Maybe the late-season rallies the Chicago Blackhawks have conducted for years had nothing to do with former head coach Joel Quenneville.
After spending much of the season wallowing under .500 hockey, the Hawks find themselves at 26-26-7 following a 5-4 win over the Red Wings in Detroit Wednesday night.
Patrick Kane scored the second of his two goals in the game midway through the extra session to give the Blackhawks the win.
“Patrick might be the best player in the world right now, and there are times where he’s going to spread out your defense and have you running around and chasing the puck,” Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said. “He can do that to any team out there.”
Cam Ward made 31 saves in the win.
Dylan Larkin and Andreas Athanasiou scored two goals apiece in the loss.
“We weren’t happy at all with the way we played in the first two periods because we were making it an easy night for them,” Larkin said. “In the third period we were grinding and guys stepped up.”
The Red Wings rallied from a 4-1 deficit in the third period to force the extra session.
Chicago is now tied for the second wild card spot in the Western Conference.
“We know we can play better than this, especially the way we gave up the lead in the third period,” Kane said. “We’re in a playoff spot, and we can be excited about that, but we’ve got to be better in the last 21 games.”
Artem Anisimov, Brandon Saad and Brandon Saad also scored for Chicago who have 10 of their 12 matches.
“Getting the points are important, and at the end of the season that’s all that matters, but we were in a good position. [Larkin’s] 4-2 goal was a tough one for us, and I don’t think we responded very well. It is easier to teach after a win, but we have to learn from it,” Chicago head coach Jeremy Colliton said after the third period let down.
[WATCH:Â All Blackhawks vs. Red Wings highlights]
Jimmy Howard got the start for the Wings but was given the hook after yielding four goals and making just four saves.
“They made it 4-1 early in the second period and we just melted. This is a city that loves grit and hard work and we didn’t show any of that. It was embarrassing but we really dug in for the third period,” Detroit head coach Jeff Blashill said.
Jonathan Bernier entered the match in the early minutes of the middle frame; made 11 saves.
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