Blackhawks Survive, Win Triple OT Thriller
The longest game in the history of the Chicago Blackhawks franchise ended with the team coming back to Chicago with the series tied.
It started about as well as the Blackhawks could have hoped.
Patrick Maroon went to the box for boarding Niklas Hjalmarsson at 1:46 and Chicago cashed in only 28 seconds later as Andrew Shaw redirected a Duncan Keith shot past Frederik Andersen to give the Hawks an early 1-0 lead.
Clayton Stoner then went to the box, but only for two minutes after boarding Marcus Kruger. The boarding penalty could have been worth five minutes, and Stoner punching Shaw in the face after the whistle could should have been worth another two. While Stoner sat, Marian Hossa deposited a second Blackhawks power play goal 1:04 into the advantage to extend the lead to 2-0 in the game’s opening 6:19 of play.
Unfortunately, the Hawks wouldn’t score again for… more than four periods.
Andrew Cogliano had a shot bounce off his knee and past Corey Crawford to cut the lead in half at 9:14 into the first, and the Hawks would withstand a furious final few minutes to escape the first period with a one goal lead.
Corey Perry scored at 17:30 into the second to the second period as the Hawks again struggled to clear their zone in the final five minutes of a period.
From there, the stories were between the pipes, as Andersen and Crawford both played exceptional hockey.
When the third period ended, the score was still tied. Chicago had put 28 shots on net; Anaheim had put 34 on net. Only two had reached the back of the net for both teams.
The first two overtimes saw Chicago put 23 shots on net and Anaheim another 26. None counted, including one that was headed into the net in the second overtime by Shaw.
Here’s the NHL’s explanation of the no-goal call.
Both goaltenders continued their incredible efforts well into the third period, but Marcus Kruger was able to tap a Brent Seabrook shot past Andersen 16:12 into the third overtime – or sixth period, as NBC’s announcers continually reminded us – to end the marathon.
Andrew Desjardins finished with no points, three hits and one takeaway but played an outstanding game. He logged 27:27 and controlled the puck behind Anaheim’s net to set up Seabrook for the game-winner, and stepped up on the penalty kill a couple times.
Another deadline acquisition, Antoine Vermette, also played a strong game with Teuvo Teravainen and Patrick Sharp. He won eight of 20 faceoffs and was credited with two blocked shots, four hits, three shots on net and one takeaway. The Hawks third line created a lot of good scoring chances but weren’t able to finish.
But not many skaters had much luck against two netminders who were on top of their game. Crawford made 60 (SIXTY) saves in the victory, while Andersen 53 in the loss.
Keith led all Blackhawks, predictably, in ice time. He came up “only” nine seconds short of playing 50 minutes. Niklas Hjalmarsson skated 47:36, Seabrook 47:46 and Johnny Oduya 46:06 as Chicago continued to rely heavily on their top four defensemen. All four played well throughout the game, showing an amazing amount of jump all the way to Seabrook’s final shot.
Kimmo Timonen played 16:45 and Kyle Cumiskey 18:34.
Patrick Kane led Chicago forwards with 34:26 on the ice, putting six shots on net. Shaw was credited with a team-high seven shots on net and skated 25:33, and thought he had won the game using his head.
Jonathan Toews skated 34:06 and was credited with a team-leading three takeaways and three hits. He was once again chased all over the ice by Ryan Kesler, but picked up an assist in the victory. Kruger skated 29:04 and was rewarded with the game-winner.
The teams will have to fly to Chicago and get back on the ice on Thursday night at the United Center.
Unbelievable game!
Shaw played outstanding. Tenacious on the puck. He won’t get an assist (neither will Desjardins) but they started it all. Shaw put pressure in the neutral zone and dumped it in, Desi took over and you know the rest. Heart of a champion.
No idea how the Hawks top 4 do it
26 light years ahead of 5…. he should play more minutes than 44 as well
Cogliano’s goal went off Bickell’s skate. I thought Shaw had a great game too. Vermette played better as time went on. Strong effort all around. Big win. I think they start to get to Andersen in the next couple of games. I think Richards has his number.
1st star Crow, 2nd star Shaw, 3rd star Marent Krubrook. Kruger is one breakaway Shorty from achieving Bolland status. We are so spoiled to see this team in action.
For some reason, similar to the Boston finals,The Blackhawks are being discounted by the announcing crew, save for a few comments here and there by Keith Jones who actually seems to watch the games. The hit total seems to be something they really like to fixate on, how much the cumulative effects will hurt them, etc. I would like to know when in the Blackhawks two Stanley Cup runs they out-hit another team in any game of the playoffs.
Faceoffs did suck late in the game. Cumisky had his share of suckage, but his team and Crow didn’t let him down. He has shown that he can stick close to his man and pass a little though, so one more game was earned. If he can calm down before his exit passes he can be the 5th Dman on this team. Not much other suckage to note, usual sucky players seemed active and involved tonight.
The Ducks will be a tough team to beat over 7 games. They’re big, fast and mean, but luckily dumb enough to give the Hawks 2 early goals. Can they reign in their aggression enough to pull this series away from Chicago and their home ice advantage? They have the horses to do it. boudreau’s face is red enough, as is their goalie. getzlaf is beyond due. They’ve snuffed out the best player in the league for 2 games. Mike Milbury thinks they’ll have no problem.
The last point is always a beacon of hope… And they left the door open…
Gutsy, gutsy, GUTSY win by our (exhausted!) boyz tonight. Even with depleted blue line and tight checking on 19 and 88, our Hawks are frickin’ warriors. Win or lose, we should all be grateful to have a team like this.
Related: HUGE kudos to our boy Corey! (…lemmie guess Wall, 4+ periods of shutout hockey into 3OT had nothing to do with 55– it was just our stellar defense right? Throw Darling or Raanta in there and it’d all be the same right? And 5 playoff wins in Corey’s last 6
starts – that’s also all Hawk defense right? Mostly our buddy Rosival I suppose…)
Also agree with Scottie P – even with a bad turnover and several ineffective moments, 26 was better than 5. 2, 7, 4 and 27 were totally gassed… So Do you play 44 and 26 more minutes? Or continue to drain our top 4? Hobson’s choice, no clear answer. I trust Q- a former blue liner himself- to make the best judgment.
