This Week in Chicago Blackhawks History: A hard hat night to remember, a win outdoors & more

This has been a memorable week in Chicago Blackhawks franchise history. Several Hall of Famers set personal milestones, while a handful of players who have yet to take their place in Toronto helped build their case. Plus, the Blackhawks scored their only outdoor win on a snowy night on the lakefront. The CHGO time machine is fired up and ready to go, so let’s hop on the ride and enjoy this look back.

Feb. 23

1952 – Elmer Lach had a four-point night with a goal and three assists to lead the Montreal Canadiens to a 7-0 win over the Blackhawks. This gave him 550 points, moving ahead of Bill Cowley on the NHL’s all-time points list.

1964 – Glenn Hall became the third goaltender in league history to have five 30-win seasons when he shut out the Boston Bruins 2-0. He also had an assist for good measure.

1984 – Jordan Hendry was born in Nokomis, SK. The defenseman played 129 games for the Blackhawks over four seasons, scoring four goals and 13 points, and was part of the 2010 Stanley Cup team. He signed with Lugano of the Swiss League following the 2010-11 season. He returned to the NHL in 2012 for a brief stint with the Anaheim Ducks.

1991 – Michel Goulet became the 30th player in NHL history to score 1,000 career points by scoring all three goals in a 3-3 tie with the Minnesota North Stars. This was the 14th hat trick of his Hall of Fame career and his first with the Blackhawks.

1996 – Nick Schmaltz was born in Madison, WI. The Blackhawks drafted him in the first round (20^th overall) of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. The center scored 29 goals and 91 points in 162 games for the Blackhawks before he was traded to the Arizona Coyotes for Dylan Strone and Brendan Perlini on Nov. 25, 2018.

Feb. 24

1919 – Doug McCaig was born in Guelph, ON. He was acquired from the Detroit Red Wings with George Blake and cash for George Gee and Bud Poile on Oct. 25, 1948. The defenseman had three goals and 15 points in 171 games over three seasons before he was traded back to Detroit on Sept. 18, 1951, for Max Quackenbush.

1934 – Murray Costello was born in South Porcupine, ON. He had three goals and five points in 40 games during the 1953-54 season. On Oct. 4. 1954, he was traded to the Bruins for Frank Martin. Costello was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as a Builder in 2005 for the work he did for Canadian hockey. He was president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association from 1979 until 1994, when he facilitated the merger with Hockey Canada. He served as Hockey Canada’s president until 1998. He helped make Canada’s men’s national junior team the powerhouse it is today. Costello oversaw the founding of the national women’s team in Canada and helped get the inaugural IIHF Women’s World Championship off the ground in 1990.

1963 – Stan Mikita scored his third career hat trick and added an assist in a 4-3 victory against the visiting Bruins.

1968 – Mikita became the third player in franchise history to score 250 goals when he lit the lamp in a 3-3 tie with the Los Angeles Kings.

1972 – Eric Nesterenko became just the second player to play in 1,000 games for the Blackhawks and picked up an assist in a 5-3 loss at the Buffalo Sabres.

1988 – In his 600th NHL game, Denis Savard scored a shorthanded goal during a 6-4 victory over the Edmonton Oilers. This was his seventh shorthanded goal of the season, breaking the club record set by Nesterenko during the 1964-65 season.

1991 – Tim Erixon was born in Port Chester, NY. He was acquired from the Columbus Blue Jackets for Jeremy Morin on Dec. 14, 2014. He played eight scoreless games for the Blackhawks before he was claimed off waivers by the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 1, 2015. The defenseman only played in 93 NHL games but was involved in two big trades during his career. He went to Columbus from the New York Rangers in the 2012 trade that sent Rick Nash to the Big Apple. Later in 2015, the Maple Leafs made him part of the Phil Kessel trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

1993 – Phillip Danault was born in Victoriaville, QC. The Blackhawks drafted the center in the first round (26^th overall) of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. He had one goal and five points in 32 NHL games before he was involved in arguably the worst trade in the Stan Bowman era. On Feb. 26, 2016, he was traded with a second-round pick to the Canadiens for Tomas Fleischmann and Dale Weise. That 2018 pick was used to select defenseman Alexander Romanov.  

2013 – The Blackhawks improved to 15-0-3 to extend their NHL-record point streak to start a season. Andrew Shaw scored the only goal, while Corey Crawford made 28 saves in a 1-0 win over the Blue Jackets.

2015 – Patrick Kane broke his left clavicle after being checked into the boards by Alex Petrovic of the Florida Panthers. Although the original diagnosis had him out for 12 weeks, which would have been the start of the Western Conference Finals, Kane was in the lineup for the first game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The extra salary cap space made by putting Kane on LTIR allowed the Blackhawks to acquire Antoine Vermette at the trade deadline.

