GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Alex DeBrincat scored his 40th goal of the season with 37 seconds left in overtime, and the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Arizona Coyotes 4-3 on Wednesday.
Jake McCabe, Dominik Kubalik and Alex Vlasic also scored for the Blackhawks, who won for the second time in 12 games after blowing a 3-1 lead in the final 10:18 of regulation.
“It seems like we’ve been fighting every night, but it’s nice to come out with a win,” DeBrincat said. “We let them get back into the game a little bit, but it’s nice to get a win and feel good about our game.”
Barrett Hayton, Nate Smith and Anton Stralman scored for the Coyotes, who have lost eight straight and 15 of 17. Arizona has 13 goals during its losing streak and entered the last game in the league at 2.43 goals per game.
Kevin Lankinen had 32 saves for the Blackhawks, who haven’t won in regulation since March 23.
“When we have the lead, we don’t realize we don’t need to score a goal every at-bat,” interim coach Derek King said. “We had a 3-1 lead, sometimes you have to have a live to fight another day attitude. That’s where we’re making mistakes and that’s what cost us the season.”
DeBrincat has two 40-goal seasons in his first five, the first when he had 41 goals in 2018-19.
“It’s unbelievable,” DeBrincat said. “Obviously I’ve had a lot of good players that I’ve played with and a lot of credit to them giving me a few touches out the back door. I don’t think you appreciate it that much when it’s in your second season and then you realize how hard it is to come back.”
Coyotes goalie Karel Vejmelka made 34 saves in his 49th game, a franchise record for rookie goaltenders. He is the first rookie in NHL history with four games of at least 46 saves.
Smith’s first career goal, in his fifth game, brought the Coyotes within 3-2 midway through the third period.
Stralman tied the game at 13:23 of the third, sending a wrist shot high on the post side following a Chicago toss as the teams skated 4-on-4 following coincident minor penalties at 12:15.
“It’s two games in a row that we struggled,” Coyotes coach Andre Tourigny said. “The start was not good, but the way we recovered. The leadership we had in the room between first and second (points) and the character of our older players was noticeable. It was good for our young people to be a part of that.“
Arizona had won the last two in the season series and was trying to beat Chicago three times in a season for the first time since 2011-12.
McCabe opened the scoring 42 seconds into the game when he bounced through traffic from the slot. McCabe started the play with a pass from the right circle in front of the net. Vejmelka stuck his stick into Jonathan Toews’ shot but missed it ahead.
Kubalic made it 2-0 by converting a rebound at close range at 15:32 of the first. Vejmelka stopped Tyler Johnson’s shot from the slot, but the Coyotes couldn’t clear the puck, leaving Kubalic wide open.
Hayton cut the Blackhawks’ lead to 2-1 at 12:43 of the second period when his rebound shot slipped between Lankinen’s pads. Lankinen was caught on the wrong side of the net but recovered to make a sprawling glove stop on Nick Schmaltz’s wrap. The puck came loose and Hayton scored, with the goal upheld after review.
Vlasic made it 3-1 when he was credited with the first goal of his career on a shot from the left circle that appeared for Schmaltz’s carom in the box and found the net at 16:25 of the second period.
“I mean it’s good to get out of the way,” Vlasic said. “I really don’t know how he got in there, but I’m glad he got in.”
NOTES: The Coyotes expect a good crowd on Friday when F Alex Ovechkin takes Washington to Gila River Arena. … The Coyotes have three games left in Glendale before moving to the 5,000-seat campus arena at Arizona State University in Tempe in 2022-23. The arena will open in the fall of 2022, with the Coyotes paying $19.7 million to bring the arena up to NHL standards. … Coyotes F Andrew Ladd became the fourth player in the 2004 draft class to play 1,000 games, joining Ovechkin, Blake Wheeler and Travis Zajac. … Coyotes F Nick Ritchie (upper body) was a late scratch and shows up as day-to-day. … F Jay Beagle (lower body) left in the first half and did not return. … Vejmelka played in his 49th game, a franchise record for rookie goalkeepers. He has four games with at least 46 saves this season, the most by a rookie in NHL history. … Chicago F Kirby Dach (shoulder) and F Mackenzie Entwistle (shoulder) are not on the trip, which includes games in Los Angeles on Thursday and San Jose on Saturday. … Arizona F Antoine Roussel returned after missing the previous 21 games with a lower-body injury.
NEXT
Blackhawks: Play in Los Angeles on Thursday.
Coyotes: Host Washington on Friday.
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