Seabrook OT goal caps Blackhawks comeback win

The Sharks' Dany Heatley knotted the score at one as he netted a Thorton feed past an aggressive Cristobal Huet at 15:01 of the first.  Duncan Keith had possession of the puck, but he was unable to clear the zone past the Sharks' Jason Demers, who beat Troy Brouwer for positioning along the boards.

The Sharks attack continued in the second period as they struck for two goals 45 seconds apart to gain a 3-1 lead.  Demers scored his first NHL goal on a Sharks' powerplay after the Hawks' Ben Eager had a mystery unsportsmanlike minor attached to a fighting major.  Demers benefitted from a fortunate bounce, but Huet was playing too deep in his net to effectively cut down on the scoring angle.

Less than a minute later, Huet received a smattering of jeers from the capacity United Center crowd as he allowed a rebound that the Sharks' Patrick Marleau cleaned up to give San Jose a commanding two-goal lead at 1:59 of the second period.  For the next several minutes, the Hawks played the game on their heels and were in danger of falling early prey to the hungry Sharks.  They needed a spark, and the Hawks' young All-Stars provided one.

With Bickell once again standing on top of Nabokov, Patrick Kane scored top shelf off a great pass from Toews behind the San Jose goal.  The two youngsters skated together most of the night and they provided Joel Quenneville's team the offensive burst when they needed it the most.  The Blackhawks fed off the momentum created by the Toews-Kane duo and never relinquished it as Huet heard nothing but cheers the rest of the night.

Andrew Ladd's effort helped the Hawks enter the third period in a 3-3 game.  Ladd skated past five San Jose defenders and challenged the Shark goalie with an excellent shot.  Nabokov made the save, but left a rebound that the Hawks John Madden easily dumped into an empty net at 18:41 of the second period.  It was a big goal for the Hawks and a testament to their resiliency.

From a fan perspective, it was an exciting contest to watch no matter your allegiance.  Both teams survived near disasters as  a Seabrook turnover with only seconds left in the middle period almost turned into a Joe Pavelski empty net goal if not for a well-timed stick from Keith.  Nabokov struggled handling the puck all night and one such instance almost led to a cheapy for the Hawks.  Each team also traded near misses as Kane hit the crossbar vying for his second of the night and Huet swiped the puck off the goal line on a close play that was ruled "no goal" by video review.

Tonight was a great win for the shorthanded Blackhawks against a San Jose team that has been on quite a roll as of late.  With Kris Versteeg and Andrew Ebbett held out of the lineup, this was the first game all year that the Hawks were outmanned on the ice.  Yet, they still managed to gain a valuable two points earning a character win.  Quenneville started the night by pairing Patrick Sharp with Toews and Kane, limiting the Hawks to one true scoring line.  Madden's third line remained intact, meaning the Hawks' second line at the start of the game was Colin Fraser, Jordan Hendry and Bickell.  Yikes.  However, Bickell responded with a strong game and later saw time with Kane as Coach Q began his usual line mixing.

Versteeg's injury is of the infamous "upper body" variety.  Quenneville confirmed that Steeger suffered the injury during Friday's game.  Not surprising as the winger was roughed up a few times by the Maple Leafs.  As for Ebbett, he may have been a healthy scratch due to his less than productive play during the current homestand and a desire by the coaching staff to insert Hendry into the lineup.

Now, the Hawks head west for the annual six-game road trip.  Along with a handful of points in the standings, the Hawks will hopefully arrive back in Chicago healthier than when they departed.  Need something to look forward to?  The Hawks next home game should be Marian Hossa's United Center debut.