The Blackhawks maintained their six-point lead in the Central Division, while Pacific Division leader Edmonton missed a chance to bolster its advantage, beaten at home by the New York Rangers.

Minnesota’s Matt Dumba scored late in overtime to give the Wild victory over Ottawa.

Chicago’s Kane put the hosts ahead 3-2 with 3:37 left in the second period. Kane skated down the slot, fooled an opponent with a move and chipped a shot past Montreal goaltender Al Montoya, while falling to the ice after being checked from behind.

Marian Hossa scored his team-leading ninth goal of the season and rookie Gustav Forsling scored his first in the NHL as the Blackhawks improved to 9-0-2 from their past 11 games.

Shea Weber and Andrei Markov scored for the Canadiens in a matchup of conference leaders.

New York’s Michael Grabner scored twice in a 3-1 win for the Rangers at Edmonton.

Grabner already has 10 goals in 16 games this season, compared to nine in 80 games with Toronto last year.

Antti Raanta stopped 38 shots and Dan Girardi also scored to help the Rangers win for the seventh time in eight games.

Andrej Sekera scored for the Oilers, who have lost three straight.

Minnesota’s Matt Dumba came up with the winner just before a shootout was due, giving the Wild a 2-1 win against Ottawa.

Ryan Suter scored a short-handed goal for the Wild, and goalie Darcy Kuemper stopped 35 shots in his third start of the season.

Winnipeg’s Mark Scheifele scored the deciding goal in a shootout to give the Jets a 3-2 victory over Los Angeles.

Boston’s Tuukka Rask recorded a shutout and improved to 7-0 in road games this season, leading the Bruins to a 2-0 win against Colorado.

Vancouver’s Troy Stecher tied it with 1:40 left in the third period and Markus Granlund scored in overtime, helping the Canucks rally to beat Dallas 5-4.

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The popular video game company announced its decision on its Twitter account Wednesday. EA Sports says Kane will no longer be a spokesman for NHL 16, nor appear on the game’s cover as previously planned.

Kane was to appear on the cover alongside Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews.

Kane’s lawyer, Paul Cambria, and agent, Pat Brisson, did not return messages seeking comment.

EA Sports’ decision comes less than a week after Hamburg police announced Kane is under investigation for something that may have happened at Kane’s home outside Buffalo on Aug. 2.

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The biggest stars for the Blackhawks and Lightning are looking to break out with the deadlocked series shifting to Chicago for Game 3 on Monday night.

Toews’ third-period assist in Chicago’s 4-3 loss to Tampa Bay on Saturday night was the 100th career playoff point for the captain – and his first of the final.

Kane, who played alongside Toews for much of the first two games, failed to register a shot on goal in Game 2. Stamkos, the captain of the Lightning, is scoreless in his last four games.

The winner of the series very well could be the team that gets one of those scorers going.

”I mean, as an offensive guy, you want to be helping produce, especially at this time of year,” Kane said. ”But, you know, we said all along with our team, we don’t really care where the goals come from, as long as they’re coming from our team.”

While Toews, Kane and Stamkos have been shut down so far, the big question hanging over the Stanley Cup on Sunday was which goalie would be in net for Tampa Bay in Game 3. Even coach Jon Cooper said he wasn’t sure.

Ben Bishop left midway through the third period of Game 2. He returned for a brief stretch and then left for good. Andrei Vasilevskiy made five saves to help close out the series-tying win.

There has been no word from the Lightning on why Bishop departed. Cooper said he could be available for Game 3.

”You’ll have a better indication, I guess, tomorrow at the skate,” Cooper said. ”Although our morning skates are all optional anyway. Bish, notoriously he goes on sometimes during them and sometimes he doesn’t. I’m sure you’ll get a clue then tomorrow.”

The 6-foot-7 Bishop had a franchise-record 40 wins this season. He is 12-9 with a 2.20 goals-against average in the playoffs.

Vasilevskiy, who turns 21 in July, has made 19 appearances this year, counting the playoffs, but Cooper and the Lightning insist they are comfortable with him in goal.

”If Bish can’t go tomorrow, is that a blow to us? Sure it is,” Cooper said. ”But do we think the series is lost because Vasilevskiy is going in? Not a chance.”

