SCP '09 ROUND 3, WEST CONFERENCE FINAL: DETROIT RED WINGS VS. CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS

Boo hoo hoo, Detroit in 6 I think.

I hope I'm wrong...

I WANT A PITTS/HAWKS FINAL!!!

I'm all over the place with this series. I think the Hawks can beat them, but I think the Wings' experience will be the deciding factor.

Go Wings!

Red Wings & Blackhawks restart Original 6 matchup
By LARRY LAGE AP Sports Writer, May 15, 2009

DETROIT(AP)—The defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings are going from a playoff-tested, big and feisty opponent to a team in the playoffs for the first time since 2002 that relies on speed and skill.

No problem?

Not quite.

The Red Wings expect the Chicago Blackhawks to test them in the Western Conference finals just as much as Anaheim did in the second round.

That’s saying a lot because the Ducks pushed Detroit to a closely contested Game 7 Thursday night in a series its coach, Mike Babc0ck, said was the best series he’s been in and some players insisted was one of the toughest of their careers.

“I think this is gonna be a tough one, too,” Red Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom(notes) said on a conference call.

The Original Six franchises will meet Sunday afternoon in Game 1, matching up in the playoffs for the first time since 1995 and the 15th time overall.

“I think it’s good for hockey and it’s fantastic for us that we get to play Chicago,” Babc0ck said in a telephone interview Friday. “We played them in the Winter Classic, and now we’re among the four teams still playing hockey while 26 teams are sitting at home.”

Second-seeded Detroit became the first team to simply advance in the playoffs after hoisting the Cup since 2002 when it swept Columbus in the opening round, then was on the brink of elimination against the 2007 champion Ducks.

The fourth-seeded Blackhawks eliminated Calgary and Vancouver in Game 6s, and have been idle since beating the Canucks on Monday.

“We’re going to have respect for them because they’ve earned being in the conference finals after beating teams with experience,” Lidstrom said.

Chicago is in the conference finals for the first time since 1995, when it lost to the Red Wings.

“It’s a special matchup,” Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said. “You look back over the years, where the Blackhawks came from in a short amount of time, where we are at today, it’s a great challenge, a fun opportunity for everybody.

“There is a lot of history, animosity, passion involving both organizations and here we are playing for something very important. It’s got a lot of meaning, I’m sure the game will reflect that in the crowds and the stands.”

Fans in both cities, and those interested elsewhere, should see exciting hockey that starts Sunday afternoon and could stretch into June.

Chicago is led by young forwards Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, its top draft picks in 2006 and 2007, 28-year-old forward Martin Havlat, defenseman Brian Campbell and 36-year-old goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin.

The Red Wings lean on forwards Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen, rely on their depth when stars such as Pavel Datsyuk go cold, Lidstrom and veteran goalie Chris Osgood.

Detroit is hoping to win the Stanley Cup for the fifth time in 12 seasons and to lift the spirits of an economically depressed area.

“I think it’s good for the city and the state really if we keep winning,” Babc0ck said. “Auto dealerships are closing and a lot of things are going bad, but we’re doing something good that hopefully makes people feel a little better.”

AP Sports Writer Rick Gano in Chicago contributed to this report.

Playoff trivia tidbits: cool)

The Red Wings' Dan Cleary was originally drafted by the Blackhawks. He played one season for them (1997-98) and went on to play for the Oilers and Coyotes before joining the Wings in 2005.

Chris Chelios is from Chicago. He played for the Hawks from 1991-92 to 1998-99. He appeared in two playoff series against the Wings; in 1992 and the last time Chicago met Detroit in the playoffs, the 1995 Conference Final. 'Cheli' became a Red Wing from the 1999-2000 season onward, and has won the Cup twice with them.

The Blackhawks and Red Wings have met 14 times in the playoffs since they entered the league in 1926: the first time in 1934 (SCF), the last time being 1995 (Conference Finals, Wings winning four games to one).

