Two young, up-and-coming teams battled it out Sunday night as the Chicago Blackhawks hosted the Anaheim Ducks. Connor Bedard, the first overall pick, faced Leo Carlsson, the second overall selection, with plenty of talent on both sides.
An exciting match during the first two periods ultimately ended in a thriller. The Blackhawks let a 1-0 lead slip away in the final seconds of the third period, but recovered with an overtime goal to win.
First period
The Blackhawks killed an early penalty, but had the most dangerous chance on the penalty. Ilya Mikheyev stole a puck and shot on a breakaway, but was stopped by Lukas Dostal. The Ducks would respond with a tripping penalty to give the Blackhawks a man advantage. The Blackhawks failed to capitalize.
Ilya Mikheyev creates an escape for herself with a short hand pic.twitter.com/GVuVVsH9Qr
— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) October 19, 2025
The trade penalty story continued, with the Blackhawks stifling the Ducks with another two-man lead. Goalkeeper Spencer Knight made a few important saves to keep the score at 0-0.
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A scoreless first period ended with plenty of shots: 16 for the Ducks and 10 for the Blackhawks.
Second Period
Knight fended off an early onslaught of shots, but the Ducks certainly generated and kept the momentum going. However, Dostal answered the call with a few important saves from Bedard.
Incredible shot from Connor Bedard. He got a call tonight. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/gImTI5iE4U
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) October 20, 2025
Carlsson nearly gave the Ducks the lead with a beautiful play that weaved through the Blackhawks’ defense and slid a shot off the post. The teams then exchanged penalties again, putting both sides in 4-on-4 time.
Neither team could take advantage of the extra space and the second period ended somewhat sleepily still at 0-0.
Third Period
The frustration on both sides continued well into the third period. Neither team could generate consistent momentum or play with a stable structure. Broken play defined the first ten minutes of the period, with a few pucks finding their way on goal.
Ultimately, Frank Nazar took advantage of the odd man out and gave the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead.
GOAL: Frank Nazar scores on Kaiser’s one-timer that went off the post pic.twitter.com/VIveHxtmO6
— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) October 20, 2025
The Ducks tried to tie the game and dominated much of the game after Nazar’s goal. The perfect opportunity presented itself when Wyatt Kaiser suffered an unfortunate delay of play with 1:47 remaining. Finally, Mason McTavish converted with a perfect shot that beat Knight over the shoulder.
🚨MAC-T🚨
TIE GAME WITH 30 SECONDS LEFT! #FlyTogether pic.twitter.com/qJWqsHlmqK
— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) October 20, 2025
The match was tied 1-1 with 35 seconds left.
Overtime
A back-and-forth overtime started with huge saves from Dostal and Knight. Ultimately, Bedard set up Ryan Donato for the winning goal on a 3-on-1 odd-man rush.
Connor Bedard introduces Ryan Donato as the overtime winner. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/VA3VossrcQ
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) October 20, 2025
What’s next?
The Blackhawks needed this win after letting the lead slip away so late in the third period. Knight kept the Blackhawks in the game at key points, and Dostal did the same.
The Blackhawks have three days to recover and travel to Florida to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Ducks continue their road trip against the Nashville Predators on Tuesday.
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