Tampa Bay’s revolving door in goal and the free-wheeling pace of Game 2 made Kane’s blank scoresheet all the more surprising. It was only the second time that he failed to record a shot on goal in 112 career playoff games, according to STATS.

”It’s not a stat you like to see, for sure,” said Kane, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2013 for playoff MVP. ”At the same time going into the next game, I’m not going to go in saying, `I need to get a shot here or there.’ I just go out and try to make the right play and worry about the results from there.”

—

Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap

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While paying a steep price for help, Bowman bet on his team.

The Blackhawks acquired center Antoine Vermette, defenseman Kimmo Timonen and winger Andrew Desjardins in three separate trades before the deadline, and the quick response to Kane’s injury helped Chicago get to the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in the past six seasons.

Game 1 is Wednesday night against Tampa Bay, which is aiming for its second NHL title after a series of deft moves by general manager Steve Yzerman helped the Lightning return to the final for the first time since 2004.

”When Patrick went down, he was probably the best player in the league,” Bowman said Tuesday. ”That was a bit of a blow there, but I think we were able to rally around that. Some other guys stepped up. The players we brought in have all contributed in different ways.”

The trades for Vermette and Timonen were particularly costly, and each of the three new players struggled right after they arrived in Chicago. Young defenseman Klas Dahlbeck and the Blackhawks’ first-round pick in this year’s draft went to Arizona in the Vermette deal, and Bowman parted with two more draft picks to get Timonen from Philadelphia.

But Vermette has stepped up his play in the postseason, scoring the winning goal in Chicago’s double-overtime victory in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals against Anaheim. Desjardins, who came over in a deal with San Jose, has teamed with Marcus Kruger and Andrew Shaw to form a successful fourth line.

Timonen, trying to cap a 16-year NHL career with his first Stanley Cup title, was scratched for the final two games against the Ducks, but he has made 15 appearances in this postseason for Chicago.

”I think when you make moves, you’re trying to give yourself depth and options,” said Bowman, who became the Blackhawks’ GM in 2009. ”You never just say, `We’re getting this one player, he’s alone going to make the difference.’ Things evolve over time, whether it’s the player’s individual play, team play, injury, happenstance, guys can emerge in different roles.

”All three of the players we have have been important in getting to this point. You can break it down into the nitty-gritty, but certainly I’m happy that we have the depth that we do.”

Kane’s time on long-term injured reserve provided some wiggle room with the salary cap that played a key role in the deadline deals. Then he managed to return for the start of the playoffs, making for an even stronger hand for coach Joel Quenneville than before Kane’s injury.

”For me, it’s giving Joel options,” Bowman said. ”He’s got a great ability to kind of put the right combinations together and make things work. That’s what the coaches are so good at.”

Yzerman became the general manager of the Lightning in May 2010. Tampa Bay made it to the conference finals the following year, but then missed the playoffs for two straight seasons.

After a sweep by Montreal in the first round a year ago, Yzerman made a couple of important moves that helped set the stage for this year’s run.

Fresh off the New York Rangers’ run to the final, defenseman Anton Stralman (five years, $22.5 million) and center Brian Boyle (three years, $6 million) signed with the Lightning in free agency. Key forwards Ryan Callahan, Alex Killorn and Ondrej Palat each got new deals with the club.

While Chicago was trying to make up for the loss of Kane, Yzerman acquired defenseman Braydon Coburn in a deadline trade with the Flyers.

”There’s no quick fixes, no real solutions,” Yzerman said, describing the route back to playoff success after a couple of lean years for the Lightning. ”You kind of just stick with the process. Really trying our best to hang on to your draft picks, try to make good choices, then give them time to develop.”

Yzerman is looking to add a Tampa Bay title to his four championships with Detroit. The Hall of Fame center won the Stanley Cup three times during his 22-year playing career with the Red Wings, and then got another ring during his time in Detroit’s front office.

While Yzerman was a solid playoff performer with the Red Wings, he knows there isn’t much he can do in the postseason as an executive.

”Really after the trade deadline, as a general manager, you make sure you’re there for support and help out wherever you can,” he said. ”Much like a fan or a parent or whatever, it’s hard to watch because you really don’t have a lot of impact on a day-to-day basis. Stay out of the coaches’ and players’ way. Again, the emotion of winning and losing, I think it’s pretty much similar. I’m 50 years old. I can’t live in the past. I enjoy this role.”