The Hawks have won eight of the matchups.

They have only met in the Cup Finals twice; Chicago being the winners in '34; and Chicago capturing its third and most recent Stanley Cup in 1961, beating the Wings 4 games to 2.

Glenn Hall, the Hawks' goalie that year, had been traded by the Wings to Chicago with Ted Lindsay after the 1956-57 season, because Lindsay and Hall were trying to organize an NHL players' union and management exiled them to the then-basement dwelling Hawks.

Tommy Ivan, who coached the Wings to a Cup win in 1954, was the coach of the Hawks in 1956-57, and was the Chicago GM when the Hawks defeated the Wings for the Cup in 1961.

From 1966-67 to 1976-77, the Red Wings made the playoffs only once, that being 1970 when they were swept by the Hawks in the quarterfinals.

I gotta go with Detroit as long as Osgood can hold the fort. The Wings take their game to another level like noone else. I picked Detroit in 6. Of course, I thought Luongo would be the difference in the Vancouver series, so what the hell do I know? lol

I just think the Wings have been there too many times and this will be the series that the Hawks young team comes up short. I think it will be reminiscent of Pittsburgh and Ottawa the year we went to the Cup Final, in other words, the Good Ole Days.

I predict the Hawks will lose, but learn a valuable lesson.

Just so fans don't think Chicago fans are 'homers'...because they aren't. Years of staying loyal to a team that has been through difficult times and losing seasons has a way of making you see hockey for what it is.

The predictions among the Chicago hockey media are few, and the consensus is that the Red Wings have the edge.

Fan polls show that Blackhawks loyalists are a relatively realistic bunch. They'll be cheering their hearts and voices out. But they know how tough this series is going to be.

The 'media mavens':

Chris Kuc, Chicago Tribune: Wings in 7.
Al Cimaglia, ESPN Chicago: Hawks in 7.
Chicago Sun Times (Len Ziehm, Neil Hayes): no prediction
Tim Sassone, Chicago Daily Herald: Hawks
Barry Rozner, Chicago Daily Herald: no prediction.

---

A fan poll from today's Tribune:

So it's the Blackhawks vs. the Detroit Red Wings. Who ya got?

Blackhawks in 4 (189 responses)

1.9%

Blackhawks in 5 (173 responses)

1.7%

Blackhawks in 6 (2834 responses)

28.5%

Blackhawks in 7 (2023 responses)

20.3%

Red Wings in 7 (478 responses)

4.8%

Red Wings in 6 (2642 responses)

26.5%

Red Wings in 5 (1211 responses)

12.2%

Red Wings in 4 (405 responses)

4.1%

• 9955 total responses (Results not scientific)
  

Chicago 2, Detroit 5

	1	2	3	T
CHI	1	0	1	2
DET	1	1	3	5

Final

3:00 PM ET, May 17, 2009, Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan

Red Wings' experience trumps young Hawks as Detroit strikes first in West finals

DETROIT (AP/ESPN)-- Daniel Cleary scored twice against the team that drafted him, leading the Detroit Red Wings to a 5-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals on Sunday.

Cleary's second goal came midway through the third period, 1:27 after Mikael Samuelsson's go-ahead score, for the defending Stanley Cup champions.

Fast Starters


It's pretty much impossible to beat the Red Wings in Game 1. After Sunday's win, Detroit moved up the charts for all-time win streaks in the first game of a playoff series.

Team	Streak	Years
Canadiens	12	1956-62
Canadiens	11	1976-79
Islanders	9	1080-82
Red Wings	8	2007-Present
Canadiens	8	1967-69
Red Wings	8	1952-56

Detroit's Chris Osgood made 30 saves, and Nikolai Khabibulin stopped 38 shots for the Blackhawks, who gave up an empty-net goal to Henrik Zetterberg.

Adam Burish gave the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead 5:25 in, but Cleary tied it a few minutes later and Johan Franzen put Detroit in front 2-1 late in the second period.
Game 2 is Tuesday night in Detroit.

