DALLAS — Artem Anisimov isn’t the player you’d expect to lead the NHL in points.
The Russian had 42 points last season for the Chicago Blackhawks, which was a strong showing alongside the likes of Patrick Kane and Artemi Panarin. But they weren’t the kind of numbers that would indicate he’d jump out to an early lead in the NHL points race during the 2016-17 season.
But through 12 games Anisimov has 15 points and is riding a 10-game point streak. He was held pointless in the first two games of the season, but that feels like a distant memory after Chicago defeated the Dallas Stars 3-2 on Saturday and extended a five-game win streak.
Part of Anisimov’s success comes from his surroundings.
With the Blackhawks reuniting superstars Jonathan Toews and Kane on the top line, the second line hasn’t drawn as much attention. Anisimov has also been getting opportunities on the power play, where he’s fed off the Blackhawks’ offensive catalysts.
But the 28-year-old deserves some credit for his success. Particularly in front of the net, where he’s turned into a nice pivot point for the Blackhawks power play.
That’s what happened when he set up Kane’s game-winning goal on Saturday. After he whiffed on a shot, Anisimov was able to recover and make a pass to Kane near the left post for a goal that Dallas Stars coach Lindy Ruff said, “anyone could score after a pass like that.”
“It was a great play by (Anisimov) at the net finally came out on the weak side there,” Toews said. “We’ve had some timely goals and been playing well at 5-on-5 and that’s been carrying over into our special teams.”
Chicago goalie Corey Crawford is familiar with Anisimov’s net-front work from practice, and he is well aware how much of a hassle the Russian can be.
“It makes all the difference in the world. When you have a guy in front screening the goalie, I think it’s a way different game as a goalie when you have someone there … he has a lot of skill around the net and that was a good play there,” Crawford said.
Anisimov won’t be able to maintain his current point-producing pace, it’s not sustainable. But he does give the Blackhawks another weapon in one of the NHL’s toughest divisions.
The best thing for Chicago? They’re only going to get better.
The Blackhawks may have won five straight, but they haven’t played flawless hockey. Saturday’s game featured a couple lucky breaks, while the team has admitted it needs to be better in all three zones.
“I don’t think anyone realizes we’re on a little streak like that,” Toews said. “We’re just focusing on trying to improve every single day. Know that every day, whether we win or not, we always look to the things we want to improve on.”
It create an interesting rematch on Sunday, where the Stars and Blackhawks will have a chance to counter and adjust — similar to a playoff series.
“I thought tonight was a little bit better of a game for us all around, and we can still improve. It’s good to win these games and know we can get better,” Kane said.
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