For the second game in a row, the Blackhawks blew a two-goal lead.
For the eighth game in a row, they didn’t win.
Randy McKay scored with 3 minutes 42 seconds remaining, and the New Jersey Devils beat the Hawks 4-3 en route to clinching the Atlantic Division title Monday night.
Patrik Elias and Alexander Mogilny scored power-play goals earlier in the third period for the Devils, who are tied for first place in the Eastern Conference with the Ottawa Senators with 105 points.
After falling behind early in the first, the Hawks scored three times in three minutes and proceeded to shut down the Devils for almost 30 minutes.
Steve Dubinsky, Steve Sullivan and Tony Amonte scored to give the Hawks a 3-1 lead they took into the final intermission.
Dubinsky tied it at 1-1, poking the puck past Devils goalie John Vanbiesbrouck on a diving play in front of the crease at 12:32. Sullivan tapped in his 33rd of the season when he found Eric Daze’s rebound at 14:46.
Amonte extended the lead to 3-1 just 47 seconds later, blasting a shot from the high slot for his 34th goal.
The game took a New Jersey turn early in the third when Casey Hankinson and Jaroslav Spacek were called for slashing and hooking, respectively, 24 seconds apart.
The Devils didn’t need much time in erasing the deficit against Steve Passmore.
“We played a strong game, and I think we could have gotten the job done if we didn’t get caught on that 5-on-3,” Passmore said. “We could have hung on, but good teams will do that to you.
“I think we dominated the second period, but they stepped up in the third and we didn’t,” added Passmore, who had 32 saves.
Assistant coach Denis Savard assessed Passmore’s performance as “outstanding” but conceded that the penalties were the Hawks’ undoing.
“They kind of took the flow out of our game,” he said. “We were doing well in their zone, but when we got into penalty trouble, it changed the momentum of the game.”
Elias brought the Devils within a goal, putting the rebound of Petr Sykora’s shot over Passmore’s shoulder at 5:56.
Mogilny tied it 36 seconds later, rifling a shot from the right circle into the top of the net. Brian Rafalski had assists on both power-play goals.
“The Devils stuck to their game plan,” Savard said. “We didn’t.”
The Hawks, 0-7-1 in their last eight games, blew a 3-1 lead Sunday and settled for a 3-3 tie with Edmonton at the United Center.
While Monday’s loss was disappointing, Savard wasn’t too upset with the team’s play.
“We hadn’t faced them all year, but we know they’re a great team,” he said. “The great thing about it is that we go in there and start playing our game and start to move their feet and work them low. Now we have to learn from here.”
Once is enough: This was the Hawks’ only meeting with the defending Stanley Cup champions this season. The game was originally scheduled for Jan. 10 but was postponed because of a conflict with a National Football League playoff game in the Meadowlands sports complex.
Tap-ins: The Hawks were outshot 16-4 in the final period.
