Despite the Blackhawks having the edge in metrics for shooting and scoring chances, the Stars capitalized on mistakes to score 3 of their 5 goals en route to downing Chicago 5-1 and splitting the series.
The Stars also dominated on faceoffs winning 30 of 52 and blocked 23 shots. Additionally, the Hawks special teams faltered stopping only one of 3 power play chances and going 0-for-3 on their own opportunities.
With the loss and the Predators victory over the Red Wings, Nashville doubled their 4th place lead from 2 points to 4. Dallas also closed the gap on Chicago for 5th place from 5 points to 3 with 3 games in hand.
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Starting Lineup
The starting lineup was the same last night as the prior game that kicked off the set against Dallas:
And the starters for the opening shift:
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Scoring Recap
1st Goal: Hintz (0-1) PP
John Klingberg and Joe Pavelski performed a give-and-go on the right side to get the puck over to Jamie Benn on the left. Kevin Lankinen made the initial save but Roope Hintz cashed in on the rebound.
2nd Goal: Kubalik (1-1)
As Philipp Kurashev tied up a duo of Stars players in a board scrum, Vincent Hinostroza stripped the puck along the right corner and peeled away to find Dominik Kubalik in the slot for a tap-in marker.
3rd Goal: Robertson (1-2)
Nikita Zadorov made a pair of mistakes on the same sequence. First, he made an errant pass to Hintz. Then he keyed in on Hintz who Duncan Keith was already covering which left Jason Robertson alone in front.
4th Goal: Heiskanen (1-3) PP
While on the power play, the Stars moved the puck from high to low to high spreading out the Hawks defense before Miro Heiskanen fired a shot from dead center to beat Lankinen high glove side.
5th Goal: Comeau (1-4)
(No video available)
After Keith slipped on the ice at the offensive blueline to cough up the puck, Andrew Cogliano picked it up and sent Blake Comeau on a breakaway where he beat Lankinen high glove side again.
6th Goal: Comeau (1-5)
A bad shift change by the Hawks with the puck at the defensive blueline led to Keith having to defend a 2-on-1 against Hintz and Comeau. Pius Suter couldn't catch up in time and Patrick Kane lazily watched.
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Game Notes
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Player Notes
Wyatt Kalynuk
Continuing to impress with his responsible play, Wyatt Kalynuk protects the net with regularity, resets quickly if he has to stray away, keeps stride with the puck carrier, and takes the body if necessary.
Adam Boqvist
Last night was one of Adam Boqvist's most prolific game in terms of activating offensively to join the rush and get shots off. Defensively he's neutralizing plays with simple poke checks and body bumps.
Brandon Hagel
Something that Brandon Hagel has a knack for is gaining the offensive zone with a full head of steam then stop on a dime to throw off the defender and wait for a trailer to generate a more optimal play.
Mattias Janmark
With his heavy style and offensive mojo disappearing, Mattias Janmark is decreasing his TDL value game by game. The silver lining is that if the Hawks do have plans to re-sign him, his price is also decreasing.
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Roster Updates
The Trade
On Thursday the Blackhawks pulled off their second trade with the Panthers in less than a week with both deals arguably being of the "low risk, high reward" variety.
In the trade bringing Hinostroza home again, the Hawks gave up career minor leaguer Brad Morrison. Both are on expiring contracts. Even if Hinostroza isn't retained, Morrison would have been gone anyway.
Then in yesterday's trade, Henrik Borgstrom was the centerpiece with Riley Stillman as a wild card. All other assets are inconsequential in the grand scheme of what Chicago is looking to accomplish long term:
* Lucas Carlsson has been bumped down the D prospect depth chart with the rise of others like Kalynuk, Ian Mitchell, Nicolas Beaudin, Alec Regula, and Isaak Phillips. Carlsson was expansion fodder.
* Lucas Wallmark was expendable whether he was playing or sitting. Like Morrison, he wasn't in Chicago's plans beyond the season. His one-year contract was an indicator that he was a placeholding rental.
* Brett Connolly is a battled-tested veteran who can play a power game and score goals. With Carl Soderberg and Janmark next on the chopping block, Connolly takes one spot leaving the other for a rookie.
* The 7th round pick is a lottery ticket with low odds. Had a prospect lesser than Borgstrom been in the deal instead, the pick would have been higher. No prospect should have netted at least a 2nd.
Henrik Borgstrom
Back to Borgstrom, interestingly he fits what I pondered in
an earlier blog this week, i.e. trading from a place of strength (D prospects) to shore up a place of weakness (center prospects with top 6 pedigree).
In that blog, I proposed trading Beaudin for Jesperi Kotkaniemi. Not necessarily straight up but perhaps with other assets on either side. That exact trade didn't play out, of course, but the premise did.
In fact, the real deal may prove to be better as Carlsson is a lesser prospect than Beaudin and Borgstrom could be at least on par with what Kotkaniemi is presently trending toward as a middle 6 center.
The ideal scenario for Borgstrom -- and Kotkaniemi for that matter -- is to be a top 6 center in the NHL who is responsible in his own end and oozes hockey intelligence. Both Finns can still be just that.
Borgstrom has been labeled as inconsistent since being drafted but his strong work ethic has aided him in improving his 3-zone play. He has a high ceiling as a playmaker with above average hockey IQ.
Another thing to like about Borgstrom is his size at 6'3" and 200 pounds. As far as strength, he's stable on his skates but needs to fill out more in the upper body in order to endure the NHL's physicality.
The first priority is to sign Borgstrom to a new contract since he's an RFA. He's staying in Finland the rest of this season. Next year, have him start in Rockford but don't be surprised if he's NHL ready early.
Similarly to Lukas Reichel -- and thank goodness the Hawks didn't trade all of their players named Lucas -- groom Borgstrom as a center with the flexibility to play wing especially early on in his career.
With both Borgstrom and Reichel expected to be in North America for the 2021-22 season, the Hawks could perhaps have Kirby Dach, Borgstrom, and Reichel down the middle within a year at the earliest.
Of course, the fate of captain Jonathan Toews and Dylan Strome will play a factor. Either way, it's still good to have more choices for top 9 pivots with the aforementioned players plus Kurashev and Suter.
Riley Stillman
As for Stillman, he at minimum is a replacement for Carlsson but with more NHL games under his belt. Stillman is a throwback as a physical defensive defenseman who has been dependable at lower levels.
Even though they are criticized for their own deficiencies, it would take a lot for Stillman to outplay either Connor Murphy or Nikita Zadorov but you never know. Stillman could surprise.
Nonetheless, Stillman may be a medium-term solution while the younger prospects continue to develop and supplant him in due course. But if Stillman fails to progress, he's blueline depth for the IceHogs.
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See you on the boards!
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