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Hawks' Frolik makes history with penalty-shot goal

The goal.

The smile.

The leap.

With his beautiful backhand penalty shot high into the net past Jimmy Howard midway through the third period Monday night, Michael Frolik provided one of the most memorable moments thus far in the playoffs for Blackhawks fans.

And also for friends and family all over the world, who began lighting up the phone lines as soon as Frolik lit the lamp in Detroit … and never stopped.

“It kept ringing after the game. That was kind of nice,” said Frolik, who was still all smiles Tuesday. “It's amazing how many people followed that.”

Why wouldn't they?

Not only did Frolik's goal prove to be the eventual game-winner to set up Wednesday night's Game 7 showdown with the Red Wings at the United Center, it also put the hustling forward in the record books.

Frolik became the first player in NHL history to score on 2 penalty shots in the playoffs. He also scored on a penalty shot April 24, 2011, in Game 6 of the Western Conference quarterfinals against Vancouver.

“I kind of didn't know until you guys told me last night. It's a special thing,” Frolik said. “It's special to be first. I was surprised no one did that before. For sure, it felt nice.”

How Frolik was awarded the penalty shot in the first place — on an apparent slash to the wrist by Red Wings defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo — wasn't so nice, at least from a Detroit perspective.

“I thought I did a good job recovering,” Colaiacovo said. “I don't think I (slashed) him on the hands. I thought I made a play on his pants. I was surprised they called a penalty shot.”

He wasn't the only one.

“It looked weak from the bench,” Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg said. “I don't know if (the referee) had a good angle from where he was standing in the corner.”

But Hawks captain Jonathan Toews saw it differently. “I thought 100 percent they made the right call,” he said.

Either way, Frolik has another memory to go with his successful penalty shot from a couple of years ago.

“For sure, I remember that,” Frolik said of his Game 6 heroics. “It was a special, special moment. The seventh game was pretty tight, and we just lost in overtime, but it was so close. Hopefully we can learn from it and use that experience (Wednesday).”

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