Corey Crawford was perfect when needed, and the Blackhawks finally came through with a complete effort.Crawford made 32 saves, Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa each had a power-play goal and the Hawks beat the Los Angeles Kings 3-0 on Sunday night.?
”All areas of our game were solid,” coach Joel Quenneville said. ”I thought we had a real good rotation of our lines, had the D moving and skating, and had the puck way more.Much better and more representative of how we need to play.”
Artem Anisimov also scored to extend his career-best point streak to seven games. He has six goals and five assists during the run.Toews got his first goal of the season after having just three assists in the Blackhawks’ first eight games.
”I still feel like around the net I need a few bounces, and finally got one tonight,” Toews said. ”Whenever you get that result, it gives you confidence.”
Hossa scored into an empty net with 1:10 remaining.The Blackhawks jumped to a 2-0 lead, and then managed it well to improve to 3-0-1 in their last four.The Hawks also killed both of Los Angeles’ power plays and for the first time in nine games didn’t allow a power-play goal. For the season, the Blackhawks have allowed a league-worst 15 goals in 32 times short-handed.They’ve killed five straight, dating to a 3-2 overtime win at New Jersey on Friday.
”We’re going to need to keep that going to get that percentage down where it needs to be,” Toews said. ”We got those kills and when we needed him, (Crawford) was big.”
Crawford earned his 20th shutout, and the Kings were blanked for the second straight game. Los Angeles concluded a two-game Midwest swing after losing 1-0 in regulation at St. Louis on Saturday.
”That was our best game defensively,” Crawford said. ”We’re on the same page in our zone. And we were moving the puck out quick, too.”
Hossa was honored in a pregame ceremony for becoming the 44th player with 500 goals, a milestone he reached on Oct. 18.Los Angeles’ Peter Budaj made 26 saves.Kings coach Darryl Sutter remained stuck on 599 wins. Sutter launched his coaching career with the Blackhawks following eight seasons with them as a forward and ranks 14th in NHL coaching victories and fifth among active coaches.The Blackhawks had four power-play chances in the first period and Toews connected on the first one at 6:54 to give Chicago a 1-0 lead after 20 minutes.Toews’ wrist shot from the top of the right circle beat Budaj on the glove side while Kings defensemen Jake Muzzin and Tom Gilbert screened Budaj.Anisimov made it 2-0 from the left edge of the crease with 6:30 left in the second, set up after Hossa threaded a pass across the crease. Anisimov didn’t quite handle the feed cleanly but controlled the puck with a quick move and chipped it over Budaj.
NOTES—Hossa held his daughter Zoja while being honored and got a big reaction from the crowd when the 2-year-old pinched his nose and then waved while the scoreboard camera zoomed in…. Blackhawks rookie D Gustav Forsling missed his second game with an injury. … Hawk rookie C Vincent Hinostroza, a scratch for the last four games, returned. … Blackhawks F Andrew Desjardins, out since blocking a shot in the exhibition finale on Oct. 8, has resumed skating.The Blackhawks host Calgary at the United Center for the second time in eight days on Tuesday night.