Scott Darling made 33 saves to help the Chicago Blackhawks defeat Antti Raanta and the New York Rangers 2-1 at Madison Square Garden. "Absolutely amazing," Blackhawks forward Artem Anisimov said of Darling.
Darling, making his sixth straight start since Corey Crawford had to go on injured reserve following an appendectomy he had Dec. 3, outdueled Raanta, who had his shutout streak end at 176:22 when Trevor van Riemsdyk scored at 5:18 of the second period. Raanta, who started in place of a healthy Henrik Lundqvist for the fourth consecutive game, made 24 saves but couldn't prevent his three-game winning streak from ending. The Blackhawks (19-8-4) are 3-0-1 in their past four games, with Darling allowing three goals on 117 shots for a .974 save percentage. He and Chicago lost to Raanta and New York 1-0 in overtime on Friday. Raanta allowed one goal on 63 shots in the previous three games. New York (20-10-1) scored at 8:15 of the second period when Jesper Fast ended his 17-game drought. The Blackhawks took a 2-1 lead on Anisimov's goal with 1:09 remaining in the second period. It came after a diving stick save by Darling on Mats Zuccarello 34 seconds earlier. Darling made 15 saves in the second period and 11 in the third. He stopped Marek Hrivik on a rebound and Jimmy Vesey at the left post with his left pad with 2:07 left. Van Riemsdyk ended Raanta's shutout streak by scoring on a far-side shot from the right hash marks off a pass from Artemi Panarin. Fast tied it when he batted the puck into the net from in front of the left post. Darling made 18 saves after the goal.
* There were many to choose from, but arguably none were bigger than Darling's save on Zuccarello at 18:17 of the second period. Darling dove back after making the initial save and appeared to get his stick on Zuccarello's shot off the rebound.
* Vesey was all over the ice and creating chances. He had seven shots on goal, many from the slot, in 14:46 of ice time.
* Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh was scratched because of the flu. The defenseman skated in warmups but left the ice early. Adam Clendening took his spot in the lineup. … The Rangers played the first 16:13 of the second period without Brady Skjei, who was cut by a skate blade late in the first and had to get medical attention. … Chicago is 13-0-0 when leading after two periods.
"You can only worry about the next shot, but it's nice when you make a big save like at the end of the second and the guys go down and score a goal. It's nice to contribute to stuff like that." Darling said.
"He's been unbelievable. A couple highlight-reel saves there that just leave you saying, 'Wow.' He's been awesome. He's so steady. He's making all the saves. He's doing a great job handling pucks. He's been great, and we have a ton of confidence in him too." van Riemsdyk said.
Hawks @ NY Islanders 5-4 - Thursday, December 15, 2016
Richard Panik broke a tie with 6:13 remaining to help the Chicago Blackhawks to a 5-4 win against the New York Islanders at Barclays Center. Artemi Panarin had two power-play goals and an assist, and Artem Anisimov and Marian Hossa each scored for the Blackhawks (20-8-4), who went 3-for-3 with the man-advantage and are 4-0-1 in their past five games. Scott Darling made 28 saves.
Andrew Ladd, Casey Cizikas, Ryan Strome and Anders Lee scored for the Islanders (11-13-5), who have lost three straight in regulation. Thomas Greiss made 27 saves. In a six-goal first period, Ladd scored at 2:14 when he took a pass from Alan Quine and put a wrist shot past Darling for a 1-0 New York lead. Cizikas scored 1:34 later when he finished off a 2-on-1 with Nikolay Kulemin to make it 2-0. Panarin scored his first goal at 9:47 when he one-timed Brent Seabrook's feed past Greiss to cut the Islanders lead to 2-1. The Blackhawks tied it 2-2 when Anisimov extended his goal streak to three games on the power play at 13:03.
* Darling made a gorgeous pad save on a backhand shot by Bailey in front, and then stopped Hamonic's rebound attempt with 12:33 left in the second period to prevent New York from restoring its two-goal lead.
* The Blackhawks cycled the puck beautifully around the Islanders zone during a power play before Anisimov redirected Kane's pass by Greiss with 6:57 left in the first period.
