Toews tallied four points for his fourth multi-point effort in the last five games.
The Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-2 at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday night. Jonathan Toews led the Hawks to victory with four points (2G, 2A) to extend his point streak to five games. Dominik Kubalik also scored twice to stay hot, as the 24-year-old has nine goals in his last seven contests.
Corey Crawford made 31 saves to earn the victory in net. With the win, the Blackhawks (23-20-6) have won four consecutive games and eight of their last 10.
“We’re showing some maturity and character as a team,” Toews said. We’ve found ways to make things interesting in games where we get leads in the first 40 minutes, but we knew we had to be determined to keep our foot down on the pedal. With their offense, when they get going and start feeling it, they can put a lot of pressure on you. There are not a whole lot of leads you feel comfortable with against this team.”
RECAP
It didn’t take long for the Blackhawks to grab the lead, as Drake Caggiula opened the scoring just 21 seconds into the first period. Caggiula jumped on a loose puck behind the Leafs’ net and banked a shot off goaltender Frederik Andersen to make it 1-0. The Pickering, Ontario native continues to be a spark in the Hawks lineup since returning from injury.
Toews doubled the Hawks lead four minutes later by beating Andersen five-hole after blowing past Adam Brooks along the boards. Alex Nylander picked up the secondary assist on the goal for his first point since Dec. 19 (nine games).
Brandon Saad scored at 11:02 in his first game back after missing a month with an ankle injury to extend the Blackhawks lead to three. Patrick Kane picked up the primary assist on Saad’s goal for his 999th career point. Kane also extended his point streak to nine games, with 14 points (4G, 10A) in that span.
Saad looked sharp in his first game back in the lineup. He hadn’t played since Dec. 19 vs. Winnipeg, but the 27-year-old looked like he didn’t miss a beat.
“I wanted to keep it simple and play good hockey early on,” Saad said. “For me to get a goal out of the way too, it always gives you some confidence.”
2ND PERIOD
The Maple Leafs cut the Blackhawks lead to two 25 seconds into the second period when William Nylander beat Crawford blocker side on the powerplay. Ryan Carpenter nearly broke up the play by deflecting Mitch Marner’s pass, but Auston Matthews made a terrific play to lift Carpenter’s stick and allow the pass to get to Nylander.
Toews answered back for his second tally of the game to regain the Blackhawks three-goal lead at 3:19. Toews stuffed a wraparound five-hole on Andersen for his fourth multi-point game in the last five. Both Erik Gustafsson and Caggiula picked up assists for their second point of the night as well.
Not only did the Hawks regain their three-goal lead after Nylander’s power-play goal, but they added to it. Kubalik made it 5-1 at 10:58 on a breakaway for his 19th goal of the season. Toews picked up his third point of the night by making a quick feed to spring Kubalik for the goal. Slater Koekkoek also was credited with an assist, making it three straight games with a point for the 25-year-old blueliner. Koekkoek also has a +7 plus/minus rating over the last four contests.
The offensive explosion wasn’t done yet, as the Blackhawks top line had one more highlight-reel goal left in the tank. Toews centered a backhand pass from the right boards, and Kubalik somehow got all of the puck and knocked it out of mid-air past Andersen to make it 6-2. Before the third period even started, Toews had four points, and Kubalik had three.
3RD PERIOD
The third period was mostly Kane attempting to pick up his 1,000th career point. Toews also had a couple of hat-trick bids denied by Andersen.
The Blackhawks coasted to victory by shutting the Leafs’ offense down in the second half of the contest. The last time these teams met on Nov. 10, Toronto registered 26 (!!!) shots on goal in the final 20 minutes. Saturday was a much different story, as the Leafs had just 10 shots on Crawford in the third. It was an impressive conclusion to the Canadian road trip, with the Blackhawks winning all three games north of the border.
“I think we’re doing a good job of focusing on the task at hand, and whatever situation we’ve been finding ourselves in, we’ve been playing good hockey. It’s fun,” said Toews on the Blackhawks’ recent play. “I think we’re playing a complete game right now and showing each other what our potential is if we play the right way, and we’re getting results lately for our hard work.”
UP NEXT
The Blackhawks are right back in action on Sunday against the Winnipeg Jets at the United Center. The Jets (25-19-4) are currently two points ahead of the Hawks in the standings, so Sunday’s game has large implications. These teams have met twice already this season, with the road team winning both contests. The game is slated for 6:00 p.m. CT and is scheduled to be on NBCSCH, SN, and NHL.TV.
For more Blackhawks news and updates, follow the author (@JackBushman2) on Twitter. Make sure to check out the author’s podcast, Talkin’ Hawkey, which can be found on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Twitter (@TalkinHawkey).
