CHICAGO (AP) — Patrick Kane had three goals and an assist in his return to the lineup, and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Ottawa Senators, 5-1, on Monday night for their first win of the season.
Led by Kane and Marc-Andre Fleury, who made 29 saves in another solid performance, Chicago improved to 1-7-2 in front of a half-full United Center. Brandon Hagel scored twice, and captain Jonathan Toews had three assists.
Kane was sidelined for the previous four games because of the NHL's COVID-19 protocol, and Chicago sorely missed his unique offensive ability. It lost 1-0 at St. Louis on Saturday night, finishing with 25 shots on goal.
Matt Murray made 26 stops for Ottawa in his first game since he was kneed in the head during a 3-2 loss to the New York Rangers on Oct. 23. Alex Formenton stopped Fleury's bid for his 68th career shutout with his second of the season 1:41 into the third.
Kane's seventh hat trick in the regular season gave him 408 career goals, moving him ahead of Steve Larmer for third on the franchise list. He also jumped over Denis Savard for third on the Blackhawks' points list with 1,097.
Chicago grabbed a 2-0 lead when Kane converted a backhand on a power play 2:09 into the second. Kane then buried a cross-ice pass from Erik Gustafsson 1:22 into the third, and made it 5-1 when he beat Murray through the goaltender's legs on a breakaway with 12:43 left.
The Senators lost for the fourth time in five games overall. It was their seventh consecutive loss to the Blackhawks.
Chicago caught a break 27 seconds into the third when Hagel's shot from near the blue line got past a screened Murray for a 3-0 lead. It was Hagel's third of the season.
UP NEXT
Senators: at the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night.
Blackhawks: host the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday night.
Copyright 2021 The Associated Press.