Darling dazzles as Blackhawks edge reeling Bruins
BOSTON -- Scott Darling stopped 30 shots in his first start in two weeks and Marian Hossa scored with 1:26 remaining, giving the Chicago Blackhawks a 1-0 victory over the slumping Boston Bruins in an Original Six matchup Friday night.
Hossa took a pass from Tanner Kero that went through the legs of defenseman Adam McQuaid and easily beat Tuukka Rask for his 516th career goal and 17th of the season.
Boston's third straight loss came with the team reeling after blowing two three-goal leads in Detroit Wednesday night -- and with storm clouds gathering above the head of coach Claude Julien.
Darling was making his first start since Jan. 6 for the Blackhawks (29-14-5). He was outstanding in the first two periods but had to make just five saves in the third in finishing off his second shutout of the season and the fourth career.
Rask, who made 21 saves, was bidding for his sixth shutout of the season when Vinnie Hinostroza started the play in the Boston zone by getting the puck to Kero. Hossa then scored, to the delight of the large numbers of Blackhawks' fans in the stands -- and to the team's fathers, who made what turned out to be a 2-0-0 road trip.
The Bruins (23-20-6) fell to just 10-12-0 on home ice, where they have lost two straight and been shut out in both.
The Bruins shook up their lines a bit and the new units played well, piling up 17 shots in the first period. But Darling, a former University of Maine goaltender, was sharp right from the start. He had 25 saves through two periods and was helped by the post on a Ryan Spooner shot with 1:05 left in the first.
Darling robbed Riley Nash on Boston's 23rd shot and Rask followed with a big save on Patrick Kane, one of Chicago's 14 shots through two periods.
The biggest cheer of the first two periods came when a "Go Patriots" video played on the big board.
The Blackhawks had a full power play in the third period, with Rask making a nifty stop on Artemi Panarin breaking down the right side.
NOTES: Bruins LW Matt Beleskey returned after missing 23 games with a knee injury. ... Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville wanted G Scott Darling to play on the team's current two-game dad's trip, one of the reasons Darling started Friday. The switch also gave struggling Corey Crawford a rest after he played in five straight games. "We feel very comfortable that he'll be able to get back and be confident and doing his thing," Quenneville said Thursday. "You look around the league over the last week or two, it's amazing the (high) scores." ... The Bruins came in averaging 3.38 goals per game over the last eight games after scoring 2.33 goals over the first 40. ... Chicago C Marcus Kruger, out since Dec. 30 with an upper body injury, is nearing a return. "We'll get him in before the (next weekend's) All-Star break," Quenneville said. ... The Blackhawks open a three-game homestand against the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday. The Bruins are at Pittsburgh Sunday, the first of two games in five nights between the teams. ... The Bruins were still missing injured Ds Colin Miller and Kevan Miller.