Takeaways from the Ducks 3-2 Win over the Blackhawks

The Anaheim Ducks played their second road game in back-to-back days on Tuesday evening when they visited the Chicago Blackhawks.

They grabbed two unexpected points against a Stanley Cup-contending Dallas Stars team on Monday night and were searching for their first three-game winning streak on Tuesday.

Takeaways from the Ducks 4-2 Victory over the Stars

Conversely, the Blackhawks were looking to avoid a three-game losing streak.

Ducks head coach Greg Cronin went with a nearly identical lineup to the one that earned the Ducks a victory on Monday. The only adjustment was the insertion of rookie forward Sam Colangelo into the fourth-line wing spot previously occupied by a now-injured Brock McGinn.

John Gibson received the net in this game for the Ducks. He wasn't challenged too often, as he stopped 18 of the 20 shots he faced in this game and was beaten twice off shots resulting from a pair of nifty east-west passes from Connor Bedard to Jason Dickinson.

Arvid Soderblom got the net for the Hawks and stopped 21 of 24 shots.

Here are my notes from this game:

Zegras-Carlsson-Killorn: The Ducks' listed top line went toe-to-toe against Bedard's line for Chicago. Carlsson shouldered significantly more of the traditional center responsibilities in this game (roughly around a 90:10 ratio) as opposed to the last game, where Zegras acted mostly as that line's centerman.

Carlsson was able to impact play at an elevated rate, building speed through the defensive and neutral zones into the offensive zone. Zegras adapted well and was able to manipulate play from the boards, disrupt off the forecheck, and find his teammates in dangerous areas. Killorn seemed to have a boost in his stride as well, often winning races to dumped pucks and extending offensive zone time.

Drew Helleson: After a brief adjustment period to the speed of NHL hockey, Helleson is now one of the steadiest defenders on the Ducks roster. He has more explosive backward crossovers than expected and can manipulate rush attackers by eliminating three lanes at a time.

An area the Ducks have struggled this season in their zone has been around the crease area. Helleson expertly boxes out traffic in front of his netminder while winning battles for loose around the crease.

Puck Management: The Ducks only allowed 34 shot attempts in this game, with 20 of them finding their way to the net. While a lot of this can be attributed to their diligence in coverage and a collaborative backchecking effort, the Ducks displayed improved puck management skills in the neutral zone, where they routinely advanced pucks to less dangerous ice and within ten feet of the offensive blueline, where they didn't take costly and unnecessary chances with risky pass attempts.

Isac Lundestrom: Lundestrom is making far more concerted efforts to drive or attempt passes to the front of the net this season. He is blending his newfound willingness to attack with his trademark puck transportation skills, where he can shield without sacrificing pace. He's timing F2 and F3 pressures perfectly to keep pucks alive for Gauthier and Leason, who are afforded the space to create substantial chances.

The Ducks will get a bit of a break before their next game, where they'll host the Buffalo Sabres on Friday at Honda Center.

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