Sharks at Blackhawks
Patrick Kane looks to continue his offensive assault on the rest of the NHL when his Chicago Blackhawks host the San Jose Sharks on Sunday. Kane, who has failed to record a point in only three of his 34 games this season, played a major role in Chicago's 3-2 victory at Buffalo on Saturday, scoring the tying goal with 34 seconds remaining in the third period and netting the lone tally of the shootout.
The 27-year-old Buffalo native's heroics gave the Blackhawks their fourth win in five games and a 6-2-1 record since Dec. 3. San Jose continues its five-game road trip after concluding the Canadian portion with a 4-2 loss at Ottawa on Friday. The Sharks are 2-1-0 on a five-game trek but have dropped four of their last six (2-3-1) away from home. Chicago opened the three-game season series with a 5-2 triumph at San Jose on Nov. 25, with Kane notching a pair of assists.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CSN California (San Jose), CSN Chicago
ABOUT THE SHARKS (16-15-1): Chicago will need to pay attention to San Jose's defense corps as a whole and Brent Burns in particular. The Sharks' blue-liners set a franchise record by registering 25 shots Thursday against Toronto and Burns posted a team-high seven the following night versus Ottawa. Burns leads the Sharks with 145 shots, 17 of which were recorded during his last three contests.
ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS (19-11-4): Kane's goal against the Sabres was his 20th of 2015-16, marking the ninth time he has reached the plateau in his nine NHL seasons. The tally, which tied him with Dallas captain Jamie Benn for second in the league, was his 11th on the power play — putting him one behind Carolina defenseman Justin Faulk for first in the NHL. Kane tops the NHL in both assists (28) and points (48) and is just one game-winner off the league lead of five.
OVERTIME
1. Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews is tied with Kane for the team lead in game-winning goals (four) despite recording only half of his linemate's overall tally total.
2. Burns is 10 shots behind Washington captain Alex Ovechkin (155) for first in the NHL.
3. Scott Darling likely will start for Chicago on Sunday after fellow G Corey Crawford was in net versus Buffalo.
PREDICTION: Blackhawks 3, Sharks 2