Raanta Leads Blackhawks Past Flyers, 4-0
CHICAGO (AP) — Antti Raanta made 32 saves to earn a shutout in his first start of the season, and Patrick Kane scored two power-play goals to lead the Chicago Blackhawks past the Philadelphia Flyers 4-0 on Tuesday night.
Chicago's Brandon Saad and Bryan Bickell scored along with Kane in a 2:06 flurry late in the first period.
Raanta was sharp as he stepped in for Corey Crawford — Chicago's No. 1 goalie who is out day-to-day with an upper-body injury — to record his second career shutout. Among his saves were two point-blank stops on Philadelphia's Claude Giroux and one on Matt Read late in the second period.
Besides their first goals this season, Saad and Bickell each had assists as Chicago's third line, centered by Brad Richards, clicked and the Blackhawks improved to 4-0-1. Richards, who signed as a free agent last summer following a contract buyout by the New York Rangers, set up Saad's goal to earn his first point as a Blackhawk.
Philadelphia's Steve Mason made 39 saves. He was back in net for his fifth start in six games despite being pulled after two periods in the Flyers' come-from-behind 6-5 overtime win at Dallas on Saturday, their only victory.
The Blackhawks came out strong for the third straight game. Chicago outshot Philadelphia 19-9 in the first and connected on three of five shots during a flurry late in the period
Saad opened the scoring 11:54 in. Mason made flashy close-in saves on Saad and Richards, but then Saad outmuscled the Flyers Michael Del Zotto to the net and tucked in a loose puck from the goal line after Richards centered it.
Kane made it 2-0 with a power-play score 32 seconds later. He swatted in the puck from the left side of the net after Patrick Sharp's shot from the blue line caromed off the back boards.
Set up by Saad's cross-ice pass, Bickell extended the lead to 3-0 with 6:00 left in the period when motored down the slot and ripped a shot over Mason's shoulder.
Raanta was most heavily tested in the second period, when he turned aside 10 shots, and late in the third during a Flyers' power play.
Kane added his second power-play goal from a goalmouth scrum at 3:50 of the third to complete the scoring.
Raanta came up with a shoulder save on Jakub Voracek with 6:30 left to preserve the shutout.
NOTES: Chicago LW Kris Versteeg returned after suffering a lower body injury in practice two days before the season opener. He skated on a line with Kane and C Andrew Shaw. To make room, F Jeremy Morin sat out. ... The Blackhawks recalled G Scott Darling, from Rockford of the AHL to fill Crawford's roster spot. Darling is a native of Lemont, Ill., a Chicago suburb. ... Raanta started 10 games in a row last season after Crawford suffered a groin injury in a Dec. 8 game against Florida. The Blackhawks went 7-1-2 during that stretch. ... Flyers C Vincent Lecavalier missed his third game and D Braydon Coburn sat out his fifth, both with lower-body injuries.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press.
