Kane scores in crazy fashion as Blackhawks top Canadiens
Patrick Kane has scored some pretty sick goals over his career, but the one he potted Sunday night in the second period of a 3-2 Chicago Blackhawks victory over Montreal at the United Center may take the cake.
"That had the 'wow factor' all over it," Hawks coach Joel Quenneville said.
No doubt about that.
After taking a pass from Jonathan Toews with 3:40 left in the second period, Kane took the puck from just outside the right faceoff dot to the middle of the ice while being pursued by Canadiens winger Max Pacioretty.
In one motion, Kane slid the puck under Pacioretty's stick and darted to the net, slicing between Pacioretty and defender Jeff Petry. At that point, Kane lost his balance while being leaned on by Pacioretty, but he nonetheless managed to get off a shot while falling to the ice.
The puck flew over Al Montoya's left shoulder and bedlam ensued as the Hawks took a 3-2 lead with 3:37 to go in the second.
"It was a spectacular goal by a great player and fun to watch," Quenneville said.
Said Marian Hossa: "That was so beautiful."
Kane, who now has 6 goals, wouldn't say it was his best ever but admitted it "was a different one, that's for sure. I don't know if I've scored going to the ground like that. It was pretty cool for sure."
The Hawks' other goals came from Gustav Forsling (his first in the NHL) and Hossa.
Corey Crawford only had to make 21 saves, but he twice stymied Andrew Shaw, who was playing against his former team for the first time.
The first save against Shaw came with 3:09 to go in the first period, but the second (with 6:49 left in the game) was the stop of the game as Crawford lunged to his left and denied Shaw's one-timer from about eight feet.
"Yeah, I saw the back of the net," Shaw said. "Had to turn and find the puck and he made a great save on that one."
Crawford's final big save came with 19.6 seconds left when he denied Alex Galchenyuk from right in front of the net.
The Hawks (11-3-2) handed Montreal just its second regulation loss of the season. Quenneville's squad caught a break by not having to face the undefeated Carey Price as the Canadiens (13-2-1) also played Saturday night in Detroit.
"It's a big win for us. Good measuring stick," Kane said. "We know they played back to back, but for the most part we took it to them."
Hossa's goal tied the game at 2-2 when he banged in a rebound of a Nick Schmaltz shot from the point 11:29 into the second period. It was Hossa's ninth goal, putting him 4 shy of his entire total from last season.
The Hawks, who now embark on a seven-game road trip that begins Tuesday in Winnipeg, got 3 out of a possible 4 points over the weekend against Washington and Montreal, two of the best teams the East has to offer.
"We talked about it - let's be strong toward the end because we're coming up on two weeks on the road," Hossa said. "I think we did lots of good things tonight."