Chicago Blackhawks snap three-game slide over Toronto Maple Leafs 5-4 -NHL
Marian Hossa came out like a superstar during the final two period of their Wednesday night matchup against Toronto as the Chicago Blackhawks downed Maple Leafs, 5-4, snapping their three-game losing streak at the sold-out United Center in Chicago, Illinois.
Chicago was the verge of falling out of the playoff race as teams began catching up but avoiding a fourth consecutive victory allowed Blackhawks to hang on.
"For sure, we're desperate," Chicago’s right winger, Patrick Kane, said. "We're in kind of the back half of the [Western Conference] to make the playoffs. How could you not be? I think a lot of us knew it was, not a 'must win' game, but a game we should
win and a game that we can kind of get ourselves back on track after losing three."
Toronto had the one point advantage at the end of the opening period as Tyler Bozak inaugurated the scoring with his 14th of the 2011-2012 National Hockey League (NHL) regular season just 59 seconds in.
Joffrey Lupul and Clarke MacArthur also added a goal of their own while Chicago had two from Andrew Shaw and Marcus Kruger, ending the opener at 3-2.
Blackhawks took over the game from there on as Patrick Kane levelled the game 8:33 into the second and Marian Hossa took the lead with another Chicago goal nearly four minutes later.
A good start that could not be maintained was Toronto’s mistake and they certainly realise that it is the reason their team still below the playoff line.
"We've been talking about how bad our starts have been, and we got the start we wanted, and then let them back into it," Maple Leafs defenseman, Luke Schenn, said.
Marian Hossa insured the match with his empty net goal on a breakaway with two Toronto players trying to get the puck out of his control. Mike Brown could have levelled the game with four seconds remaining but Hossa’s empty netter forced the disappointment.
Chicago has the next three on the road now. Their next test will be against a rowdy Ottawa Senators team on Friday while Toronto visits Montreal on Saturday to take on the Canadiens, which should not be a problem for them.
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