Cleary was drafted 13th overall by the Blackhawks in 1997, but had just nine points in 41 games before being traded to Edmonton. He signed with the Red Wings in 2005 after the NHL lockout. After one lackluster season for the Red Wings, he had 40 points each of the last three seasons.

In the previous round against Anaheim, Cleary scored the series-winning goal with 3 minutes left in Game 7 and has netted a career-high five goals this postseason.
Detroit and Chicago, both in their 83rd NHL season, are meeting for the 15th time in the playoffs with the Blackhawks holding an 8-6 advantage.

The franchises have played a league-record 703 times in the regular season, including this year's Winter Classic in which Detroit beat Chicago 6-3 at Wrigley Field.

Chicago, playing in its first conference final since 1995 against a team in its third straight, was very competitive with the Red Wings until Detroit broke it open in the final period.

The fourth-seeded Blackhawks fell behind in each of its six games the previous round against Vancouver, but found out it is not as easy to rally against the second-seeded and playoff-tested Red Wings.

Detroit improved to 7-0 when leading after two periods.

Game notes

Franzen has 22 goals in his last 28 postseason games, dating to last year's Cup run, and extended his point streak to five games. ... Burish was cut on the neck by the skate of teammate Ben Eager, who lost his balance on a check. ... Detroit RW Marian Hossa missed part of the third period after colliding with Chicago LW Andrew Ladd. ... The Red Wings have beaten Chicago coach Joel Quenneville in each of their last four championship seasons, eliminating him three times when he led St. Louis and last year when he was on Colorado's bench. Quenneville is from Windsor, Ontario, which is just across the Detroit River from Joe Louis Arena.

Detroit wins handily, and all they got from the big guns (Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Hossa, Lidstrom) was one empty-net goal. How scary will they be when they are all going? Chicago has to be a lot more physical or else it will be over quickly.

IMHO The Chicago Tribune's Steve Rosenbloom sums this Game One up about as well as anyone could.

You get few chances to steal a game from the Wings in their building. The Blackhawks blew this one. Fortunately, they get a second chance Tuesday night.