Feb. 25

1905 – Paul Goodman was born in Selkirk, MB. After making his NHL debut in Game 2 of the 1938 Stanley Cup Final, the goaltender appeared in 52 games for the Blackhawks. He went 23-20-9 with a 2.17 goals-against average (GAA) and six shutouts.

1922 – Clare Martin was born in Waterloo, ON. He arrived in Chicago on Aug. 20, 1951, as part of a six-player trade with the Red Wings. The defenseman had a goal and three points in 30 games before being traded to the Rangers for cash on Dec. 28, 1951.

1987 – Doug Wilson passed Pierre Pilote for the most assists by a defenseman in Blackhawks history. He picked up his 401^st career assist during a 3-3 tie with Montreal. Canadiens Hall of Famer Larry Robinson had a helper to become the fourth defenseman in NHL history to score 800 points. 

1992 – Joakim Nordstrom was born in Stockholm, Sweden. He was a third-round pick for the Blackhawks in 2010. He had a goal and six points in 54 games with the Blackhawks and got his name on the Stanley Cup in 2015. On Sept. 11, 2015, he was traded with Kris Versteeg and a third-round pick to the Carolina Hurricanes for Jake Massie, Dennis Robertson, and a fifth-round pick. The third-rounder was traded back to the Blackhawks for Scott Darling and was used to take Evan Barratt. The fifth-rounder was eventually turned into a fourth-round pick in a trade with the San Jose Sharks, and that pick was used to take Tim Soderlund.

1997 – Alexandre Fortin was born in Blainville, QC. The left wing was signed to an NHL deal after standing out at development camp in 2017. He appeared in 24 games during the 2018-19 season and scored three goals and six points. He has been bouncing between the AHL and ECHL ever since. He is currently with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays.

Feb. 26

1947 – Brothers Doug and Max Bentley had a night to remember in a 9-7 win at the Rangers. The duo combined for 10 total points, with Doug scoring four goals and adding two assists, while Max had three goals and a helper.

1967 – The Canadiens had quite the adventure just getting to the Chicago Stadium for their game with the Blackhawks. After their charter bus failed to show up, the team got to their game with the help of some taxi cabs, police cruisers, and a “motorized police van,” formerly known as a derogatorily named “wagon.” The Canadiens and Blackhawks skated to a 2-2 draw once they finally reached the rink.

1971 – Jarrod Skalde was born in Niagara Falls, ON. The second half of the 1997-98 season was quite the ride for the veteran center. The Blackhawks claimed him off waivers from the Sharks on Jan. 8, 1998. The Sharks claimed him back on Jan. 23. Four days later, the Dallas Stars claimed him off waivers only to lose him back to the Blackhawks on Feb. 10. He stayed in Chicago until March 6, when he was claimed, once again, by the Sharks! He had one assist in seven games with the Blackhawks.

Feb. 27

1908 – Andy Blair was born in Winnipeg, MB. After eight seasons and one Stanley Cup with the Maple Leafs, he was traded to the Blackhawks for cash on May 7, 1936. The center had three assists in 44 games during his final NHL season.

1926 – Lee Fogolin was born in Fort William, ON. The defenseman was acquired from the Red Wings with Steve Black for Bert Olmstead and Vic Stasiuk on Dec. 2, 1950. He played in 304 games over six seasons with the Blackhawks and scored five goals and 41 points.

1964 – Hall became the first goaltender in Blackhawks history to win 200 games by beating the visiting Red Wings 4-2.

1974 – Marc Lamothe was born in New Liskeard, ON. Originally a draft pick of the Canadiens, the goaltender signed with the Blackhawks on Sept. 26, 1996. He appeared in two games during the 1999-2000 season and went 1-1-0 with a 5.16 GAA and a .800 save percentage (SV%).

1974 – Tony Esposito became the fourth goaltender in NHL history to record five 30-win seasons, with a 3-1 victory at the Minnesota North Stars. Dennis Hull led the scoring with two goals and an assist.

1977 – Mikita beat Vancouver Canucks goaltender Cesare Maniago to become the eighth player in NHL history to score 500 career goals.

1982 – Savard picked up an assist in a 5-3 win at the Kings. The helper made him just the second player in franchise history to have a 100-point season. He finished the year with 119 points, breaking Bobby Hull’s record of 107 set in 1968-69.

1986 – Two future members of the Blackhawks broadcast team had big nights. Troy Murray scored his third career hat trick and added two assists, while Ed Olczyk had two goals and two assists in a 6-3 win over the Kings.

1992 – Russian defenseman Igor Kravchuk made his NHL debut after leading the “Unified Team” to the Olympic gold medal. He scored his first career goal to help the Blackhawks beat the Red Wings 4-2.

1996 – Matthew Highmore was born in Halifax, NS. The undrafted free agent played 73 games with the Blackhawks over three seasons and scored four goals and 10 points. He was traded to the Canucks for Adam Gaudette on April 12, 2021.

