Blackhawks at Ducks
The Chicago Blackhawks' sudden-death supremacy this postseason has kept them from being swept and turned the Western Conference final into a best-of-three series. Chicago looks to record its first regulation victory of the set when it visits the Anaheim Ducks for Game 5 on Monday.
The Blackhawks are 4-0 in overtime this postseason, posting two victories in the second extra session and another pair that needed three bonus periods to decide the outcome. Chicago's most impressive overtime triumph came on Saturday, as the team allowed three goals in a 37-second span midway through the third period to watch a 3-1 lead turn into a one-goal deficit. The Blackhawks - whose current core players also were members of their championship clubs of 2010 and 2013 - drew upon that experience as Patrick Kane responded 3 1/2 minutes later before late-season acquisition Antoine Vermette evened the series 5:37 into the second overtime. The Ducks hope to bounce back from that tough defeat, as well as their first setback at home in Game 2, which went deep into the third extra session before Marcus Kruger provided the heroics for Chicago.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC, TVA
ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS: The irony of Vermette scoring the winning goal to prevent Chicago from falling into a 1-3 series hole was remarkable, considering the veteran center was a healthy scratch for Game 3. "The emotion (of being scratched), it's not a pleasant one," Vermette said. "As a proud competitor, like anybody else on this team, you want to be part of the team. You think you can help the team." The 32-year-old, who reached the Stanley Cup final with Ottawa in 2007, has notched two tallies and an assist over 11 games as he appears in just his second postseason since 2009.
ABOUT THE DUCKS: Anaheim, which entered Game 4 as one of two teams in NHL history (1979 New York Rangers) to have played their first 12 postseason contests without losing in regulation, should have little trouble shaking off Saturday's loss. After all, it rebounded from the Game 2 triple-overtime setback by posting a 2-1 victory two nights later. "We're a resilient group," defenseman Cam Fowler said. "(The overtime losses) could be a tough pill to swallow, but you can also use it as motivation to get ready."
OVERTIME
1. Since Joel Quenneville took over as coach in 2008-09, the Blackhawks are 16-0 in Game 5 of playoff series which are even after four contests - including an 8-0 mark on the road.
2. Anaheim's quick scoring spurt in Game 4 was the second-fastest three-goal outburst in postseason history, behind the 23-second span produced by Toronto in a preliminary-round game against the Atlanta Flames on April 12, 1979, with Quenneville notching an assist on the Maple Leafs' third tally.
3. Chicago has been involved in eight of the 15 playoff contests that have needed multiple overtimes in the last three years, winning seven of them. It is the first team in NHL history to record four such victories in the same postseason.