The Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues have contributed four overtimes to the Stanley Cup playoffs and they have only played three games. There have been plenty of storylines to go around in the ten plus periods played so far, and the fun is only beginning as the series has gotten more interesting after Game 3.
The Blues managed to swipe the first two contests in extra time, but the defending champs have not gone down without a fight so far. The Hawks trail 1-2 in the best-of-seven series but have pushed the higher seed to a total of four overtimes along the way. The 2-0 shutout win in Game 3 is a reminder to all the doubters and particularly the St. Louis Blues that th edefending champions will not die quickly.
The Hawks all but had the second game won before a ridiculous and dirty head shot knocked Blues’ captain David Backes out cold. The ensuing five minute power play proved to be the Chicago undoing as Vladimir Tarasenko equalized with less then ten ticks on the clock.
Barret Jackman ended the game five minutes into the first overtime on a goal that could have haunted Corey Crawford for the rest of this series. The Chicago netminder responded with a 34-save shutout to restore some confidence in the Windy City. Here are five takeaways from the first two games of the series.
1. St. Louis' defense is just as good as Chicago’s defense
The blue line of St. Louis was going to be tested by four relentless lines of Chicago offense. Last season, it was the Chicago defensemen that were the stars, making Crawford’s job look a lot easier in net. The Blues have a better goaltender behind them in Ryan Miller and are doing their very best to achieve a similar result.
2. Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews are not 100% yet. Yet.
The dynamic duo for the Blackhawks is back on the ice, but not quite up to 100%. They are certainly a better option for coach Joel Quenneville than anyone else he can put out there, but the explosive first step is lacking for both. They are still difference makers for Chicago as their time on the ice suggests. Of the two, Kane seems to be more off his game. The knee that knocked him out of the final three weeks of the season has taken away his escapability speed. Toews got his first goal of the series in Game 3 in 22 minutes of ice time and took 19 of 24 faceoffs.
3. Corey Crawford needs to be better for the Hawks to have a prayer.
Let’s be honest here, Crawford isn’t going to steal a game in this series. He is the weak link for Chicago, but he has shown that he can be good enough to hold things down in the back end. No soft goals and Crawford needs to be dialed in for the next five games for Chicago to have a realistic shot at getting out of the first round.--These were my thoughts before Game 3, and look what happened. Chicago clearly won't go away quietly, and if they can get another performance (or two) like that from Crawford, they can completely swing the momentum back in their favor.
4. Brent Seabrook could have cost the Blackhawks the series, or won it for them.
It is much easier said than done, but heavy hitters like Seabrook need to show better awareness when choosing to clobber an opponent. For all the punishment that Blues captain David Backes dishes out, it was a great chance for the Blackhawk’s defenseman to return the favor. I don’t know if he meant to knock Backes cold, but I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt. What I do know for certain is that the Blackhawks will be without their second best defenseman for the next three games. Each one of the three games is more vital for Chicago’s survival chances and that task got exponentially more difficult with “Seabass” watching from the press box. Conversely, the Blues' captain and leader is out until further notice. The Blues took 34 shots on Chicago's goal but looked significantly less menacing without Backes patrolling the ice. With the top center for St. Louis missing, Toews had his way in the faceoff circle and helped Chicago control the puck and large chunks of momentum.
5. The next three games will be better than the first three.
It hardly seems possible, but the Chicago win in Game 3 this series looks well on it's way to seven games. The Crawford shutout in Game 3 was a nice surprise but cannot be expected to happen more than once a series. Backes' absence in the third game was obvious at both ends of the ice, yet it was a one goal game for 55 minutes. Neither team seems to have a significant edge over the other and it is clear that the two sides dislike one another. Buckle up folks, this series looks like it will go the distance and I can guarantee there will be more fireworks in the next three games, especially when Seabrook returns to the ice.