The Chicago Blackhawks allowed an NHL icon to tie one of Wayne Gretzky’s league records in their most recent game.
On Sunday, they’ll aim to stop another superstar who recently broke one of Gretzky’s marks as Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins visit the Blackhawks.
Chicago is coming off Friday’s 5-3 road loss to the Washington Capitals. Nursing a 3-2 lead after two periods, the Blackhawks yielded three goals in the third and dropped their fifth straight decision (0-4-1).
Capital superstar Alex Ovechkin scored two goals to boost his career total to 894, matching Gretzky for the most all-time.
“Congrats to Ovi; it’s an unbelievable accomplishment,” Blackhawks interim coach Anders Sorensen said. “But we were here to win the game, and we didn’t do that.
“We’ve talked about it before, (needing) to close those games and get points or get a win.”
Pittsburgh (31-34-12, 74 points) can clinch a three-game road-trip winning record with a victory on Sunday. The Penguins rebounded from Thursday’s 5-4 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues with a 5-3 win in Dallas on Saturday afternoon.
Crosby had a hat trick as well as an assist to climb to 86 points this season. On March 27, he clinched a 20th season averaging at least a point per game to pass Gretzky for the most in NHL history.
As the Penguins continue to stave off elimination from the Eastern Conference playoff race, they’ve attained their share of milestones.
Bryan Rust registered one of Pittsburgh’s four third-period goals Saturday to match his single-season best of 28 goals and 58 points. It also was Rust’s 200th career goal, making him one of nine Penguins to achieve the feat.
“Means I’m getting old, first of all,” said Rust, 32. “Second of all, I’m really proud. I didn’t think I’d ever get to say I scored 200 goals in the NHL.”
Chicago (21-45-10, 52 points) has lost five games in a row (0-4-1) and 12 of its last 13 (1-10-2).
Shaky goaltending has marked the Blackhawks’ latest skid. Since claiming a 7-4 shootout against visiting Philadelphia on March 23, the Blackhawks have yielded five goals in four of the past five games.
The Chicago attack hasn’t fared much better, on and off the ice.
Lukas Reichel was a healthy scratch in Washington on Friday after missing a team meeting that morning. Reichel said he forgot his cellphone charger and the phone died when he was asleep, keeping his alarm from sounding.
“It (stunk), but it’s not going to happen again,” said Reichel, who was part of line rushes during Saturday’s practice. “I’ve never been late to a meeting one time. I just wasn’t smart enough.”
Sunday will mark the first meeting of the season between the Blackhawks and Penguins, who will conclude a home-and-home set on Tuesday in Pittsburgh.
Crosby comes to Chicago on a 12-game point streak that includes 11 goals and nine assists.
Evgeni Malkin earned an assist in Dallas following a four-game absence with an upper-body injury.
“I’m glad to be back. I’m excited to play,” Malkin said. “Keep going.”
–Field Level Media
