Chicago Blackhawks rout Maple Leafs 7-2
The 7-2 thrashing that the Chicago Blackhawks dished out to the Toronto Maple Leafs at the United Center on Monday night was exactly what the doctor ordered for coach Joel Quenneville's squad.
In their first game without the injured Marian Hossa, the revved-up Hawks jumped out to a 3-0 lead after two periods then really poured it on when Artemi Panarin, Patrick Kane, Teuvo Teravainen and Viktor Svedberg scored 8:13 apart to make it 7-0 midway through the third period.
The Hawks' first 3 goals came from Brandon Mashinter, Andrew Shaw and Brent Seabrook.
"We've kind of been waiting for a game like this," said Kane, who added 3 assists to give him 82 points on the season. "We had some depth score tonight, too. Good to have everyone get in on the action."
The win means the Hawks (37-18-5) salvaged a 1-2-1 record during a four-game homestand.
Scott Darling made 35 saves for the Hawks, none more amazing than his diving grab of a Nick Spaling shot with 14:13 left in the second period.
"It was a quick scramble out front and the puck shot out to the guy right in the slot," said Darling, who is 6-4-2. "I went to push to my right and I completely whiffed. So that's why I had to desperately dive across. I was lucky to get a glove on it."
Said Kane: "Huge save by him there and he had countless other ones, too."
Kane is 6 points from tying a career high with 22 games remaining. He had 8 points (4G, 4A) in two games vs. Toronto.
The jam-packed United Center crowd serenaded the NHL's leading scorer with chants of "MVP! MVP! MVP!" as he was being interviewed after being selected the game's No. 1 star.
"I mean it's special," Kane said. "It kind of takes you back a second, just to listen to it and enjoy it. I don't even know if I'm the MVP of our team. I think (Corey) Crawford's had a great season. He's been unbelievable in the net.
"But to hear them say that and to hear the support is definitely pretty cool."
The Hawks, who were 3-for-31 on the power play in their previous 11 games, cashed in on four of seven chances vs. Toronto.
Mashinter, who had a goal taken away a week ago vs. San Jose, put the Hawks up 1-0 just 2:33 into the game on a wrist shot that beat James Reimer.
"It would have been tough to review that one. Nobody was near the net," Quenneville said, laughing. "I was sitting there and thinking, 'It couldn't have been offside, either.' "
Nine minutes later, Shaw scored on a power-play goal when he cleaned up a loose puck right in front of the net. It was Shaw's 10th goal, the third straight season he has hit double digits.
Seabrook, also on a power play, made it 3-0 just 1:55 into the second period, and there was little doubt about the outcome after that.
Next, the Hawks will step up in class when they take on the New York Rangers (32-18-6) on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden. After that, they'll have three days off before playing at Minnesota in a Stadium Series game Sunday.
"Dropping three in a row at home didn't make anybody happy," Darling said. "We're really happy to get the win in our last home game here."
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