The Chicago Blackhawks will try to snap a three-game losing streak when they host the Dallas Stars on Sunday night.
After winning three in a row at home, the Blackhawks went in the other direction on the road, allowing 16 goals during the 0-3 trip. Their next five games will be on home ice.
Tyler Bertuzzi and Seth Jones scored for Chicago in Friday’s 6-2 loss at Buffalo. Petr Mrazek allowed four goals on 11 shots before Arvid Soderblom (22 saves) replaced him to start the second period.
“Just weren’t ready to compete,” Jones said after Friday’s game. “Shot ourselves in the foot on multiple occasions and it ends up in the back of our net, especially against a young, skilled team like (Buffalo). They want to feed off creating turnovers from us, and that’s exactly what we gave them.”
Connor Bedard extended his point streak to three games with an assist on Friday. He has two goals and three assists in the span. The 19-year-old leads the Blackhawks with 31 points (nine goals, 22 assists) in his second NHL season.
Because of the NHL’s holiday break, Chicago did not travel to Buffalo until Friday morning, leaving at 5:30 a.m., and never seemed to catch up. The Blackhawks trailed 4-0 after being outshot 11-2 in the first period and managed just 17 shots overall.
“With the day that we had, it was imperative for us to be simple and play hard and at least get our legs under us. You blink, and it’s 4-0. It’s unacceptable,” forward Taylor Hall said, per the Chicago Sun-Times. “We put (Mrazek) in a really tough spot. … It’s just really disappointing after a break. Everyone should be mentally fresh.”
The Stars travel to Chicago having lost three of four (1-2-1), including Friday’s 3-2 overtime loss to visiting Minnesota. Dallas entered the third period up 2-0 before allowing the tying goals within 57 seconds midway through the stanza.
“Up two in the third, and obviously let them back into it. Got to be able to finish games off, especially going up against a divisional opponent,” center Wyatt Johnston said. “Playing with the lead, you need to still play on your toes and still play forward, still play the same way. But part of that is you don’t want to be reckless, you don’t want to let them back in it.”
Johnston and Evgenii Dadonov each had a goal and an assist for the Stars, while Jake Oettinger made 15 saves.
Johnston has tallied five points over his last five games, and he may have to step up even more with Mason Marchment set to miss multiple weeks. Marchment, who is second on the team in points, was hospitalized after being hit in the face by a puck in the first period on Friday.
Dallas has struggled to score lately, netting three goals or less in seven straight games. The Stars are 0-for-17 on the power play over their last four contests after failing three times on Friday.
“It’s a hard league to win in, scoring two goals a night. Obviously, that’s our power play, too,” Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said. “It’s been dry for probably a month here, so we have to find a way to get some goals both there and five-on-five.”
–Field Level Media
