The Chicago Blackhawks were defeated by the worst team in the National Hockey League, the Vancouver Canucks, on Friday. This capped off a tough trade deadline week for Chicago, so it’s a loss to throw in the garbage and move on from. Next up is one of the hottest teams in the NHL. The Dallas Stars are 9-0-1 in their last ten games. That one loss came in the shootout against the Colorado Avalanche, the only team ahead of them in the NHL standings, on Friday night. Scouting Dallas The Dallas Stars win all of these games, but they can’t gain any ground because of how good the Central Division is at the top. The Colorado Avalanche are 7-3-0 in their last ten, including four straight wins, and the Minnesota Wild are 8-2-0 in their last ten. They make up three of the top four teams in the league. A game against the Blackhawks is a big one for the Stars, because they come in expecting to get two points in the tight race. That is especially true knowing that the Wild and Avalanche play each other on the same day, presenting an opportunity to gain ground on one of them. Dallas, more than any team in the NHL, has the best mix of older veterans, elite players in their prime, and young budding stars. They get contributions offensively and defensively from up and down their lineup. Robertson-Hintz-Johnston Steel-Duchene-Benn Erne-Hryckowian-Bourque Blackwell-Bäck-Bastian Lindell-Heiskanen Harley-Lundkvist Bichsel-Lyubushkin Oettinger DeSmith Mikko Rantanen, their best forward, is out for the Stars. He was injured while representing Team Finland in Milano Cortina. He will be back soon, but not against the Blackhawks on Sunday. It is on Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz, Wyatt Johnston, Matt Duchene, and others to pick up the pace offensively. Rantanen is a superstar, but they have the firepower needed to win, as proven by their great play since the Olympics without Rantanen. Their defense is incredibly notable, led by Olympians like Miro Heiskanen, Esa Lindell, and Thomas Harley. Whether it’s their star number one, Jake Oettinger (also an Olympian) in net, or their solid backup, Casey DeSmith in net, Dallas is hard to score goals against. This well-rounded game on both sides of the puck is why they are 38-14-10. Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Goalie For Chicago The Blackhawks are looking to bounce back from that tough defeat at the hands of the Canucks. They’ve played better against good teams for some reason, and this game against the Stars is a nice opportunity to get back in the win column in a big way. The Blackhawks have won each of the two meetings between them, both by a score of 4-3. This will be their last match against one another in 2025-26, so it’s a chance for Chicago to sweep the three-game season series. Greene-Bedard-Burakovsky Bertuzzi-Nazar-Teravainen Mangiapane-Moore-Mikheyev Slaggert-Donato-Lardis Vlasic-Crevier Kaiser-Rinzel Grzelcyk-Levshunov Commesso Soderblom The Blackhawks appear to be running the Connor Bedard, Frank Nazar, and Oliver Moore trio down the middle again, but the wings have been switched up a bit. Ryan Donato looks to be the fourth-line center. On Donato’s wing in practice were Landon Slaggert and Sam Lafferty. However, the Blackhawks called up Nick Lardis from the Rockford IceHogs after practice, so he’s sure to dress. Sam Lafferty has been scratched for most of the season, so that’s likely the guy to sit again. Last time out, they went with an 11-forward, 7-defensemen strategy. Going in as the extra defenseman was Ethan Del Mastro. If they go that route again, it is fair to assume that Landon Slaggert would come out. They didn’t call up Lardis to sit him. Spencer Knight fell ill on Friday afternoon, so an emergency backup goalie was used to back up Arvid Soderblom. On Saturday, before leaving for Dallas, they called up Drew Commesso, and Spencer Knight is staying home. Who starts in Dallas on Sunday and at home vs Utah on Monday remains to be seen How To Watch The game can be heard locally on AM 720 WGN in the Chicagoland area. To view this game, it can be found on CHSN locally. Nationally, it is available to stream on ESPN+. The puck will drop shortly after 5:00 PM CT. 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