Ladies and gentlemen, we have a series.
It took a little while but I can confidently say that
Wednesday saw a good, full game from both combatants. As overtime games usually
go, the decision could have landed either way and the implications moving
forward would have been far and away stark contrasts. A loss from the Hawks
would have landed them in a two game hole on the brink of elimination heading
back to the United Center, similar to their series against Detroit, but facing
a team with far more tried and true weapons than the retooling Red Wings.
But here we are, at the opposite end of that spectrum, with
the series tied at 2 and the potential for things to swing either way. I
personally don’t believe in momentum during the playoffs from game to game.
Within the game, yes, absolutely, where a fight here or a good penalty kill
there or what have you can dictate the tempo in favour of one team or another.
But from Game X to Game Y, not so much. Yes there is a certain mindset that
hovers around a particular team when down three games to one compared to being
evened up at two. However the team can suffer if the players carry that mindset
onto the ice.
The score isn’t always an indicator of performance but Game
4 was about as even-keeled as the goal tallies displayed. Unfortunately I
missed the second period due to work so I missed out on 6 of the 11 goals but
what I saw was quick and open play from Chicago and strong and responsible play
from Boston. They were tied three times but the Blackhawks held the lead by a
goal or two for a little over one period of ice time. Every time they went up,
the Bruins had an answer. This series not recommended for individuals with
heart conditions.
Chicago’s first goal, in my opinion, displayed exactly the
kind of attack they needed to solve Tuukka Rask and pick themselves up to play
against the Boston squad. Brandon Saad creates a turnover while shorthanded and
uses his speed to get the puck behind Zdeno Chara before placing the pass in
front of Michal Handzus who slips a wrister into the net. So often in the
previous three games, Chicago allowed Boston’s defense to keep them on the
edges of the zone which would allow Boston to hold position between the puck
and the net, providing little opportunity to produce quality chances. This
example showed what kind of looks they can get if they challenge instead of
wait for chances to be given to them and also the effect of getting bodies to the
net. The ensuing goals by Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, and Brent Seabrook
proved to bolster the swarm method that this team has seemingly abandoned at
points prior.
One interesting thing to note about Boston is that they have
lost only six games in the 2013 Playoffs. Three of those six were in overtime
(to go along with four overtime wins) and of the three which came in regulation,
two were by one goal. Their last regulation loss was May 12 against the Toronto
Maple Leafs. To state the point, this is a team that cannot be counted out
under any circumstance and they have proven this time and time again with how
many deficits they overcome during the course of any single game. Before the
Seabrook goal that put Game 4 to bed, the Blackhawks had leads by scores of 1-0,
2-1, 3-1, 3-2, 4-2, 4-3, and 5-4. It shows a great amount of patience and poise
to come back and tie a game three different times and their record shows that
if they are to go down, they won’t let you take one from them easily.
Aside from goals by Handzus and Marcus Kruger, Game 4
provided a resurgence of the Blackhawks’ core group of players. The media has
widely spoken about Toews, who netted only his second goal of the entire
playoffs. Depth scoring is one thing that propelled the Hawks to a dominant
President’s Trophy-winning season but in those tough stretches you rely on your
top guys to get you through. But no matter who is on the ice against them,
Boston has a knack for creating turnovers and scoring chances during those
events. At this point in the series not much new can be said about either team.
Chicago knows how to beat Boston and Boston knows how to beat Chicago. From
here on out we will see if Chicago’s offense can create chaos for Boston’s
defense or if they will once again be easily shut down and exploited. Can
Boston continue to expose holes in Corey Crawford’s style or will Crawford
tighten things up and give Rask a more challenging goaltender duel?
Not all lockout-inflicted wounds are healed but these two
teams are giving us a reason to get excited about the sport and the league.
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