—

Cohen reported from Chicago.

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Patrick Kane scored in the first period, but the Blackhawks were shut out the rest of the way in a 2-1 loss to Anaheim on Thursday night that gave the Ducks a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference finals.

”It’s frustrating that we lost, and frustrating because we had some opportunities whether it was the power play or different chances and stuff that would get me back in the game,” Kane said. ”Other than that, we knew it was going to be a tough series. This is a good team. It’s tough to lose, especially at home, but we’ve got to regroup.”

Frederik Andersen made 27 saves and Simon Despres scored his first career playoff goal as top-seeded Anaheim bounced back quite nicely from Tuesday night’s triple-overtime loss that included two power-play goals for Chicago. Patrick Maroon also scored for the Ducks, and Ryan Getzlaf had two assists.

”This was a character win,” coach Bruce Boudreau said.

The Blackhawks outshot the Ducks 10-5 in the third, but couldn’t get the tying goal as Andersen continued his great run in the playoffs. He has allowed just 23 goals in the Ducks’ 10-2 start to the postseason.

Anaheim finished with 27 blocked shots, compared to nine for Chicago. Game 4 is Saturday night at the United Center.

”We’ve learned as much as we can from the way we’re playing and we’ll try to be better the next game,” forward Patrick Sharp said. ”I think we can be better winning battles, getting to the net. When you have a tough time putting pucks on the net, you here the same quotes from us, and we need to start applying ourselves.”

Two days after Chicago’s 3-2 victory in Anaheim, the Blackhawks shuffled their lineup while the Ducks went with the same group for Game 3. Forwards Kris Versteeg and Joakim Nordstrom were active, replacing Antoine Vermette and Teuvo Teravainen in a bit of surprise.

Versteeg and Nordstrom were mostly quiet in their first action since the first round against Nashville.

”We just wanted to get some fresh legs in there,” coach Joel Quenneville said. ”We felt that Steeger had never played over a long stretch in the last series, we wanted to get him back in there. You know, tough game the other day, travel. We wanted to bring some new guys in.”

Ryan Kesler’s two holding penalties contributed to 9:18 of power-play time for the Blackhawks, but the Ducks’ penalty killers kept most of Chicago’s opportunities to the outside and Andersen stood his ground during a couple of goalmouth scrums.

”Yeah, we just sharpened up on the PK,” Andersen said. ”We weren’t satisfied with what we did the last game. That was huge for this group coming off a tough loss where we gave up two goals on the PK. We wanted to be better today.”

The teams were tied at 1 before Despres drove a pass from Getzlaf past Corey Crawford from the right wing with 55 seconds left in the second. Crawford finished with 25 saves.

Despres came over in a trade with Pittsburgh in March.

”It’s been a good run so far,” Despres said. ”We haven’t done anything yet. We want to get to the top. It’s a team game and the team has been playing very well so far.”

While the Blackhawks struggled on the power play, the Ducks capitalized on their only chance with the man advantage. With Marian Hossa in the box for holding, Maroon tipped Hampus Lindholm’s long slap shot past Crawford at 12:55 of the first for a 1-0 lead.

Anaheim then killed off a double minor on Jakob Silfverberg for high-sticking, but Chicago tied it at 1 when Kane converted a spinning backhander in the final minute of the first. It was the first point of the series for Kane, who had seven goals and six assists in the first two rounds.

The Ducks made a big push at the start of the second, recording eight of the first nine shots on goal. The Blackhawks started to play better midway through the period, but Andersen had a nice stop on an open look for Jonathan Toews at 9:17, and then had an outstanding glove save on Brandon Saad with 1:24 to go.

NOTES: NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman attended the game. … Kane moved into a tie with Steve Larmer for fourth on the franchise list with 45 career playoff goals.

—

Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap

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St. Louis already has won the award twice (2010, ’11), and was a finalist two other times. The 37-year-old ranked second among NHL forwards in total ice time, but was assessed just 14 penalty minutes.

Moulson is a finalist for the second straight season. He had four penalty minutes in 47 games, tied with San Jose’s Logan Couture for the fewest among the NHL’s top 50 scorers.

Kane is a Lady Byng finalist for the first time, after helping Chicago to a Presidents’ Trophy. He played 47 games and averaged 20:03 of ice time, but had just eight penalty minutes.

