CHICAGO — Over the course of three weeks, the Blackhawks turned what appeared to be a season of rebuilding into one that could end in the postseason. It was a bit of a shame for fans to see it come to an end, but what a run it was.
With seven-straight victories, Jeremy Colliton’s group got themselves within four points of the final Wild Card sport in the Western Conference. That gave fanbase a boost after starting the new year think more about draft picks then a playoff spot.
Yet a 6-3 loss to the Bruins in Boston Tuesday night brought that to an end, finishing up the longest winning streak of the season, and the most positive stretch of a year of change for the Blackhawks.
While continuing a string of victories can’t happen, one streak for the team can keep going, and it concerns their best player in the middle of a renaissance season.
Thanks to a third period assist on a goal by Erik Gustafsson, Patrick Kane extended his point streak to 15 in the loss to the Bruins. Kane has had a point in every game for the Blackhawks in the 2019 calendar year except for the Winter Classic game against Boston, starting the streak against the Islanders on Jan. 3.
Since then, Kane’s reached the score sheet one way or the others in the next 15 games. Tuesday was the sixth time that the right wing got a single point in a game, with the other nine featuring at least two or more.
Four of those games saw Kane score three-or-more points in a game, with the high of five coming against the Capitals at the United Center on Jan. 20. During the entire stretch, he has 32 points with 11 coming on goals and 22 on assists.
Kane still has a way to go to break his previous record of 26 games with a point — the American-born player record — which he set back in 2015. But his production the last month has him on track for some career-highs.
With 25 games to go, Kane needs 25 points to pass his previous record of 106 set during his MVP season of 2015-2016. He’s just 12 assists away from breaking his personal best while he’s 14 goals away from setting that career-high, which was also set three years ago.
Certainly, Kane would have rather extended his streak in a victory, but if he continues to produce at his rate, the success may continue for is team as it did the last three weeks.