Blackwell unlikely hero for Stars with OT goal in Game 2 of West 1st Round

DALLAS -- Colin Blackwell walked into the middle of a media scrum just after midnight, sweaty, still half-dressed in his equipment. The cameras focused on him. The reporters raised their microphones.

“I’m not used to this,” he cracked, drawing laughs.

This is the beauty of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. You never know who the hero might be.

In Game 2 of the Western Conference First Round on Monday, it was Blackwell, a 32-year-old journeyman forward who scored at 17:46 of overtime to give the Dallas Stars a 4-3 win against the Colorado Avalanche, tying the best-of-7 series.

Game 3 is at Ball Arena in Denver on Wednesday (9:30 p.m. ET; Victory+, ESPN, ALT, TVAS2, SN360).

“You’re just proud of a guy like him and what he did,” Stars forward Tyler Seguin said. “We talked about it quickly after the game. I mean, part of this journey and playing for a couple months, different guys are going to be in the lineup, different guys are banged up, different guys got to step up, and it started early for us.”

Blackwell was selected in the seventh round (No. 194) by the San Jose Sharks in the 2011 NHL Draft. He played four seasons at Harvard, then much of the next four in the American Hockey League.

Over the past seven seasons, he played 298 regular-season games for six NHL teams, bouncing from the Nashville Predators to the New York Rangers to the Seattle Kraken to the Toronto Maple Leafs to the Chicago Blackhawks to the Stars.

And he got one taste of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, contributing two points (one goal, one assist) for the Maple Leafs in seven games in 2021-22.

“That’s kind of why I wanted to come here in the summertime and be a part of this,” said Blackwell, who signed a one-year, $775,000 contract with the Stars on July 2. “I love this group. It’s been a hell of a year and a lot of fun, so I’m just excited to do whatever I can to help the team win.

“To get a taste of playing in the playoffs is what everybody dreams for, to hopefully hoist the Cup at the end of this run. I’m just excited to be here.”

Blackwell had 17 points (six goals, 11 assists) in 63 games in the regular season. He was scratched for 14 of the last 31 games.

Then he was scratched for Game 1, a 5-1 loss.

“I talked to him when we didn’t play him in Game 1,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. “I told him, ‘Be ready. You’re not going to be out long.’ I wanted to get him in in Game 2. He’s one of those energy guys. I thought after losing Game 1 we needed a little shot of energy there, and he’s a competitive player. I thought he was effective all night.

“But it’s also great to see a guy like that get a goal. You know, sit out Game 1, work with the Black Aces and then come in and play a part. That’s playoff hockey.”

Blackwell was on the ice when forward Logan O'Connor gave the Avalanche a 3-2 lead with 32.1 seconds left in the second period, and he played 12:37, the least among the 36 skaters in the game.

But in OT, Blackwell flew down the left wing, cut to the middle against defenseman Erik Johnson and fired a shot in the slot. The attempt was blocked before it got to goalie Mackenzie Blackwood, and the puck ended up twirling like a top in open space.

Blackwell pounced on it and put it upstairs. He screamed, leapt into the glass and got mobbed by his teammates.

There were a lot of emotions to release.

“It’s been a long season and not playing in the first game, stuff like that,” he said. “It was just kind of in and out of the lineup towards the end here. I’ve always felt that my game is kind of built for the playoffs and stuff along those lines. I love rising to the occasion and playing in moments like this, so for me, honestly, what was going through my mind, I was [upset] about the minus-1 maybe late in the second and getting one back.

“Obviously, that’s a big win for us.”

The Stars lost seven straight (0-5-2) to end the regular season. They were in danger of starting the playoffs with two straight losses at home.

“We knew our season was on the line,” DeBoer said.

But they fought back from 1-0 and 3-2 deficits, killed key penalties, including a hooking call on forward Mikko Rantanen with 1:26 to go in the third period, and got the overtime winner from an unlikely hero.

“That’s what I like about this group,” Stars captain Jamie Benn said. “There’s a lot of character in here. We’ve been through a lot as a group and stuck with it and found a way to win.”