* Blackhawks defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson was his usual steady self, blocking three shots with a plus-1 rating in 24:09 of ice time.
* Hossa's goal was the 515th of his NHL career, tying him with Pierre Turgeon for 37th on the League's all-time list. … The Islanders have failed to come away with a point six times this season when entering the third period tied.
"It's a great sign. You've got great leadership. We don't change the way we play, the consistency of doing the right things. We've been fortunate in a lot of games this year with scoring some big goals. We've had tremendous goaltending this year, we've been good in overtime. But the guys play the right way and the top guys lead the charge, whether it's [Marian] Hossa's five or six big goals for us that led to five, seven, eight points. Basically, that fourth goal was a huge goal for us tonight, (it) put us in the right spot going into the third. Every game has been different, but the timing of some key goals this year has been unbelievable, along with the key saves." Joel Quenneville
"(I) like (our game), especially after the first period. Our line, we didn't have it a lot on our stick. They scored two goals on us. But it feels good. We step up and find a way to get one for our team." said Panik, who converted a pass from Dennis Rasmussen.
The Ottawa Senators defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 4-3 at United Center on Tuesday for their first win here since March 28, 2001. The Senators (19-11-3) scored three goals in the second period, including the game-winner by Dion Phaneuf on a power play at 14:22, and held off the Blackhawks (22-9-4), who pulled within 4-3 on a goal by Richard Panik at 1:42 of the third. Chicago had opportunities to tie it on a penalty shot by Marcus Kruger with 4:52 left, a scramble in front of the net with 35 seconds remaining, and a shot by Patrick Kane with 6.5 seconds left, but Ottawa goalie Mike Condon (23 saves) made big stops on all three chances. Bobby Ryan, Derick Brassard and Tom Pyatt also scored for the Senators, who won their third straight game. Ottawa center Kyle Turris and Kane each had two assists. After being outshot 15-9 in the first period and 11-6 in the second, the Blackhawks outshot the Senators 11-4 in the third. Artemi Panarin and Tyler Motte also scored for Chicago, which got 26 saves from Scott Darling in his 10th consecutive start. Panarin extended his point streak to six games. The Senators scored three of the four goals in the second period, including Brassard at 7:31 and Pyatt at 7:41, to take a 4-2 lead.
Motte pulled the Blackhawks within 3-2 at 12:00 on his fourth goal, but Phaneuf made it 4-2 with 5:32 left. Blackhawks right wing Marian Hossa, who began his NHL career with the Senators and scored in their previous win in Chicago, left the game after the first period with an upper-body injury. He is day to day.
* Kruger got a breakaway with 4:52 left in the third, but he was hauled down by Phaneuf in front of the net. He tried to score under Condon's right arm on the penalty shot, but the Senators goalie stopped the puck with his right pad and stick.
* The Blackhawks trailed 4-2 late in the second period when rookie center Vinnie Hinostroza used a burst of speed down the slot to get past Phaneuf and draw a holding penalty at 17:05 for a power play.
* Hossa is questionable to play against the Colorado Avalanche on Friday. … Blackhawks center Artem Anisimov missed his second game with an upper-body injury and is day to day. … Chicago goalie Corey Crawford (appendectomy) missed his 10th straight game but was activated off injured reserve afterward and hopes to return against the Avalanche on Friday. … Senators goalie Andrew Hammond missed the game with an ankle injury and is day to day. … Goalie Matt O'Connor was recalled from Binghamton of the American Hockey League to back up Condon.
