The Stars said Kero is conscious, alert and responsive. He was taken to the hospital for precautionary measures and evaluation.
Stars forward Joe Pavelski became emotional when asked about Kero after the
4-3 overtime win
.
"Tanner, he's awesome," Pavelski said. "He's soft spoken, shows up, works hard, doesn't miss a day. When he gets called on to play, he shows up. He makes great plays, he plays hard. He's a great teammate. That win's definitely for him."
Kero, who has two assists in 12 games this season, was looking down for the puck in the defensive zone when Connolly stepped up between the blue line and right face-off circle and checked him. Connolly was assessed a major penalty for interference and a game misconduct.
Kero fell backward and appeared to hit his head on the ice. The medical staff called for a stretcher after checking on Kero.
Connolly was suspended four games
by the NHL Department of Player Safety on Sunday.
"You don't want to see that or wish that on anybody," Blackhawks coach Derek King said. "[Connolly] is not that type of player, so I don't know if it was just a weird collision or he didn't really see him, but you just hope Tanner is good.
"Tanner's a real good kid, and I had him in Rockford for a little bit. Like I said, you don't want to see that, but it does happen in this game. Hopefully he's fine."
NHL.com independent correspondent Taylor Baird contributed to this report.
