Jocelyn Thibault took the loss Friday night, and the Blackhawks allowed five goals. Two of those were empty-netters and one Dallas goal bounced in off Ed Olczyk’s back, although Thibault had trouble corralling two shots that led to goals off rebounds.
Thibault, who made 21 saves, had been red-hot of late, raising his save percentage back over .900 and lowering his goals-against average below 2.90.
“Goaltending hasn’t been a problem,” manager of hockey operations Mike Smith said.
Thibault made his eighth straight start against the Stars. With back-to-back games involving travel coming Sunday and Monday, backup Steve Passmore likely will draw one start. Thibault, who appears to have overcome the inconsistency that plagued him earlier, said finishing the season on a strong note is important to him.
“Knowing I’m going to play a lot has helped,” he said. “Now I’m just trying to keep the team in as many games as I can and keep making the saves I should make.”
Killing me softly: The Hawks had killed off 14 straight power-play chances until Mike Modano victimized them Friday night with what proved to be the winning goal. Overall, the Hawks rank 17th in the league in penalty killing.
“The guys have sacrificed and done a real good job of late,” associate coach Lorne Molleken said.
Blair Atcheynum, who at one point had sat as a healthy scratch for 10 straight games, has settled back into a role on the unit, logging most of his ice time in penalty-killing situations. Alex Zhamnov, Josef Marha and Boris Mironov also have been busy as penalty-killers.
“I’m just trying to contribute and do my job whenever I’m called upon,” Atcheynum said.
MVP? Count Molleken among those who believe St. Louis Blues defenseman Chris Pronger deserves serious consideration for the Hart Trophy, awarded to the league’s most valuable player. Pronger leads the league in plus-minus rating at plus-46 and is third in scoring among defensemen with 55 points.
“There’s not many other guys who fit into the category he does,” Molleken said. “He’s a great player and a great leader. With him and Al MacInnis on the ice, every time you dump the puck in, it seems they’re waiting back there to get it.”
Ice chips: The Hawks had the day off Saturday. . . . Mironov and Zhamnov had seven-game points streak ended Friday against Dallas. Mironov had four goals and eight points in the spurt, while Zhamnov had three goals and 10 points. . . . Passmore holed out an 8-iron on a par-3, 165-yard hole for his first hole-in-one last week in Phoenix.
