Marian Hossa helps Chicago Blackhawks take over Minnesota Wild
Marian Hossa helps Chicago Blackhawks takeover Minnesota Wild. Finally, Chicago is beginning to look like a team that really won the Stanley Cup last year and is trying to defend it again.
The Blackhawks are now on a 5 game winning streak, a season high for them, defeating Minnesota at the Xcel Energy Centre in Wild territory by a double 4-2 difference. Captain Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa took charge Monday night and showed the overcrowded
audience of 19,155, what the Blackhawks are capable of doing.
"We're taking it one game at a time, and every time we come up with two points -- whether it's a shootout win or an even-strength win by a couple goals. It doesn't matter how we get it", Toews said, who has an impressive 23 points in his past 14 games
and picked up the two most important assists tonight.
Coach Joel Quenneville also expressed his pleasure in Toews performance, saying that he has really guided the others and has become a mature player himself showing that he is a dominating force in the game.
Chicago has become the third team to wiggle its way out of the six-team tie in the Western Conference, just after Los Angeles and Calgary were first to do so. They now stand tied with the Kings just above the Flames at 6th. It was a shutout for both
teams during the first period, but a Wild Niklas Backstrom who is second in the league made 30 saves and Corey Crawford making 24 were too much to handle.
Patrick Sharp kicked off the night early in the second period, scoring his 33rd goal of the season, tying him for the most in the NHL with Steven Stamkos, 44 seconds in by a clever pass from Toews. Tomas Kopecky and Toews scored each of their own within
15 minutes to burden Minnesota with a 3-0 lead going into the final period.
"I think we have the playmaking ability," Minnesota coach Todd Richards said. "For whatever reason we didn't have the energy through two periods. You've got to give them credit, too. They do make things difficult on you. Bad bounces, if they get the
puck, they make you work to get it back."
The Wild had three power play opportunities in the second alone, while Chicago had four, but neither was able to make use of them. The Blackhawks were disadvantaged for 6 minutes in the last making spacious room for the Wild but couldn’t capitalise.
Wild Martin Havlat and Brent Burns equally got one each 15 minutes apart, decreasing the lead to 3-2 with a stressful 5 minutes remaining. Tomas Kopecky got a 2 minute penalty in the final moments for delaying the game, handicapping Chicago which could have
led to a tough overtime. The Blackhawks were shorthanded at a very wrong time, but Hossa showed that he is a champion player, taking on the pressure and insuring the match at 18:08 on the clock to win it 4-2.He has been able to score in each of his previous
four games lifting Chicago to a rank of reminiscence.
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