We actually thought it was a kicking motion at first,” he admitted. But then—plot twist—the ref came over after they called him and suddenly hit them with a different angle: goalie interference. And just like that, the pressure was on.
“We needed to make a decision quickly,” Sorensen explained, but let’s be real—given how their challenges have been going, it was a tough call. “When they call it no goal…it seems to be harder to reverse those.” Looking back? Yeah, he figures they “would’ve lost the challenge” anyway. Just one of those brutal hockey moments where the odds were stacked against them!
Sorensen said the Blackhawks were rushed by the refs on whether to challenge this play.
“We actually thought it was a kicking motion at first. And then he came over, after we called him over, and said that it was a goalie interference and we needed to make a decision quickly.… https://t.co/WCP78Y0U4B
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) February 23, 2025
This story is developing…
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