(SportsNetwork.com) – The Chicago Blackhawks try to win three games in a row
for the first time this season on Friday night as they visit an old rival in
the Detroit Red Wings.
The Blackhawks have posted back-to-back wins three times this season and
claimed their third victory in four tries on Tuesday with a 3-2 shootout
decision over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Patrick Kane scored the lone tally of the tiebreaker, while Corey Crawford
made 25 saves through overtime and then stopped all three skates he faced in
the shootout.
“If one of us was able to get one, we had a good chance to win or extend it,”
Kane said of the shootout. “When you have (Crawford) in the net, you are going
to feel very confident.”
Brad Richards and Marcus Kruger scored in regulation for the Blackhawks, who
lost defenseman Johnny Oduya to injury in the game. His status for tonight is
unknown.
Crawford will get the start and has solid career numbers against the Red
Wings, going 12-2-3 with a 1.89 goals against average and .940 save percentage
in 17 meetings.
Chicago did on Tuesday what Detroit failed to do its last time out as the Red
Wings lost a 4-3 shootout game to Tampa Bay. The Lightning got the lone goal
of the tiebreaker from Ryan Callahan, while the Red Wings’ Gustav Nyquist,
Tomas Tatar and Darren Helm were all denied by Ben Bishop.
Nyquist, Helm and Johan Franzen all scored in regulation, but Detroit had a
four-game home winning streak snapped. Jimmy Howard ended with 27 saves.
“We battled and got ourselves a point,” Detroit head coach Mike Babcock said.
“Bishop played really well in overtime.”
With the Red Wings having been idle since, there is a good chance that forward
Pavel Datsyuk will return tonight from a strained groin that has held him out
of the past two games. The 36-year-old has five goals and 10 points in eight
games this season.
Howard will start in net and is 4-8-5 with a 2.86 GAA and .903 save percentage
in 18 career starts versus the ‘Hawks.
The Blackhawks have won eight of their last nine versus the Red Wings and nine
of the previous 11 meetings in Detroit.
