Final score presented by @budlight — #blackhawks top #mnwild 4-2. Wild hosts Predators Saturday at 1 p.m. pic.twitter.com/Xn5EkgdDRX
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) January 9, 2015
The Chicago Blackhawks sent the Minnesota Wild to their third straight loss, Thursday night 4-2 at the Xcel Energy Center.
Mike Yeo challenged his players on Wednesday and the team responded Thursday, but it still didn’t result in a Wild victory.
The Wild couldn’t take advantage of their opportunities and with Darcy Kuemper on injured reserve with a lower-body injury, the goaltending didn’t improve.
Niklas Backstrom allowed 3 Chicago goals on just 19 shots, while Chicago’s Corey Crawford was outstanding. He finished the night with 42 saves and sealed the Blackhawks victory.
Bryan Bickell had a pair of goals for the Blackhawks, including the empty-netter that put the game away with just one minute to play. Patrick Kane added a goal and an assist.
For Minnesota Jason Pominville finished with a goal and an assist.
The Wild host the Predators on Saturday before they travel to Chicago on Sunday.
Scoring Summary
1st period: 5:08 CHI – Patrick Sharp (9) Wrist shot – Assist: David Runblad (6), Andrew Shaw (6) 1-0 CHI
1st period: 16:19 CHI – Patrick Kane (20) Wrist shot – Assist: Brad Richards (14), Jonathan Toews (21) 2-0 CHI
2nd period: 1:03 MIN – Jason Zucker (15) Snap shot – Assist: Jason Pominville (23), Mikko Koivu (15) 2-1 CHI
3rd period: 6:20 CHI – Bryan Bickell (7) Slap shot – Assist: Kane (24), Richards (15) 3-1 CHI
3rd period: 14:55 MIN – PPG Pominville (9) Slap shot – Assist: Thomas Vanek (18), Nino Niederreiter (5) 3-2 CHI
3rd period: 19:00 CHI – EN Bickell (8) Wrist shot – Assist: none 4-2 CHI
