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Jerez Preview: Can Anyone Stop the #72?

  Lately, Marco Bezzecchi is making winning look easy. With a flawless hat trick of victories in Thailand, Brazil, and the USA, the #72 has treated the early-season standings like his own personal victory lap. Next stop: Jerez. Will the win streak continue in Spain, or can anyone actually disrupt the rhythm of Bez? The "Global Takeover" in Three Acts: Thailand: To open the season in Buriram, Bezzecchi converted a dominant pole position into a Sunday masterclass. Every lap was led by him, crossing the finish line with a 5.5-second cushion over Pedro Acosta, setting the tone for a flawless start to the season. Brazil: In a treacherous race in Goiânia that was shortened due to track degradation concerns, Bez pulled an ambush at the first corner. He kept his cool on a track that felt more like a gravel pit than a circuit, bringing home back-to-back wins from second on the grid. USA: At COTA - the most technical track they face - Bezzecchi proved he could win anywhere. He...
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Knight And Hawks Shutout Jets 2-0 In Toews Return

 






The Blackhawks snapped their three-game skid in style Monday night, blanking the Winnipeg Jets 2-0 on an evening dedicated to former captain Jonathan Toews. While the United Center crowd honored Toews with a massive first-period ovation that lasted for three and a half minutes, Spencer Knight stole the show on the ice, making 32 saves for his third shutout of the year and the eighth of his career. Goals from Jason Dickinson and Connor Bedard secured the win, handing Winnipeg their second consecutive defeat. Chicago hits the road to face the Hurricanes this Thursday, while the Jets return to Winnipeg to host St. Louis tomorrow night.


Winnipeg Jets Lineup:

Connor - Scheifele - Iafallo

Perfetti - Toews - Vilardi

Niederreiter - Lowry - Namestnikov

Koepke - Barron - Pearson


Morrissey - Demelo

Samberg - Salomonsson

Stanley - Schenn


Hellebuyck

Comrie


Chicago Blackhawks Lineup:

Greene - Bedard - Bertuzzi

Donato - Dickinson - Mikheyev

Slaggert - Moore - Lardis

Dach - Foligno - Laffery


Vlasic - Crevier

Kaiser - Levshunov

Grzelcyk - Murphy


Knight

Soderblom


After a scoreless opening period, Jason Dickinson broke the ice late in the second frame with 6:38 left to play, picking up his sixth goal of the season to put the Blackhawks ahead 1-0. While driving into Winnipeg's end, he took a bouncing puck out of the air after Ryan Donato flipped it in, ripping a wrist shot between the pads of Connor Hellebuyck from the top of the left circle.


Connor Bedard struck the empty Jets' net with 1:20 remaining in the final frame, recording his 20th goal of the season and his fourth point in the past five games (one goal, three assists), for the 2-0 final.






Jonathan Toews on his return to Chicago and the fans: "It blew me away. It's a crazy moment to, again, get that reception from the fans. Pretty special. Something I'll remember forever. ...It felt like forever. Not sure what to do after a while in that situation, and the boys kept telling me to go do another lap." - "I tried my best to take it all in and really savor it. To really appreciate the love from the fans. ...I spent some special years here in Chicago, and that's what made playing for the Blackhawks so great. Winning championships and all that stuff aside, just playing for a sports team in this city and calling this home for as long as I did was just incredible. Can't thank them enough. This will always be home and have a special place in my heart."






Notes:

- This was Jonathan Toews' first time on the Chicago ice since playing his last game in a Blackhawks sweater on April 13, 2023. He spent 16 seasons with the Blackhawks, serving 15 of those as their captain. With the Hawks, Toews played 1,067 games, picking up a total of 883 points (372 goals, 511 assists). He ranks sixth in franchise history in goals (372) and points. He captained the team to Stanley Cup championships in 2010, 2013, and 2015. He had also won a Conn Smythe (2010) and a Frank J. Selke Trophy (2013). Following the 2022-23 season, the Blackhawks chose not to re-sign Jonathan. He took two years off before returning to the NHL this season with his hometown Winnipeg Jets on a one-year contract.

- The Blackhawks are 20-22-7, and lost three straight and four of five.

- With his third shutout of the season, Spencer Knight is the third-highest total among all goaltenders. The only ones with more are Ilya Sorokin (5), Joel Hofer (4), and Jesper Wallstedt (4).

- Connor Bedard, who scored his 20th goal of the season on the Jets' empty net, is the fifth player in Blackhawks history to begin his NHL career with the franchise with three consecutive 20-goal campaigns. He joins Patrick Kane (13), Jonathan Toews (12), Denis Savard (10), and Darcy Rota (4). ...He also became the 38th player to reach the 20-goal mark this season. Only three seasons have had as many 20-goal scorers at this stage over the past 15 years (779 GP): 2018-19 (42), 2021-22 (39), and 2023-24 (39).

- Alex Vlasic had a two-point night, picking up two assists.

- Connor Hellebuyck made a total of 22 saves for Winnipeg.

- The Jets are 19-23-6, and were 4-0-1 during their previous five games.






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