The Blackhawks Backhand

By Gabriella Garcia
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Updated: January 7, 2016

A lot of news this week! Patrick Kane was named third star for the month of December. This is the second consecutive month Kane has been included in the honor, he was named first star in the month of November. During December, he tallied 19 points with nine goals and 10 assists. Kane was honored by the Blackhawks on Sunday with a pregame ceremony at the United Center for his point-streak. He also appears to be a frontrunner for the Hart Trophy, which is an award given annually to the “player judged most valuable to his team.” Kane was also chosen as the Central Division All-Star captain by the fans and he’ll be joined by his teammate in the All-Star game.

Jonathan Toews will join Kane in the All-Star Game on January 31st in Nashville. This will be the fourth time Kane and Toews appear in the event together. They also went as teammates in 2009, 2011, and 2015. Kane did go without Toews in 2012.

Most people think Corey Crawford was snubbed for the All-Star game, but he did make his 300th NHL game memorable. On Sunday, he appeared in his 300th game and he made 26 saves to record his league-leading sixth shutout. Crawford is the first Blackhawks goalie to post six or more shutouts in a season since Antti Niemi had seven in the 2009-2010 season. “It’s been fun the last five years in here,” Crawford said. “It’s been awesome to play in Chicago. It’s gone by so fast, though. Every year the goal is to be predictable, consistent and give your team confidence going into games, knowing what they’re going to get. That’s definitely an important thing for a goaltender.”

Forward Jeremy Morin was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for 24-year-old forward Richard Panik. Morin, who was once one of the Blackhawks’ top prospects, requested a trade last season after falling out of favor with Joel Quenneville and registering zero points in 15 games. The team sent him to Columbus on December 14^th, 2014, only to reacquire him in the Brandon Saad trade over the summer. Morin had nine goals and 13 assists in 28 games with the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL this season, and had eight goals and eight assists in 54 career games with the Blackhawks over five seasons. Panik has nine goals and 16 assists in 33 games with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies this season, but has 19 goals and 20 assists in 151 NHL games with the Maple Leafs.