On another note, there are only 4 teams left playing- so why can’t NBC field a second crew of announcers that aren’t an utter shit show? Albert and Micheletti are CLOWNS. Micheletti: “…don’t know why Oduya made that pass…” (Ummm… because he didn’t, pass was from was Hammer?)… And Albert “…the shot by Shaw!…” (…you mean Sharp? Or do you truly mean Shaw, who isn’t on the ice at all?).
Last shout out to Hawk Nation from out here in California / Silicon Valley: been out west for 18 years, but once a Chicagoan always a Chicagoan. You can take a kid out of Chicago- but you CANNOT take Chicago out of a kid. So say it loud and say it proud: LET’S GO HAWKS!!!
Tiny correction for Wall’s benefit- Corey has now won 6 of last 7 playoff games, not 5 of 6 as indicated above.
Separately, huge thanks to Tab and the whole fan crew on this site. I think it’s the best Hawk blog going, and have been a longtime reader. Think you’re all great (…including you Wall, even though your pure stat-driven analysis sometimes undervalues Crawford), and hugely appreciate all the energy and effort all of you knowledgable hockey fans publish here. Now let’s go win another Cup baby!!!
Rubbing eyes… everything bleary… is it time to get up already?
What a difference one bounce of the puck makes. That, my friends, was quite the battle. That game could have gone either way at least a dozen times but for stellar goaltending on both ends. Take a second look at the goal chat Tab posted above. All 5 goals within about 3′ of the net. Yeah, that’s where we need to get.
Corey Crawford. Wow.
One thing I could do withouth is all the Millbury fawning over Corey Perry’s mastery of the dark arts. He gets into peoples’ heads, blah, blah, blah. The guy is the equivalent of a 7th grade bully. The act has worn thin and the commentators need to stop. He is not getting into Hossa’s head by holding his stick and dropping it on the ice.
Both teams we’re exhausted-kudos to Crawford-huge game
This goalie from Denmark is really good-no Hawk goals for about 120 minutes-he wouldn’t get much sleep last night re-living that game-we’ll see his make up in Chicago. (2 games, no goals with no reward-Wow)
Hopefully all can get through this work day-about 2:30 here in the East last night
Another 2:15 am finish…..another win for the Hawks.
Agree on these announcers…..but not a big fan of Doc Emmerick either.
Radio on the computer sucks because it is 3 minutes behind…..NHL gets no respect. That said, OT is not a money maker for TV or radio without media timeouts.
Hawks are gonna have to figure out the bottom pair. Not sure any human can play 10 more games at this intensity for all those minutes. I was happy to see 26 play marginally well. If Q sticks with him he will improve over the next couple of games. I was OK with the trade for 44, but have changed my mind. I think Q should sit him in favor of Pokka. Pokka is fresh off the Hogs playoffs and I can not see him being more of a liability than 44………And Q controls the matchups a little better so could be time to take the risk.
I hate 2-0 leads. They almost always end up as a 2-1 lead and most of the time the next goal wins. Thankfully the Hawks last night were like soldiers in a foxhole that eventually come out on top.
WNNNNNNNBC.
Mike – right on – no more Timo, sorry but he was awful and that’s putting it mildly. Pokka has some size and weight so he might not get pushed around and if he only plays 10 minutes it would be a stronger 10 then Timo can give us.
C R O W !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! that’s 60 baby
Stoner sucks and Perry needs a punch in that smug mug of his.
All you Shaw haters — take that. Bitch about his dumb penalties but all year he drew more penalties from opponents than he took. We need the Mut as much as we need any forward on this team not named Toews or Kane.
I’ve been searching for the proper words to describe Timonen’s level of suck.
There aren’t any.
I’m going to settle for Bad Trade. One pick would have been an overpay. Two is an outright travesty. The guy can’t skate, stand up through contact, and would be hard pressed to affect the outcome of of a pee wee game unless he was reffing.
Montreal got Jeff Petry from the Oilers for the same cost. Awesome acquisition by Bowman the clown.
Hof, a little help regarding Pokka, could he hold his own if called upon. You saw him play more than most of us. And I really just want to know if you think he would be a better option than Timo right now? Cumiskey held his own I thought, not great but certainly better than Runblad.
Well stated Tab re: Desjardins. Saad was nowhere to be found last night — turnovers, poor passing, skating at Handzus speed intermittently. At times he looked like the forward version of Rundblad.
Many thanks, Silicon Valley. Exhausted mornings like this one make it so much more worth it
thanks for checking in w/ the Piss On The Parade Comment Of The Week, AlbertaHawkFan.
Don’t like the Timonen deal? Cry about it after the playoffs are over.
The referees were pretty awful again. Stoner should have been tossed. What a piece of excrement that guy is. If Kooga stays down and makes the trainer come out then he gets 5 for sure. Luckily the virtuous path was rewarded at the end.
4th line for the Hawks clowned the heck out of the 1st line for Ducks and got the GWG while they were on the ice. Depth narrative much?
Great win, solid team effort, herculean effort from Crawford and ceaseless work from the top 4.
Have to like this coming back to Chicago where Q can screw with Boudreau and hopefully manage some of the defensive minutes a bit more conservatively.
Timonen’s level of “suck”… he’s FORTY and had blood clots and his first game of the season was in April. I get a sore back if I run on a treadmill for 20 minutes. I can’t imagine playing NHL game at age 40, let alone 30. We didn’t bring Timonen in to win the Norris. Cuminsky isn’t a Calder sleeper. They are what we thought they are. And we move on.
Is there any question the Hawks have the best top 4 D-men in the league? Everyone slurped the Ranger’s at the trade deadline. 2/4/7/27 are just incredible in every zone. All 4 do an amazing job of disrupting the Duck forwards at their zone entries and taking away all their speed. Good thing they’re all in their physical prime b/c they’re going to need every ounce of energy to get 7 more wins.
Marcus was so deserving of the winning goal is anyone, all year i have waited for him to have his moment in the limelight that he so earned. Again he was almost hospitalized on a cross check but Marcus is an iron man.
Observations
1- Crow was magnificent, his body position all night was square and tight and the post was all they had to shoot at and that’s what they got. Great game for him.
2- Ducks should have won, outplayed Hawks for almost 5 periods. Luck?
3- Shaw continues to do what I thought he do, improve, getting about 3% better each series and that’s a lot, he’s been playing steady, even the “header” shows his intensity and grit. But closes on the puck like VERMETTE should who did play better in the ot’s and was snake bit on a few stellar opps.
