Ducks have a rough outing from the get-go

Reporting from Chicago — All of 22 seconds into things Sunday, gloves and sticks burst into the air and scattered across the ice, as if someone had dropped a live grenade into the faceoff circle.

Thus Chicago’s Dustin Byfuglien and the Ducks’ Troy Bodie christened the teams’ meeting at the United Center not by breaking bottles but by attempting to break each other’s face.

After a few fits and fists at the outset, the Blackhawks’ 5-2 victory over the Ducks was an exercise in dominance.

Goalie Antti Niemi had the post as an ally on a couple of Ducks shots but made more than his share of stellar stops. Two goals by Petteri Nokelainen in the last four minutes spoiled the shutout, which would have tied Niemi for the league lead.

“Doesn’t matter to me,” Niemi said.

His effort until those late tallies, however, certainly mattered.

“Antti made some big stops, some high-quality saves and gave us a chance to get into the game,” Coach Joel Quenneville said. “He shut the door right off the bat.”

When the Blackhawks’ door opened, it basically flew off the hinges.

Kris Versteeg got the Blackhawks on the board six minutes into the second period, getting some recompense for an earlier effort that clanged off the post by taking a John Madden feed and streaking across the crease to bury his 12th goal of the season for a 1-0 lead.

Troy Brouwer followed with his career-high 11th goal later in the second, gliding toward the goal unmolested as defenders converged on Patrick Kane behind the net, then punching home the ensuing feed from Kane.

Marian Hossa then flung a wrist shot past goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere, then buried a power-play blast a little more than two minutes later for a 4-0 lead.

Jonathan Toews’ 13th goal capped the Blackhawks’ output and made it another cavalcade of names on the scoresheet, another night where multiple lines clicked and essentially took the fight out of the visitors.

“It’s tough on other teams when you don’t know where the scoring is going to come from,” Madden said.

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