2009 – The Blackhawks had a unique giveaway for their game against the Penguins as 10,000 fans got OSHA-certified hard hats as they entered the United Center. In the second period, Jonathan Toews scored what appeared to be his third straight goal, causing the hard hats to start flying down to the ice. However, the goal was disallowed because the captain he it with a high stick. Whoever didn’t throw their hard hat on the false alarm got a chance to do so after Toews scored a third goal that counted in the final frame. The Penguins won the game in overtime, and, to the surprise of no one, the Blackhawks have not had a hard hat giveaway since.

#OTD in 2009, it was (hard) hats off for @JonathanToews at the United Center…x 2 🚨🚨 pic.twitter.com/urSm2un9pW

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) February 27, 2019

2015 – The Blackhawks acquired veteran defenseman Kimmo Timonen from the Philadelphia Flyers for two second-round picks. He appeared in 16 regular-season games and another 18 during the postseason. His 16-season NHL career ended with Toews handing him the Stanley Cup in June. The Flyers traded the 2015 pick to the Maple Leafs and used the 2016 pick on Wade Allison.

2019 – Kane scored his 40th goal of the season in a 4-3 win over the Anaheim Ducks. This gave the NHL two 40-goal scorers before the end of February for the first time since Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby did it in 2009-10. Kane became the seventh player in Blackhawks’ history to have more than one 40-goal season.

Feb. 28

1929 – The Blackhawks and Rangers skated to a 0-0 tie. This was the Blackhawks’ NHL-record eighth straight game without a goal.

1969 – Ryan McGill was born in Prince Albert, SK. He was a second-round (29^th overall) draft pick of the Blackhawks in 1987. The defenseman played nine games during the 1991-92 season and had two assists. The defenseman was traded to the Flyers for Tony Horacek on Feb. 7, 1992. His career came to a premature end in 1995 when he was hit with a puck that left him legally blind in the left eye. McGill was an assistant coach for the Vegas Golden Knights during their historic inaugural season. He is currently an assistant with the New Jersey Devils.

1973 – Ryan VandenBussche was born in Simcoe, ON. The right wing was acquired from the Rangers for Ryan Risidore on March 24, 1998. He had seven goals and 17 points in 263 games over seven seasons before signing with the Penguins in 2004.

1992 – Matt Carey was born in Hamilton, ON. He signed with the Blackhawks on March 20, 2014, after his freshman season at St. Lawrence University. The left wing had a goal in his only two NHL games at the tail end of the 2013-14 season. He has bounced around between the AHL, ECHL, and Europe ever since.

1996 – Brett Seney was born in London, ON. He signed with the Blackhawks this past summer and was an AHL All-Star with the Rockford IceHogs. He has no points in his first four games with Chicago.

2021 – Kane became the 100^th player in NHL history to score 400 career goals during a 7-2 blowout of the Red Wings.

Feb. 29

1984 – Cam Ward was born in Saskatoon, SK. The goaltender signed in Chicago after 13 seasons and one Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes. He had 33 appearances during the 2018-19 season and went 16-12-4 with a 3.67 GAA, a .897 SV%, and no shutouts.

March 1

1920 – Max Bentley was born in Delisle, SK. The Hall of Fame center was one of six hockey-playing brothers. He played his first six seasons with the Blackhawks, scoring 109 goals and 256 points. He made history with his brothers Doug and Reg during the 1942-43 season when they formed the first all-brother line in NHL history. Bentley was the first Blackhawk to win the Hart Trophy in 1946 after leading the league with 61 points. He led the NHL in scoring the following season with 72 points. On Nov. 2, 1947, he was traded with Cy Thomas to the Maple Leafs for Gus Bodnar, Ernie Dickens, Bob Goldham, Bud Poile, and Gaye Stewart.

1926 – Allan Stanley was born in Timmins, ON. The Hall of Fame defenseman was acquired from the Rangers with Rich Lamoureux and Nick Mickoski for Pete Conacher and Bill Gadsby. He had 14 goals and 28 points in 111 games before he was traded to the Bruins for cash on Oct. 8, 1958. Stanley eventually landed in Toronto, where he played 10 seasons and won four Stanley Cups.

1932 – Mike Buchanan was born in Sault Ste. Marie, ON. The defenseman played in one NHL game with the Blackhawks during the 1951-52 season as a 19-year-old and did not have a point.

1993 – Anton Wedin was born in Sundsvall, Sweden. The forward spent one season in North America with the IceHogs and Blackhawks. He had no points in his four NHL games in 2019-20.

2014 – The Blackhawks hosted the Penguins at Soldier Field as part of the NHL Stadium Series.

As steady snow fell throughout the night, Toews scored twice to lead the way in a 5-1 victory. The Blackhawks also got goals from Patrick Sharp, Kris Versteeg, and Bryan Bickell. This remains their only win in six outdoor games.