4- Four is for the Fourth line, again best line on the ice for 6 periods.
5- Ducks have the Hawks figured out, this is the first time I see a team play the Hawks defensively like I would, Rub them out, to the boards, they are simply meeting the Hawks at the blue line, body on body and forcing them outside into the wall, the Hawks do NOT have the size or speed ( think Jimmy hayes) to bust the corner which is an skill we don’t have. Even Sadd looks sadly slow now. Hawks are still getting to the blue line and looking which slows them down for that extra pass. They seldom come across the blue line Three Across with speed always slowing for a drop pass or dangerouus cross ice pass or poorly timed dump in.
6- No one really took it right to the net, and that is a problem, scoring from long range and tip in’s will give the series to the Ducks. Gotta take it to the net like they do to CROW, get in his lap!
7- Clumsyski – is horrible worse than Rhunblad IMO. TEMO is just tooo slow, too small too old, I do wish I had seen him when he was good, he right now is still horrible.Like so bad he should take himself out of the game.
8- Core Four Defensemen played great BUT in TEMOS and CLUMSKIES defense the Hawks are asking them to pinch WAY TO LOW ON THE FACE OFF DOT in the offensive zone, Babcock would shoot either one of them if they went into the zone more than 2 feet. It is Q’s responsibility to keep them disciplined, Once TEMO got that word way too late, he played a little better. But too small they dump let him get the puck and just knock him off his skates, and any defense men who gets knocked off his skates like that is trouble.
9. HAWKS DO NOT NEED ANYMORE under 6 foot 180 defense men period!
10. Power play was okay, but as NHL fan, you can look at it as data in which even a poor powerplay after 5 or 6 horrible ones will look good, but that 5 on 3 was horrible and the DUCKS should have easily won this game, but Crow did not let that happen.
Last basic nhl observation, on why we turn it over in our end. One is that we look for long stretch passes which waste time and shorten the time and space between defender and Kessler! BUT THE REAL REASON is our forwards are often way way way too high up near the blue line, Basic hockey, this gap lets the Ducks slant in and get the puck in that 15 foot gap. One game this year i saw hawks execute a shorter “exit” which means one guy below the face dot , then a short pass to blue line or cross over and out. Way too much space as the Hawks try to hard to fast BREAK out of the ZONE, Ducks got it figured out. Lots of really bad PASSES and TURNOVER shocked Ducks lost.
go hawks
About the end of the 2nd OT, this game became a MUST win to me… the miles we put on our D in this game was huge. To go down 2-0 would have been the first nail in the coffin. i expect game 3 to be a little sloppy, with tired legs on both sides. i imagine both teams will be in Chicago today, with limited skate Thursday morning if at all.
I knew the first 7 minutes would be key, and we did get our quick start! ended up being even bigger because we didnt score for basically 5 periods… lol
Cuminsky played ok from what i saw… he will stick in. 44 only skated 16 minutes (8 minutes per “game” after playing 2), but i wonder if he will be sat in game 3 for someone (Rundblad, Pokka, Svedberg) with fresh legs. Given that we will have last change, its will be easier to “hide” a 6th dman anyway.
I still like the Hawks in 6 at this rate. Anderson has been very good, but he is human. He’s not the Eagle… he’s not Roy… he’s not hasek… he’s just another guy in net. Our skill with get to him. Kane will find a stroke and when he does, this series will be all but over.
Huge win for Tampa too on Monday… one step closer to me going to a Hawks cup game…
Crawford did manage to pull it off, I gotta give him that. 60 saves is no joke. But that first goal seemed a bit soft. He was not in the net, he was pushing and shoving others as the puck gently drifted over the line at a snails pace.
Unbelievable game. Congrats to the Hawks for winning that epic battle. I really think Anaheim will have a hard time in the rest of the series after losing that game. Cumiskey is good enough to put out there. T2 is playing well and I like the lines. In prior years I criticized Q for the lineup. This year I think he has it right. Once Kane and Toews get going Anaheim is toast. GO HAWKS!!!!!
I’m a creative director for a agency and i have been for YEARS trying to get the NHL as account. The NHL needs help as stated above they seem to have only 1 set of good announcers, they camera coverage in the age of go pro ( yes saw the all stars with go pro on helmet) and hd slow mo is not even good. The play by play is okay but so much they are NOT TELING or SHARING with the audience which needs to get bigger. I did a few commercial shoots for them years ago and i can tell you the PLAYERS are Canadian and they are not NBA streetwise media stars, they are themselves which is “Stiff” not overly casual and not overly energetic or charismatic? But that us what make the game great, the simple, hard working players but that is why they all look so STIFF on the charity videos except for Keith this year.
But so much more can be done to capture the game visually. Slow mo and analysis is really bad. Who’s knee the puck went off is not analysis! Teach people and share the skill and joy of this game, it should be better,much better and what other game can you have a camera angle where you only see the top half of a players body?
sorry
Go Hawks
Hockey deserves more
To add to all the other great posts, that was our 4th line scoring on the Getzlaf line in over time.
The save Crow made on Perry was unreal, for him to get just enough to keep it out was sick! Crow was on top of his crease and aggressive huge win for him and for the team.
Feels nice to leave the pond with a split, it will be interesting to see how the Ducks respond away from home!
Alberta, love how you call Bowman a clown. Real classy on your part. Petry is also a free agent, the Canadians are in a cap crunch, and they’re out of the playoffs. Current cap considerations were at play too – could the Blackhawks have afforded him at his current salary when they decided to pursue a center as top priority? I’m sure Bowman the clown had to factor all that in – as opposed to those of us on a message board that can just Monday morning Q-back complain and label GM’s as clowns.
Mike … Pokka is a good young defenseman with good instincts and plays solid, under control hockey. He’s not that tall, 6’0 tops, but very solidly built.
He is very young though and that is the concern, his inexperience shows at times which is normal. His play tailed off a bit late in the season – he was probably worn down from his first AHL season at his age.
In answer to your questions, would he fit in – no matter who they’ve got out there as #5-#6 defenseman, expect some blunders. Whether that’s Cumiskey, who had a few last night, or Timonen, who struggles big time to keep up, or Pokka.
