Blackhawks' Kane gets 1,000th career point in win over Jets

It was a moment Patrick Kane will never forget.

A moment made possible by his immense talent. By incredible teammates throughout the years. By an amazing stroke of lottery luck.

And, finally, by a teammate and friend who thought ahead and helped orchestrate a once-in-a-generation celebration on the United Center ice Sunday night.

The historic moment arrived when Kane recorded the 1,000th point of his career by assisting on Brandon Saad's third-period goal during a 5-2 Blackhawks victory over the Winnipeg Jets.

Kane became the 90th player in league history and the fourth in Hawks history to achieve the milestone when Saad tapped in Ryan Carpenter's pass with 5:46 remaining in the game. Kane had fed Carpenter to begin the scoring play.

Carpenter, Saad, Erik Gustafsson and Connor Murphy immediately engulfed Kane, but seconds later it was a true mob scene as the rest of the Hawks jumped over the boards and joined in the celebration.

The game was stopped for over a minute, and Kane mouthed "thank you" to the hysterical crowd after sitting down on the bench.

"I was hoping to get it done here at home before we went on a long break," Kane said. "It's a pretty special day."

And made even more special thanks to Jonathan Toews, who asked the referees beforehand if it would be OK for everyone to jump on the ice. From Kane's reaction in the postgame dressing room, it was clear the gesture meant a lot to him.

"I was kind of at the bottom of the circle there," Kane said. "I got pushed back pretty far up against the boards by all the guys.

"I'll never forget that moment and I told the team that after. Just kind of looking at everyone's face and everyone's excitement was a cool moment."

Said Robin Lehner, who made 36 saves: "He's obviously a (heckuva) hockey player, but he's even (a) better person. He deserves it, and everyone was truly and genuinely happy for him. It was cool to be a part of."

Kane, who had his "88" jersey retired by the OHL's London Knights on Friday, joins Stan Mikita (1,467), Bobby Hull (1,153) and Denis Savard (1,096) as the only Hawks to hit 1,000 points. Kane (31 years, 61 days) is also the youngest American-born player to hit the milestone, passing former Blackhawks forward Jeremy Roenick (32 years, 13 days).

"I've been very fortunate in my career, whether it's been getting drafted by Chicago or making some decisions when I was younger to move away at 14 years old," said Kane, who played one season in London before being taken first overall in 2007. "Obviously, Chicago winning the lottery, getting drafted by Chicago, then having a lot of good pieces in place here with some great players where we could turn the corner pretty fast and become a good team.

"There were a lot of things that were lined up. When you reach a milestone like this you think of all those players you played with that had a big part of it."

The only bummer for Kane was that bad weather in Buffalo kept his parents from attending.

"It's tough not having them here," Kane said. "They've been a big part of my career. I'm sure I'll talk to them after this and hopefully there will be some better moments in the future that they'll be here for."

So what's next for the future Hall of Famer? Well, that's easy.

"Oh - 1,001," he said with a wide smile. "Start there and then move forward. ... I feel like I can help the team even more and get rolling here. The team is playing great. A lot of guys are stepping up."