Corey Crawford completed the task to perfection on Sunday night as he made Andrew Shaw’s goal stand up in a 1-0 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets that stretched the Blackhawks’ NHL-record, season-opening point streak to 18 games.

The Blackhawks are 15-0-3 and show no signs of slowing down.

Crawford earned his seventh NHL shutout and second this season in his first start since Feb. 12. He outdueled Columbus’ Steve Mason, who stopped 26 shots including some sensational point-blank chances.

“I’m seeing the puck well,” Crawford said. “Everyone is doing their job, chipping in. It makes it a lot easier for me.

“Overall I felt good.”

Chicago coach Joel Quenneville thought Crawford (8-0-3) looked just fine in his return, too.

“He was quick,” Quenneville said. “(He was) big, especially on the side-to-side plays on the power play. He tracked the puck well, looked like he wasn’t off for any time at all.

“He had a couple extras days there, got ready. A great response.”

Crawford had been sidelined after he sustained an upper-body injury in a 3-2 shootout loss to Anaheim on Feb. 12. Ray Emery started and won four games in his absence.

Crawford had returned to the lineup as Emery’s backup on Friday when the Blackhawks set the NHL record with at least one point in the first 17 games of a season with a 2-1 win over San Jose. That topped the 2006-07 Anaheim Ducks, who started 12-0-4.

Shaw provided all the offense in the second period on Sunday for the Blackhawks, who have earned 33 of 36 possible points.

The Blackhawks also improved to 9-0-3 in games decided by one goal.

“We’re playing the score” Quenneville said. “We’re playing to win. Being on the right side of pucks in a game like today was a good test for us.

“They work hard. It’s the type of game you make sure you don’t try to manufacture things. We took too many penalties, but got better as the game went on.”

Chicago has won nine straight against Columbus, dating to Feb. 18, 2011.

The 18-game point streak is also a team record for the Blackhawks, who have only lost in shootouts this season.

The Blue Jackets (5-12-2), who have an NHL-low 12 points, went 0 for 5 on the power play. Mason kept the game close as he started for the first time in over a week.

He had been on the bench the past three games while Sergei Bobrovsky started.

“I felt good,” Mason said. “I had about a week’s worth of practice to get ready for this game.

“We knew it was going to be a big one with them being the only undefeated team in the NHL. We would have liked to have come in and ended that streak, but that didn’t happen.”

The Blackhawks dominated territorially and in puck possession through the first two periods, but only managed to get one shot past the Blue Jackets goalie.

Both teams had a handful of scoring chances in the first period. Mason made a point-blank pad save on Marian Hossa with 8:30 left, and Crawford stopped Derick Brassard from the slot two minutes later.

Mason denied Hossa on a breakaway 5:30 into the second after Hossa stole the puck from James Wisniewski at the Columbus blue line.

The Blue Jackets failed to convert several close-in attempts during a power-play late in the second, including when Vinny Prospal’s shot hit the crossbar to cap a breakaway.

Shaw finally broke through with 1:27 left in the second from the low edge of the left circle. He took Bryan Bickell’s backhanded feed from the back boards and ripped a high one-timed shot that beat Mason high on the stick side.

“He saw me coming,” Shaw said. “But I wasn’t sure, so I gave him a holler and he put it in a perfect area.”

Mason made a point-blank pad save on Patrick Kane midway through the third period after Kane made a spectacular spin move and cut across the crease alone.

Game notes

The Ducks went on to win the Stanley Cup in 2007. … Blackhawks C Dave Bolland missed the game because of an undisclosed upper-body injury. … Columbus went 1-5 on its six-game road trip. …The Blue Jackets placed D Jack Johnson (upper-body), on the injured list on Sunday. C Brandon Dubinsky (lower body) and C Artem Anisimov (upper body) were also out.

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Fasth earned a new contract after just nine unbeaten appearances with the Pacific Division-leading Ducks, who have the NHL’s second-best record at 12-2-1. He’ll make $2.4 million next season and $3.4 million in 2014-15.

“You always try to do your best and play your best, try to help the team as much as you can,” Fasth said in a phone interview. “That’s what I’ve been trying to focus on, and that’s what I have to keep doing, to do my part.”

The Ducks signed the 30-year-old Fasth to be Jonas Hiller’s backup last summer after a stellar pro career in his native Sweden, outbidding other NHL teams with a $1 million, one-year contract.

With Hiller slowed by a lower-body injury, Fasth has been largely outstanding in his place, making nine appearances with a 1.78 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage while tying for the league lead in victories.

