Recap
The Chicago Blackhawks defeated the St. Louis Blues 3-0 on Thursday night. They will compete in their second back to back this week when they host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday.
The Hawk would get off to a fast start when they scored 12 seconds into the game. All five players would touch the puck on the ice and Marian Hossa would pass to Brandon Saad who passed to the front of the net where the puck found the skate of Jonathan Toews and deflected into the net. Nothing much would happen for the rest of the period. The most interesting thing to happen was Corey Crawford not returning after the first period as he appeared to stumble on his way into the locker room. Crawford is day to day with an upper body injury.
The second period would be scoreless but Ray Emery was spectacular in relief of Crawford. He had to make several big saves on the penalty kill to maintain the Hawks lead. The Hawks would extend the lead early in the third when Bryan Bickell found Andrew Shaw in front for a one timer that Jaroslav Halak had no chance on. Almost five minutes later the Hawks would get on the board again. After Hossa kept the puck in the zone, Nick Leddy found Toews in front as he pounded home a loose puck past Halak for his second goal of the night. That was all the Hawks needed as Emery was solid down the stretch.
What it means
The Hawks are now unbeaten in regulation through 20 games. They are in first place in the Western Conference with a 17-0-3 record. A second back to back in less than a week could be the biggest challenge to the Hawks streak even though they face Columbus later tonight.
3 stars of the game
3. Ray Emery- Being a backup goaltender is not easy especially when you have to come into the middle of the game with a 1-0 lead. But Emery was very good in relief as he got the win. He made 15 saves on the night and was able to secure the Hawks third shutout of the season.
2. Marian Hossa- Hossa was strong on the puck all night long. His pass to Saad opened things up for the first goal and he made a nifty saucer pass on the third goal of the night. He had 2 assists on the night and was a plus 2.
1. Jonathan Toews- Toews had his first multi goal game of the season and now has nine goals on the season. He was solid all night long and had five shots on goal while winning 13 of 23 faceoffs. For the season, Toews has 9 goals and 8 assists.
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