The Chicago Blackhawks have seemingly found their offensive spark, beating the Arizona Coyotes by a score of 6-2 on Tuesday night.
Andrew Ladd scored two power play goals on the night, and Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews each scored goals as the Blackhawks won their third straight game and kept alive their slim hopes of gaining home-ice advantage in the first round of the postseason.
Things got off to a sluggish start for both teams, but the Blackhawks were able to draw first blood in the contest. Following a mad netfront scramble, Richard Panik found a loose puck and was able to quickly fire a wrist shot past Louis Domingue to give the Hawks a 1-0 lead.
After the Blackhawks were assessed back-to-back penalties, they were still able to retain the momentum by scoring a shorthanded goal. This time, it was Toews doing the honors, as he registered the 250th goal of his NHL career on a breakaway that gave his team a 2-0 lead.
Not to be outdone, Kane scored a beautiful goal of his own on a power play later in the game. On an outlet pass, Artemi Panarin sprinted up the ice and fed a gorgeous saucer pass across the zone to Kane. Kane quickly shifted to his backhand and lifted a shot over Domingue to make it a 3-0 game.
Artem Anisimov was forced to leave the game late in the second period after a big hit from Antoine Vermette, and the Blackhawks scored twice to make the major penalty hurt even more. Ladd scored both goals for the Blackhawks, deflecting a Trevor van Riemsdyk shot in to make it 4-0 and then collecting a pass from Kane near the blue paint and shoving a shot through the goaltender’s pads to extend Chicago’s lead to five goals.
The Coyotes finally got on the board in the third period of the game thanks to a Connor Murphy goal, but the Blackhawks responded quickly. Michal Rozsival made a key play to keep the puck in the offensive zone, and after he cycled it behind the net, Marcus Kruger fed a quick pass to Andrew Desjardins for the one-timer goal and a 6-1 edge for the Hawks.
Local
A late goal from Brad Richardson did nothing to change the outcome, and the Blackhawks cruised to victory.
The Blackhawks will look to keep those home-ice hopes alive on Thursday night when they welcome the St. Louis Blues to the United Center for the team’s home finale.
