Recap: Blackhawks top Stars in shootout 4-3

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Just over seven minutes later, the Stars would get one back. Mikko Rantanen took the puck out from the corner and banked it back to the point. Nils Lundkvist leaned into a slapshot and got it through traffic past Soderblom, knotting it up at 1-1.

Ryan Donato had a nice chance in sneaking through the Dallas defense to put the puck on net, but Jake Oettinger stopped Andre Burakovsky on the rebound to keep the score knotted up 1-1 to end the first.

Second period

It took until halfway through the second for one of the teams to get something going. Jason Dickinson took the puck all the way through the Dallas defense. He wristed it past Oettinger with beautiful placement, putting the Blackhawks up 2-1.

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It did not take long for Dallas to get that goal back again though, just as in the first. Wyatt Johnston put a shot off the post that brought Soderblom too far out of his crease to challenge it. That left Justin Hryckowian wide open to put the puck past a diving Soderblom, 2-2. Once again, the period ended with both teams all tied up.

Third period

This time, the Stars were the ones to strike first in the period. It still took as long as in the second for both teams to beat their opposition’s goaltender. With 10 and a half minutes gone, Jamie Benn got a breakaway attempt. The Blackhawks’ defense completely broke down, but Soderblom kept the puck out, as Benn could not elevate it. Then, just 30 seconds later, Rantanen took care of a rebound at the side of the net, putting the Stars up 3-2. Ryan Greene had a horrendous turnover in the defensive zone that led directly to that goal. That lead would not last long, however.

Once again, Vlasic took a shot from the point that hit a bunch of sticks on the way in. That rebound found its way to Bertuzzi, who potted his second of the game, tying the game up 3-3.

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Overtime and shootout

Overtime went by without much in the way of action, with both teams generating two shots apiece, but not beating either goaltender. After the first round, no one put the puck through, and in the second round, Donato got his chance. He slowed down Oettinger, getting him to commit before tucking the puck over his pad on the backhand. As in the rest of the game, Dallas answered immediately. Matt Duchene beat Soderblom on the next shot to knot it up at 1-1. After Burakovsky and Johnston both were stopped, the puck found itself on the stick of Nick Lardis. He beat Oettinger cleanly to give the Blackhawks the win 4-3 in the shootout.

Analysis

The Blackhawks played extremely well in this game. They never let themselves fall too far behind, and fought hard in this game to stay in it. They were a bit too undisciplined as far as penalties go, and the Greene turnover leading to a goal was one of the worst plays you can hope to see. Bertuzzi is huge on the road, as he scored his 13th and 14th goals on the road this season. He was in the right place every time in this game, getting to the front as he is best at. Vlasic also had a great game, knotting two assists, but also looked good in the defensive end as well.

The Blackhawks’ next game is on Sunday night back home in Chicago against the Pittsburgh Penguins. That game will be at 6 p.m. CST on CHSN.