CHICAGO (AP) — In Oliver Moore's 70th NHL game, the promising forward made an ill-advised pass in Chicago's offensive zone that led to a tying goal for Montreal.
In Moore's 71st game, he was all over the ice in a big win for the Blackhawks.
That's how it's going at the moment in Chicago, where the team's youngest players are still learning on the job. Moore was a healthy scratch for Sunday’s 3-2 loss to Florida, but he returned to the lineup Tuesday night and played quite well in a 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Kings.
“I didn’t expect anything less,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “He actually was playing good hockey. I felt it was a moment where him and our team needed to make sure we learn these lessons about not beating ourselves. But he’s played good hockey, so it’s not like he went through a stretch where he hadn’t been playing well. He stepped right back in and did a good job.”
Moore, a first-round pick in the 2023 draft, is a key figure for Chicago as it tries to find the other side of years of rebuilding. The 21-year-old Minnesota native signed a $21.25 million, five-year contract in September.
Losers of eight of their first 12 games, the Blackhawks are looking for more offense once again. They are averaging 2.17 goals, ranking No. 31 in the NHL going into Wednesday's action. They averaged just 2.56 goals last season.
Moore has elite speed and athleticism, but he is still working on finishing his scoring opportunities. He has two goals and one assist in 11 games after he had five goals and 14 assists in 51 games all of last season.
Facing Montreal on Friday, he tried to make a backhand pass from the corner to Ryan Greene in the middle. It was intercepted by Owen Beck, who started a rush that led to Jake Evans' tying score in the first period of the Canadiens' 4-1 win.
That wasn't the only reason Blashill decided to bench Moore for the matchup with the Panthers, but it was an example of the type of miscue that happens too often with the Blackhawks.
“You watch the game and it makes you remember why you want to be out there,” Moore said. “But in my game, I have areas where I have to improve. I have to play more winning hockey, and there were examples the coaching staff showed me where I wasn’t. There was a message there. It’s on me to learn and grow from it.”
Like so many NHL prospects, Moore is walking the line between making the most of his natural ability and the risky plays that put his teammates in tough spots.
“I know I have an identity that I want to play to,” he said. “I think I’ve found that. But it’s just reminding myself of that. That’ll make hockey feel like a little bit less thinking and more just flowing and playing. You want to get to that point, and I’m definitely working toward there.”
Playing on a line with Frank Nazar and Patrick Kane, Moore was one of Chicago's best players against Los Angeles. The trio was on the ice when Wyatt Kaiser scored the game-winning goal 7:17 into the third period.
“I know it’s tough when you’re that young and you’re kind of all around the lineup and you’ve got a different role,” Kane said when asked about Moore after the win, “but yeah, he’s got a lot of potential and I thought he was great tonight.”
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Chicago Blackhawks center Oliver Moore (11) battles with Winnipeg Jets center Adam Lowry (17) during a face-off during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Harry Figiel)
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (AP) — King tides have inundated parts of both U.S. coasts, flooding streets and sending seawater into homes and businesses in beach communities in California, Florida and the Carolinas.
The tides began with the full moon earlier this week and could cause flooding in some areas into the weekend, forecasters said. King tides are caused by the gravitational pull and alignments of the Earth, moon, and sun. They can occur several times a year and last several days.
This week's king tides have been exacerbated by additional factors, forecasters said Wednesday.
In Florida, strong high pressure to the north and low pressure over the Caribbean were causing increased swells, Chris Fisher, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Miami, said.
Along the California coast, the ongoing super El Niño has warmed the ocean, leading to an increased volume of seawater. Another factor was the occurrence of Kelvin waves, a series of pulses of warm water that lift the sea level, said Roger Gass, a meteorologist with the weather service's Bay Area forecast office in Monterey.
This week's king tides, like their name, have definitely been noticeable. Residents didn't need a beach to see the ocean. The ocean came to them.
In Southern California, Stacey Frederick snapped photos and videos of people walking in knee-deep water and paddleboarding on the Pacific Coast Highway outside a coffee shop where she works as rising tides pushed water ashore. Officials shut down traffic on a flooded portion of the four-lane highway, which winds from Orange County up through California.
King tides aren’t new, but this was unusual, Frederick said.
“It floods a little bit, but never to this point,” said Frederick, 38, who as lived in Huntington Beach for five years
Tides were expected to approach record levels in Orange County, where Huntington Beach is located, as well as in San Diego County.
In the northern part of the state, minor flooding was expected through Saturday in low-lying areas along shorelines and tidal waterways during peak high tides, the weather service said.
Gass said the coastal flooding generally occurred within 1 1/2 hours before and after high tides, which are peaking 1.9 feet (about a half-meter) above normal in Northern California.
Most of Florida’s Atlantic coast was under flood warnings through early Friday. Street flooding also was reported in South Carolina coastal cities, including Charleston and Myrtle Beach, and rip currents were possible as far north as North Carolina's Outer Banks.
“It’s been a rough beach week,” Fisher said. “We’ve had a high risk of rip currents and some high surf out there. The beach conditions are going to continue to be rough through the weekend. It’s been a good week to stay out of the water and stay away from the beaches.”
In Fort Lauderdale, Florida, getting to the multiple waterfront venues at what’s billed as the world’s largest-in-water boat show was tricky, requiring driving through flooded streets next to marinas, hotels and convention centers.
Virginia Key, a barrier island in Miami, saw its highest king tide and the third-highest water level since records were first kept going back three decades, Fisher said.
“The only times we've seen higher was during hurricanes,” Fisher said. “It's historical from a king tide perspective.”
Raby reported from Charleston, West Virginia.
Members of the Deakins family remove floodwater from their garage in Huntington Beach, Calif., Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Pedestrians walk through a flooded street caused by king tides and heavy rain Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, in North Bay Village, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
Sandbags are placed outside a home to protect it from floodwaters in Huntington Beach, Calif., Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Pedestrians walk through a flooded street caused by king tides and heavy rain in North Bay Village, Fla., Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
H.E. Durbin paddleboards in floodwaters in Huntington Beach, Calif., Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
