When Patrick Kane saw Arizona's Nick Schmaltz score 7 points in Saturday's 8-5 win, the Hawks superstar picked up the phone and texted his friend and former teammate: "Spend the night like this. "
Little did Kane know that such a night would come just three days after a video game-like victory over Anaheim at United Center, 8-3.
Kane not only set a career high with 6 points, but he also became the fourth player in franchise history to record at least 4 points in the opening round. He was joined by Grant Mulvey (who turned 5 on February 3, 1982), Pitt Martin and Dick Redmond.
Oh, and Kane also passed 60 points for the 14th time, passing Mike Modano by an American-born skater for most 60-point campaigns.
Just another truly special game by a really special player.
"Funny night," said Kane, who improved his 5-point efforts against Washington in 2019 and Ottawa in 2018. "Sometimes it's good to watch those games, take a few breaks. ... It's nice to score some goals here at home and get the crowd involved, get out early and feel good about yourself."
The offensive was led by Kane, but linemates Dylan Strom (2nd hat-trick in six weeks) and Alex Debrinkt (goal, 3 assists) also exploded. Strom made it 1-0 in just 98 seconds into the game (courtesy of a grand pass from Kane), giving the Hawks a 7-3 lead at 14:50 of the second period and closing the scoring with 2:44 remaining. done.
"It's like an unwritten rule," said Strom when asked if he was looking to score for the third time. "No one talks about it, but everyone thinks about it. Sometimes the puck finds you."
The Hawks blitzed the dumbfounded Ducks early and often in the first period, taking a 5–0 lead on goals by Strom, Debrincat, Kane, Ryan Carpenter and Jonathan Toes.
Kane helped with the first 3 goals. This was the first time the Hawks took 5 places in the first period after an 8-7 win against Ottawa on February 18, 2019.
Ducks coach Dallas Eakins said, "We wanted to close hard and fast on his forward, especially (Kane), because the more time you give him, the more he'll ding you." "For whatever reason, we chose not to manage the puck, and we decided to give (Kane) a lot of space. This led to a disastrous first period."
And continued with a disastrous start to the second, with Brandon Hegel making it 6-0 at 0:19.
Anaheim then turned it into something interesting with 3 unanswered goals in three-and-a-half minutes, but Strom's second goal made it 7-3.
"It was fun playing with him," said Kane, who scored 12 goals in the last 22 matches. "One thing that's been really noticeable lately is his ability to run the net and make even more room for himself or his teammates. He's also finding ways to be open, and he's finishing . ...
"He's been great. It's nice to have him here. Hopefully it stays that way."
There is no guarantee with a trading time frame of less than two weeks. Teams going into the playoffs may try to capture players such as the Hawks' Strom, Dominic Kubalik, Calvin de Haan and/or Marc-Andre Fleury.
Strom, not surprisingly, would love to hang out.
"I've said it many times - I love playing in Chicago," he said. "It's not really up to me to decide. ... It's fun to play here, it's fun to be on a line with those two guys. It's fun to be on the line with a lot of people on our team.
"Whatever happens, happens. It's part of hockey, it's part of life."
Ten Hawks recorded at least 1 point against Anaheim. Kane, Debrincat, Strom, Jake McCabe (2 assists) and Hegel (goal, assist) all had multiple points.
The Hawks now play in Boston on Thursdays and in Ottawa on Saturdays.