Blackhawks lose to Flyers in Jonathan Toews' finale
CHICAGO (AP) — Jonathan Toews scored in his final game with the Chicago Blackhawks, but Ivan Provorov scored 3:09 into overtime to lift the Philadelphia Flyers to a 5-4 victory Thursday night in the season finale for each team.
Toews won three Stanley Cup titles in 15 seasons with Chicago, but general manager Kyle Davidson announced earlier in the day that the team would not re-sign its longtime captain. Toews turns 35 on April 29, and the lowly Blackhawks are rebuilding.
Toews had a chance to win the game in overtime, but he was denied by Felix Sandstrom on a breakaway with about 2:15 remaining. Provorov then closed it out for Philadelphia, beating Alex Stalock for his sixth goal of the season.
Toews' last game with Chicago (26-49-7) added some electricity to a matchup of teams long eliminated from the playoff race. And Philadelphia (31-38-13) played up to the challenge, earning a second straight win behind two goals and an assist from Travis Konecny.
When it was over, Toews and the Blackhawks took to the ice, and the team played a video honoring the center for his time with the franchise. Toews patted his heart and waved to the crowd of 20,219 — many dressed in various Toews jerseys — as it chanted "Jonny! Jonny!"
Toews was showered with cheers all night long, especially when he redirected an Andreas Athanasiou pass for a power-play goal 7:40 into the second period.
It was Toews' first goal since Jan. 28 and No. 15 on the season. He has 372 goals and 511 assists in 1,067 regular-season games — all with Chicago.
Philadelphia had a 4-3 lead for much of the third period, but Tyler Johnson found Athanasiou in front with 2 minutes left. It was Athanasiou's 20th goal of the season.
Anders Bjork and Jujhar Khaira also scored for Chicago, which is in the mix for a prime position in the upcoming NHL draft. Stalock finished with 31 saves.
Owen Tippett had a goal and an assist for Philadelphia. Noah Cates also scored, and Sandstrom finished with 34 stops.