“Any time you’re up for an award, it’s exciting,” Kane said Thursday. “I thought maybe I had a chance at this one. I think it kind of speaks volumes of where my game has gone since my rookie season. I remember I used to take a lot of penalties that were kind of unnecessary and I kind of got that out of my game a little bit. I’m definitely happy about it. It’s an honor, for sure.”

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After all, the NHL leaders started the lockout-shortened season with points in their first 24 games — a league record.

But the Blackhawks made a strong statement Sunday in becoming the first team this season to clinch postseason berth, as they used a third-period rally to beat the Nashville Predators 5-3.

Rookie Brandon Saad and Jonathan Toews scored 55 seconds apart midway through the third. Chicago (29-5-4) had fallen behind 3-2 early in the period on a goal by Nashville’s David Legwand, but Saad and Toews connected against Pekka Rinne to put the Blackhawks back ahead.

The Blackhawks defeated the Predators for the second time in two days and improved to 13-0-1 against Central Division teams.

“We obviously wanted to stay in the spot we’re in in the standings,” Toews said, “but first and foremost, our No. 1 goal coming in every season is we want to make the playoffs.

“To beat a team like Nashville twice in a row, first on the road and then at home, is a great thing. We did a lot of good things in that game, but most of all, we didn’t stop working. We found a way to win in the third.”

Patrick Kane, who set up Toews’ eventual game-winner, added an empty-net goal with 32 seconds left to complete the scoring. Andrew Shaw and Bryan Bickell also scored for Chicago.

Kane’s hustling assist on Toews goal at 10:32 of the third might have been the pivotal mark on the score sheet.

Kane outraced two Predators to a loose puck on the back boards, then centered to Toews, who connected on a low shot from the right circle.

“That should be the headline, because you don’t see that too often. I’m just kidding,” Toews said. “It was a great play by him.

“I came flying off the bench and he saw me in the slot. My first thought was to try and find Saad backdoor because I could see him kind of going to the net there, but I went against that instinct and shot the puck.”

Shea Weber and Nick Spaling each had a goal and an assist for the Predators (15-17-8), who are 13th in the Western Conference with 38 points, five behind eighth-place Detroit at the postseason cutoff.

“It was competitive,” Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said. “(The Predators) played both these games as they had to win. Yesterday we were maybe a little bit more efficient than we were today, but we were sticking with it.”

Nashville played with desperation after a sluggish first period, but the Predators were done in by mistakes — and a talented Chicago team.

“We got beat to the puck on the one (Toews) goal,” Nashville coach Barry Trotz said. “It was just individual stuff.

“That’s on our D. Our D has got to have that puck.”

Chicago’s Ray Emery stopped 19 shots, following a 20-save, 1-0 win at Nashville on Saturday. The Blackhawks improved to 4-0 against the Predators this season.

Rinne, who leads the NHL in games and minutes played, made 35 saves as he appeared in his 29th straight contest.

The Predators have made the playoffs the past three seasons and in seven of eight, but that run is in jeopardy

“We’ve just got to play hard and see what happens,” Trotz said. “The chances are remote, but you’ve got to play hard. You’re not going to do anybody any favors if you don’t.”

Both teams skated without key forwards.

Nashville left wing Gabriel Bourque, who is tied with Legwand for the team lead with 11 goals, missed his fourth game because of an upper body injury. Mike Fisher, third on the Predators with 19 points, sat out after aggravating a hand injury that caused him to miss three games last week.

Patrick Sharp, who led the Blackhawks with 33 goals last season, missed his 14th game with a shoulder injury. Dave Bolland sat out his second because of a lower body injury, believed to have been caused when a shot by Weber struck him last Monday.

The Blackhawks killed the only penalty against them on Sunday and have snuffed 17 straight chances. Chicago hasn’t allowed a power-play goal in 10 games, dating to March 18.

The Blackhawks entered the game as the third-least penalized team in the NHL, training the New York Islanders and Rangers.

Shaw opened the scoring 6:34 in on a tip-in.

Michael Frolik jumped on a rebound that Rinne had deflected to the left boards, then turned and fired on goal in one motion. Shaw deflected the puck over Rinne’s shoulder.

