Patrick Kane, Who Continues to Pace the Team in Scoring with 71 Points (29G, 42A) in 50 Games
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Today’s News Clips Feb. 1, 2019 ChicagoBlackhawks.com PREVIEW: Blackhawks at Sabres 2/1 By Chris Wescott January 31, 2019 The Blackhawks (18-24-9) will play their first game since Jan. 22 when they take on the Sabres in Buffalo. It's the first game of a road back-to-back, as they'll play in Minnesota on Saturday. Heading into the All-Star break and their bye week, Chicago beat the red-hot New York Islanders 3-2 in a shootout. That was their second-straight win, after having lost their previous five. Chicago's lone All-Star representative was Patrick Kane, who continues to pace the team in scoring with 71 points (29G, 42A) in 50 games. Kane is currently riding a nine-game point streak. It's a homecoming for Kane, who is from Buffalo. Jonathan Toews is second on the team in scoring with 48 points (22G, 26A). Alex DeBrincat is third in scoring with 43 points and is second in goals with 25. Between the pipes, Collin Delia continues to do a good job of filling in for Corey Crawford (concussion). The rookie goalie has a team-leading 3.00 GAA and .923 save percentage. The Sabres (25-19-6) have already played two games this week. They beat Columbus 5-4 on Tuesday, but lost 1-0 in Dallas on Wednesday. Jack Eichel is their leading scorer with 53 points (16G, 37A) in 47 games. Jeff Skinner leads the team in goals with an impressive 31 and is tied for second in points with 45. Sam Reinhart is the other skater with 45 points this season. Carter Hutton has seen the majority of minutes in net for Buffalo, posting a 2.79 GAA and .911 save percentage. SEASON SERIES: This is the first of two meetings between the teams this season. They'll play again at the United Center on March 7. The Blackhawks split their 2017-18 series with Buffalo, winning 3-2 in overtime at home and losing 5-3 on the road. OPPONENT TO WATCH: Jeff Skinner is having a career year in a Sabres uniform, following his trade from the Carolina Hurricanes. He has 31 goals in only 50 games this season. He's just six goals shy of matching his career high of 37 (2016- 17). With only one goal in his last six games, he's due to score in bunches soon. He never goes too long without lighting the lamp. ChicagoBlackhawks.com BLOG: Former Blackhawks forward Vermette retires By Chris Wescott January 31, 2019 Antoine Vermette announced his retirement from the National Hockey League following 14 seasons. The center was traded to the Blackhawks on Feb. 28, 2015. He played an integral role in helping Chicago lift their third Stanley Cup in six seasons by scoring three game-winning goals as part of seven points that postseason. He scored two game-winners in the Stanley Cup Final against the Tampa Bay Lightning. "I am immensely grateful for all these incredible years punctuated by memorable moments that I will cherish forever," said Vermette. "For me, hockey has been an outstanding vehicle for teaching the right values such as perseverance, discipline and respect." Vermette played in 1,046 regular-season NHL games in his career, recording 515 points (228G, 287A). The forward was originally selected 55th overall by the Ottawa Senators in the second round of the 2000 NHL Draft. ChicagoBlackhawks.com RELEASE: Jokiharju assigned to Rockford By Chicago Blackhawks Communications Department January 31, 2019 The Chicago Blackhawks announced today that they have assigned defenseman Henri Jokiharju (yoh-kee-HAHR-yoo) to the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League. Jokiharju has 12 assists in 37 games with Chicago during his rookie campaign this season. A native of Oulu, Finland, Jokiharju helped his country to a gold medal at the 2019 IIHF World Junior Championship earlier this month. He notched five points (2G, 3A) in seven games for Team Finland during the tournament. Jokiharju was originally drafted by the Blackhawks in the first round (29th overall) of the 2017 National Hockey League Draft. The Blackhawks travel to Buffalo to face the Sabres tomorrow at KeyBank Center at 6 p.m. That game can be seen on NBC Sports Chicago, streamed on NBCSportsChicago.com and on the My Teams by NBC Sports app and heard on WGN Radio. ChicagoBlackhawks.com THREE STARS: Blackhawks acquire Czech prospect By Austin Siegel January 31, 2019 Every Thursday throughout the 2018-19 season, blackhawks.com will highlight prospects who have stood out for their junior, college or professional team in the previous week's action. Here are this