Blackhawks 5, Hurricanes 2
Captain Jonathan Toews scored to extend his point streak to eight games and Bryan Bickell collected a goal and an assist as the Chicago Blackhawks recorded their seventh straight win with a 5-2 triumph over the visiting Carolina Hurricanes on Friday.
Patrick Kane and Dave Bolland also tallied and Ryan Johnson netted his first of the campaign for Chicago (36-23-6), which claimed sole possession of fourth place in the Western Conference standings. The Blackhawks entered the contest tied with the Los Angeles Kings (36-24-4) and Phoenix Coyotes (33-23-10).
Patrick Sharp, Marian Hossa and defenseman Chris Campoli notched two assists apiece and Corey Crawford turned aside 18 shots to improve to 25-12-3 on the season.
Toews opened the scoring just 55 seconds into the contest for his 26th point (nine goals and 17 assists) in 16 games. The 2010 Conn Smythe winner wired a shot from the slot past Justin Peters for his sixth goal in four contests.
After the teams traded tallies nearly 3 1/2 minutes apart in the first period, Johnson and Bolland scored 67 seconds apart in the third period and Kane capped the outburst 3 1/2 minutes later.
Captain Eric Staal netted his team-leading 29th goal of the season and All-Star rookie Jeff Skinner also tallied for Carolina (31-26-9), which dropped behind the New York Rangers (34-29-4) and into eighth place in the Eastern Conference standings. The Rangers recorded a 4-1 triumph over the Ottawa Senators earlier on Friday evening.
Making his first start since Jan. 9, Peters finished with 24 saves to fall to 3-5-1 on the season.