Richard Panik scored his first career goal as a Chicago Blackhawk in the team’s game against the Montreal Canadiens at United Center on Sunday.
The forward, who is playing on a line with Dennis Rasmussen and Ryan Garbutt, took a nice pass from defenseman Erik Gustafsson and deposited it past Ben Scrivens into the back of the net.
Panik goal pic.twitter.com/cci4TO27MU
— Stephanie (@myregularface) January 18, 2016
And here’s the post-goal hugfest:
#HockeyHugs: First Blackhawk goal edition. pic.twitter.com/J6H13VTfMC
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) January 18, 2016
Panik, 24, now has a goal and an assist in three-plus games for Chicago since being acquired from Toronto in exchange for forward Jeremy Morin on Jan. 3. The Martin, Slovakia, native has tallied 25 points (nine goals and 16 assists) in 33 games with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies this season. Last season, he set career highs with 11 goals and 17 points in 76 games. Panik’s one-year deal carries a $975,000 salary cap hit.
It wasn’t easy for Panik to slip on a Hawks sweater after the trade as it took about a week for him to join the team due to visa issues. It’s not the first time the Hawks have dealt with visa issues this season. Forward Marcus Kruger missed the first week of preseason games while waiting for paperwork to be finalized after re-signing with the team.