The Chicago Blackhawks attackd the Los Angeles Kings' defense from the drop of the puck and never looked back as they hammered the reigning Stanley Cup Champions, beating them 4-1 at the United Center, in Chicago, Illinois.
Los Angeles got the first good shot off with about three minutes into the game that was saved very well by Scott Darling. Brandon Saad was very good early in this one and after his second wrap around, he shot the puck towards the goal and the it deflected off of Bryan Bickell's skate and in behind Jonathan Quick, after six and half minutes gone had eclipsed in the first frame. A few minutes later, Nick Shore unleashed a backhanded wrister near the blue line, but once again, Scott Darling was equal to the task and stopped the shot excellently. With about a half a minute left to go in the opening 20 minutes, Jake Muzzin through the puck in towards goal, and Scott Darling could not corral the bouncing puck.
As the second 20 minutes were unfolding, the Blackhawks re-took the lead on a powerplay goal less than a minute and a half into the period. Marian Hossa slid the puck to Duncan Keith who one-timed it past Quick, who was being screened by Andrew Shaw. Less than 64 seconds later, Chicago would get their third goal of the evening.
The play started with Patrick Sharp hitting the post and Niklas Hjalmarsson continued the play with a pinch, along the boards, he continued to skate and scored, firing the puck into the top of the net. Teuvo Teravainen had a couple of good minutes in the second frame as he was left one vs. one with Jonathan Quick but was not able to beat the Kings netminder. At the 5:28 mark in the second period, Quick made a very good save off of a puck that took a weird bounce right in front that he was able to shoulder it away to safety.
In the final period, the Kings did not look very organized on offense and the Blackhawks were able to take full advantage of the opportunity. Patrick Sharp, who was fairly quiet up until now, tried a couple of fakes with his stick but was eventually stopped by Quick with a minute and 28 seconds gone in the period. A few minutes later, Sharp stole a puck in the offensize zone, did a spin right near the crease, but the Los Angeles goalie was down on the ground, pads stacked, and stopped the Blackhawks sharp-shooter. Marian Hossa intercepted a pass right inside his offensive zone, skated out to neutral ice. Hossa worked his way back into the zone, beat a couple of Kings defenders and rifled one into the back of the net for the Hawks fourth and final goal of the game.
Los Angeles will finally head back home after a five game road trip to play the Edmonton Oilers while the Blackhawks' home stand continues to face off against the Vancouver Canucks the same night.