It is an awfully tough spot, as everyone knows, to toss in a rookie in the conference finals, especially on defense. I think this guy could give you some minutes though and not embarrass himself and I suspect the coaching staff is working with him to be ready … just in case.
Building from A.J. – I’m not one to complain about the refs and I’m fine w/ 5 PP’s each way (would rather see 3-4).
But the Stoner call – the competition committee has to look at that in the off season and decide that’s a play we want out of the league, just like when they decided they wanted head shots out. Same play Kane and a million other guys get badly injured on. Draws blood. I don’t see how that’s not a major.
Also, the “kicking motion”? If the rule states “when the puck has been directed, batted, or thrown by a player… other than a stick” then why when Cogliano reaches back with his skate to redirect a puck into the net—that’s a good goal? And I’m certainly not griping about that particular goal and it happens for a lot of teams and certainly the Hawks. But for a while now I haven’t understood what the fundamental difference is btw a distinct kicking motion, a distinct redirection (Cogliano’s goal), and then a guy driving the net that truly is the beneficiary of a lucky bounce.
Rant over. Go Hawks.
Too fuzzy brained to comment on details … suffice to say only – WOW.
And remember to return to normal breathing.
Lots of takeaways from this game and not enough time or space for them all, but the most important one is character. It’s been said before and bears repeating, this group is special. Period. Pick your adjective, they all apply. We’ll have to man up again and again against these guys because the fight has just begun. And did anyone else notice that right after Perry scored his goal that he deliberately hit Crawford in the face with the blade of his stick, and then dropped the stick to make it look like he hadn’t. The beady-eyed little prick. If ever someone deserved a broken nose or a well placed slash to the face it’s him.
Let’s hold serve at home!
McKay, the puck seemed to ultimately go in off Bickell’s skate, so maybe that nullifies the obviously intentional redirection with something other than a stick. That’s my only guess, because he did clearly reach his skate back to redirect that puck.
Timonen basically signed his own death warrant last night with that horrible pinch that lead to the first goal. You just know Q told him – play positional defense, don’t get caught, don’t do anything stupid. And then he goes and does that. The margins for error are razor thin and he is just making too many mistakes. There really isn’t any other choice but to ride the top 4 guys, pray for minimal OTs and no injuries and hope the 10 days of rest helps.
As for Pokka, the kid has never played a game at the NHL level. The learning curve just on the speed of the regular season game is pretty huge. Throwing him into the WCF would be suicide. Of course so are 44 and 5 so pick your poison I guess.
This whole series is going to be like this isn’t it? I am exhausted, can’t imagine what the boys feel like but it’s got to be way better coming home 1-1 than down 2-0. Go Hawks. Looking forward to a rocking UC on Thursday.
Really fortunate to win. Ducks hit so much iron that it sounded like a backyard symphony but when the fat lady sang the Hawks stole one in Anaheim. It’s going to be a long series but the Hawks speed and experience should prevail.
A remarkable game by all accounts. It had all the drama that NHL playoff hockey can present. One has to love to feeling that arrives when OT goes deep. Remember to breathe, look for the little things happening on the ice, and appreciate what those players are digging deep to give what they have.
Corey was fantastic last night with Andersen no less. A pity that a team has to lose, but at least the game plays out without a shallow ending shootout. The fairweather media I am sure will still be finding ways to criticize Crow while praising Andersen and any other keeper the Hawks face. All the guy does is win.
As stated by many of you, the Hawks top 4 d men are really amazing. They are as good or better than any top 4 in the league. I also concur with you guys regarding the NBC announcing crew. They are just horrible. I would love to see CBC guys do the call. Hockey night in Canada crews are top notch, although Don Cherry is a buffoonish loudmouth. Play by play though and color guys are really good.
While Shaw head butt goal was nixed, it was a thing of beauty simply for the creativity of the play. I’m a big Shaw fan and he was all over the ice yesterday making a difference where he could. 4th line for Hawks was magnificent and it was fantastic to see they combined for the winning goal. Kruger is such a tough player. Takes massive hits and gets right up. AJ is right. Following the Stoner boarding Krugs should have just laid there and had the trainer come out. Stoner would have gotten 5 and a game. How that wasn’t at least a double minor given what was done to Kruger and Shaw was a sick joke. Stoner has always been a cheap shot artist. We will see more of this as the series progresses from that POS. Never mind the usual crap from the loathsome Corey Perry. Anyone else catch the miked chirping from Kane to Maroon on a faceoff from the 1st game where Kane asked Maroon about getting ready to play summer roller league? Priceless….
Ducks brought the house trying to run Hawks through the walls and still lost. This Hawks team can take it, and in big games somehow digs deep and finds a way through. Wish we had a solid 3rd pairing but we don’t. Cumiskey filled in just fine given circumstances. Timonen does the best he can. Sad to see a guy that was a good player in a physically diminished state.
A huge, huge win last night bringing home ice advantage back to the good guys. Let’s hope they hold serve to close out the week. I’m jacked to be at the UC tomorrow and Saturday. They don’t call it ‘the show” for nothing.
AJ great of you for coming out to Swig last night. Our big game winning streak remains intact. It would be great if some of you other fans would join us. JS, you get 2 minutes for not enough men on the ice….
Victory Wednesday! Enjoy these special times. This series will continue to be world class theater for hockey fans.
Lets Go Hawks!
My observations after getting 3 hours sleep:
Cumiskey played better than Runbad and he’s got a much quicker stick.
1. #44 is getting slower as these games go on-which I didn’t think was possible. It will be interesting to see if Q keeps playing him with some black aces around now.
2. Crow was amazing, as were 2, 4, 7, 27.
3. Stoner should have that hit and shot to Shaw’s face looked at by the league.
4. These announcers and Mike Milbury SUCK! They have very little to say and Milbury must have chapped lips from kissing Perry’s ass so much with his comments. I never thought I’d ever say this but I miss Pierre Macguire.
5. Home ice and last change will be HUGE to try to get 88 and 19 freed up a bit.
6. Ducks look better than either the Rangers or Tampa Bay – still like Hawks in 6.
In other NHL news Babcock is rumored to be close to signing with Buffalo for 10 yrs & the deal is in the 50 million dollar range,…wow!
Meant to send special thanks to Tab “the keyboard warrior” for posting a stellar recap under bleary eyed conditions.
Lets Go Hawks!!
