Kane's 4-point night big part of Blackhawks' shootout victory

Patrick Kane has had some remarkable starts to his career, the most impressive coming in 2015-16 when he notched 31 points in the first 20 games.

That MVP season was made possible thanks in large part to Kane's jedi-like chemistry with Artemi Panarin. The two fast friends fed off each other and helped the Blackhawks post a 47-win, 103-point campaign.

Considering the current Hawks were supposedly in rebuilding mode, it would have been silly to believe Kane could come close to duplicating that memorable beginning of five years ago.

But that's exactly what has happened.

Kane, who scored a goal and notched 3 assists in a 6-5 shootout victory Tuesday night at Columbus, now has 30 points after 20 games. His final assist - on Adam Boqvist's goal early in the third period - gave the Hawks a 5-3 lead.

Columbus (8-7-5) stormed back on 2 goals by Oliver Bjorkstrand, but the Hawks prevailed thanks to Kevin Lankinen stopping all 3 shootout attempts. Alex DeBrincat was the only player to convert.

The Hawks (10-6-4) also got goals from Carl Soderberg, Brandon Hagel and Dominik Kubalik. Patrik Laine scored twice for Columbus, which was 3-for-4 on the power play.

Kane's happy with the way he's playing, but he was subdued and disappointed afterward.

"You get up 5-3, you want to finish off the game," he said. "Obviously nice to get 2 points but would have been nice to give them nothing."

What is remarkable about Kane's production is he's doing it without the likes of Panarin, Jonathan Toews, Artem Anisimov and Marian Hossa. In their place are DeBrincat, Kubalik, Soderberg, Hagel, Mattias Janmark, Pius Suter, Philipp Kurashev and Dylan Strome.

It's a group many thought would win 15-20 games. Kane figured to be lucky to produce a point a night. Very lucky.

Instead, he has to be at the top of the MVP conversation.

"Look at what the expectations were for our team and where everyone had us finishing and yet we're right there. Obviously, he's a big part of that," said coach Jeremy Colliton, who went on to laud Kane's work ethic away from the puck. "That type of team-first mentality (is) what we're trying to build here so we can have long-term success so we can get back to being an elite team.

"Not only is he doing it, but he's encouraging other guys to do it. ... When he's driving that it sure is powerful."

Kane was everywhere Tuesday. Soderberg scored the first goal after being hit by Kane's shot, then swept the puck past Joonas Korpisalo. Less than two minutes later, Kane made it 2-0 on a one-timer off a pass from Pius Suter.

After Columbus tied it at 2-2 early in the second, Kane set up Hagel for his first NHL goal at 8:12.

"No better feeling than getting the pass from a legend," Hagel said.

Then Kane assisted on Boqvist's first goal of the year, a power-play tally that made it 5-3 at 3:37 of the third.

"He's taken it to another level this year," said Soderberg, who also had 2 assists. "He's just been awesome for us."

Also awesome has been DeBricnat, who - like Panarin - is a good friend of Kane's. Their on-ice chemistry has been undeniable, and it's a big reason Kane would be on pace for 123 points if this were an 82-game season.

"Playing with DeBrincat has really helped," Kane said. "He's just taken his game to another level and he's just making plays all over the ice. Trust him a lot with the puck."

After playing at Columbus again Thursday, the Hawks return for two games against Detroit and three against Tampa Bay.

Schedule changes:

The NHL announced the following changes to the Hawks' schedule:

• The Feb. 20 game at Carolina that was canceled will be played May 6.

• Two games against Dallas, which end the season, were moved from May 6 and 8 to May 9 and 10.