Blackhawks 4, Red Wings 1
Marian Hossa recorded a goal and two assists in his return from an upper-body injury to help host Chicago defeat Original Six-rival Detroit.
Ben Smith had a goal and an assist and captain Jonathan Toews and Nick Leddy also tallied for the Blackhawks, who snapped a brief two-game losing skid. Corey Crawford made 19 saves.
Hossa burned his former team by setting up Leddy for a point shot through traffic with Red Wings rookie Teemu Pulkkinen serving a tripping penalty 8:44 into the second period. Hossa powered through the Detroit defense and put a shot past Jimmy Howard 6:33 into the third period and set up Toews for a backhand deke while short-handed with 2:10 remaining.
Howard stopped 26 shots and Gustav Nyquist scored on a power play for the Red Wings, who fell to 2-4-1 in March. Nyquist fired a shot that deflected off the skate of Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook and in with Patrick Kane in the penalty box at 15:10 of the second period.
Smith picked up the secondary assist on Leddy’s goal and banged home a rebound at 19:46 of the second period for his first career regular-season multi-point game. Chicago defenseman Duncan Keith assisted on Smith’s goal and also set up Hossa’s tally to reach 50 assists for the second time in his career.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Hossa missed five games due to an injury suffered in Chicago’s game against Pittsburgh at Soldier Field. … Chicago LW Brandon Saad left the game with an undisclosed injury after playing 6:21. … Detroit remained three points behind the New York Rangers for the final wild card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. … Toews has eight goals in seven March contests.