Blackhawks vs. Wild Game 3: Corey Crawford posts shutout as Chicago takes 3-0 series lead

Corey Crawford stopped 30 shots for the third straight game and Patrick Kane scored for the fourth straight game as the Chicago Blackhawks earned a 1-0 win against the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night at the Xcel Energy Center.

The Hawks now hold a 3-0 series lead, and snapped their own seven-game losing streak in Game 3s on the road. It's the first time the Hawks have held a 3-0 series lead since they swept the San Jose Sharks in the 2010 Western Conference Final.

Game 4 is Thursday at Xcel Energy Center.

Crawford made a number of difficult saves and kept the Wild, who seemed to be on the power play for the entire third period, from scoring. His 36th playoff victory moves him past Ed Belfour into second place in franchise history for most wins in the postseason. Tony Esposito holds the all-time mark at 45 wins.

Kane scored the lone Hawks goal on the power play after Wild defenseman Jared Spurgeon was sent to the box for tripping.

Kane fired a shot five-hole past Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk from the left wing after passes from Patrick Sharp and Andrew Shaw dribbled through the zone.

It was Kane's sixth goal of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, giving him more than the entire Wild team in the series. In 2013, Kane had two goals in the first 15 games -- and ended up winning the Conn Smythe.

Shortly after the Hawks took a 1-0 lead, Matt Dumba checked Kane into the boards from behind. Kane came back with a shot against Jordan Leopold and Marcus Kruger planted Jason Pominville on the ice right before the horn.

From there, it was the Crawford show.

The Wild came out surging in the second period, but for each chance they had on net, Crawford came up with a big stop. Jason Pominville had a great opportunity to put the Wild on the board on a breakaway, but he missed the net completely at the midway point.

The Hawks were dominant at the faceoff dot, winning 37 of 59. Jonathan Toews led the way, going 15 of 22. Shaw won seven of nine while Antoine Vermette won five of nine.

Teuvo Teravainen led Chicago with four shots on net, and his confidence on the third line with Vermette and Sharp continues to build as he plays late in games.

Defensively, Brent Seabrook, Johnny Oduya and Michal Rozsival were credited with four blocked shots each. As a team, the Hawks blocked 19 shots.

The Wild were without winger Chris Stewart, who suffered an upper-body injury in Game 2. Jordan Schroeder took Stewart's place on the ice. Winger Justin Fontaine was also out after missing Game 2 because of a lower-body injury.

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