The Blackhawks dominated the first period, outshooting the Predators 17-7. But a turnover by defenseman Johnny Oduya in the slot set off a scramble that led to Spaling’s goal that made it 1-1 with 2:44 left.

Sergei Kostitsyn grabbed the loose puck and shot from a sharp angle to the right of the net. Emery stopped that attempt, but Spaling fired in the rebound before Emery could recover.

Bickell, who scored Chicago’s only goal on Saturday, put the Blackhawks back in front 2-1 at 2:09 of the second.

Weber tied it at 2 just over three minutes later, when he fired from the top of the right circle directly from a faceoff win by Spaling.

Legwand scored on a rebound to put Nashville ahead 3-2 at 6:54 of the third to cap a scrum around the Chicago net.

Saad tied it at 3 at 9:37 from 10 feet. After fanning on a first shot attempt, defenseman Duncan Keith swept in and fired a shot that Rinne blocked. Saad converted the rebound.

Toews put Chicago ahead 4-3 at 10:32. Kane’s goal with 32 seconds left completed the scoring.

Game notes

Before the game, Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said that Sharp could return this week. When asked about Bolland’s condition, he said, “We don’t think it’s serious.” … Nashville C Paul Gaustad missed a second game with an upper body injury. … Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin, who played for the Blackhawks and worked in their front office, attended the game.

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Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa each scored twice in leading the Blackhawks to an 8-1 rout of the Dallas Stars on Saturday night.

Nick Leddy and Patrick Kane each had a goal and two assists as eight Blackhawks scored two or more points and Chicago boosted its road record to 12-1-2 with a dominant win on the second stop of a four-game road trip.

“A great effort all-around by the team,” said Kane, whose 15th goal of the season was a highlight-reel beauty in the third period. “It was a game that we probably needed, since we’ve been in so many close games, to get some guys some confidence scoring some goals. It was good to see a lot of guys step up.”

Corey Crawford made 18 saves for his 13th victory, and Johnny Oduya and Duncan Keith had the Blackhawks’ other goals.

“We had all areas of our game with us, puck possession, playing a sound-game system-wise. Everybody contributed,” Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said.

The Blackhawks are 2-2-0 since their record 21-0-3 streak to start the season.

Defenseman Trevor Daley scored for the Stars, who have been outscored 16-3 in losing four straight (0-3-1). Three games into a stretch in which the Stars play nine of 11 at home, they have lost all three and are 2-5-1 in their last nine in Dallas.

“If this wasn’t an alarm clock, I don’t know what is,” Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said.

The return of offensive catalyst Jamie Benn, who missed two games with a wrist injury, wasn’t enough to help the Stars, although he assisted on Dallas’ only goal, feeding Daley for a one-timer on a power play at 6:30 of the third period to spoil Crawford’s shutout bid.

Kari Lehtonen took the loss in goal for Dallas, surrendering four goals on 17 shots before he was pulled midway through the second period. Richard Bachman made 13 saves in relief.

“We dumped on our first goalie and we dumped on our second goalie,” Benn said. “We left them to hang out to dry and it’s unacceptable. We need to do something within this room to change that. It’s an unacceptable effort tonight. These guys gave us a wakeup call tonight.”

Toews struck twice within 1:35 to propel Chicago to a 2-0 lead in the first period and the Blackhawks never looked back.

At 9:05, Toews cruised through the top of the crease and his nifty deflection of Leddy’s slap shot from the left point beat Lehtonen.

His second goal came seconds after he won an offensive zone face-off, and set up in front of the net, where Duncan Keith’s point shot ricocheted off Daley right to him for an easy tap-in into the open side of the net at 10:40.

“I think maybe the fact that we were able to distance ourselves early and not let them back into the game maybe took the wind out of their sails,” said Toews, who has 13 goals. “And as the game went along, the puck just seemed to keep bouncing our way. We worked for our success. I think whether you score eight goals or not, we did what we had to do to win and played a full 60 minutes.”

The Blackhawks extended their lead to 3-0 on Leddy’s third goal of the season at 17:54. Lehtonen stopped Viktor Stalberg’s point-blank shot, but Leddy managed to jam home the rebound.

Chicago continued to control the action in the second, nearly going up by four at 7:30 when a turnover by Dallas rookie defender Brenden Dillon gave Jimmy Hayes an uncontested wrist shot from the slot, but he fired it over the crossbar.

