|
 "To be honest, I probably thought about it a little too much," Kane
said.
Kane can stop thinking and start celebrating. He earned an assist on
an empty-net goal late in the third period to increase his point
streak to 22 games, and the Blackhawks held on for a 3-1 win over
the Jets.
Bobby Hull applauded from his seat as Kane's teammates offered
congratulations on the bench. Hull garnered a point in 21
consecutive games during the 1971-72 season but said before Sunday's
game that he wanted Kane to break the franchise record.
"It's not only great for him, it's great for the entire organization
and the people of Chicago to see the likes of Patrick play," Hull
said with a smile. "I've never seen a kid handle the puck with such
speed and make his feet go with the same speed."
Chicago's team speed proved to be too much for Winnipeg. Right
winger Marian Hossa scored a goal and collected an assist. Left
wingers Teuvo Teravainen and Artemi Panarin also scored for Chicago
(14-9-4).
Left winger Chris Thorburn scored the lone goal for the Jets. The
loss snapped a two-game winning streak for Winnipeg (13-13-2).
"The loss is painful," Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice said. "The harder
you play, the more they hurt. But you've got to leave the rink
believing in what you're doing, and we're playing the right way."
The score was even at 1 when Teravainen gave Chicago the lead 21
seconds into the third period. Teravainen ripped a sharp-angle shot
from the right side of the crease for his fifth goal of the season
and his first since Nov. 4 against St. Louis.
Teravainen said he saw a small opening and tried to surprise
Hutchinson.
"I got the puck from the air and I put it down and tried to shoot
right away," Teravainen said. "It wasn't the hardest shot, but I
just tried to be quick and shoot it."
Kane earned an assist on Panarin's empty-net goal with 1:46 to go in
the third period to maintain his point streak. He has tallied 13
goals and 23 assists during the streak, which began Oct. 17 against
Columbus.
Hull's support was not lost on Kane.
"He obviously had a tremendous career and scored a lot of goals,"
Kane said. "Any time you can put your name with Bobby Hull or Denis
Savard or Eddie Olczyk, you've got to be doing something right."
Chicago goaltender Corey Crawford stopped 30 of 31 shots to improve
to 12-7-2.
Winnipeg goaltender Michael Hutchinson turned aside 29 of 31 shots.
He drew the loss after going 4-0-1 in his first five appearances
against the Blackhawks.
[to top of second column] |
"I thought we played well," Hutchinson said. "It's frustrating to
lose that way. I definitely thought I should have had the second
goal."
Chicago opened the scoring when Hossa knocked in a rebound with 2:04
to go in the first period. Defenseman Brent Seabrook hit a
fluttering shot from the blue line that Hutchinson could not corral,
and Hossa capitalized in front of the net for his fifth goal.
Winnipeg evened the score at 1 when Thorburn roofed a shot against
the top of the net with 14:26 remaining in the second period.
Thorburn's shot initially was not ruled a goal, but officials
reviewed the play about a minute later and determined that the puck
crossed the goal line.
The Blackhawks thought they scored midway through the first period,
but officials waved off the goal after a video review determined
that center Marcus Kruger kicked the puck past the goal line.
Chicago defenseman Trevor Daley left the game with 9:16 to go in the
second period after Thorburn inadvertently kneed him in the head.
Daley stayed down on the ice for several minutes before climbing to
his skates and leaving slowly under his own power.
"We'll know more tomorrow," Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said.
NOTES: Blackhawks LW Bryan Bickell was recalled from the AHL's
Rockford IceHogs on Sunday and returned to the lineup for the first
time since Oct. 29. Bickell, 29, scored seven goals and dished seven
assists during a 12-game stint in Rockford. ... Jets G Ondrej
Pavelec missed his seventh consecutive game because of a lower-body
injury. ... Blackhawks LW Brandon Mashinter was a healthy scratch
for the first time in 12 games. ... Jets D Adam Pardy was a healthy
scratch for the third consecutive game. ... The Arizona Coyotes
claimed RW Viktor Tikhonov off waivers from the Blackhawks on
Sunday. Tikhonov did not register a point in 11 games with Chicago
this season.
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
