On Sunday, April 27, the Chicago Blackhawks clinched the first round series of the Stanley Cup playoffs with a 5-1 victory against the St. Louis Blues. The series, which went 4-2 in favor of the Blackhawks, was an intense come-from-behind win. With the victory, the Blues are eliminated in the race for the Stanley Cup. The Blackhawks will move on to play the Minnesota Wild for the second round of the playoffs.
The Blackhawks and Blues began their best-of-seven series in St. Louis, who had the home advantage (the team with the better record in the regular season gets to have four of the seven games at home). The Blackhawks dropped the first two games in St. Louis which both ended in dramatic overtime losses. In both of the games in St. Louis, the Blues trailed by one point with two minutes and six seconds left in each respectively, then tied the games to force the overtime period. They then went on to win in the overtime periods 4-3 in each game. In the first game, Alex Steen scored the game winning goal in the third overtime period, and in game two, Barrett Jackman was the hero of the game.
When the series came back to Chicago, the Hawks knew that they needed to even the series with the second-seeded Blues. In game three, Corey Crawford, the Blackhawks goaltender, gave a stellar performance and shut out the visitors 2-0. In the fourth game, the familiar overtime was needed to settle the score. In the overtime, Patrick Kane of the Blackhawks scored to make it a Hawks win of 4-3, tying the series up 2-2.
For game five, the series shifted back to St. Louis. The game was crucial as it could set one team up for the series win in the next game. Both teams came out strong and after three periods, overtime was again required to determine a winner. In the nerve-wracking overtime period, Jonathan Toews, the captain of the Blackhawks, had a breakaway and scored to finish the game, allowing the Hawks to take a 3-2 series lead back home in Chicago.
With a chance to clinch the series, the Blackhawks came out with full force in game six. The problem was, the Blues did, as well. The evenly matched teams were both solid throughout the first two periods. In the second period, the Blues outplayed and outshot the Blackhawks 17-3, dominating completely. However, in the third period, after they failed to cash in on six powerplays, the Blackhawks answered. Several players who failed to light up the score sheet throughout the beginning of the series made their mark. Four players, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp, Andrew Shaw, and Duncan Keith, scored against the Blues goaltender, Ryan Miller, making it a 5-1 victory that ended the hard-fought battle.
The first round matchup between the Hawks and the Blues was one to be remembered. The two teams already hated each other, and this series undoubtedly fueled their passions. The rough games were physical to say the least and St. Louis led the hits with 228-143.
Now with the first round settled, the Chicago Blackhawks move on to play the Minnesota Wild. With a look back at the first round for both teams, the intensity will be undeniably strong. Though the outcome is uncertain, one thing is for sure: the series is sure to get interesting.