I used to think Babcock was a good coach and good for Hockey. Now I just think he is a good coach. He shouldn’t be the story when the Conference Finals are going on. I feel he is kind of holding the league hostage.
Phil and AJ, as much as love watching hockey with you two, it worked out pretty well that I didn’t go. After being up until 2:30, I had someone call off so I was up at 5am to head into work. That wouldn’t have worked that well if I was loaded up from watching hockey with you two.
Corey was sensational. Maybe like 7 more 60 save performances to close out the playoffs and he’ll get the respect he deserves.
What Seabrook did on the GWG was one of the most impressive things I’ve ever seen in hockey. That puck he launched on goal was in the air and fluttering off the boards. Absolutely incredible that he was able to get that good of wood on that shot.
Kane was a little better last night, but he really needs to start pointing up. He had a few opportunities that he just couldn’t get the shot where he wanted it, which is very unlike him.
Here’s to hoping Hawks hold serve at home and we can have Game 5 at SWIG and celebrate another trip to the SCF.
This defensemen ice time talk is overrated. It’s a media game that sucks you in.
Remember the 3 OT game with Boston in 2013. Ice time in that game:
Keith – 48.40
Seabrook – 39.12
Hjalmarsson – 39.38
Oduya – 37.20
Oh – and Toews played 36.24
And that game was 4 minutes shorter
How come no one mentions Anaheim defense ice time
F. Beauchemin 46.29
H. Lindholm 44.07
C. Fowler 40.21
S. Vatanen 37.57
Shots last night – 117
Shots in that Boston 3 OT game – 116
Just like Boston, Anaheim is a “heavy” team
Just like Boston, the series is tied 1-1
Just like Boston – the Hawks have figured out Anaheim and will win in 6
And finally, if you had a choice of playing using your top guys more or playing that scumbag Clayton Stoner – which would you choose?
apparently Q had mentioned had Johns not been injured he would have been playing this series. Someone on here had mentioned that Q was at a Hogs game and Q went to specifically scout Johns with the idea that he was playing this series. What a bummer!
Oh, on the Timo pinch that led to the first goal. One of the only things he’s been good at is knowing when to pinch when in the O-Zone. He got burned that time. It happens. Can’t take away his aggression though because it’s the only thing that really works for him.
And I do think Shaw had what was likely his best game as a Blackhawk. He looked dangerous all night. However, he did take a crap angle and over skated the defensemen on the Perry tip in goal. So while he was mostly great, that wasn’t a very great play.
I thought deep in 3OT Cumiskey looked like Bobby Orr because he was the only player on either side with energy left. Pokka could be interesting for 44 but we all know it’s not going to happen.
I am a Shaw hater, I hate on him all year long, and then he goes out and plays a game like that and I feel like an idiot. Our fourth line is hockey gold, they seem to be the only line that can handle the board battles with these thugs.
Kaner just needs to keep his head up, its going to start going in. Loved how Toews ramped up his game against ex Vancouver cry-baby Kessler (I was hoping to see Andrew Ladd, defying the laws of time and space, mystically come off the bench and beat the hell out of him like he did in 2010, but I am just happy to get the win).
Last but not least, Crow was solid. Quite the accomplishment, stopping 60 shots to win the longest game in franchise history. If he keeps this level of play up we are going the distance.
Fantastic game by the 4rth line. Great play by Desjardines to win the board battle on the winning goal. Nobody works harder than Kruger, good to see him get the winner. Crawford got the belt, he deserved it. Fantastic performance. Cumiskey played better as the game went on. He seemed pretty fresh at the end. The pass he made to Vermette at the goal mouth was a thing of beauty. Should have been a tap in. I agree with everybody else, those announcers were so bad I turned the volume down starting the third OT. I thought the Hawks had more energy in the 3rd OT. The Ducks looked more worn out then the Hawks. The only big negative I saw in the game( other than 44) was the play of Bickel. I think he is holding Kane back. Many possessions ended with Bickel fumbling the puck or making a bad pass. Maybe switch 29 and 20.
Stoner is a thug!
McKay: with all due respect I don’t care if Timonen is 67 and playing with a pacemaker while dragging an oxygen tank. He stinks, is a major liability, and should be nowhere near a Blackhawks starting lineup. I wasn’t thinking he’d be a Conn Smythe candidate. Just that he’d contribute which he can’t.
Tab: no parade pissing at all. The guy shouldn’t be in a Hawks jersey so why shouldn’t SB take some heat for saddling Q with him? It was a bad bet pure and simple and now we get to see a top 4 get massively overused. If you don’t see any potential ramifications for that down the road then cool. The guy wasn’t worth a 7th and a used jock let alone what SB gave up for him, particularly when the current top 4 will he a top 3 come early July and very possibly a top 2 by early September.
Another little observation about the announcers. They raved about Anaheim’s 4th line and they were really good but I don’t remember any mention of the Hawks’ 4th line which as we all know scored the winning goal, ha. I avoid NBCSports intermission reports sometimes because of Milbury and Jones. I’ve heard Jones say we’ll see this team win or this guy will be great and he’s been wrong. I remember the Hawks played LA on the back end of consecutive games and Jones kept saying it’s a sure win for the Kings and the Kings will make the playoffs. Hawks won 4-1 and the Kings missed the playoffs. Anyway, what happened to Dave Strader? He’s definitely better than Albert and get someone else in between the benches instead of Engblom.
I love how this win shut up the ass-wipe Ducks fans who were saying things like;
“Bring on Tampa or NY this series is over…”
“This is no competition”
“Easy sweep!”
Obviously dumb comments to make after game 1!
Let’s win the two in Chicago and close ’em out in Anaheinie!
Go Hawks!
61….couldn’t agree more about Bickell. He is holding Richards and Kane back. His possessions usually end in a give away, a take away or a steal. We need his size but he needs to play with more intensity.
I have had the same opinion about Shaw since he became a regular. A player you ask to rough it up with the big boys and play with unending energy is gonna make some mistakes. BUT the Hawks need him in this series BIG TIME.
Kane will find his space. If the Hawks can play better with a lead, Kane and Richards will find and hit the seams.
Toews shows us every night why he is the best player/captain combo in the NHL.
I am OK with what 26 did last night. He will be better tomorrow if Q lets him skate.
Kimmo…..what can you say. SB took a chance and lost. It happens
11 and 80. They have improved our team, glad to have them aboard.