Oduya made it 4-0 at 8:01 when his slap shot from the blue line sailed past a screened Lehtonen, pinged off the left post and dropped in for his second goal in as many games.

That goal prompted Gulutzan to pull Lehtonen in favor of Bachman.

The Blackhawks scored on their first shot against Bachman, taking a 5-0 lead at 12:18 while the clubs were skating four aside, on Hossa’s one-timer from in front off a nifty backhand pass from Kane.

“We were talking about it before the shift,” Hossa said of the play, “and I knew as soon as he went on the right side, he’d throw it in the middle and I tried to just try to find a way to best position myself to score the goal.”

Skating with a 5-on-3 advantage, Chicago struck again with 50.8 seconds left in the period when Hossa launched a blistering snap shot from the right circle that beat Bachman over his glove.

Keith’s second goal of the year, off a wrist shot that glanced off Benn’s stick in front, beat Bachman at 2:06 of the final period.

Two minutes after Daley snapped the shutout in the third period, another Dallas goal was wiped out. Eric Nystrom’s wrist shot found its way over Crawford’s shoulder, but the officials ruled that Vernon Fiddler interfered with Crawford on the play.

“We certainly got humbled,” Stars captain Brenden Morrow said. “We knew they were a good team coming in. We’d like to think we were prepared for it and expected it, but obviously we weren’t. This was deflating for us. We’ve got some work to do.”

Kane made it 8-1 on the ensuing power play with a spin move in the right circle for a backhander that beat Bachman past the glove at 9:59.

Game notes

Daley’s goal snapped an 0-for-10 power play drought for the Stars over the past three games. … After a 2-for-6 showing with the man-advantage, Chicago is 5 for 21 over its last nine contests on the power play. … The Stars honored their general manager, former C Joe Nieuwendyk, as part of their all-time team. Nieuwendyk played in Dallas from 1995-2002, winning the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1999 while helping the Stars earn the franchise’s only Stanley Cup.

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The deal is worth $66 million for an average of $8.25 million per season, league sources told ESPN.com’s Pierre LeBrun.

The Ducks announced the deal Friday with Getzlaf, the former Canadian Olympic center who has spent his entire NHL career with Anaheim. His new contract runs through the 2020-21 season.

Getzlaf would have been an unrestricted free agent this summer along with Corey Perry, the former NHL MVP and his longtime teammate. Perry remains signed to his current deal.

Getzlaf, 27, has scored 499 points in 534 games with Anaheim, establishing himself as one of the NHL’s top playmakers. He won the Stanley Cup in 2007 and became Anaheim’s captain in 2010.

“This is a wonderful day for my family, as Anaheim has become our home,” said Getzlaf, a native of Saskatchewan. “The fans here have treated me very well, and I look forward to being part of a winning hockey team and contributing to the Orange County community for years to come.”

After struggling last year to his lowest-scoring performance in a full NHL season, Getzlaf is in the midst of an outstanding season for the Ducks (16-3-3), who have the NHL’s second-best record behind Chicago.

Getzlaf has nine goals and 18 assists with a plus-10 rating in just 22 games this season, tying with Chicago’s Patrick Kane for the Western Conference scoring lead.

Perry has seemed more interested than Getzlaf in exploring free agency. The gold-medal-winning Canadian Olympians have spent their entire careers with Anaheim, which drafted them together in the first round in 2003.

Ducks general manager Bob Murray has been eager to re-sign both Getzlaf and Perry, even though Anaheim has won just one playoff round in the five seasons since the franchise’s only Stanley Cup title. After several years of slow starts, the duo have justified Murray’s faith in them this season with strong play, leading the Ducks to a significant lead in the Pacific Division near the midway point of the lockout-shortened season.

“We are very happy to have Ryan committed to this franchise long-term,” Murray said. “He has often expressed his interest to stay in Anaheim for his entire career, a goal we share. He is a leader, a proven winner, and possesses a skill set that’s hard to find. This is a great day for the Ducks.”

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Just like the Chicago Blackhawks.

Chicago extended its NHL-record season-opening points streak to 22 games Sunday when Kane scored the tying goal on a power play with 2:02 left in regulation and the Blackhawks earned an extra point when the star forward scored the only goal in a shootout of a 2-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings.