Have a read, and enjoy, folks. Rosenbloom knows his stuff.
---

Wait a minute, I think the Hawks just turned over the puck again

ROSENBLOG by Steve Rosenbloom, The Tribune, May 17, 2009

The Blackhawks wanted to skate with the Red Wings. The Wings did it better. That’s how the Wings ended up with an odd-man rush seemingly every shift. What’s more, the Wings also handled the puck better and made fewer mistakes. Deadly combination. In fact, Nikolai Khabibulin’s spectacular play was the only reason they didn’t call this game in the second period. The Hawks tried to make plays in some of the most dangerous areas of the ice, especially inside the Detroit blue line. They didn’t get the puck deep, and Detroit got 3-on-2s. Or 2-on-1s down low. Or point-blank chances. This is no way to win a conference final against the defending champions. Look, the Wings will get enough quality chances just because they’re the Wings. But giving them a head start is suicide. The Hawks need to get ugly goals. They need to shoot and crash the net as they did when Kris Versteeg scored. But to score ugly goals, they need to win the dirty battles along the boards and behind the net. They need to make the smart play with the puck and be strong enough to force the Wings into the kind of turnovers they were guilty of. And their best players have to show up. Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews need to be better. They need to be noticed for something other than turnovers and minus-3s. They need to play better than their own fourth line. This isn’t to knock Adam Burish, Ben Eager and Patrick Sharp. Hardly. That was the Hawks’ best line. Those guys were dangerous and they brought energy. They rattled the Wings better than any of their teammates. The point is, the Hawks’ best players have to be their best players. That might not be true for the Wings, but it’s dead-on with the Hawks. The Wings are deep enough to win even with MVP candidate Pavel Datsyuk going 10 games without scoring. The Hawks aren’t that good. They need everybody. Quickly. Kane cannot go into Game 3 still looking for his first shot on goal. Not to single out Kane, or even just Kane and Toews. I’m talking Martin Havlat and defensemen Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook, as well, minus-2s all of them. Ultimately, they might not be better than Detroit’s best players, but they at least have to be better than everyone else on their own team if the Hawks are going to have any chance to win this thing. The Hawks actually led in this game. Honest. The Wings sent out the Henrik Zetterberg line that included playoff scoring machine Johan Franzen, and they got a load of Burish, Eager and Sharp. Fast, relentless and tough. That’s how you force the Wings out of their puck-possession game. Eager jumped Wings defenseman Jonathan Ericsson and as the puck slid toward the Detroit net, Burish materialized around the post and Burish whacked a backhander past Chris Osgood. For a Hawks fan, perhaps the only thing worse than an evil Wing is an evil Wing who’s a former Hawk. Dan Cleary is one of those, and it was Cleary who tied the game at 1 -- and would later add Detroit’s killer fourth score -- with a bad goal all the way around. After Seabrook turned over the puck inside his own blue line, Cleary shot down the left side, seemingly harmless on the perimeter. But no. He snapped the puck under the crossbar over Khabibulin’s glove. Awful goal. The Hawks haven’t had leads very long in the playoffs and Khabibulin couldn’t make this one last three minutes. The play looked worse because Khabibulin went down way too soon. And the puck ended up in the Hawks’ net on a play that began with a faceoff in the Wings’ zone. Khabibulin began the second period with a magnificent arm save on Marian Hossa, but he was brilliant during a penalty kill a couple minutes later, stopping Franzen twice and Zetterberg and Hossa once each, all point-blank, to keep the Hawks tied. NBC’s Mike Emrick, going to break two-thirds of the way through a breakneck second period featuring non-stop skating and fierce hitting: “Accidents all over the freeway. A traffic report coming up." Khabibulin made a point-blank save on Valteri Filppula with about five minutes to go in the second period after the Hawks had given up their umpteenth odd-man rush. Are there really only five Wings on the ice at any one time? Eager ran over a Wing and his skate nearly severed Burish’s neck. Great camera work by NBC. Franzen showed the Hawks why he’s called "The Mule," reaching from behind Keith to slow his pass to Seabrook behind the net, then grabbing the puck and muscling in a wraparound past Khabibulin to put the Wings up 2-1 late in the second. Is there any area on the ice from which the Hawks can’t make a killer turnover? The Hawks had owned the third period in these playoffs, and it looked as if they would call on that remarkable comeback ability when Versteeg scored on the power play to tie it at 2. But the Wings scored the next three goals, two of them in a 97-second span, and that was that. Just another thing the Wings did better.

The Chicago hockey press is, to say the least, demanding. But as harsh as his tone might sound to some, Neil Hayes of the Sun Times makes some excellent points in his article today:

Khabibulin needs to be great equalizer in goal

May 18, 2009/NEIL HAYES nhayes@suntimes.com

The Red Wings took the Blackhawks behind the warming shed for an old-fashioned spanking in a 5-2 loss in Game 1 at Joe Louis Arena. Don't think Khabibulin was the difference. There were a couple of goals he no doubt regrets, but he deflected enough rubber while making 38 saves to retread half the tires in the Motor City, and it still wasn't good enough. Not by a mile.

The first thing the Hawks can take from the humbling lesson is that they have to play better across the board to have a chance against the defending Stanley Cup champs. The Red Wings are too deep and too potent to play sloppily and not get embarrassed. It also would be helpful if young stars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews contributed.

What also was apparent is that Khabibulin must be great -- not merely good but stand-on-his-head great -- if the Hawks are going to advance to the Stanley Cup finals.

