What the Blackhawks hoped would be a long and lasting goodbye kiss for hockey at the Stadium was in danger of turning into a quick peck on the cheek.
Riding a 10-game playoff losing streak into Game 3 of their first-round Stanley Cup series with Toronto on Saturday, coach Darryl Sutter and the Hawks faced a must-win situation, and the heat was being felt from the front office to the locker room to Sutter’s basement office.
One of the players feeling it the most was winger Tony Amonte, and the former New York Ranger responded in big-time fashion Saturday with a four-goal effort that paced the Hawks to a 5-4 victory.
The Hawks trail in the best-of-seven series 2 games to 1, with Game 4 Sunday night at the Stadium.
Amonte scored 49 seconds into the game and added his second goal a little more thana minute later to awaken the Hawks from their two-year playoff slumber. His four goals tied a Hawks playoff record set by Denis Savard on April 10, 1986, also against the Leafs.
But the goal that will likely stick in Amonte’s mind for years was his third goal, a second-period slap shot that eluded Felix Potvin and put the Hawks ahead 4-3 and started the hat-tossing from the second balcony. He’ll definitely remember that particular roar.
“That really made me feel part of this city,” he said. “It was a great gesture by the fans.”
Amonte, who came over from New York on the trading deadline, had only one goal for the Hawks before missing the final four regular-season games with a groin injury. He said the coaching staff talked to him before Game 3 and helped him relax.
“I think he was putting a lot of pressure on himself to score,” Sutter said. “He’s a young guy without a lot of playoff experience.”
“He hasn’t been putting pressure on himself,” linemate Jeremy Roenick countered. “He’s been hurt. It’s unfortunate that he hasn’t been able to play up to his ability. He’s just getting to the point now where he can get it going.”
Thanks to Amonte, the Hawks’ No. 1 line finally ended its playoff scoring drought and put a much-needed charge into the offense, which produced one goal in the first two losses.
“We got the offense we wanted,” Sutter said. “I just thought we had a good start. Anytime you score two goals in the first two minutes, it’s important.” After Amonte scored twice from inside in the opening two minutes, Joe Murphy cranked a slap shot past Potvin from the left circle at 7:23 of the first period to give the Hawks a seemingly commanding 3-0 lead.
But the Maple Leafs cut the deficit to one by the end of the period, scoring twice on Ed Belfour, on a power-play goal through traffic by defenseman Dave Ellett and a tip-in by Bill Berg. Toronto knotted it one minute into the second period on a wrist shot from Dmitiri Mironov.
Amonte earned his hat trick at 15:58 of the second period to put the Hawks back on top, taking a pass from Roenick near the blue line and beating Potvin to his glove side with a slap shot from the left wing. Then his wrist shot from the right circle went through Potvin’s legs at 1:31 of the third period, putting the Hawks up 5-3.
The game was delayed for five minutes as fans celebrated with the ritual hat-tossing. Ellett scored his second goal of the game at 6:35 of the third period on a power play to make it a one-goal game again.
Belfour was under fire all during the final period, but he stopped 14 of the Leafs’ 15 shots, including a brilliant diving save of a Jamie Macoun slap shot from the left circle only :15 into the period.
“The biggest play of the night was the first minute of the third period when Eddie made that save,” Amonte said. “Eddie made that save on Macoun, and that was a big boost for us.”
“We were sitting on the bench, and I think everyone was holding their breath,” said defenseman Eric Weinrich. “Eddie came out of nowhere to get the save.”
The playoff win was the first for Sutter in his seventh postseason game as Hawks coach. General Manager Bob Pulford ended speculation on Sutter’s future with the Hawks, saying there was no truth to reports that the Hawks may not want Sutter back next season for the final year of his three-year contract.
“Darryl’s a good coach, and we’re very happy to have him with us.”
As for the pressure that Sutter and the Hawks were facing, Pulford said: “We’re all under pressure. I think we have a good hockey team now, and everything is magnified because we haven’t won. But that’s the way it is.”
