The Chicago Blackhawks and Los Angeles Kings play Game 3 tonight back in Los Angeles. The teams head into tonight’s game with the series tied 1-1.
Game 1 it was Chicago who came out on top, Toews looked great, but Corey Crawford was the difference, he played outstanding and carried Chicago to victory. It was the perfect start to the series for Crawford.
Game 2 was a different story. Los Angeles dominated the play like they did in Game 1, but this time they finished with authority on route to a Jeff Carter hat trick and a 6-2 victory.
Game 3 brings us an entire new animal. The Kings have out played the Blackhawks in Games 1 and 2, yet the series is tied which is perfect for Chicago. They have yet to play a complete game, and headed into LA tonight they hope they can find this success on the road.
The Blackhawks will find some reinforcement from the addition of Andrew Shaw back into the lineup. Shaw is a gritty, skilled guy that likes to cause trouble on the ice. He is a great player and has really come into his own this season finding spot in the top 6. You can expect Captain Toews to want to make an impact early, he is having one of his more impressive playoff performances this year and with an all important Game 3, he will be laying it on the line all night.
The Kings must be riding a bit of a high, despite the loss in Game 1 the Kings were the better team. They have been the better team through the first two games of this series, and with home-ice advantage the favorable line matchups could give the Kings another edge. They need to continue getting traffic in front of Crawford so that he can’t steal Game 3 like he did Game 1. The Kings were able to find success on the power play in Game 2 by bringing two big bodies to the front of the net. This made Crawford miserable as he tried desperately to find the puck through the big Kings’ players.
Playoff Thoughts
As the playoffs go on the Conn Smythe race gets more populated. Doughty and Carter are doing their best to get in the conversation that includes Kopitar, Toews, Quick, Crawford, McDonagh and Lundqvist.
Watching two teams in the Eastern Conference not from Boston or Pittsburgh has been a nice change for the hockey world. Seeing Montreal battle through the adversity and win Game 3 in New York was truly inspiring. Dustin Tokarski played incredible, but strange bounces were the flavor of the night as the final three goals of the night were in off body parts, with the winning goal coming off Alex Galchenyuk’s neck…not everyday that happens, and surely one the young Canadien player will never forget.
What has happened to P.K. Subban in this series…In round 2 he was the best player on the ice not named Carey Price, but as soon as Price went down and the series with New York got underway he has taken a step back. Is it fatigue? Maybe an injury? In Game 3 he appeared less mobile on his feet making turns and accelerating…or is it simply that the rivalry with Boston brought out the best in him? Don’t bet on the Rangers getting in his face anytime soon, they don’t want to stir the inner fire like Thornton did in round 2. Subban needs to find a way to get involved emotionally in this series.
The fireworks form Game 3 in New York continued ringing on Friday. The NHL handed out suspensions to Montreal Canadien forward Brandon Prust and New York forward Dan Carcillo. Prust received a two game suspension for his late hit on Derek Stepan. Stepan, who returned to finish Game 3, was later revealed to have suffered a broken jaw and is listed as out-indefinitely.
Carcillo was given an automatic 10 game suspension for the above incident. There are three levels of punishment for touching an official, and they all carry automatic suspensions. Carcillo was given the middle of the line treatment with the auto 10 game ban. The earliest possible return for Carcillo would be Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals if the Rangers make it that far.