“It feels great,” Fasth told ESPN.com. “I really like it here — the organization and the team and everything — so it feels great.”

Fasth is just the third goalie in NHL history to win his first eight decisions, joining Ray Emery and Bob Froese. He’s one win away from matching Emery’s record 9-0-0 start to his career with Ottawa.

He’s also playing a major role in the outstanding start by the Ducks, who have missed the playoffs in two of the last three years. Anaheim, currently on a five-day break between games, has won five straight while rising to second place in the Western Conference behind Chicago.

“Viktor has proven himself not only this year in the NHL, but the previous two seasons as the top goaltender in Sweden,” Ducks general manager Bob Murray said. “We are pleased to be able to keep him and feel fortunate to have two top NHL goaltenders going forward.”

Anaheim relied heavily last season on Hiller, who set a club record with an NHL-high 73 starts. The Ducks were determined not to wear down their former All-Star from Switzerland, and Fasth has provided coach Bruce Boudreau with two outstanding options.

Fasth won a shootout against Nashville in his NHL debut on Jan. 26, and he posted his first shutout at Colorado on Feb. 6.

Hiller outplayed longtime Ducks goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere to claim the Anaheim starting job during the 2008-09 season, but Hiller hasn’t lost his own starting job to Fasth quite yet. Hiller made 25 saves against Columbus on Monday night for his first victory in 18 days.

When asked if he considered himself the Ducks’ starter, Fasth replied: “No, I don’t.”

“Jonas played against Columbus and played incredibly good,” he added. “I just try to work hard, and I’ll play when the coach tells me to play. That’s how things work.”

Hiller is under contract through 2013-14, making $4.5 million this season and again next year.

Fasth has thoroughly impressed the Ducks with his smooth positional play and exceptional stick work, but the veteran netminder was expected to be a solid NHL player. He was named the Swedish Elite League’s top goaltender in each of the past two seasons with AIK Stockholm, the first goalie to win back-to-back Honken Trophies since New York Rangers star Henrik Lundqvist.

Fasth also played at the 2011 world championships in Slovakia, backstopping Sweden to silver medals while winning the tournament MVP award and raising his profile among international hockey watchers.

“The national team is a window for every player to get the ice under you,” Fasth said. “The Swedish Elite League, I don’t know if there’s many scouts watching that, but of course it helps to play for the national team and play good there.”

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Brent Seabrook and Jonathan Toews each had a goal and an assist to help the Blackhawks beat the Kings 3-2, extending their season-opening points streak to 15 games.

Patrick Sharp also scored for the Blackhawks (12-0-3), who matched the 1984-85 Edmonton Oilers for the second-longest season-opening points streak in NHL history. Chicago is one away from the tying the league record set by Anaheim in 2006-07 and will try to match the mark on Tuesday when it hosts Vancouver.

Mike Richards scored two power-play goals in the third period to pull the Kings within one after Chicago outplayed the Stanley Cup champions in the opening 40 minutes and built a 3-0 lead.

But the Blackhawks and goalie Ray Emery hung on.

“The guys wanted to get a good start, a good jump on L.A.,” Seabrook said. “Ray made the big saves when he needed to.”

The Blackhawks’ start to the season is beginning to reach historical proportions in more way than one.

Anaheim won the Stanley Cup in 2007 after its record-setting points start. The 1984-85 Oilers and Montreal, which opened with 14 straight in 1943-44, also won the Cup in those seasons.

Toews, Chicago’s captain, says the Blackhawks aren’t getting ahead of themselves, however.

“We’re 15 games into the season,” Toews said. “What’s important to us is getting home ice advantage, making the playoffs. Those are our goals. Once you get there, the real season starts.

“When you get to that point, no one really cares or remembers those streaks at the start of the season.”

Emery, Chicago’s backup, made 25 saves. He lost a bid for his first shutout in more than three years when Richards connected 56 seconds into the third period. Emery made back-to-back starts for the first time this season with Corey Crawford missing his second game because of an undisclosed upper-body injury.

And things got a little frantic for Chicago at the end after Richards notched his second goal — just his fourth this season — with 7:10 left. The Blackhawks spent the final 1:04 short-handed after Johnny Oduya was sent off for slashing, and Jonathan Quick was pulled for an extra attacker during that span.

“I thought we had a great first 40 minutes and they got some momentum off their power-play goal early in the third,” Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said. “They had a great third period. We had 40, they had a great 20, and the clock ran out, which was nice.”

