High on the 'Hawks Round II: Keys to Victory

With the series opening Thursday night in Vancouver, let’s take a look at what the Chicago Blackhawks need to focus on to survive the second round. This series with the Canucks will be similar to the series with Calgary, but with a higher emphasis on special teams and goaltending. So far in this year’s playoffs the Blackhawks’ special teams have been fantastic. The power play is clicking at 29% (7/24) which is second only to Washington for the best in the league, whereas the ‘Hawks penalty killing is also second best in the league with an 89% (16/18) kill rate. The interesting part on the PK side is that Vancouver is the only team better than the ‘Hawks so far having allowed only 1 goal to the dismal St. Louis power play in round 1. In the first round the Blackhawks moved the puck very effectively on the power play and we saw more mobility along the points than in the regular season. Moving the puck from a low cycle up top and through the box the ‘Hawks do not need to change a thing… If they continue to do as they have against Calgary they will be just fine. Even though the penalty kill for the ‘Hawks was excellent in round one there is a little concern with some of the soft zone coverage gaps. This area is where Iginla scored from on the PP in game 4, and is the exact same area that Vancouver’s Henrik Sedin likes to operate out of. This space between the Chicago left defenseman and the left wing will need more attention than was given in the first round, given that Vancouver is more dangerous from this area. A good shot blocking forward can sag into this strong side zone to take away the dangerous pass but also has be quick enough to recover into a shot blocking formation should the puck move back up top. Adam Burish and Patrick Sharp both have done this very well in certain situations this season.
Goaltending is also an area of interest in this series with Nikolai Khabibulin opposing arguably the best there is in Roberto Luongo. The Blackhawks will enter the second round the highest scoring team in the playoffs with 21 goals for to this point, where they will face the team with the least goals allowed with 5. Luongo carries with him a sparkling 1.15 GAA and a save percentage of .962 that is good enough for the number one spot in both categories. Khabibulin on the other hand, after struggling in games 3 and 4 in Calgary, returned to the Saddledome to stop 43 shots in the series clinching game improving his stats to a GAA of 2.52 and a save percentage of .914 and maintained a GAA of 1.00 in his last 2 games. Even though Luongo’s numbers may be a little suspect from the easy series against the Blues, we still give the edge in goaltending to Vancouver.
A large key for success also lies in the play of the ‘Hawks 2nd and 3rd lines. The lines of Havlat-Bolland-Ladd and Versteeg-Pahlsson-Byfuglien need to keep their play consistent if the Blackhawks hope to advance. All it takes in the playoffs is for one line to have an off night and it can cost you a game. The Blackhawks saw this firsthand in games 3 and 4 in Calgary. In game 3 the Versteeg-Pahlsson-Byfuglien line was a combined -11 in a 4-2 loss. In game 4 the Havlat-Bolland-Ladd line was a combined -10 in a 6-4 loss. Toews and Kane will do what they do, the same can be said for Burish and Eager, but the meat and potatoes of the Chicago lineup, will face the toughest checking challenges and must stay focused game in and game out. One line being on the ice for nearly every goal against in one game is inexcusable at any level…much less in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
THIS AND THAT
• Give the Kid a Break….. Lately I’ve heard people getting down on Patrick Kane…. “He’s too soft” “he’s not doing anything out there”….etc. All Kane has done so far is score 2 goals and 2 assists and be +/- 0 (even) in 6 games… as long as he’s finishing his chances around the net he’s doing his part, which he has to this point.
• So far the ‘Hawks are the 3rd least penalized team in the playoffs with 18 shorthanded situations… I know they only played 4 games but can anyone tell me how Boston, in a fight-filled-ugly series with Montreal only managed to be short-handed 8 times?
• I wonder if we can make it through an entire series without Alex Burrows pulling anyone’s hair.