“Just amazing what’s going on,” Kane said.

Corey Crawford was perfect in the shootout and finished with 32 saves to help Chicago win a ninth straight game.

“He had several big saves, particularly right after they scored to go up one,” Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said. “He kept us in there to make it a one-goal game and gave us a chance.”

The Blackhawks have earned at least a point in 28 straight games — dating to a March 25, 2012 loss in regulation to Nashville — to tie the second-longest streak in league history. They’ve matched Montreal’s multi-season points run from the 1977-78 season and trail only Philadelphia’s streak of 35 straight games with at least a point during the 1979-80 season.

“It’s impressive,” Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard acknowledged after making 32 saves. “They’re finding different ways to do it every single night.”

It looked like Chicago’s sensational streak of success might end when Detroit’s Tomas Tatar broke a scoreless tie early in the third period and Howard stopped every puck that came his way.

Kane and Crawford had other ideas.

“We keep finding a way to keep ourselves in the game or win it at the end,” Kane said.

The Red Wings hurt their chances by getting called for delay of game twice toward the end of regulation for putting the puck out of play.

Chicago took advantage of the first of two late power plays with forward Viktor Stalberg getting more of the puck than Detroit defenseman Kyle Quincey did, pushing it to Kane to set up a one-timer that made it 1-1.

Kane scored from the bottom of the right circle and pivoted toward the crowd, shouting with joy as he pumped his gloves toward the banner-filled rafters.

“He knew the importance of it to get us to overtime,” Quenneville said.

With a sold-out crowd on its feet for a shootout at the end of an entertaining afternoon of hockey, Detroit’s Pavel Datsyuk was denied on a low attempt by Crawford’s pads on the first attempt. Jonathan Toews then went high and couldn’t get a shot past Howard’s glove.

Red Wings rookie Damien Brunner made some nifty moves next, but couldn’t keep the puck and for that, Crawford looked thankful as the two met face to face on the ice.

Kane then stole the show, slowly skating toward Howard and lifting his right skate off the ice twice before flipping a wrist shot past him to make the fans at Joe Louis Arena sigh.

“He’s got great skill,” Howard said.

On Detroit’s third attempt in the heart-pounding shootout, Henrik Zetterberg couldn’t extend the game.

“I don’t think we were close to perfect and we almost beat them anyway,” Zetterberg said.

The Red Wings had chances to win in regulation, and in overtime, but Crawford was effective in his return to the net.

Crawford slid to his left to get a piece of Johan Franzen’s shot with 1:40 left in overtime, and the two talked about the play during the subsequent break.

Both teams were inches away from scoring in the final seconds of overtime, with Detroit’s Brendan Smith just missing an opportunity to the left of the net and Kane’s shot squirting past Howard before it trickled just to right of the other net.

The Blackhawks dominated the first period, but Howard — and his teammates — prevented them from scoring on two power plays. The second period was evenly played, then Detroit finally got a shot past Crawford at 2:43 of the third.

Patrick Eaves got to a loose puck behind Chicago’s net, pushed it to Joakim Andersson, whose sharp pass set up Tatar perfectly on the side of the net to beat Crawford.

A bit later, Crawford made a spectacular glove save to deny Datsyuk’s chance that could’ve given the Red Wings a two-goal lead — and perhaps the win in regulation.

Quenneville gave Crawford the start in Detroit after he left his last game Thursday night in St. Louis with an upper-body injury that Quenneville insisted isn’t the same one that forced the goaltender off the ice earlier in the season.

Crawford didn’t get much work early, making just three saves in the first period. He stopped 12 shots in the second — as did Howard — in a fast-pace game filled with end-to-end action and few whistles.

“It was a fun game,” Zetterberg said. “Fans were really into it from the start. These are the games you’re looking forward to play. Unfortunately we couldn’t come up with the win.”

Game notes

The previous record for season-opening points streak was 16 set by the Anaheim Ducks during the 2006-07 season. … Chicago plans to have F Dave Bolland (upper-body injury) back in the lineup Tuesday at home against Minnesota. … Detroit hopes F Valtteri Filppula, out with shoulder injury, can return by next weekend. … Blackhawks F Marian Hossa, a former Red Wing, played in his 1,000th NHL game, a milestone that was recognized by the public address announcer amid a chorus of boos.

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