The Chicago Blackhawks had the Dallas Stars’ number in 2025-26, winning two of three games and earning five points against their Central Division rival. That was last season, though, and coach Jeff Blashill made that point during his team’s morning skate Saturday.
“We had Utah’s number too …” Blashill said before trailing off, referring to the Hawks’ 6-0 loss to the Mammoth on Oct. 1.
In the first of four matchups against the Stars this season, the Hawks didn’t give their fans much to cheer about, losing 4-0 in front of 18,233 at the United Center.
The Hawks entered the night riding their first back-to-back wins of the season, but defensive-zone struggles, sloppy puck handling and giveaways dropped them to 2-2-0 on their seven-game homestand. They are 3-6-0 and won’t play again until Friday against the Montreal Canadiens.
A break might be needed.
“We got five days (off), kind of weird, but we can practice, work on stuff and get better,” captain Connor Bedard said.
Despite being outshot 12-5 in the first period, the Hawks had their share of scoring chances. But they Hawks didn’t capitalize on those opportunities, and the crowd’s silence was broken by groans whenever they missed a pass on a breakaway.
“We made too many mistakes out there with pucks passes all around the ice,” defenseman Alex Vlasic said. “It seemed like they were just jumping on anytime we turn the puck over. They have a lot of skilled players up front, so they’re going to make you pay anytime you know you’re turning it over pretty frequently.”
Left wing Jason Robertson appeared to give the Stars an early lead, but his goal was disallowed because he was offside, and the first period ended in a scoreless tie.
“We got to create more (chances), we had a lot of power plays in the first,” Bedard said. “I thought we had a few good looks where (if) they go in, it obviously changes the game.”
A lack of energy from the Hawks best described the second 20 minutes. Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger, who had 19 saves for his third shutout in his last six starts, wasn’t pressured often, and the few shots that did fly his way missed the net.
“I thought we stopped attacking the net,” Blashill said. “They boxed out, slashed, fronted a lot of those pucks or (we) just didn’t have much (of a) look at the goalie. When we had the opportunity to attack, we probably looked for a better play.”
Robertson ended up scoring on a power play 4 minutes, 58 seconds into the second period. Right wing Arttu Hyry scored at 14:10 for a 2-0 lead that felt bigger given the way the Hawks were playing.
Hyry (1:27) and Roope Hintz (9:40) put the game away in the third. The Hawks were outshot 32-19 on the night.
The Stars (4-3-1) are still finding their groove after their first-round playoff exit last year, but they are a quality, hard-checking defensive team. It’s an area the Hawks have struggled to combat, resulting in blowouts in Utah and on Saturday.
“We just weren’t crisp tonight,” Bedard said. “I don’t think we were in the right spots for each other as much as we’d like. We want to play fast, but we got to make sure that the guys have an easy out, and we just weren’t getting the puck out of our end tonight.”
Anton Frondell played a season-low 12:40. The 19-year-old center, who leads the team in assists and points, won only one of 11 faceoffs and had two shots.
“I didn’t think he had it tonight, to be honest with you, and he’s been great,” Blashill said. “He had a little bit of an off night. He’ll be better,”
Five of the Hawks’ nine opponents this season were playoff teams in 2025-26 — the Vegas Golden Knights, Mammoth, Buffalo Sabres, Carolina Hurricanes and Stars — and they didn’t play well against any of them.
“They were never really turning pucks over anytime they get it in a dangerous area,” Vlasic said. “Their top lines or top players are making smart decisions with the puck if they don’t have numbers. They just play very smart and simple, and that’s what obviously gets you pretty far.”