It's time to add mortar to the ''Bulin Wall'' in the form of better puck possession, better defense and fewer turnovers. If the Hawks do all that, and Khabibulin stops virtually everything else, they have a chance in this series. If not, this will not be the experience the Hawks were hoping for.Protect the puck

''You can't fall into the trap of playing their style,'' said Adam Burish, who skated on the Hawks' fourth and most effective line. ''You can't try to make the cute plays that they like to make. You can't turn pucks over and leave pucks in the middle of the ice. You have to put them in smart areas and then go get them.

''For about two-thirds of the game, we played that way. We tried to play their style and we started losing pucks in the middle of the zone, and when you do that against these guys, they're dangerous. They're going to make you pay.''

The Hawks like to push the action. Their game resembles a run-and-shoot offense on ice. Imagine Magic Johnson's fast-breaking Lakers in skates, and you can begin to understand the pressure the Go-Go Hawks have been able to put on their opponents during the first two rounds.

It's a fun, free-wheeling style that hastens the development of young players.

This isn't like the control-freak football coach who makes sure his young quarterback is so terrified of making a mistake that he's afraid to make a play.

This is more of a slap on the butt and a ''Go get 'em, boys.'' If you make a mistake, hell, just score to make up for it.

Not perfect, but close

Sometimes it leads to a four-on-one game-winner like the one the Hawks gave up to the Canucks. More often, it has resulted in inflated goal totals and soaring confidence. But the Red Wings have the skill and speed to make them pay for every mistake, large or small. Several Hawks said they have to play a perfect game to beat Detroit.

Guess what? That's not going to happen. What they need is to make enough plays to make up for their miscues.

If they do that and Khabibulin plays a near-perfect game, he can tip the scales.

He can be the equalizer. He has to be.

That means he can't give up goals like the first one Dan Cleary scored Sunday.

The former Blackhawk and hero of Game 7 of the semifinal round for the Red Wings beat Khabibulin to the top left corner with a wrister from the top of the circle. That's the type of shot Khabibulin has to turn away. On several others, however, he didn't have a chance.

''Nik has been good for us,'' defenseman Brian Campbell said. ''He saved us in a lot of areas tonight. There were three-on-twos coming down the slot, there were shots from the high slot. They were teeing them up. You can't have that. They're going to score goals on those.''

Khabibulin has been solid -- and sometimes spectacular, sometimes pedestrian -- in the playoffs. If you were to list the reasons why the Hawks have advanced to the conference finals, he would rank maybe third. For the Hawks to advance, he has to be No. 1.

He wasn't the reason why the Hawks lost Game 1. He wasn't the difference in the game.

But he needs to be starting with Game 2 on Tuesday night if the Hawks want to make this a series.

Hawks need to show a little less respect, and a little more ruthessness...see Exhibit A...featuring Mr. Robert Marvin Hull, Stanley Cup Champion and Hall of Fame legend.



Hockey is War On Ice.

Time for the Warriors of the Black Hawk tribe to sharpen their tomahawks. Put on the war paint.

Respect for your opponent is all well and good.

But reality is brutal. Your opponent is committed to defeating you, and will, unless you are even more committed to defeating him.

The Red Wings are ruthless. From the steely gaze at Captain Nick Lidstrom all throughout the Red Wings' lineup.

The Blackhawks have to be more ruthless. Every single one of them, starting with Captain Jonathan Toews and every one of the men he leads.

Time to--as Denis Savard said so well--Commit To The Indian.

The Hawks were taught a valuable lesson in game 1 and will make a series of it. I believe the Wings will still take this series but it won't be as easy as game 1 all the way through so I picked them to win it in 6.

Chicago 2, Detroit 3

	1	2	3	OT	T
CHI	1	0	1	0	2
DET	1	1	0	1	3

Final OT

7:30 PM ET, May 19, 2009, Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan

Chicago Blackhawks fall 3-2 in OT
Detroit Red Wings take 2-0 series lead

Chris Kuc, Chicago Tribune, May 20, 2009

DETROIT -- Brian Campbell said he would make the same play "a hundred more times."

