Chicago Blackhawks set record with 12 consecutive wins
In the 89 years that the Chicago Blackhawks have been playing hockey, no team ever put together a winning streak of longer than 11 games.
No teams with Stan Mikita, Bobby Hull and Glenn Hall did it.
Nor did squads stacked with talent like Denis Savard, Troy Murray, Steve Larmer, Doug Wilson and Eddie Olczyk.
Jeremy Roenick, Chris Chelios, Larmer and Ed Belfour never pulled it off either.
Tuesday night in Nashville, though, a team led by Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Marian Hossa, Artemi Panarin and Corey Crawford rewrote the franchise record book by beating the Predators 4-1 for the Hawks' 12th consecutive victory.
And make no mistake about it — they were certainly proud of the feat.
“I don't think we set out to do anything like that, but we found (ourselves) in a position (to break the record),” Seabrook told Comcast SportsNet after the game. “It was nice to win that game. I think the boys wanted to win it.
“It's a pretty cool feeling to play for the Blackhawks — such a storied franchise — and to be the first team to win 12 games in a row.”
The franchise's previous-best streak of 11 games was set in the lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign. If the Hawks win five more without a loss, they'll tie the NHL record of 17 straight wins, set by the 1992-93 Pittsburgh Penguins.
Artem Anisimov, Richard Panik, Kane and Andrew Desjardins scored the Hawks' goals, and Crawford continued his unbelievable play in net, making 38 saves. Crawford has won nine in a row and has stopped 267 of 279 shots for a .957 save percentage in his last eight starts.
“Everybody in our locker room knows how valuable he is to our team,” Seabrook said. “He's a special player. He's one of those guys that's able to make the first save, make the second save, make the third save if he has to.
“But he works hard, he battles and his consistency this year's been unbelievable.”
Anisimov gave the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead with just 21.2 seconds left in the first period. After taking a feed from Panarin, the big centerman showed great patience, making a back-and-forth move in front of the net and backhanding the shot past a sprawled-out Pekka Rinne.
Panik made it 2-0 on a wrist shot 2:43 into the second period. It was his second goal in as many games.
Twenty-five seconds later, the Predators looked like they'd make it a game as Ryan Ellis beat Crawford with a blast from just inside the blue line.
A minute later, though, Panarin hit Kane for a breakaway chance that Kane converted, restoring the Hawks' 2-goal advantage. Kane, who assisted on Anisimov's goal, has 30 goals on the season, tying his career high, and he has 71 points.
Desjardins' goal was an empty-netter and his sixth of the season, which is a career high for the fifth-year pro.
As for Rinne, who was selected for the All-Star Game at the end of the month, the Predators' goalie is 2-6-1 in his last nine starts. He's also lost his last five starts, allowing 18 goals with a putrid .845 save percentage.
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