23……..sorry about your luck, dude. But you would have gotten beaten to a pulp in this series.
10 will ramp up his physical game and Saad will be back to normal in game 3.
National announcers do what they do. Hype up the team with momentum or the team that’s winning. I would rather listen to the Ducks announcers. At least you know what you’re getting
Mudturtle, I thought Strader was a good call too. IMO, he could keep up with the players on the ice. Now I don’t mind Engblom so much and I do not know why he isn’t paired with Doc and Eddie O. The benches at the Honda Center are setup so that the “on-ice” reporter is actually on the bench with the Ducks…that has got to be weird.
C’mon Mike, Ducks announcers, really? The same guys that said Seabrook was faking it after almost getting killed by James Wisniewski a few years ago. Those guys are pathetic.
Lets Go Hawks!!
Can we stop crying about all the minutes the top four from the Hawks are playing.
From age 28-36 Nick Lidstrom averaged 30:28, 30:21, 29:17, 31:10 (Cup Win), 33:35, 27:10, 30:37 and was then relegated to the 26ish range and won again.
Scott Niedermayer was 26-29 minutes every year in the playoffs.
Chris Pronger was + 30 when he won the Cup and regularly above that in the playoffs
Chelios skated 26:55 as a 40 year old. Which is insane. Too bad I cant find what it was earlier in his career which I’m sure had to be over 30.
Zubov and Hatcher each ate 30 for Dallas when they won
Blake, Bourgue, and Foote all ate plus 28 minutes when Colorado won last
Keith is a generational talent and more than capable of eating 30-35 a night. Seabrook is a pretty special player and can definitely eat 30 no problem. Hammer has shown he can take close to 30 and Oduya is one heck of a fit guy.
There is ZERO issue with those guys logging big minutes this time of year. None. They are all healthy (for now anyway) had a nice gap between series and will carry this team forward if need be.
Stop worrying about the third pairing. It is irrelevant at this point. Top heavy defensive pairings have been leaned on before with favorable results. This is nothing new and a preposterous talking point unless one of those four suffers some kind of catastrophic injury, in which case they would be screwed with or without any AHL or former NHL or whatever player waiting in the press box.
Amazing that Crow keeps having to prove himself to doubters – not sure I have ever seen a top athlete get less respect after achieving so much. Thought 10/80/86 were dangerous all night – TT continues to impress on both sides of the puck. All the talking heads keep telling us that the Ducks physical play will hammer the Hawks into submission. I believe that teams that focus on heavy physical play pay a high price themselves (Blues are prime example). Continually running into the boards at warp speed while trying to hit Keith can’t be very good for the body. Agree with the earlier post that commented that this became a must game the longer it went in overtime. 26 was fine last night and expect him to continue in the lineup – in fact he had a great play on the shot/pass to Vermette who couldn’t finish into the empty net.
Game 2. That’s why we can’t help but watch every spring.
The 44 trade has been beneficial off ice in that its apparently distracted this albertafan to the point where we don’t have to put up with the ’50 is mediocre’
garbage that usually gets slung ..
Zoom Zoom 16.
Can we get Marcus a deal like 19 or 88? In length at least? I’d like that very much
I found it extra rewarding when I saw 10/15 in black on the ice when Seabs decided he should end another marathon.
It’s good medicine to be in on these playoffs isn’t it ? We are in good times! Enjoy
This place called Swig sounds almost mythical….
noonan96, cheers mate! 1-1
Someone get AlbertaHawkFan some coffee and a box of Kleenex. Timonen is here, the Hawks paid what they did, and there are 7 wins left for the ultimate prize. You’re crying doesn’t change any of that.
re: top 4 getting massively overused – Q was much better w/ the ice time last night in regulation. That might have been noticed if we weren’t crying about trading for a veteran defenseman
“Keith is a generational talent” – THANK YOU AJ. Chicago fans take that for granted far too often…
In unrelated news, today is Stan Mikita’s 75th birthday. Well wishes to a Blackhawk legend, Hall of Famer, and great person.
Thanks AJ for posting the ice time for Dmen. These guys relatively young and the extra time won’t hurt them. They had 9, 10 days off which is more than enough time to recover from the Nashville and Minnesota series and be stronger. Hopefully they can win 2 at the UC and theb beat a demoralized Ducks team in Anaheim to get a little extra time off and again recover and be even stronger. Although I think extended time off hurts Crawford somewhat. I think mentally the lads will always be ready. They want the cup again.
Phil….sorry did not know that. Just making a point that national announcers suck!!!
Re: Corey Perry – a great player. Has about everything you would want in a top line winger – size, grit, scoring, nasty, agitator. Who wouldn’t want him on the Hawks?
But that said, he is a dirty player asswipe. Always has been. His motivation is to get the opponent off their game with all the little jerky things he does and he’s very accomplished at it and gets away with it more times than not – especially against teams like the Hawks who, although won’t get intimated, also won’t threaten him physically.
And I must finally make this comment now that I’ve had to watch these guys up close for 2 games (almost 3 in terms of minutes) – Getzlaf and Perry are probably the most unattractive star duo playing in the league. From Getzlaf constantly blowing snot out one nostril and then the other to the dead-eye stare rat face of Perry – all NHL fans should hope the Ducks don’t win the Cup so we don’t get a year of having those guy’s pictures plastered on everything NHL.
Outstanding game and great efforts from all players on both teams. Someone had to lose and fortunately it was ANA, as it could of easily have been the Hawks.
Some notes…
Crawford was outstanding, but to those who thought he was technically sound all night, watch the game again. CC really battled himself for the first two and a half periods, it wasn’t until ANA put the pressure back on in the 3rd period that CC became too tired to be flopping and diving around everywhere. Because after that point, CC really did play a sound, technical game and that’s why he made that save for the ages off of Perry in OT. As most said before the series, Crawford was going to have to equal the performance of Andersen, and last night he did, and it must continue if we are going to win because Andersen looks almost unbeatable from anything other than a screened and tipped goal. So thank you very much Corey!
The Hawks PP must continue what they started last night, they need to move the puck quickly to open up shooting lanes from the point, and they need bodies like Shaw and Bickell that will get in front of Andersen and make him guess. Even if we don’t score, it will have an effect on Andersen’s confidence to save everything in sight.
