PITTSBURGH -- The reeling Chicago Blackhawks took another hard hit. Swell Flaske Udsalg . The Pittsburgh Penguins appear to be coming together at just the right time. Sidney Crosby scored two goals in the final five minutes, helping the Penguins to a 4-1 victory over the injury-riddled Blackhawks on Sunday night. "I thought this was one of our most physical games of the year," Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said. "We saw it from the beginning of the game until the end." The biggest hit came in the second period. Already playing without Patrick Kane, the Blackhawks lost captain Jonathan Toews to an upper-body injury when he was drilled by Penguins defenceman Brooks Orpik. Toews was holding his left arm on the bench before heading down the runway for good in the second. Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville didnt believe the injury to Toews was serious, characterizing it as day to day. "Well get a better assessment tomorrow," Quenneville said. James Neal and Lee Stempniak also scored for the Penguins, who won their second straight and snapped a three-game home losing streak. Marc-Andre Fleury made 25 saves in his 36th victory of the season. Orpiks hit on Toews occurred with 6:30 remaining in the middle period. The two were going for a loose puck. "It was a big hit," Blackhawks forward Patrick Sharp said. "You could tell he was trying to hit him hard. He knew who he was hitting. Its tough when you see your captain get hit like that." Quenneville said he needed to see a replay of Orpiks hit. Bylsma said he only saw the hit live, and believed it was clean. Orpik agreed. "Theres no penalty, so I dont know," Orpik said. "I think that hit happens 10 times a game." Its been a rough stretch for injuries for the defending Stanley Cup champions, who will be without star forward Kane for the rest of the regular season because of a lower-body injury. Bryan Bickell is out with an upper-body injury but is expected to return soon. Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa played with Orpik with the Penguins during their run to the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals. "(Orpik) is a heavy hitter," Hossa said. "Thats his game. Its never easy to play against him. Sometimes hes on the borderline, but I know him as a fair guy and thats how I remember him." The injury to Toews galvanized the Blackhawks, who dominated play in the third period. But Fleury held up just fine. Crosby capped a 2-on-1 rush for Pittsburgh at 15:09 of the third, sending a wrist shot over the shoulder of Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford. He added an empty-netter with 1:16 left for his 36th goal and league-leading 99th point of the season. "Obviously, they were coming and they put a lot of pressure on us," Crosby said. "They started to take a few more risks and we were able to capitalize." Sheldon Brookbank scored for the Blackhawks, who have lost three straight in regulation for the first time since February 2012. The Penguins and Blackhawks started the month at a snowy Soldier Field, part of the NHL Stadium Series. Chicago cruised to a 5-1 victory over Pittsburgh on March 1 in the beginning of a rough month for each team. "We remember that snowy night in Chicago," Bylsma said. "They took it to us pretty good. We wanted to respond in this game and I think we did." The Blackhawks and Penguins began the day with identical near-.500 March records and one win in each of their last four games. Injuries to top forwards have played a role; Chicago played its sixth in a row without Kane, while former NHL MVP Evgeni Malkin missed his fourth straight for Pittsburgh. Both are expected to return for the post-season. Chicago added another big name to the list after the loss of Toews. "Weve played 11 games in 19 days, its a busy stretch of the year," Quenneville said. "There have been some stretches in the last three games that have showed that maybe this team needs a break." Chicago carried the play early, Andrew Shaw hitting a post less than two minutes into the game. But Pittsburgh scored twice in 21 seconds, taking an early 2-0 lead. Neal snapped a wrist shot past Crawford on a 2-on-1 and Stempniak got behind Johnny Oduya after a lead pass from Matt Niskanen and beat Crawford between the pads. Neal has 10 points in his last nine games against Chicago. Pittsburgh had a chance to add to its lead in the second period, but came up short on two power-play opportunities. Brookbank then delivered for the Blackhawks, cutting the deficit in half when he blasted a slap shot from the point behind Fleury. NOTES: Chicago last visited Pittsburgh in December 2011. ... Pittsburgh native Brandon Saad played his first game in his hometown. ... Joe Vitale and Simon Despres were scratched for the Penguins. ... Chicago scratched David Rundblad, Jeremy Morin, Matt Carey and Michal Rozsival. ... Pittsburgh hosts Carolina on Tuesday, while Chicago is home to Minnesota on Thursday. Swell Flaske Butik . And like the near entirety of last season, Jonathan Bernier and Torontos goaltending tandem is up to the task. Swell Traveler Flaske . The Sochi organizing committee said in Fridays statement that the torch relay reached the North Pole on Oct. 19. Russian Polar explorer Artur Chilingarov, who led the mission, lit a special bowl at the North Pole sign. http://www.danmarkswellflaske.com/ . - Mathew Barzal scored 3:47 into overtime as the Seattle Thunderbirds downed the visiting Everett Silvertips 4-3 on Tuesday in Western Hockey League playoff action.The Toronto Raptors will try to get back into the win column tonight when they welcome the Detroit Pistons to Air Canada Centre. Catch all the action live on TSN2 or on TSN Radio Toronto at 7pm et/4pm pt. The Raptors had a three-game winning streak halted Monday night with a road loss to the Brooklyn Nets. The loss, coupled with the Brooklyn win, shrunk Torontos lead in the Atlantic Division to three games over the Nets. "They (Nets) have veteran guys," said Raptors forward John Salmons. "They have guys that can hit guys in the clutch. They got guys that have carried teams in the past. Its definitely a tough team." Kyle Lowry had 21 points, eight rebounds and seven assists and Amir Johnson poured in 16 points for Toronto, which has won two straight north of the border. Tyler Hansbrough also finished with 16 points, followed by 14 from DeMar DeRozan and 12 out of Terrence Ross. The Raptors begin a three-game homestand tonight and will host the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday and the Phoenix Suns on Sunday. The Pistons ended a three-game losing streak on Tuesday night with a 99-89 home victory over the Sacramento Kings. DDetroit has dropped nine straight as the visitor. Swell Flaske Dk. Josh Smith notched 24 points and eight rebounds in the Pistons triumph. Rodney Stuckey contributed 23 points off the bench, while Andre Drummond gave 15 points and five blocked shots to help Detroit. Kyle Singler had 11 points and five steals in the win. The Pistons pulled away thanks to a near flawless defensive frame in the third, as they held the Kings to just 11 points on 4-of-20 shooting. Smith and Brandon Jennings opened the period with 3-pointers, and Detroit led the rest of the way. "We didnt give them easy looks," said Detroit interim head coach John Loyer. "In that quarter I think we held them to 11 points and our contest rate was one of the highest of the year." Despite the sub .500 record, the Pistons are just three games behind the Atlanta Hawks for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. "I have to be able to contribute, I dont want to sit home in April and think about what I could have done," said Smith, who is averaging 21.1 ppg over his last nine. "I just want to try to leave it all out there on the floor." ' ' '