How to Save a Life: Avalanche 4, Blackhawks 2

Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty ImagesWell that sucked.

The Chicago Blackhawks opened the 2021-22 season, falling behind 3-0 in the game’s first 10 minutes and never recovered during a 4-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche.

It’s hard to envision a way that the opening 10 minutes could’ve been worse in terms of on-ice play. The second half of the period was only marginally better, with a Dominik Kubalik goal on the power play keeping it from being a complete nightmare:

Instead, the first period was only mostly a nightmare for the Blackhawks. During 5-on-5 play in the opening 20 minutes, Colorado owned a 72.22 percent share of the shot attempts, an 80 percent share of the shots on goal, an…