Only a few hours ago, the Columbus Blue Jackets managed to end a four-game losing streak to beat the Chicago Blackhawks with a 5-1 score on Saturday. Zach Werenski shone through to score a goal and provided two assists, while Kent Johnson scored two goals. Denton Mateychuk and Adam Fantilli scored goals, and Dmitri Voronkov was distributing the puck as if it were candy, doled out two assists. In the meantime, Elvis Merzlikins has been in goal for the team and made 27 saves after the 4 Nations Face-Off break.

On the other hand, Craig Smith scored the only goal for the Blackhawks, and Petr Mrazek was not so lucky as he managed to save only 16 shots. 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, the 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!

Connor Bedard believed he had his chance, only two minutes after Columbus scored, he fired the puck into the net. The crowd cheered, the red light was on, but wait–referee’s whistle. Goaltender interference. Just like that, the celebration was cut short and the chance of an early equalizer was gone with the wind. Blackhawks coach Anders Sorensen did not protest it, and the fans only clenched their teeth over what might have been.

And if you thought the first period was already off the rails, enter Elvis Merzlikins—doing his best mix of goalie, tightrope walker, and magician. The Blue Jackets’ goaltender went on a risky move outside of the goal area, on the edge of falling, but managed to make a stunning save. At the right time, when things began to get out of hand, the offside call of Lukas Reichel came as a break. But one thing never changes—the Blackhawks fanbase is fed up, and Chicago just keeps giving them more reasons to be frustrated.

Chicago Blackhawks’ fans remain disappointed!

Back in January, Connor Bedard had the Blackhawks rolling—lighting up the scoreboard and stacking up wins like it was child’s play. He scored four goals against Tampa Bay, taking the Lightning by surprise, and prior to that, he extended his career-long point scoring to eight games with a goal and an assist in a win against the Avalanche. The kid was on fire, and Chicago was feeling it.

But oh, how February has been a rude awakening. The Blackhawks have won only one game in the entirety of February, and that was on February 7th when Ryan Donato scored two goals and assisted on two others while the Blackhawks triumphed over the Predators with a score of 6-2. Bedard, Frank Nazar, and Seth Jones all entered the celebration and even Bedard made history by scoring his sixth game-winning goal in his career, surpassing Patrick Kane and Bobby Hull.

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But let’s be real—big-picture-wise, Chicago has dropped four of five this month, leaving fans in full-on eye-roll mode. As one put it, “As if it would have mattered anyway.” Whether Bedard’s goal stood or not, the L felt inevitable—and Blackhawks fans? They’re just over it.