Winning championships in hockey has always been about having balanced hockey teams. Even the Canadiens of the Seventies and the Oilers of the Eighties only began to win and dominate after they added players like Robinson/Gainey and Messier/Huddy/Lowe to become two dimensional teams. The Hawks win under Coach Q because he insists on Defence first, and that his team play with as much grit and compete as possible. And although they very much look different doing it, both Andrew Shaw and Marcus Kruger DEFINE these qualities. The Hawks have two championships under Q largely because of their core talent, but we would still be without a title if we didn’t have such a dedication to defence and the compete level of champions. Shaw, Kruger, Desjardins, Bickell and Sharp are doing whatever it takes on every shift to win, and that’s why we won last night (that and Crawford). That’s called team depth and if we possessed it last year, we would have won another Cup!
There is a lot of criticism on Cumiskey this morning and I don’t see the reasoning behind it. Yes, he struggled early in the game but obviously consider the circumstances. Q protected him through the first three periods where he had significantly less ice time than Timonen, but in OT, with Timonen really struggling, Q was forced to use Cumiskey and he responded well. This bodes well for the Hawks as Timonen had his worst game yet as a Blackhawk and his previously worst game was the last one. ANA has targeted him and Timonen has taken a beating in his limited minutes, he is no longer focused on the puck or his responsibilities, he is simply worried about getting hit, and hey, he’s 40 years old, I probably would be too. But the Hawks simply shouldn’t use him anymore, and here is my suggestion. For game 3 at home, with the last change in hand, Q should put Cumiskey in the Rozy role of 15-18 minutes a game, pairing with the rotating Keith, while DAVID RUNBADLY, yes I am actually awake, should become the 6th DMan giving the Hawks 8-10 minutes a game. These 2 games at home will allow Q to protect both men quite well, and they can get their legs back and their confidence up before returning to ANA. It will also bring down the minutes for the top 4, and to those who think that the announcers are making too big of a deal about the minutes for our top 4 Dmen, think again, with the punishment they are taking, these minutes are taking a major toll which can only be maintained for so long!
While Bowman did miss badly on Timonen, he struck gold with his other moves for this season. I am not a big Brad Richards fan, but fair is fair, he is having a very good playoffs ever since the first two games against NSH. He is playing an all-around good game as a true Centre! Thanks Brad! Desi, Vermette and Teravanien have all been KEY contributors to our success and this experience for TT is only going to make him that much better as he looks to enter his first full season in the pros next year, so well done Stan!
Finally, as a number of posters have already said, the Hawks split in ANA was under far from ideal conditions. The refs (I normally will not comment on them) have been horribly selective thus far, and Toews and especially Kane have not played their best hockey yet. Both are capable of taking over a game and will return to form sooner than later! Also, Q did a wonderful job of adjusting in game two! Thanks to all the Hawks for such a great effort!!!
Hawk Facts and AJ – totally concur on D-Man minutes. Not much difference to be had. Anaheim top two are same as Hawks top four.
As series moves forward look for more help from forwards in D zone. Also outlet passes will shorten in length. Think St Louis last year.
A question seeking an answer – do long games with lots of hitting result in longer time to recover for the big bodies out there vs the smaller guys? Just wondering.
I remember a time not too long ago when the Hawks were pathetic. Eventully they started drafting some players and being less pathetic and worth watching. Then I saw Duncan Keith for the 1st time and was like ” omg who is this guy?” Keith will be the 1st of the bunch to go into the Hall of Fame and is the 1st piece of the home grown Hall of Fame Hawks. Truely a generational talent!
Hossa will probably be a Hall of Famer as will Q but neither represent as much as Keith does to the organization.
I agree Bickell looked off. I usually back him up so this isn’t some “Bowman sucks or 29 is handcuffs!!” argument. To me it looks like he has some lower body issue, probably a knee. His first steps were incredibly slow and he was floating around. Good hits once in a while but overall not his best game.
Maybe switching him with Saad might help. I want Saad a part of the next core as most of all you do as well, but last night was another bad showing. In game 1 + 2 he was only noticeable for about 30 seconds on the penalty kill. Last year he killed it in WCF so maybe reunite him with Kane.
Cumiskey passed the eye test but he had some brutal turnovers exiting his own zone. If he plays a simple game with no more egregious giveaways I’d skate 14-18 minutes.
Go Hawks!!!
Nothing better than coming home from work and reading all of your comments and observations………….fantastic!!
What I saw was a Ducks team that completely gassed themselves in the first 2 periods by trying to hit anything in a white sweater. When the game was into the second overtime, Getzlaf and Perry were hunched over gasping for air at the faceoff circle and the Hawks still looked fresh. There were 3 times in the overtime periods when the Hawks had the puck in the Ducks zone for OVER a minute a seven seconds. They had one controlled possession when they had it for a minute and nineteen seconds in a 5 on 5 situation. There was hardly any physical contact in the over time periods.
Again, you don’t just have to beat the Hawks skill and speed, you have to beat their resolve. Right now, the Ducks are looking up the word “resolve” in the dictionary.
Great game by a great team! Keep 26 in the line up and give him a few more minutes of ice time. When 88, 81, 10 and 19 get hot, this series is over!!
Yes happpy Birthday to Stosh Mikita great player and family man. I liked what Millbury said about stoner trying to concuss Kruger and then smacking Shaw in the face , if the referees dont have the courage to call the game as it should be . they shouldnt be doing the playoffs 5 minutes for hit on Krug and two minutes for smacking Shaw in the face I saw Saad get knocked off the puck way to easy . he has disappeared in this series, can anyone imagine Shaw in Bickels body , what a force to behold . Kane will return to this series soon . hes to great a player not too Toews was his usual dynamic self , also ive never seen Hoss get knocked off the puck as much as in this series B
Serious question:
Before the playoffs began, if you were asked the goaltenders likely to be involved in an epic triple OT game making 50 – 60 saves , who would they be? Rinne? Price? Dubnyk? Lundquist? I highly doubt Crawford would of even been mentioned…..
This is not a slam against CC but an illustration of how little respect he’s given.
Sure he started out rough, but has settled in nicely & is starting to play like the CC that won the cup 2 years ago…….
Don’t want to just repeat; most has been said already.
Quick question though: to my (admittedly untrained) eye, Hossa has not looked good. Not doing the things we’ve come to take for granted (takeaways seemingly out of nowhere, ferocious backchecking, etc).
