Knight stars in Chicago debut as the Blackhawks beat the slumping Kings 5-1
CHICAGO (AP) — Spencer Knight made 41 saves in his first game with Chicago, helping the Blackhawks beat the Los Angeles Kings 5-1 on Monday night.
Defensemen Alec Martinez and Ethan Del Mastro scored for the Blackhawks, who opened a three-game homestand with their second consecutive win. Ilya Mikheyev, Andreas Athanasiou and Ryan Donato also scored.
Knight was acquired by Chicago when it traded defenseman Seth Jones to Florida on Saturday night.
Anze Kopitar scored his 14th goal for Los Angeles, which dropped its fourth straight game. Darcy Kuemper stopped 14 shots.
Mikheyev snapped a 1-1 tie with his 12th goal 46 seconds into the second period. The Blackhawks then caught a break when Del Mastro sent the puck toward the net and it went in off the left skate of Kings defenseman Jacob Moverare.
Del Mastro was credited with his second goal in 13 career games. He also scored in Chicago’s 7-5 loss at Vegas on Thursday night.
The Blackhawks closed it out when Donato got an empty-netter with 1:30 left. It was Donato’s 22nd goal of the season, extending his career high.
Takeaways
Kings: The Kings have managed just six goals during their four-game slide.
Blackhawks: Knight is still getting to know his new team, but he put together an impressive debut.
Key moment
Athanasiou made it 4-1 when he scored 1:20 into the third. It was his first goal in his second game since he was recalled from the minors on Friday.
Key stat
Donato, who could be on the move ahead of Friday’s NHL trade deadline, has nine goals and 12 assists in his last 16 games.
Up next
Both teams are at home on Wednesday night. The Kings face the St. Louis Blues, and the Blackhawks play the Ottawa Senators.
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