Hawks stay undefeated at home as Sharp scores twice

Exactly one year ago today, the Blackhawks drew a crowd of barely 12,000 for a game against the Nashville Predators.

My, how times have changed.

These days the United Center is the place to be whenever the Hawks play.

A seventh straight sellout crowd, the sixth over 21,000, went home wildly entertained once again Monday night as the Hawks blitzed the Colorado Avalanche 6-2 for their third straight victory and fifth in seven games.

The Hawks improved to 5-0-2 at the UC and now get five days off before continuing their five-game homestand Sunday against Calgary.

"It's real special right now," said rookie Troy Brouwer, who scored his first NHL goal in the win. "We're selling out every night and that energy just feeds us and really intimidates the other team. All it does is help us."

There's a feel inside the United Center that hasn't been there for a long time.

"It's great for hockey, the excitement that's here in Chicago," Hawks coach Joel Quenneville said. "The building, you sense it and you feel it. When you get 21,000 fans screaming and yelling it's easy to get excited as players and a staff here."

Patrick Sharp scored 2 goals, giving him 9 for the season, and had an assist. Sharp scored twice in a 4-goal third period that broke open a tight game.

The Avs played Sunday night in Denver, and it appeared as if they lost their legs in the third period.

"We were on track the first 30 minutes and then we stopped working and kept getting outworked," Avs coach Tony Granato said. "The Blackhawks kept coming and coming."

Andrew Ladd also scored twice and had an assist as Quenneville credited the line of Dave Bolland, Ladd and Dustin Byfuglien with getting the ball rolling after the Hawks started slowly.

Ladd's first goal at 3:45 of the second period wiped out a 1-0 Colorado lead.

A week ago the Bolland line was without a goal for the season.

"For the most part, I still thought we were playing pretty well as a line at both ends of the ice," Ladd said.

Brouwer's goal came into a wide-open net with 2:19 left in the second period after a shot by Sharp hit the post through traffic and put the Hawks ahead 2-1.

"Just don't miss," Brouwer told himself as the puck sat in the crease with Avs goalie Peter Budaj down and out. "There was a stick in there trying to lift mine, and you've just got to bear down and make sure you score on those."

Hawks goalie Nikolai Khabibulin rebounded from a bad first-period goal and was strong otherwise with 24 saves.

The Hawks completed a 3-for-3 weekend with Khabibulin in net for 2 victories.

"It was a great weekend for us," Quenneville said. "You pick up some points and we've got some momentum going into some time off here."

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