The Chicago Blackhawks hoped to make it two wins in two nights over Original Six opponents, but the Boston Bruins had other ideas as they picked up a 4-2 victory on Thursday night.
Jonathan Toews and Tomas Fleischmann scored goals for the Blackhawks, but it wasn't enough as Brad Marchand notched a goal and an assist to help lead the Bruins to the home victory.
Just over a minute into the game, the Bruins were able to quickly get on the board. Knocked down behind the net, Patrice Bergeron got back up, skated around the net, beat Niklas Hjalmarsson to the edge, and ripped a shot high over Scott Darling's shoulder and inside the far post to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead.
The Blackhawks trailed for a good chunk of the first period, but in the late stages of the frame they were able to tie things up. Off a shot from Christian Ehrhoff, Andrew Ladd scooped up a rebound near the front of the goalmouth and slid a pass to Toews. The Blackhawks' captain had a wide open net to shoot at as Tuukka Rask was out of position, and he didn't miss as he tied the game at 1-1.
Unfortunately for the Blackhawks, the game didn't stay tied for long, and the Bruins scored with less than 30 seconds to go in the first period. Skating in on a simple play into the zone, Brad Marchand got a bit of a screen from a kneeling Hjalmarsson, and his shot evaded Darling's glove and found paydirt to put the Bruins ahead 2-1 after 20 minutes of play.
Early in the second period, the Bruins got a power play, and they were able to convert. Torey Krug fed a pass to Ryan Spooner at the point, and with Loui Eriksson screening Darling in front of the net, the defenseman pounded a slapshot past the Blackhawks' goaltender to make it a 3-1 game.
Later on in the frame, the Bruins killed off a Blackhawks power play and then scored as the teams came back to even strength. John-Michael Liles led a 3-on-2 rush down the ice as the penalty expired, and Eriksson had his stick in the right place as he deflected a shot past Darling to make it a 4-1 game.
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The Blackhawks were able to stop the bleeding however, and they scored late in the second period. On a good stretch pass from Hjalmarsson, Teuvo Teravainen shovelled a pass across to Tomas Fleischmann, and the veteran forward scored his first Blackhawks goal to bring Chicago to within two goals.
Even with that momentum, the Blackhawks were unable to score in the third period, and they went down in defeat. Even a three and a half minute spell with an empty net proved fruitless for the Blackhawks, and they saw their brief two-game winning streak come to an end.
The Blackhawks will next hit the ice on Sunday afternoon when they welcome the Detroit Red Wings to the United Center.