Paul Bissonnette Criticizes Blackhawks, Senators Rally Past Sabres: The Hockey News Morning Skate

Nov 5, 2026 2:31 PMPublished Nov 5, 2026 2:31 PMIn this edition of The Hockey News Morning Skate, Eric Cruikshank and Michael Traikos break down the Florida Panthers' victory over the Chicago Blackhawks as their slide continues, the Ottawa Senators' late rally over the Buffalo Sabres, and more.Welcome to The Hockey News Morning Skate, where we give a quick recap of all the action from the NHL every weekday morning so you stay up to date.Tuesday featured a small four-game slate with just eight teams in action.Let's run through the biggest storylines that emerged from last night, and make sure to check out the video version of this story above.Seth Jones And Panthers Stay Hot The Florida Panthers picked up a 5-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks thanks to a two-goal, four-point night from Sandis Vilmanis. The Panthers have won four of their last five games and have a 9-5-2 record.Related storiesFormer Blackhawk Seth Jones picked up his third goal of the season in this game, giving him eight points in his last five appearances. He's been off to a tremendous start and sits third among all NHL defensemen in scoring with 19 points in 16 games.TNT analyst and former NHLer Paul Bissonnette had some harsh criticism for the Blackhawks throughout various parts of the broadcast, referring to them as "soft" and "pathetic" on multiple occasions. The Blackhawks have a 4-11-1 record, have lost six of their last seven games, and are last in the Central Division.Senators Rally Past Sabres The Ottawa Senators managed to squeak out a 2-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres with a late rally of goals courtesy of Shane Pinto and Michael Amadio. This snapped a three-game winning streak for the Sabres and these two points pushed the Senators to third in the Atlantic Division with a 10-6-1 record.Both teams are dealing with injuries between the pipes, but their depth options held up well in this contest. Colten Ellis made 28 saves for the Sabres despite the loss and Sam Ersson has now allowed just one goal in consecutive starts.For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free.