The Blackhawks scored four unanswered goals and came back from a 2-0 deficit to defeat the Red Wings 4-2 on Sunday at United Center.
Chicago got goals from Dylan Sikura (his first), Adam Boqvist (his second), Dylan Strome (10th of his season) and Dominik Kubalik (12th of his season). Corey Crawford made 19 saves on 21 shots.
It was the Blackhawks sixth win in the past eight games and they moved to 10-9-3 on home ice this season.
How it Happened
The Red Wings scored 39 seconds into their first power play, as Filip Zadina zipped his fourth goal of the season past Corey Crawford’s head, a rather hard spot to defend for Crawford.
They followed it up 13 and a half minutes later as Luke Glendening deflected a shot past Crawford and into the net, putting Detroit up 2-0.
The Blackhawks went 0-for-2 on the power play and allowed one against in the first period, but otherwise dominated the game at even strength. Chicago had a 55.2-percent Corsi and at even strength in the first period. That would be a recurring theme.
The Blackhawks turned it up another notch in the second, going to a 69.2-percent Corsi and 55.6-percent shot share at even strength, and also had .85 expected goals for to just .39 against. That led to two goals for Chicago in that period, both by Dylans.
Strome scored 15 minutes into the middle frame after an exceptional drive to the net by the line of Alex DeBrincat, Strome and Kirby Dach, building on their performance in the game to that point:
#Blackhawks Goal. Dylan Strome scores his 10th goal of the season to cut the deficit to 2-1. pic.twitter.com/DP7KMdlAHz
— Brandon (@brandonmcain) January 6, 2020
That’s Strome’s 10th goal of the season and DeBrincat’s 20th assist. The line had a 66.7-percent Corsi and an 81.8-percent expected goal share.
45 seconds later, Sikura scored the first NHL goal of his career:
Dylan Sikura scores his first career NHL goal for the #Blackhawks. It’s 2-2. pic.twitter.com/mz42A6W3iA
— Brandon (@brandonmcain) January 6, 2020
The emotion was immediately evident in this one, and Sikura gets a wide-open opportunity as the defense and Jimmy Howard are preoccupied with Erik Gustafsson and Ryan Carpenter at the other side of the net. Sikura simply picks up the rebound and puts it in.
Halfway through the third period, Boqvist added a tally, which would stand as the game winner:
Boqvist with some NASTY moves for the lead! pic.twitter.com/ahYnLqF5qS
— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) January 6, 2020
Trevor Daley gets hurt on the play, which allowed the Blackhawks to keep the puck in the zone and makes it easier for the Blackhawks to get the goal, but it’s Darren Helm who gets beaten badly by Boqvist, and Boqvist fires a crease shot. The screen comes courtesy of Dominik Kubalik, who added the empty-net goal.
The Blackhawks, despite looking porous defensively early in the contest, allowed a season low 21 shots on goal, and it’s their first win with less than 25 shots against.
Game Charts
Three Stars
1. Dylan Sikura (CHI) — 1st NHL goal, 1 SOG, two high-danger chances
2. Adam Boqvist (CHI) — GWG, 3 SOG, 20:31 TOI
3. Dominik Kubalik (CHI) — empty-net goal, 1.19 expected goals for, 1 takeaway
What’s next?
The Blackhawks continue their four game home stand against the Flames at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at United Center.