CHICAGO – Scott Darling made a season-high 39 saves, Jonathan Toews and Artemi Panarin scored and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Carolina Hurricanes 2-1 on Friday for their second straight win.
Darling, who backs up Corey Crawford, faced Carolina for the second time in a week in the Blackhawks' second home game in two nights after beating Buffalo 4-3 in overtime on Thursday. The consecutive wins against the Sabres and Hurricanes come in the aftermath of a 1-4-1 slump.
Cam Ward made 22 saves in his 15th straight start for Carolina, which won 4-2 at St. Louis on Thursday. Victor Rask had Carolina's goal, connecting against Darling on the Hurricanes' 31st shot with 4.2 seconds left in the second.
The Hurricanes have dropped three of four.
Panarin's 16th of the season stopped a six-game drought. Toews got his seventh goal.
The Hurricanes beat the Blackhawks 3-2 in Raleigh on Dec. 30 in their only other regular-season meeting.
Carolina dominated the first period, but the Blackhawks led 1-0 after 20 minutes. Toews finished off a crisp passing sequence with linemates Marian Hossa and Vinnie Hinostroza, scoring from the low edge of the left circle at 12:13.
The Hurricanes got 19 shots on goal in the first, and Darling stopped every one of them. Chicago killed off two Carolina power plays, with Darling making a sliding right pad stop on Justin Faulk's shot from the left circle with 5:30 to go in the period.
Ward stopped Patrick Kane's backhander on a breakaway a minute into the second. Darling made another lunging right pad save to deny Jordan Staal on a short-handed, 2-on-1 break at 3:13.
Panarin's power-play goal from the left circle with 6:31 left in the second made it 2-0. After Duncan Keith narrowly held the puck in the Carolina zone, Kane swept a cross-ice pass to Panarin, who beat Ward low on the glove side.
Rask cut it to 2-1 in the closing moments of the second period with his 11th goal, finishing a close-in flurry. After Darling kicked out Jeff Skinner's shot from the left wing and stopped Ty Rattie from the slot, Rask swept in the rebound from the right side of the crease.
Carolina's Derek Ryan hit the left post with a shot 3:05 into the third. The Blackhawks checked well — Carolina had nine shots in the period — and Darling was sharp the rest of the way to preserve the lead.
NOTES: The Blackhawks sent D Gustav Forsling and F Spencer Abbott to Rockford of the AHL. The 20-year-old Forsling played in 32 games with Chicago and had a goal and three assists while averaging 14:49 minutes of ice time. Abbott had been called up for Thursday's win over Buffalo. ... Veteran Chicago D Brian Campbell played after sitting out Thursday's game. ... Rattie, claimed on waivers from St. Louis on Wednesday, had an assist on Rask's goal for his first point with the Hurricanes. ... Carolina LW Teuvo Teravainen, Chicago's first-round draft pick in 2012, played his first game at the United Center since his trade to the Hurricanes last June. LW Bryan Bickell, sidelined with multiple sclerosis, also went to Carolina in the deal that netted the Blackhawks two draft picks.
UP NEXT
Hurricanes: Host Boston on Sunday in the opener of a four-game homestand.
Blackhawks: Host Nashville on Sunday in Chicago's third home game in four nights.
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