week's Three Stars. FIRST STAR LW Dominik Kubalik (Switzerland) THE NUMBERS: 39 GP, 19 G, 26 A While things may be quiet around the United Center this week, the Blackhawks made a move during the All-Star break with an eye towards the future. In exchange for a fifth-round draft pick, Chicago acquired the rights to Czech prospect Dominik Kubalik from the Los Angeles Kings. Currently leading the Swiss National League in scoring, the 23-year-old forward was a late-round selection from the Kings in 2013. Former teammates with current Blackhawks forward Dominik Kahun in the OHL, Kubalik is also second in the league in assists behind former Chicago prospect Chris DiDomenico. SECOND STAR RW MacKenzie Entwistle (Guelph) THE NUMBERS: 39 GP, 19 G, 20 A A midseason trade to an OHL contender hasn't slowed down MacKenzie Entwistle. The Guelph Storm's newly acquired 19-year-old forward found twine against the Owen Sound Attack on Friday, and his 19th goal of the season was a beauty. Entwistle found himself on the breakaway against Owen Sound before a pinpoint wrist shot put Guelph ahead 4- 0. He's bagged four goals since joining the Storm after international duty saw Entwistle represent Canada at the WJC. THIRD STAR D Adam Boqvist (London) THE NUMBERS: 33 GP, 11 G, 24 A The Blackhawks highest draft pick since Patrick Kane, Adam Boqvist joined the London Knights this season with modest expectations: namely, blow the roof off the OHL. Mission accomplished for Boqvist, who ended January among the top ten defensemen in the league in goals and points. With an assist in a win over Oshawa on Sunday, the Swede extended his latest scoring streak to six games. ROCKFORD REPORT: The IceHogs enjoyed their best week of 2019 with wins over Manitoba and Iowa, keeping them within five points of a return to the AHL playoffs. Dylan Sikura and Terry Broadhurst led the way for Rockford, with both forwards carrying three-game point streaks into the week. Sikura's goal and assist against Manitoba on Friday gave the forward his team- leading seventh multi-point game of the season. NBCSportsChicago.com Blackhawks send struggling rookie Henri Jokiharju to Rockford as blue line crowds up By Charlie Roumeliotis January 31, 2019 With the Blackhawks getting set to return from their nine-day hiatus in Buffalo, Henri Jokiharju was assigned to the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League on Thursday. It's both surprising but also not, considering his ice time has dipped for the last month and a half. He averaged exactly 20:00 minutes of ice time per game in his first 32 games, and was the team leader in 5-on-5 ice time before he left for the 2019 World Juniors. In his most recent content before the All-Star break, Jokiharju logged only 12:55 in a 3-2 shootout win over the New York Islanders. It was the second time in four games he had logged fewer than 13 minutes, and in between that stretch he was a healthy scratch. With Slater Koekkoek part of the mix and Gustav Forsling returning from his upper torso injury soon, perhaps that's part of why the decision was made to send Jokiharju down. He can reset in Rockford and play in all situations rather than rotating in and out of the lineup on a nightly basis. It's a long 82-game season, and many rookies struggle with that in their first year. It's a lot of hockey they're not used to. Jokiharju is no different. "I think as a 19-year-old, we're pleased with his progression," coach Jeremy Colliton said before the break. "It's not going to happen overnight where he becomes a dominant player at this level. There's going to be ups and downs, and that's part of the journey as a young player. You got to go through some adversity, and it's not going to be perfect and that's fine. It's up to us to give us to give him the feedback he needs to continue to improve and up to him to work as hard as he can." NBCSportsChicago.com NBC Sports Chicago's Athlete of the Month for January: Patrick Kane By Charlie Roumeliotis January 31, 2019 NBC Sports Chicago is beginning a series that highlights Chicago athletes each month and their successes over the course of a calendar year. And to kick if off, Patrick Kane has been named Athlete of the Month for January. After going pointless in the 2019 Winter Classic on Jan. 1, Kane has recorded at least a point in nine straight games to cap off the month (and counting). Over that span, he has 21 points (seven goals, 14 assists) for a points-per-game rate of 2.33. In six of those nine contests, Kane had multi-point efforts, with five of them coming in consecutive games.