Unfortunately for the veteran defenseman and his Blackhawks teammates, it only took one time for the Detroit Red Wings to capitalize on Campbell's turnover in overtime Tuesday night and come away with a 3-2 victory in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals at Joe Louis Arena.

After a thrilling third period that saw the Hawks tie the game 2-2, Campbell gave up the puck while attempting a pass near the Wings' blue line and it sent Detroit on a three-on-one break that ended with Mikael Samuelsson beating goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin and ending the game 5 minutes 14 seconds into OT.

The victory gave Detroit a 2-0 advantage in the best-of-seven series that heads to the United Center for Game 3 Friday night. The Hawks are faced with the prospect of winning four of the next five games against the defending Stanley Cup champions to advance.

"On the goal there I'll do that play a hundred more times," Campbell said of the pass that led to Samuelsson's game-winner.

"That's a play I can make and I normally do make it. It's a tough way to lose and I don't feel too good about it right now. A lot of things are going on inside right now emotionally. I know me personally and the rest of the guys aren't going to quit."

Samuelsson's decider came after Jiri Hudler picked up the turned-over puck and raced down the left side of the ice. Hudler fed Valtteri Filppula, who then dropped it to Samuelsson and the veteran beat Khabibulin.

The Hawks fell despite two goals from Jonathan Toews and a strong effort from Khabibulin (35 saves). Brian Rafalski and Dan Cleary scored for the Wings and Chris Osgood made 37 saves.

"I thought we had a lot of great chances and got really close to closing it out," said Toews, who tied the score at 2-2 with 7:40 remaining in the third after redirecting a Kris Versteeg shot past Osgood. "They're a great team. It was a huge feat for us to play the way we did in the third period and mount a comeback and push it into overtime."

Toews' goal midway through the first gave the Hawks a 1-0 lead. With the Wings' Brad Stuart in the penalty box for tripping Versteeg, Toews struck when he fired a shot from the right side along the goal line that hit the skate of defenseman Jonathan Ericsson and caromed past Osgood into the net.

Very much like Game 1, the Hawks' lead was short-lived as Rafalski tied it at 1-1 just 3:54 later. Cleary's goal late in the second gave Detroit the lead before Toews sent the game into overtime.

"It was a tough way to end the game," Hawks winger Patrick Sharp said. "I thought we played a much better game than we did in Game 1. We showed character by battling back."

The Wings defeated the Hawks for the fourth consecutive time in a playoff game that has gone into overtime, dating to 1995.

"I didn't think we had any legs or any pop right through our lineup," Wings coach Mike Babc0ck said. "This is a team that's going to be difficult to put away. They're skilled and their goaltender's good."

As I thought. Game 2 was much closer and from what I've heard the Hawks out played the Wings and still came away with the loss. Championship teams find ways to win even when they don't deserve it. The Wings seem to be doing that now. I suspect a strong showing in Chicago with the Hawks taking game 3 in regulation.

Game 4? I'll wait to make my prediction.

I expect the Hawks to hold serve in Chicago, but still fall in 6.

Even if they can't pull this series out, what they've accomplished is remarkable.

The ingredients are still there for the Hawks to make a series out of this. Great goaltending, strong pushes, they just need to find a little consistency and keep taking it to the wings. Lidstrom is 39, they need to be all over him. He's human, he'll make mistakes...eventually.

Quenneville is a smart man, he'll put Kane with Burrish and Byfuglian to make sure that Lidstrom and Rafalski are wasting minutes out there, then let the Toews line go against the lesser D-man (but still damn good). He did it last night and Toews had 2 goals. He's onto something - and if done right, the Hawks have the depth to throw 2 great lines at Lidstrom, then let the 3rd line clean up.

Come on Hawks. You've had too much fun to let it all end so quick!!!!!

504Heater wrote:Lone member of the 6000 post club!

Hey Heater... you're now the Lone member of the 7000 post club!

cool)