"A penalty shot is a great chance to score. I don't know the odds there, but it's a great chance to score a goal. Obviously, I would have liked to have scored on that one. It didn't happen this time. There's not much to do about it right now." Marcus Kruger
Coming off five straight losses, the Colorado Avalanche gave themselves something positive to think about during the Christmas break. Nathan MacKinnon scored 25 seconds into overtime and Calvin Pickard made 38 saves to help the Avalanche defeat the Chicago Blackhawks 2-1 at United Center on Friday. Colorado entered with a 2-11-1 record in 14 games since they started the season 9-9-0. The Avalanche have 25 points, fewest in the NHL. The Blackhawks have 49 points, second to the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Avalanche lost goalie Semyon Varlamov to a groin injury following a 6-0 loss against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Pepsi Center on Thursday. Pickard stepped in and defeated the Blackhawks for the first time in five career appearances (1-4-0). Corey Crawford nearly matched him with 32 saves for the Blackhawks in his first start following a 10-game absence while recovering from an appendectomy Dec. 3. Jonathan Toews ended a 13-game goalless drought by scoring his fifth goal for the Blackhawks (22-9-5). Mikko Rantanen scored for the Avalanche (12-20-1). The Blackhawks took a 1-0 lead on Toews' power-play goal at 11:52 of the second period, his first since Nov. 6. Toews tapped the puck in off a sharp-angled shot by Artemi Panarin from the left side of the net.
Colorado had a couple of good chances to tie it late in the second but Crawford stopped both, including a diving, stick save against Rantanen at 16:16.
Rantanen scored at 5:42 of the third. Standing in front of Crawford, he tied it 1-1 off assists by Tyson Barrie and MacKinnon.
* MacKinnon's goal was the first overtime winner of his NHL career and first goal since Dec. 11. It came on a 2-on-1 rush following a Blackhawks turnover. "I took a peak [at the pass], but I definitely was leaning toward shooting," MacKinnon said. "I'm comfortable coming down that right side, going short side, so I was definitely thinking shot."
* Blackhawks rookie Vinnie Hinostroza missed the morning skate with flu-like symptoms but played 15:12. He centered the second line for injured center Artem Anisimov (upper body) and finished with four shots, two hits and won 5-of-10 faceoffs.
* Pickard made two big saves late in the first to keep the game scoreless, using his blocker for both. Duncan Keith was denied off a one-timer with 1:32 left and Toews had a one-timer from the right faceoff circle stopped 27 seconds later.
* Anisimov missed his second straight game and right wing Marian Hossa (upper body) missed his first since leaving in the first period against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. … Varlamov stayed in Denver and has no timetable for his return. … Spencer Martin was recalled from San Antonio of the American Hockey League on Friday and backed up Pickard.
"I was just trying to feel good right from the start. I was reading plays pretty good. That's the most important thing, seeing the puck well. I felt pretty good." said Crawford, who made 13 saves in a scoreless first period.
"We know we had a dangerous team, knowing they got beat bad at home [Thursday] night, and they bounced back. Now we have a couple of days off to get refreshed and a fun week going into the [2017 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic]." Joel Quenneville
Rantanen scored at 5:42 of the third. Standing in front of Crawford, he tied it 1-1 off assists by Tyson Barrie and MacKinnon.
* MacKinnon's goal was the first overtime winner of his NHL career and first goal since Dec. 11. It came on a 2-on-1 rush following a Blackhawks turnover. "I took a peak [at the pass], but I definitely was leaning toward shooting," MacKinnon said. "I'm comfortable coming down that right side, going short side, so I was definitely thinking shot."
* Crawford's diving stick save against Rantanen with 3:44 left in the second protected the Blackhawks' 1-0 lead. Crawford had to dive backward to stop the puck.
* Pickard made two big saves late in the first to keep the game scoreless, using his blocker for both. Duncan Keith was denied off a one-timer with 1:32 left and Toews had a one-timer from the right faceoff circle stopped 27 seconds later.
* Anisimov missed his second straight game and right wing Marian Hossa (upper body) missed his first since leaving in the first period against the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. … Varlamov stayed in Denver and has no timetable for his return. … Spencer Martin was recalled from San Antonio of the American Hockey League on Friday and backed up Pickard.
"I was just trying to feel good right from the start. I was reading plays pretty good. That's the most important thing, seeing the puck well. I felt pretty good." said Crawford, who made 13 saves in a scoreless first period.
"We know we had a dangerous team, knowing they got beat bad at home [Thursday] night, and they bounced back. Now we have a couple of days off to get refreshed and a fun week going into the [2017 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic]." Joel Quenneville
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