Skip to main content

Ottawa Senators left wing Milan Michalek (9) scores a goal on Chicago Blackhawks goalie Scott Darling (33) during the second period at the United Center.David Banks

Jonathan Toews and Brent Seabrook scored, Scott Darling made 32 saves in his NHL debut, and the Chicago Blackhawks snapped a two-game losing streak with a 2-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Sunday night.

Patrick Kane assisted on Toews' goal for his 500th NHL point.

Milan Michalek scored a short-handed goal for the Senators, who have dropped two straight.

The game featured a matchup of goalies from the Chicago area.

Darling, a native of Lemont, Illinois, was steady as he faced a handful of tough chances. Ottawa's Craig Anderson, from Park Ridge, Illinois, stopped 43 shots, including a second-period penalty shot by Andrew Shaw.

Corey Crawford, Chicago's No. 1 goalie, missed his fourth game because of an upper-body injury. Antti Raanta played in Chicago's previous three games, including a 3-2 loss at St. Louis on Saturday night.

The 6-foot-6 Darling was chosen by Arizona in the sixth round of the 2007 draft. He turned pro in 2010 after two seasons with the University of Maine, and then bounced around the minors with nine teams in four leagues.

The Blackhawks signed the 25-year-old Darling as a free agent on July 1. He was 2-0 with a 1.44 goals-against average with Rockford of the AHL before being called up last week.

Chicago outshot Ottawa 17-12 in the scoreless first period.

Toews opened the scoring 21 seconds into the second period with a wrap-around goal.

Anderson slid out and overcommitted to Toews as he skated down the left side of the slot. The Chicago captain circled the net and tucked in a shot from the right side before Anderson could get back into positon.

Anderson turned aside Shaw's penalty shot with his shoulder just over a minute later.

Michalek tied it with a short-handed goal at 7:08 when he completed a nifty 2-on-1 rush with Alex Chiasson from the doorstep. Michalek and Chiasson raced down the ice against Brent Seabrook after Brad Richards failed to hold the puck in the Ottawa zone.

Seabrook's screened power-play goal with 6:22 left in the second put Chicago back ahead. Seabrook fired a shot from the blue line with Bryan Bickell parked in front.

Darling was sharp in the third, and preserved Chicago's lead by stopping all 16 Ottawa shots in the period. Chris Phillips fired a rebound wide of a half-open net with 3:45 left.

NOTES: Crawford has resumed skating. ... Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said LW Daniel Carcillo is expected to miss four weeks because of a right knee injury sustained Saturday at St. Louis. ... Only one referee, Steve Kozari, worked the game because fellow official Eric Furlatt was ill. ... Goalies from the Chicago area have faced each other in an NHL game at least once before. On Feb. 20, 2012, Chicago native Al Montoya entered in relief for the host New York Islanders against Ottawa's Anderson. ... A moment of silence was observed before the national anthems to honour those killed in last week's attacks on Canadian armed forces members.

Interact with The Globe