Chicago 4, Colorado 3
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, December 31, 2015
Where: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
Referees:
Ghislain Hebert, Tom Kowal
Linesmen:
Brad Kovachik, Ryan Gibbons
Attendance:
18048
By The Sports Xchange
DENVER -- Center Jonathan Toews scored a power-play goal at 3:29 of overtime, and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Colorado Avalanche 4-3 Thursday night.
Right winger Patrick Kane also had a power-play goal and added two assists for Chicago, and centers Artem Anisimov and Andrew Desjardins also had goals.
Goaltender Scott Darling stopped 27 shots as the Blackhawks (22-13-4) ended a four-game skid to the Avalanche.
Toews got the game-winner when he took a pass from Kane in front of goalie Semyon Varlamov and roofed a shot. It was his fourth overtime goal of the season and 13th overall.
Center Carl Soderberg, right winger Cody McLeod and defenseman Erik Johnson had goals for Colorado. Varlamov finished with 39 saves.
The Avalanche (18-17-3) killed off two Chicago power-plays in the third period, and after the second one, they tied it on Johnson's seventh of the season at 15:05. His shot from the right circle beat Darling through the legs.
Colorado got on the board first with a power-play goal 4:04 into the game. Right winger Alex Tanguay had the puck at the edge of the right circle, and he sent it to the front of the net. Soderberg redirected it past Darling for his seventh goal of the season.
The Avalanche nearly made it 2-0 with a short-handed goal, but center John Mitchell hit the crossbar.
The Blackhawks got even after several chances, the best by center Jonathon Toews late in the first period. Soon after, Kane fed Anisimov from the slot, and his shot beat Varlamov just under the crossbar at 18:32 of the first period. It was Anisimov's 14th of the season.
Chicago took the lead in the second period. Desjardins scored just 2:07 into the frame on a nearly carbon-copy play of Soderberg's goal to make it 2-1.
The Blackhawks increased the lead to 3-1 when Kane scored a power-play goal at 4:20 of the second period. It was his team-leading 23rd of the season.
The Avalanche got one back midway through the second when McLeod scored his sixth of the season with a shot from the slot.
NOTES: Colorado D Tyson Barrie was a late scratch with flu-like symptoms. Nate Guenin, who missed two games with a head injury, was back in the lineup. ... The Blackhawks assigned D David Rundblad to Rockford of the AHL on Wednesday after he cleared waivers on Tuesday. Rundblad, who signed a two-year contract during the summer, had two assists in nine games. ... Avalanche LW Gabriel Landeskog was in the lineup despite taking a puck to the visor in the second period of Sunday's win at San Jose. The shot pushed his visor into his face and caused swelling in his left eye, but he returned in the third period. ... Chicago G Corey Crawford turned 31 on Thursday.
Top Game Performances
| Chicago |
|
Colorado |
|
Patrick Kane 3 |
Points |
Erik Johnson 2 |
|
Patrick Kane 1 |
Goals |
Erik Johnson 1 |
|
Patrick Kane 2 |
Assists |
Matt Duchene 2 |
|
Patrick Kane 1 |
Power Play Goals |
Carl Soderberg 1 |
|
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
|
Scott Darling .900 |
Save Percentage |
Semyon Varlamov .907 |
|
Scott Darling 27 |
Saves |
Semyon Varlamov 39 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
| Chicago
|
43 |
4 |
2-6 |
2-3 |
6 |
26 |
| Colorado
|
30 |
3 |
1-3 |
4-6 |
12 |
31 |
Upcoming Games
-
Colorado will play their next game at home against Calgary. The Avalanche have a W/L % of .389 after a win and .550 after a loss.
-
Chicago will play their next game at home against Ottawa. The Blackhawks have a W/L % of .545 after a win and .588 after a loss.
For more information, contact us