Caleb Jones scored 3 minutes, 37 seconds into overtime and rookie Jaxson Stauber made 24 saves, helping the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Arizona Coyotes 4-3 on Friday night at the United Center.
Andreas Athanasiou had a goal and two assists as the Hawks rallied from an early 2-0 deficit in a matchup of two of the NHL’s worst teams. Colin Blackwell and Seth Jones also scored, and Stauber improved to 3-0 in three career starts.
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Clayton Keller had a goal and two assists for the Coyotes, and Nick Schmaltz had a goal and an assist. Connor Ingram made 40 stops.
Blackwell snapped a 2-2 tie when he stuffed home a loose puck 14:34 into the third period. But Nick Bjugstad responded for the Coyotes, beating Stauber from the high slot with 2:27 remaining.
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The Blackhawks played without captain Jonathan Toews, who missed his second straight game with a non-COVID-19 illness. He could return on the team’s four-game trip.
The Hawks trailed 2-1 after the first period, but Athanasiou flipped a backhand past Ingram on the goaltender’s glove side 2:43 into the second. It was Athanasiou’s 11th goal of the season.
The Hawks appeared to move in front when Taylor Raddysh knocked in a great pass from Max Domi with 11:57 left in the second, but it was waved off for interference after Domi collided with Ingram.
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Bjugstad had a prime scoring opportunity about 6½ minutes into the third, but Stauber denied him.
Keller helped the Coyotes get off to a fast start, converting a wrist shot from the left circle 1:28 into the first period. It was the first shot on goal for either team.
Then Keller set up Schmaltz’s one-timer with a pass through the legs of Hawks defenseman Connor Murphy. Schmaltz’s 12th goal of the season in his 400th career game made it 2-0 at 12:34.
The Hawks got on the board on Seth Jones’ sixth goal at 13:53. The All-Star defenseman, who also scored Tuesday in a 3-2 loss to the Anaheim Ducks, beat Ingram right after Boris Katchouk was unable to finish a drive to the net.
Hawks defenseman Jarred Tinordi is expected to return to the lineup Saturday night against the Jets in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Tinordi (facial fracture) hasn’t appeared in a game since Dec. 18. “Get fresh legs in tomorrow, against a bigger team too,” coach Luke Richardson said. … Keller became the fifth player from the 2016 draft to record 300 career points, joining Auston Matthews (510), Matthew Tkachuk (453), Patrik Laine (358) and Alex DeBrincat (348).
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Coyotes: at St. Louis Blues, 7 p.m. Saturday
Blackhawks: at Winnipeg Jets, 9 p.m Saturday