Presented by Nationwide Insurance Agent Jeff Vukovich
The Chicago Blackhawks won their third straight home game after beating the Dallas Stars 3-2 on Saturday at the United Center.
Here are 10 observations from the win:
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1. The Blackhawks had no business winning this game. At one point, shots were 32-11 Dallas and yet Chicago was leading 3-0. That's hockey for you, huh?
2. The Stars made a third-period push. Jamie Benn scored with 4:23 left in regulation to cut the deficit to 3-2, and 33 seconds later, Jason Dickinson committed a tripping penalty to put the Stars on the power play. The Blackhawks bent but didn't break. It was a nervy finish.
3. Petr Mrazek was unbelievable in this game. He turned aside the first 32 shots he faced and had saved 2.44 goals above expected before Dallas finally broke through in the second period, per Natural Stat Trick. He also started in his 50th game of the season, which is a new career-high.
Chicago Blackhawks
4. Connor Bedard ended a seven-game goal drought after scoring on the power play for his 22nd of the season, and he celebrated accordingly. You could tell he was itching to get one soon. He honestly probably can't remember the last time he went seven games without scoring.
5. You know who else ended a lengthy goal drought? Andreas Athanasiou, who found the back of the net for the first time all season. It took him 22 games after he missed four months with a groin injury. Credit to Lukas Reichel for the terrific setup.
6. The Blackhawks killed off both penalties in the second period of a 3-0 game, which included 55 seconds of 5-on-3 time. The United Center was super loud after the killed it off. That was a key moment in the contest because the Blackhawks had all the momentum up to that point.
7. Colin Blackwell returned to the lineup after missing the last six games with an upper-body injury. But he didn't return to his usual spot with Joey Anderson and Jason Dickinson, he slotted in on the third line with Athanasiou and Reichel. He didn't see much ice time, but he was the same energizer bunny as we're used to seeing from him.
8. I caught bits and pieces of the first-ever local animated real-time sports telecast between the Blackhawks and Stars. It looked very cool. Well done to everyone involved.
9. Taylor Raddysh was a healthy scratch for the first time all season. This felt inevitable. He has only five goals this season after potting 20 a year ago. He's not happy about his production: "It's frustrating when things don't go your way. Obviously it's in the back of your mind every day. You almost get too involved in it sometimes and at times you try to flush it away and do the best you can and that's all you can really do. I feel like throughout the year I've taken steps in areas of my game, and maybe offensively it would be nice to produce more."
10. Blackhawks head coach Luke Richardson said Reese Johnson suffered "a little bit of a setback." He's been in concussion protocol since March 12, although he could return skating soon.
Connor Murphy practiced with the team in full on Friday for the first time in two and a half months. He's been out since Jan. 19 with a groin injury (osteitis pubis), which is the same kind of injury that has sidelined San Jose Sharks star Logan Couture practically all season. Murphy is hoping to return at some point next week.