Am I missing something, or is 81 struggling?
No worries Mike regarding Ducks announcers. You can judge for yourself via this link, but for me this was pretty bizarre commentary. If the link doesn’t work you can find it on youtube.
https://youtu.be/o8vhXmCwt5w
It’s going to be early to bed tonight pour moi. Simply a massive win last night. Very proud of the no quit in this Hawks team.
Lets Go Hawks!
The reality is the Ducks are a good team with top talent that compares with Hawks at the very top as featured in recent articles on Toews-Kane vs. Getzlaf-Perry (I’ll take our boys with 2 Cups, 2x CS trophys thank you…) Anaheim is big and physical and Kesler gives them added strength up the middle which means we are clearly fighting for our lives. BUT- despite the broadcast clowns claims to the contrary, I continue to believe we are deeper thru 4 lines and that the Hawks resolve, experience and team speed will wear them out over a 6-7 game series.
I’m not worried about Kane, as he has disappeared early in physical series in the past and come back to re-assert his talent as the series moves on (example comes to mind back in the Philly SC Final in ’10 when he was held quiet 1st 2 games and then heated up starting in game 3, totaling 3 G’s and 3 A’s in games 3-6 and eventually scoring Cup winner.)
BIG game Thursday as we must apply pressure to neck of wounded fowl..
Best news of all, next two home games Q gets the final change… We will see a different set of matchups for our top line… many more chances against Ducks third & forth line. Q will be able to blend TOI for the Fantastic Four (2,4, 7 & 27 ) with TOI for 26 & 44 much better. Look for 88 & 19 to net goals in game 3 & 4.
The trades made with draft picks and prospects at the deadline all made sense. The 20-20 hindsight being offered by the SB haters is ridiculous.
Saad has been playing sad, and slow, as i have ranted all year he should not be on that first line you can almost insert “anyone” but TEMO and get production. Saad really defers to Hossa and Toews and has not stepped up, yes he has scored but his presence on that line to me is a waste of his talents, he needs his own a line and own responsibility for that line and lead NOT FOLLOW, it is way too easy for him to look average next to Hossa and Toews. That is a big reason we’re stuck in these donny brooks with Boston back then and Ducks now and the fluke goal vs. Philly. We need to get the MOST out of everyone.
I also wonder or dare to say TOEWS is one of the most skilled players in the NHL and to me HOSSA may not be the best pairing or him. TOEWS can score 40 goals easy but again it’s balance and who is on your line. TOEWS also does not need to be on penalty kills either, he can do a lot of damage offensively but is he gets “applause and gee golly” for back checking and passing and penalty kill” then we’re not getting the scoring he is capable of. Any way LOVE TOEWS what a talent a natural talent and boy if he ever went elsewhere i think we would all be shocked at how many goals he’d score.
wondering out loud . . . .
By the way Oduya was really good last night – forgot to mention on my earlier post. Also happy to see the posts about Keith as a Generational Talent. I have said before that I believe the fans take his amazing skills for granted most of the time.
Love it Hawksfacts, tell it like it is! Lots of similarities between this series and what Boston tried to do to us in 2013. Wish the NBC crew had done their homework as well as you did yours. Nicely done.
And, as has been stated by many people here, why did we end up with the third string NBC announcing crew? If I never hear another Albert for the rest of my life it’ll be too soon. Learn the names of the freakin’ players, Kenny. It’s the least you can do for whatever ridiculous salary you’re probably making.
And, YES, Happy Birthday Stan Mikita. One of the best ever!!
Hopefully the Hawks top 4 defense got in bed and that they stay there till game time. Tough go for them against the Ducks. Wouldn’t mind seeing what Pokka could do but would be really surprised to see it. Hof thanks for mentioning Stan. Happy Birthday Stan we all love you!
You fellas can’t get the CBC feed on satellite or cable? The Minnesota series was called by Bob Cole who is one of the all time greats…this Ducks series is Paul Romanuk…he’s a bit quirky but exciting enough..his sidekicks were blatantly on the Ducks side however …in between periods panel commentary varied but mostly in the Ducks camp, as they were with the Wild.
Goals are hard enough to come by in the NHL, ..thought Shaws header was a nice piece of athleticism …nobody showing any love here…lets change that rule! No kicking it in but headers OK! Ok I can see the rotten tomatoes, old fruit and shoes coming my way.
Can’t wait to see how it all goes down at the UC. Thinking from observation we got some guys playing hurt but no one is going to fess up.
This isn’t any proclamation of how the year ends but….When will the national media realize that the Hawks can play and win in any type of game vs any type of opponent ?? What else do we have to do to convince them?
And they can probably scratch Hank off their short list of CS Trophy favorites after he surrendered another sixer vs TB
Tonights Sun Times posting and agreeing with a national outlet, that Vermette is the biggest bust in the playoffs is unfair. It’s more of an indictment on their ignorance or even worse, than 80’s contribution to date.
Barry Melrose is a Blackhawk lover. I don’t know how many times he has picked them to win the Cup or get to the finals but I know he picked them at the beginning of this season. Vegas had them as the favorite also from the beginning. Let the others underestimate the Hawks. It makes victory just a little sweeter.
Right on Ryandale…they all seem to use the same talking points..easy to criticize in order make these guys seem they are smarter than they are..trying to impress …they are not fans of the Blackhawks and don’t do the proper amount of digging and observation. T’was ever thus. National media are just jealous of the Indian Head.
I agree with you guys on Vermette – sure we’d all like him to score more, but is was right move to make at the TDL and he’s been playing better lately.
A comment on Cumiskey from last night – he had two weak clearing attempts that were essentially giveaways and led to sustained zone time for the Ducks. Luckily neither of them ended up in the back of net. Aside from those two plays – I though Cumiskey did OK.
Lets win the 2 at home in fine fashion and then finish the, in Moar-issons own words ( see what I did there! ), sont ta bitches in sunny California.
Saw some twitter buzz regarding Versteeg being told to “be ready to play this series”….
Who would come out? seems like the likely suspects (Desi, TT, Shaw) are all playing well… i wouldn’t want any of them to sit.
Andersen is rattled after that 3 OT loss. It’s time hit him with a barrage of shots and crowd the net. Boudreu wants 40-50 hits… Bring it on. The boys can handle it. It’d be great to see a blowout tonight.