Broken record: Win makes it 9 in a row

ST. PAUL, Minn. - If you've heard it once, you've heard it a thousand times.

It's not easy to win games in today's NHL, someone will say.

So what the Blackhawks are doing is moving beyond impressive.

The Hawks set a record for the 82-year-old franchise Sunday night with their ninth consecutive victory, a tidy 4-1 decision over the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center.

"I kind of feel like the Boston Celtics a little," captain Jonathan Toews said.

It might be more appropriate for the Hawks to feel like the Detroit Red Wings, whom they now trail by only 4 points in the Central Division.

Next up: back-to-back games with the defending Stanley Cup champs, including Thursday's Winter Classic at Wrigley Field.

"I think we can win every night," said Dustin Byfuglien, whose 2 first-period goals got the Hawks off to a fast start. "We've got the group of guys and the work ethic to go out and beat any team we want to beat."

Strong words, but these Hawks are going out and backing it up. They haven't lost since a 5-4 shootout defeat at Detroit on Dec. 6, with their last loss in regulation being Nov. 29 at Los Angeles.

"It's great and it's exciting for our fans and all the people watching," Toews said. "It's definitely a great accomplishment. We had a good team last year and came up just shy of the playoffs, and right now I think it just shows how far we've come since last season.

"We're happy about it, but the season is not over and we can't sit on our laurels right now. We're happy about it, and we're going to keep getting better. We definitely haven't reached our potential as a team yet."

Five of the Hawks' victories in the nine-game winning streak have been on the road, which is what impresses coach Joel Quenneville.

"It's certainly hard to do," Quenneville said. "We've had a lot of road games in some tough buildings, and that's what makes it rewarding right now. But I still think we're looking to get better."

The Hawks led 2-0 after the first period on goals by Byfuglien at 7:14 and 9:38 on a power play. Martin Havlat's goal midway through the second period made it 3-0.

Cristobal Huet made 18 saves to extend his personal winning streak to five games.

"Nine in a row like this doesn't happen too often," Huet said. "It's great to see the guys making good plays and scoring goals. Don't change a thing."

Wild coach Jacques Lemaire wasn't happy that it appeared his team wasn't ready to challenge the Hawks.

"I know some guys didn't play like we expect, and I don't know why," Lemaire said. "It's not because we didn't talk about Chicago. It's the best team right now, everyone knows that. If you don't know it, you don't follow hockey and I don't think you should play."

The Hawks are trying not to look at these two games against Detroit as a chance to move into a first-place tie for the division lead, but they know the deal.

"Obviously we've got some big games coming up, but we'll take it one game at a time," Toews said.

<p class="factboxheadblack">Classic countdown: 3 days until faceoff</p> <p class="News">What to wear on New Year's Day at Wrigley Field?</p> <p class="News">The Blackhawks players say they will wait to see what the elements are before deciding, although most plan to dress how they normally do for games.</p> <p class="News">As for Hawks coach Joel Quenneville, he has yet to decide, although he may be leaning toward a stylish look that would be perfect for the occasion while honoring one of the greats before him.</p> <p class="News">"I'm thinking about a fedora, I don't know, like Billy Reay," Quenneville said.</p>