The fans of Chicago waited 49 years for the Blackhawks to win a Stanley Cup, and after a few near misses over the years, they did just that in 2010. Tonight the journey begins once more, just three seasons later as the Hawks take on the Boston Bruins in an original six matchup that hasn’t happened since 1979 when the Montreal Canadiens beat the New York Rangers. As the playoffs began, my dream matchup would have been the Hawks taking on the Pittsburgh Penguins so that once and for all I could release the anger of 1992 that’s been gurgling in my stomach. Nonetheless, this will certainly do, and promises to be one H-E- double hockey sticks of a series that will leave one team beaten and bruised, and another jubilant and rewarded. And absoutely exhausted.
While the Blackhawks had to stave off elimination during the post season, the Boston Bruins dug themselves into a huge hole when they saw themselves on the brink of elimination down 4-1 in Game 7 against the Leafs. As we all know, Boston came back from a three games to one deficit to beat the Maple Leafs of Toronto, and did so in thrilling fashion. They then quickly disposed of the Penguins, holding them to two goals over four games, as Tuukka Rask appeared to be a brick wall that couldn’t be cracked. The Bruins led by the always charming Claude Julien, figured out a way to contain all the scoring threats of Pittsburgh in that Eastern Conference series, and maintained a stranglehold on the Penguins offence that will be talked about all summer. The Bruins offer toughness from all four lines, their six defencemen, and will make it difficult for the Chicago forwards to penetrate the offensive zone. The same was said of LA’s defence, however the Blackhawks figured out a way to expose their weaknesses, and use their overall team speed to apply all the pressure on goaltender Jonathan Quick.
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There’s one difference between LA and Boston however, and it’s a big one. Zdeno Chara, the hulking defenceman who logs tons of ice time, and gets in the way of everything that comes near him will be a challenge for the Chicago forwards. Though he may be losing a step, his long legs and reach, make up for it. Additionally he’s normally positionally sound, and his partner Dennis Seidenberg is often quick enough to cover any mistakes. Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews will see a great deal of these two, as will whoever else skates on that line. You can expect Chara to log around 25 plus minutes a night, and if things are close, which they likely will be, we could see him for closer to 30 minutes. Which doesn’t bode well for this writer as seeing too much of Zdeno Chara combined with Pierre McGuire will increase the tension that I feel as is.
That being said, here’s three storylines that I feel could dictate the outcome of the series:
* Goaltending. The big storyline here is that both Tuukka Rask and Corey Crawford are “hot”. Are they beatable? Yes. But whichever netminder cracks first could sway the momentum in favor of the opposition. The statistics for these two are extremely similar as Rask has the best post season save percentage at .943, with Crawford at .935. Crawford however has the best GAA at 1.74, and Rask is at 1.75. This will be like watching a seven game pitchers dual between Justin Verlander and Tim Lincecum. The inside story with both goalies is that the people in Boston were concerned about life without Tim Thomas, and in Chicago the biggest question mark was how far could the Hawks go with Crawford in net. Both have performed above and beyond expectations, and have refused to crumble throughout the most difficult of times, as stingy defence has ruled the post season. The composure that each has shown has been as remarkable as their soild play, and the Conn Smythe award for the best player in the playoffs could very well be one of these two.
* Bruins brawn versus Hawks speed and skill. The storyline is that the Bruins are a bunch of bruisers that agitate, hit everything in site, and force mistakes, which they then pounce on. This was said about the LA Kings as well, however a team as skilled and fast as the Blackhawks still figured out a way to skate right past them, despite having worldclass goaltender Jonathan Quick. The Bruins toughness will certainly make things difficult for Chicago, but the Blackhawks are very adept at playing tough teams and beating them by not giving in to their tactics. Both teams forcheck aggressively and are good with the transition, however the speed of Chicago could be too much for the sometimes slow footed Bruins. Boston will try to punish the Chicago forwards, and while that may appear to work, I’ve seen this tried too many times, as Chicago is willing to take the hit to make the play. The staple of puck possession teams allows for that to happen, and may not make a bit of difference in this series. While the Bruins style is based on physicality, the Blackawks are able to play a game based on skill and speed, or if need be, have no issues roughing it up. The two styles while different are a perfect mixture for a Stanley Cup Final. Bryan Bickell of the Hawks is having a coming out party and his energized play has not gone unnoticed. He’ll be a force to be dealt with as this series moves along. Let’s not forget David Kreci of Boston who’s leading the playoffs in scoring, and has been one of the best forwards in the playoffs. Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith of Chicago will become very familiar with Kreci, and like Chara and Seidenberg, will be expected to stop Kreci and his line.
* Special Teams. Games can be won by your power play, and saved by your penalty kill. With as much offensive talent as these two teams have, they combined for one power play goal in 27 chances in the last round. You can throw praise at both Jonathan Quick of the Kings and Tomas Vokoun of the Penguins for playing as well as they did, but with all the scoring ability these two teams have one wonders when this trend stops. On the other hand the penalty killing units of both teams has been outstanding, with both Rask and Crawford being the best killers of all. However Michael Frolik and Gregory Campbell have been stellar as well. Campbell unfortunately for Boston is out with a broken leg after blocking a slap shot in the Penguins series. It’s remarkable with all the talent that these teams have that more goals haven’t been scored with the extra man, and you have a feeling that eventually something has to give. That something could happen in this series.
Prediction: This will be an epic battle to the bitter end. A very bitter end. We will likely cringe at some of hits that are given, and be astonished as they are absorbed. This series final has everything. Great goaltending, fierce leadership, skill, and a level pf physicality that both teams will display which will take us all by surprise. Also, lets not forget about the Ex-Panther Factor. Bruins have three (Nathan Horton, Dennis Seidenberg and the injured Gregory Campbell). The Blackhawks have one, Michael Frolik. This hasn’t been wrong four years running.
My seat awaits, the Bruce t-shirt is ready, and the lucky song will be played.
Hawks in 6. But to win it all at the United Center I could handle 7.
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