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Game 4 was a game that the NHL must've loved, because it was highly entertaining for the fans. Back-and-forth. High-scoring. No-lead-was-safe. Depending on who you were rooting for, you saw the glass as half-full for your team. That is, your team could score at will against one of the best defenses in the league.
I anticipated, however, that both teams would settle into their typical defensive battles and push for those hard-earned offensive chances. Sure enough, it was a low-scoring affair.
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Jonathan Toews
Jonathan Toews did not play at all in the third period, after he took hit-on-hit in the first two periods. It was clear he was a marked man in the Bruins' game plan. But it was the Johnny Boychuk behind-the-back hit (below) that made us fans screaming bloody murder! The day after the game, the NHL ruled that it was a legal hit. Which made us fans even more pissed off at the kind of thuggery the league allowed.
Through Game 5, the Bruins out-hit the Hawks (237 - 174), but the volume and the margin were the largest in Game 5 (53 - 22). But is this physical strategy really working for them? On the combined tally of giveaways-takeaways, the Hawks were a strong +12. In effect, while the Bruins were taking the man out, the Hawks were picking their pockets and playing true hockey. Obviously the outcome of Game 5 spoke for itself.
That said, let's hope Toews is good to go for Game 6.
Corey Crawford
Corey Crawford was another big story. He took off-ice shots from the media and fans about giving up not just five goals, but specifically five goals all glove side, in Game 4. There were even ludicrous calls for Ray Emery to net-mind in Game 5. Obviously the Bruins found a chink in the armor, and they kept exploiting it, because the puck kept going in.
No doubt, Crawford studied film, worked with his goalie coach, and made necessary adjustments. For sure, as well, his teammates had his back and even he was deadpanned a joke about his goaltending.
"I tried today and he stopped me glove side, so hopefully he's got it all figured out," Patrick Sharp said after Hawks practice Friday morning. "I don't know if that was the gameplan or if that's something they did on purpose and they were successful at it, but I like Corey in there. I've seen goals go in all different ways and I've seen him make saves all different ways. I like his chances against them."
As for Crawford, he's been answering as many questions after a win than he would have after a defeat. So far, he's taking it all in stride.
"Last year they were talking about my blocker," he joked sarcastically. "Both sides are bad I guess."
Crawford's performance in Game 5 spoke for itself, and was testament to how tough, confident and awesome he had become over the past year. But while he was matter-of-factly saving all of those off-ice shots, Joel Quenneville and company were quietly adjusting their defensive play. In Game 5, the Hawks buzzed around neutral ice, mucked up the Bruins' passing lanes, and took the puck away several times. Their stellar team forechecks between the bluelines botched up the Bruins' entry into the Hawks zone on several tries. Giving up just one goal in the Stanley Cup Final was as good as a shutout for Crawford and the team defense in front of him.
Patrick Kane
Patrick Kane is definitely a shooter, and a streaky one at that, it seems, to use basketball parlance. He was held scoreless in Games 1 - 3, but with his double tally in this game, he had scored seven goals in seven games, going back to the Kings series. His goals were not the finesse sort we have come to expect from the Magic Man, but more like the 'dirty one,' the 'greasy one,' the 'ugly one.' These are just common hockey terms, and we know what they mean. The fact is, however, all of Kane's goals are things of beauty.
Zdeno Chara
Zdeno Chara pinched in to the circle, right of Crawford, and blasted a slapshot at point blank. The Bruins showed their patented tenacity and timely passing in the offensive zone, and finally they cashed in.
Toews was on the bench, and it didn't look like he was coming on the ice. So the Hawks played semi-prevent defense the entire period, taking their offensive chances, of course, but more or less protecting their zone. We fans all hoped for an insurance goal, just to give Crawford and our defensive units some breathing room. Nothing doing. After that Chara goal, there was 16:20 of hockey left to play in regulation time. So it felt like forever, until the final horn sounded, and it was definitely a nail-biter of a finish.
Dave Bolland
Kane's second goal in the second period turned out to be more than enough to win the game. But we didn't know that in the flurry of the waning minutes. So Dave Bolland's empty-netter in the last minute of hockey sealed the deal for the Hawks.
And then there was one game left to win.
It is hard to me to convey sufficiently how much of a thrill it is to see the Hawks so close to the Stanley Cup. I will write about this experience in a separate article, but for now the phrase that kept repeating itself for me was:
It ain't over til it's over.
The TD Garden will definitely be rocking-loud, as Lord Stanley will roll inside the stadium. We fans are hoping for the Hawks to finish it in Game 6. We don't care if it's on enemy ice, as there will be plenty of opportunity for all of us to celebrate in Chicago.
It ain't over til it's over.
But there are 60 minutes (at least) of tough, tough hockey for the Hawks to play. The Bruins have proven themselves to be a superb team, and they will come out like gangbusters in Game 6. Especially in front of their home crowd.
If the Bruins do in fact put extra-offensive juice in the tank, and consequently get out of their own game, the Hawks may force a break by blocking a shot near the blue line, stealing the puck in neutral ice, or getting an odd-man rush. One way to quiet that crowd are quick one-two goals as ice-breakers.
See everyone in Game 6!
Thank you for reading, and let me know what you think!
Ron Villejo, PhD
It is hard to me to convey sufficiently how much of a thrill it is to see the Hawks so close to the Stanley Cup. I will write about this experience in a separate article, but for now the phrase that kept repeating itself for me was:
It ain't over til it's over.
The TD Garden will definitely be rocking-loud, as Lord Stanley will roll inside the stadium. We fans are hoping for the Hawks to finish it in Game 6. We don't care if it's on enemy ice, as there will be plenty of opportunity for all of us to celebrate in Chicago.
It ain't over til it's over.
But there are 60 minutes (at least) of tough, tough hockey for the Hawks to play. The Bruins have proven themselves to be a superb team, and they will come out like gangbusters in Game 6. Especially in front of their home crowd.
If the Bruins do in fact put extra-offensive juice in the tank, and consequently get out of their own game, the Hawks may force a break by blocking a shot near the blue line, stealing the puck in neutral ice, or getting an odd-man rush. One way to quiet that crowd are quick one-two goals as ice-breakers.
See everyone in Game 6!
Thank you for reading, and let me know what you think!
Ron Villejo, PhD
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