Whenever Jason Dickinson’s line stifles an opponent’s top line, the Blackhawks’ odds of victory increase substantially.
And when Dickinson contributes some offense, those odds skyrocket.
That was precisely what played out in the Hawks’ 2-1 overtime victory Sunday against the Wild.
Dickinson scored a first-period goal, Petr Mrazek made 32 saves to keep the Hawks alive into overtime and Philipp Kurashev tallied the winner to help them clinch only their second home victory of the season.
Despite the favorable result, the Hawks were displeased with their third-period performance. Eighteen of Mrazek’s 32 saves came in the third as the Wild pushed fervently. Young Wild star Matt Boldy hit the crossbar on a golden chance to tie the game with 6:17 left, then finally scored less than two minutes later.
‘‘[There was] still just too much openness at the end,’’ coach Luke Richardson said. ‘‘When they hit the crossbar, [we were] just backing off too much. We’ve showed some clips on that, and we still have to get better at that on some of those line rushes.’’
It was Dickinson, however, who provided enough stability during the period to help the Hawks survive until the overtime dice-roll. And during the first two periods, he and his third line — which featured Joey Anderson and Teuvo Teravainen on the wings — dominated.
They were usually matched up against the Wild’s first line and Kirill Kaprizov, who ranks second in the NHL with 28 points this season. The Wild found more success when they moved Boldy next to Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello in the third, but the Hawks still won that matchup.
In Dickinson and Kaprizov’s 13:16 of five-on-five ice time against each other, the Hawks outshot the Wild 6-4 and had a 55.9% share of the expected goals. The Hawks' penalty kill, which went three-for-three, was similarly effective when Dickinson was out there.
‘‘If [Kaprizov is] able to handle the puck . . . he’s going to create a lot,’’ Dickinson said. ‘‘Zuccarello looks for him basically all over the ice. So if you stick with him enough around the ice, the puck is going to try to find him, and I’m hopefully there to break it up.’’
This has become Dickinson’s forte: He’s legitimately one of the best defensive centers in the league. In the Hawks’ victory two weeks ago against the Avalanche, he stymied reigning Hart Trophy winner Nathan MacKinnon as much as he stymied Kaprizov on Sunday.
If the Hawks — who improved to 6-9-1 this season — were higher in the standings, Dickinson would get more national acclaim for it. As it is, his 12th-place finish in Selke Trophy voting last season was impressive and deserved.
‘‘That’s what we saw most of last year: [his line] doing the job defensively and getting rewarded offensively because they’re usually above the other team in the ‘O’ zone,’’ Richardson said. ‘‘There have always been interchangeable pieces there, but Dickinson is the familiar face that’s always there.’’
Those offensive rewards make a huge difference, too. Since Dickinson arrived in Chicago in the fall of 2022, the Hawks are 26-22-8 (an 88-point pace over 82 games) when he has at least one point and an abysmal 29-89-6 (a 42-point pace) when he doesn’t.
‘‘It’s a chicken-or-egg situation,’’ Dickinson said. ‘‘Am I scoring because we’re playing so well? Or are we winning because I’m scoring? Either way, it’s good. I want to be involved on both sides.’’
It’s worth noting that Richardson should’ve put Anderson, who had sat out eight games as a healthy scratch before Thursday, back with Dickinson far sooner. It was strange and almost indefensible that he didn’t.
Anderson never will rack up many points or look particularly smooth on the ice, but his presence always elevates Dickinson. They think the game in similar ways, and their off-ice friendship translates onto the ice.
