The Chicago Blackhawks kept up their winning ways on Sunday night as they got an overtime goal from Jonathan Toews to dispose of the San Jose Sharks by a score of 4-3.
Patrick Kane, Andrew Shaw, and Artem Anisimov all scored goals to help boost the Hawks to victory, giving them their fifth win in their last six games.
The Blackhawks got off to a hot start offensively, and after a turnover by Paul Martin, they converted that momentum into a goal. Artem Anisimov got to the loose puck, and just before he got hammered by Brent Burns, he scored on a wraparound to beat Martin Jones and give the Hawks a 1-0 lead.
Unfortunately for Chicago, their lead didn’t last long, and a great heads-up play by the Sharks knotted the game at 1-1. After the Sharks won a face-off, defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic feathered a stretch pass up the ice to Joonas Donskoi, and he scored on a backhand on the ensuing breakaway to tie the game.
Later in the period, the Sharks got a power play thanks to an Andrew Shaw penalty, and they took advantage to score. Putting a tough screen in front of Corey Crawford, the Sharks worked the puck to Tommy Wingels in the face-off dot, and he fired a wrist shot just inside the far post to make it a 2-1 contest.
In the second period, the Blackhawks turned the pressure back up on offense, and after chances from Patrick Kane and Shaw were denied, the Hawks tied the game up. Duncan Keith hammered a low shot in on net that Jones was able to stop, but Kane scooped up the rebound and flipped a backhanded shot off of the goaltender’s shoulder and into the net to tie things at 2-2.
Late in the second period, the Sharks once again got a good possession going, and Joe Pavelski cashed in as he scored a goal from in close to give them a 3-2 edge with 20 minutes to go.
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In the early stages of the third period, both teams had power play opportunities, with the Hawks starting the period off on the man-advantage and the Sharks getting successive chances with an extra skater. Neither team was able to capitalize on the chances however, and San Jose continued to lead.
With about 13 minutes to go in the game, the Blackhawks had a 3-on-1 chance, and they tied the game back up. The original break was broken up by a sliding check, but Phillip Danault dropped into the corner to go win the puck back. He eventually pushed it over to Andrew Shaw, and the forward drove hard to the net and knocked a shot past Jones to even the score at 3-3.
The game ultimately went to overtime, and after several opportunities, the Blackhawks were ultimately the victors. Kane and Toews broke into the zone on a 2-on-1 rush, and after Kane slid the pass across, Toews chipped a backhanded shot into the net to give Chicago a 4-3 victory.
The Blackhawks will finish their pre-Christmas slate on Tuesday night when they travel down to Dallas to take on the Stars.
