Morning Chirps: Kantserov advances, Sharks with more late-game magic

The Chicago Blackhawks have another tough road trip ahead of them, playing three teams fighting for their postseason lives. The trek begins tonight against the Edmonton Oilers. You know the game day drill. We’ll see you back here for your preview later today.

Blackhawks Chirps

• The Blackhawks held a full team practice for the first time since March 16 yesterday. Get all the notes from the on-ice session, plus all the details of the latest prospect to turn pro.

• Whether he’s wearing 15 or 16, playing wing or center, Jeremiah Lee says Anton Frondell is as good as advertised.

• The Rockford IceHogs had a rough Wednesday night as they were shelled 5-0 by the Grand Rapids Griffins. The game was scoreless for 44 minutes before the Griffins struck first. They scored four goals in the third period to turn the game into a laugher. Former Blackhawks defenseman Erik Gustafsson had two assists.

• Roman Kantserov and Metallurg Magnitogorsk are on to the second round after eliminating Sibir Novosibirsk with a 1-0 victory in Game 5 of their first-round series. The exciting young Russian forward had two goals and four points in the series. Metallurg will take on Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod in the second round. Be sure you’re signed up for our newsletter for some extra Kantserov content sent right to your inbox.

• On this date in 1967, Stan Mikita recorded two assists in an 8-0 win over the New York Rangers. The pair of helpers gave him 97 points, tying teammate Bobby Hull’s NHL record for most points in a season (set in 1965-66).

• In 1972, Hull scored his 50th goal of the season in a 6-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings, making him the first player to ever have five 50-goal seasons. It was his 604th and final goal with the Blackhawks as he signed with the Winnipeg Jets of the upstart World Hockey Association in the offseason.

• Blackhawks Birthday Roll Call, April 2: Rem Pitlick.

NHL Chirps

• Wednesday means Jeff Maroon drops his NHL Power Rankings, so check them out in case you missed them yesterday.

• While the Blackhawks have been finding ways to lose late, the San Jose Sharks keep winning late. Alexander Wennberg scored the game-winning goal that beat the Anaheim Ducks with 31 seconds to play. On Monday, Adam Gaudette scored the game-winning goal with 22 seconds to play. Last Saturday, Igor Chernyshov beat the Columbus Blue Jackets with 1:25 left in regulation. The Sharks are one point behind the Los Angeles Kings for the second Western Conference wild card spot.

• Macklin Celebrini had a four-point night against the Ducks, including his 40th goal of the season. He has 105 points on the season, the second-most in franchise history. He’s chasing Joe Thornton, who scored 114 points during the 2006-07 season.

• Nathan MacKinnon was the first player this season to score 50 goals, as the Colorado Avalanche lost a crazy 8-6 game to the Vancouver Canucks. He is the second player in franchise history to be the first NHL player to score 50 goals after Milan Hejduk did in 2002-23. He is also the third Avalanche/Nordiques player to have multiple 50-goal seasons, joining Michel Goulet and Joe Sakic.

• The Minnesota Wild will have to wait another day to clinch their spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They needed the Ducks to beat the Sharks in regulation, or the St. Louis Blues to beat the Kings in any fashion, to punch their ticket. Neither of those scenarios played out as the Kings won in overtime.

• NHL Birthday Roll Call, April 2: Alex Smith, Buster Harvey, Dwight Foster, Brad Ference, and Noah Juulsen.