Thursday night’s 1-0 victory over the Ducks put an end to the Chicago Blackhawks’ four-game losing streak. Petr Mrazek recorded his 25th career shutout with 37 saves.
Chicago, in last place overall having lost ten of twelve games, got a goal from Philipp Kurashev.
Connor Bedard and Leo Carlsson, the top two picks in this year’s NHL draft, traded assists, with Bedard remaining mostly silent. Bedard selected Chicago with the first overall pick, and Carlsson selected the Ducks.
Mrazek hadn’t been shut out for Carolina against Dallas since April 4, 2021.
The Ducks lost for the tenth time in their previous eleven games despite Lukas Dostal’s 24 saves.
With its third power-play goal in five games and its ninth of the year, Chicago took the lead in the second period. With the man advantage, the team started the day ranked 29th in the NHL at 10.7%.
At 9:21, after Ducks defenseman Tristan Luneau was given a double minor for high-sticking, Bedard skated into the left circle and passed the puck to Kurashev, who scored his fifth goal with a slap shot that went past Dostal.
In the second, the Ducks had two opportunities to tie the game, but Mrazek was there every time. About 11 minutes in, he denied Ryan Strome at the side of the net, and with 1:40 remaining in the frame, he stopped Brett Leason alone in front.
With 1:47 remaining, Dostal was replaced, but the Ducks were unable to put much significant pressure on Mrazek in the remaining minutes. The Ducks’ power play performance was 0 for 3.