Not so for Los Angeles (5-6-2), which has struggled on offense and with injuries. The only bright spot for the Kings was their power play, which came in ranked 27th in the NHL before connecting twice in a game for only the second time this season.

“We probably didn’t play well enough to win this game,” Richards said. “The slow start kind of cost us. We gave them a lot in the first period with penalties and some turnovers and they scored some goals, which put us behind the eight-ball pretty quick.”

Sharp, who led Chicago with 33 goals last season, ended a 10-game drought without a score.

The Blackhawks outshot Los Angeles 37-27 and defeated the Kings for the second time this season to end Los Angeles’ two-game winning streak. Chicago won 5-2 in the teams’ season opener at Staples Center.

Quick started in goal and finished with 34 saves for the Kings after backup Jonathan Bernier was in net in Los Angeles’ previous two games.

Chicago was a step faster than the Kings in the first period and held a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes.

Seabrook opened the scoring 6:29 in to cap a Chicago flurry in the Kings’ zone, and after Quick had made several in-close saves.

Seabrook pinched down to the low edge of the left circle and took a pinpoint feed from Duncan Keith, who threaded a cross-ice pass from the top of the right circle. Seabrook then slid a shot into an open net before Quick could dive across.

Toews’ power-play goal 4 minutes later made it 2-0. Stationed in the slot, Toews first tipped Keith’s feed off the right post, but buried the loose puck before Quick could cover it.

Sharp exploited a Kings coverage breakdown and increased Chicago’s lead to 3-0 just 56 seconds into the second period. Quick dropped to the ice to block Toews’ stuff-in attempt at the side of the net, but the puck popped into the slot. Sharp was wide open and fired high into the net before Quick could recover.

The Blackhawks were in control for most of the second period and outshot Los Angeles 21-10. But Emery had to make several tough saves late in the period — including in-close stops on Dustin Brown and Jeff Carter — to keep the Kings off the scoreboard.

Richards cut it to 3-1 early in the third. With Brown providing a screen at the edge of the crease, Richards’ high shot from the top of the slot sailed past Emery. Richards’ second power-play goal trimmed it to 3-2 with 7:10 left. This time, he beat Emery from the top of the left circle with Brown screening.

Game notes

Before the game, Quenneville said Crawford was “progressing” and is day-to-day. When asked if Crawford’s condition might be long-term, Quenneville replied, “I don’t foresee that yet.” Crawford — who has a 7-0-3 record, 1.65 goals-against average and .935 save percentage — has not skated since sustaining his injury, apparently in a 3-2 shootout loss to Anaheim last Tuesday.

The post Blackhawks beat Kings to extend points streak to 15 games appeared first on IdealCapper.

The Hawks recalled goaltender Henrik Karlsson from the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL.

Crawford missed the morning skate as the team prepared to face the San Jose Sharks on Friday night.

“He’s out for today, day to day, upper body,” coach Joel Quenneville said after Friday’s morning skate. “Didn’t feel great (after Thursday’s) practice. That’s where he’s at.”

When asked if Crawford could play Sunday against the Los Angeles Kings, Quenneville said, “We’ll see.”

Karlsson was at Friday’s practice along with goaltender Ray Emery, who is scheduled to start against the Sharks.

Emery is 3-0-0 with a 2.60 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage. He made a career-high 45 saves and stopped all three shootout shots in a 3-2 win win against the Calgary Flames on Feb. 2. “The guys have played well no matter who’s in net,” Quenneville said. “They’ve been consistent. I think there’s confidence no matter who’s in the net in both ways this year. I think Ray is coming off another solid game after a spectacular game in Calgary. I think he’s had a real good approach to the season as well. I’m sure he’s excited about playing today as well.”

The 29-year-old Karlsson was acquired from the Flames for a 2013 seventh-round pick on Jan. 21. He had a 2-2-0 record with a 2.23 GAA and a .919 save percentage with the IceHogs this season.

“Well, he’s big,” Quenneville said of the 6-foot-6, 209-pound Karlsson. “He’s got some NHL games under his belt. He looked all right in practice today, too, so he gives us a nice addition to lineup as far as the organization as well when we picked him up a couple weeks ago.”

Karlsson, who is originally from Sweden, played 26 regular-season games with the Flames spanning the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons. He was 5-9-8 with a 2.79 GAA and a .905 save percentage with Calgary. After beginning his professional career in the Swedish Elite League, he was signed by the Sharks in 2009 and traded to the Flames in 2010.

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