Los Angeles Kings v Chicago Blackhawks (Staples Center)
Time: 6.00 PM
TV: RDS, TSN, NBC Sports Network
Enemy reading: Second City Hockey
Series coverage: Notes & Information | Preview | Game 1 coverage | Game 2 coverage
Blackhawks (projected) lineup:
Bickell-Toews-Hossa
Sharp-Handzus-Kane
Saad-Shaw-Stalberg
Kruger-Bolland-Frolik
Keith-Seabrook
Oduya-Hjalmarsson
Leddy-Rozsival
Crawford
Injured: n/a; Scratched: Carcillo, Mayers, Smith, Brookbank, Stanton
Kings (projected) lineup:
Brown-Kopitar-Williams
Penner-Carter-Toffoli
King-Stoll-Lewis
Clifford-Fraser-Richardson
Regehr-Doughty
Scuderi-Voynov
MartinezMuzzin-Greene
Quick
Injured: Mitchell, Richards; Scratched: MuzzinMartinez, Ellerby, Nolan, the Manchester Monarchs
Game notes:
- Everybody is “banged up”. Nobody can score a goal . And the other night, Jonathan Quick couldn’t make a save, either. So, things are looking a bit grim – but hey, it takes four losses to get eliminated, and we’re not there yet.
- Let’s talk good stuff: Tyler Toffoli rules. The whole Penner-Carter-Toffoli line was solid. The Blackhawks’ home PK record was broken. After a shaky outing against the Sharks, Slava Voynov remembered how to be awesome. (And if you haven’t read these Slava Voynov stories yet, you should, because they’re great.)
- Jonathan Quick was due for a rough night. He’s still a great goaltender, and he can still help the team come back and win this series. He had rough nights last playoffs too, but nobody cared because the whole team was playing so well that it didn’t matter. Now it does, but he’s still the guy. If you think otherwise, you’re silly.
- Robyn Regehr is killing me.
- Not much to say about the Blackhawks. It’s plain to see how well they’re playing. While they’re getting a bit of unsustainable production from some role guys, they’ve also seen some unsustainably low production from their stars, so I’d say it probably evens out. The Kings can’t count on the Blackhawks getting worse – they just have to be better, plain and simple.
- Prediction: Kings win the game; Kings in six.