Subscribe
Follow Us
Anders Sorensen will coach his first game behind a National Hockey League bench when the Chicago Blackhawks welcome the Winnipeg Jets to the United Center on Saturday afternoon.
Sorensen replaced Luke Richardson, who was fired on Thursday. The 49-year-old had been the bench boss of the American Hockey League's Rockford IceHogs — Chicago's minor-league affiliate — since 2021-22.
“I’ve been a big believer that where my two feet are is where I’m going to work and try to get better, and we’ll see what happens,” the first Swedish head coach in league history told NHL.com's Tracey Myers.
“Obviously you want to strive to improve and get up to higher levels. It’s surreal right now, trying to digest. Part of me feels ready but there’s always a part where I’m sure I’ll have to learn on the fly here. We have a great staff around here to help me out, so I’m really leaning on those guys, too.”
Sorensen's task with the Hawks will be a tall one — the team has lost four in a row and eight of 10 dating back to November 14. They've fallen into the basement of NHL standings, and considering the lack of talent on the roster, it could be a long season in the Windy City.
Blackhawks' brutal play cost Luke Richardson his job
Richardson coached the Hawks from 2022-24, managing a 49-102-13 record over 164 regular-season games. He didn't coach a postseason contest for Chicago, who haven't advanced to the dance since 2019-20.
“As we have begun to take steps forward in our rebuilding process, we felt that the results did not match our expectations for a higher level of execution this season and ultimately came to the decision that a change was necessary,” Hawks GM Kyle Davidson said in a statement on Thursday. “We wish Luke and his family all the best moving forward.”
Sorensen got right to work at practice on Friday, trying to whip the roster into shape ahead of a tilt against one of the Western Conference's premier teams.
“I just wanted to have good pace and get some energy,” Sorensen said after his first practice as an NHL coach. “I thought I’d touch on some D-zone stuff and just the biggest thing is we have to enjoy the competitive part of the game and get up to speed that way.”
It's been another abysmal season in Chicago; the Hawks are 8-16-2, and phenom Connor Bedard has managed just five goals in 26 games in his sophomore campaign. One of Sorensen's main jobs will be to get the young phenom going.
“He’s one of those guys we have to get him up the ice and get skating. That’s when he’s at his best,” Sorensen said. “We all see what he can do when the puck is on his stick. We have to get a way for him to get the puck in motion. That’s the biggest thing right now.”
Davidson confirmed that Sorensen will be Chicago's coach for the rest of the season in an interim basis, before a full search is conducted in the summer.
Swedish hockey history will be made when puck drops between the Hawks and Jets just past 4:00 p.m. ET on Saturday afternoon. But Sorensen will be more focused on getting a win in his first NHL game.
