Ducks 4, Blackhawks 1
ANAHEIM, Calif.- After all the hype around the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks' star power, it was a twice-drafted Danish goalie and a cast of role players that stole the spotlight in Game 1 on their Western Conference final series.
The Ducks defeated the Blackhawks 4-1 at Honda Center on Sunday afternoon to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Defenseman Hampus Lindholm and right winger Jakob Silfverberg each contributed a goal and an assist. Right winger Kyle Palmieri and center Nate Thompson also lit the lamp for Anaheim.
Center Brad Richards scored for Chicago.
Meanwhile, Anaheim nearly had its first game without a point from either center Ryan Getzlaf, right winger Corey Perry or center Ryan Kesler. Getzlaf got a late assist on an empty-net goal.
Similarly, Chicago saw its marquee players -- center Jonathan Toews, right winger Patrick Kane, right winger Marian Hossa and left winger Patrick Sharp -- leave a void on the score sheet as well.
Anaheim Goalie Frederik Andersen beat back a Blackhawks attack that mounted 33 shots on goal, while Chicago's Corey Crawford made 23 saves in defeat.
Anaheim left winger Andrew Cogliano figured into that breakthrough goal, which came at 12:05 of the third period and gave the Ducks a 3-1 lead. His wrist shot leapt off Crawford's pad into the low slot, allowing Thompson to pop it into the net.
Silfverberg would seal the victory with an empty-net goal at 18:42. He now has 13 points, tying him for the second most in the playoffs with Getzlaf, Kane and Tampa Bay's Tyler Johnson.
Anaheim opened the scoring at 8:48 of the first period with a goal off the rush. Silfverberg turned the puck back to a trailing Lindholm, who blasted a slap shot past Crawford.
The Ducks' defensemen have produced more points than any other team in the playoffs.
The Ducks were unable to sustain possession, much less pressure, for most of the first period. They trailed 16-7 in shots on goal but led 1-0 at the first intermission.
Chicago continued to carry play, having the puck to themselves for the first 90 seconds of the second period. Yet they found themselves down 2-0 as Anaheim scored on its first trip into the Blackhawks' zone of the second period. A cycle play against tight checking led to Crawford kicking a loose puck into the slot where it was fired in by a diving Palmieri at 4:17.
The Blackhawks would halve their deficit with just 40 seconds left in the middle frame. Richards ambushed defenseman Francois Beauchemin as he backed up at his own blue line. Richards blocked Beauchemin's clearing attempt, collected the puck, pivoted toward the net and flicked a wrist shot that went in above Andersen's pad and below his blocker.
NOTES: Ducks RW Corey Perry (knee) returned to practice Friday and played Sunday. ... Anaheim inserted RW Emerson Etem and LW Jiri Sekac into the lineup to replace RW Tim Jackman and LW Tomas Fleischmann. ... C Chris Wagner (lower body) was available for the Ducks but did not dress. ... The Blackhawks continued to be without D Trevor van Riemsdyk (knee) and were also missing D Michal Rozsival. Rozsival was replaced by D David Rundblad, causing Chicago to shuffle its defensive pairings.