Blackhawks beat Canucks 4-3 in shootout to match NHL record for season-opening point streak
CHICAGO - The Chicago Blackhawks beat the Vancouver Canucks 4-3 in a shootout Tuesday night to give them 16 straight games with at least one point, matching the NHL record to start a season.
Patrick Kane and Andrew Shaw scored in the tiebreaker for the Blackhawks (13-0-3), who earned their third consecutive win and joined the 2006-07 Anaheim Ducks as the only teams to record at least one point in the first 16 games of a season. The Ducks got off to a 12-0-4 start that year and went on to win the Stanley Cup.
Chicago will go for the record Friday night when it hosts the San Jose Sharks for the second time in a week. But it could be without Marian Hossa for that one after the star forward had to be helped off the ice during the third period following a forearm to the back of the head from Vancouver forward Jannik Hansen.
Alexander Edler and Kevin Bieksa each scored in the final 2:42 of regulation for the Canucks, who opened a four-game trip with their third consecutive loss. Daniel Sedin had a goal and an assist, and twin brother Henrik had two assists.
After Jonathan Toews of Chicago and Jordan Schroeder of Vancouver were denied in the shootout, Kane skated in on Cory Schneider and tried to stuff one in close to the goal. It was waved off as the puck trickled into the net, leading to boos from the sellout crowd and an exasperated reaction from Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville.
Replays showed Schneider knocked it in with his glove, and the officials put the goal on the board after a short review.
Chris Higgins then converted his chance for the Canucks, and Shaw put the Blackhawks ahead once again with a nice backhander. That put all the pressure on Ryan Kesler, whose shot was gloved by Ray Emery to end the game.
Hossa had two goals and Patrick Sharp scored in regulation for the second time in two games for the Blackhawks, who have won seven of eight overall. Emery, subbing again for Corey Crawford, made 29 saves to improve to 6-0 this season.
The Canucks had the lead when the second period started, but Chicago turned up the pressure on Schneider to grab control.
Sharp took a pass from Kane at 6:36 and fired a slap shot between Schneider's legs, tying it at 1. The Blackhawks then went in front after Maxim Lapierre was sent off for cross-checking with 7:15 left, showing impressive patience on the power play.
Vancouver defenceman Keith Ballard broke his stick while Chicago had the man-advantage and had to borrow one from Kesler. The Blackhawks responded by working the puck around to Hossa, who sent a slap shot by Schneider to make it 2-1 at 13:48.
Hossa tacked on his eighth goal of the season with 2:45 left when he skated across the crease and banked in a backhander off the left skate of an outstretched Schneider.
The Canucks responded in the third. Edler sent a slap shot by a screened Emery on the power play, then Bieksa tied it with 1:01 remaining in regulation on another long slap shot.
Schneider, who finished with 40 saves, made a couple of nice plays in overtime to prolong the game. He stopped Viktor Stalberg's wrister, then turned away Sharp when he rushed to the net.
NOTES: Chicago also played without defenceman Brent Seabrook, sidelined by a lower-body injury after he was hurt in Sunday's 3-2 victory over the Los Angeles Kings. Crawford has been out with an upper-body injury since he made 31 saves in a 3-2 shootout loss to Anaheim last Tuesday. ... Defencemen Cam Barker and Andrew Alberts, plus forward Aaron Volpatti, were scratched for Vancouver.
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Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap
