Panthers rout Blackhawks 7-0
SUNRISE, Fla. -- Jonathan Marchessault scored a natural hat trick as the Florida Panthers routed the first-place Chicago Blackhawks 7-0 on Saturday night at the BB&T Center.
Marchessault, who scored twice in his previous game, has a team-high 28 goals this season.
It was Florida's first home hat trick since Tomas Kopecky in 2013. Marchessault's 28 goals are the third-most by a player in his first season with the Panthers, trailing only Scott Mellanby (30) and Ray Whitney (32).
James Reimer (25 saves) picked up his first shutout of the season on a night of many stars for the Panthers.
Jonathan Huberdeau had one goal and three assists, Aleksander Barkov had one goal and two assists, and Nick Bjugstad and Reilly Smith also scored.
After a scoreless first period, the Panthers scored three times in the second period and added four goals in the third.
Marchessault's second goal put Florida up 4-0, and that was enough for Chicago goalie Corey Crawford (21 saves). Florida scored three goals on backup Scott Darling.
The Panthers (33-30-11), who are seven points shy of the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference with four teams to leapfrog, won their second game in a row.
Chicago (48-21-6), which leads the Western Conference with 102 points, is 18-4-1 in its past 23 games.
Florida opened the scoring, getting Barkov's goal 17 seconds into the second period as the teams skated 4-on-4. Huberdeau passed to Barkov, who took the feed in stride and scored on a wrist shot.
The Panthers made it 2-0 with 10:21 elapsed in the second period on a 5-on-3 power play. Ryan Hartman and Marcus Kruger were in the penalty box when Florida scored. This time, it was Barkov who fed Huberdeau for a one-timer goal from the right circle, 43 seconds into the two-man advantage.
Just over a minute later, Marchessault scored, and Barkov and Huberdeau picked up assists. The goal was scored two seconds after the power play had ended.
NOTES: Panthers D Aaron Ekblad missed four straight games because of a concussion, came back for one game and now has missed two straight with a neck injury. He may miss another week of action. ... Panthers G Roberto Luongo (lower-body injury) could return at some point in the next week. ... Chicago D Brian Campbell holds the Panthers record with 376 consecutive games played. He was with the Panthers from 2011-2016. ... Chicago C Artem Anisimov (leg) is expected to be out another three weeks. ... Florida C Nick Bjugstad said "that's pretty crazy" when told that Thursday's Arizona Coyotes game was the first one in Panthers history that did not have a penalty whistled on either team. ... The Panthers take off on a four-game trip that begins Tuesday at the Buffalo Sabres. ... The Blackhawks play at the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday and visit the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday in a glamour matchup.