The day we’ve all been waiting for is finally here. It all comes down to Game 7. There is only one game left to decide who will represent the Western Conference in the 2015 Stanley Cup Final. The winner will face off against the Tampa Bay Lightning while the loser will have to pick up the pieces and figure out where it all went wrong. After a two-day break, the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks will face off on Saturday night at the Honda Center in Anaheim with everything on the line.
The last time we saw the Blackhawks, they were facing the Ducks in a must-win Game 6 at home. The team played some of its most dominant hockey of the postseason and was able to take advantage of an explosive second period to outlast the Ducks, 5-2. This score doesn’t represent how close the game actually was. The score was 3-2 until late into the third when Andrew Shaw scored two goals to seal the victory.
In Game 6, coach Joel Quenneville successfully went with his so-called “nuclear option” by putting Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews together on the top line. They look to stay together in Game 7. The more time that line has skated together, the more dangerous they have looked. If Kane, Toews, and Brandon Saad get clicking early, they could be the key to getting through.
Once again, Duncan Keith was the heart and soul of the Blackhawks on Wednesday night. He seemed like an unstoppable force, assisting on the game’s first three goals, including this beautiful pass, which Marian Hossa buried.
— Stephanie Vail (@myregularface) May 28, 2015
Keith followed this with a season-saving save in the third.
— Stephanie Vail (@myregularface) May 28, 2015
Keith continues to be the engine that powers the team.
Going into Game 7, there don’t seem to be any major lineup changes. David Rundblad and Kyle Cumiskey look to be the fifth and sixth defensemen. Even with Rundblad and Cumiskey playing, the bulk of ice time will still be going to the top four in Keith, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Brent Seabrook and Johnny Oduya.
As of Friday’s practice, here are the lines:
|
Saad |
Toews |
Kane |
|
Bickell |
Richards |
Hossa |
|
Sharp |
Vermette |
Teravainen |
|
Desjardins |
Kruger |
Shaw |
|
Keith |
Hjalmarsson |
|
Cumiskey |
Seabrook |
|
Oduya |
Rundblad |
Opponent Breakdown: Anaheim Ducks
A win for Anaheim would have them back in the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2007 when they defeated the Ottawa Senators. For the Ducks to win, Frederik Andersen will have to continue to stand tall and make important saves. Though he has looked great for much of the playoffs, he has seemed more beatable as of late. He has posted .818, .857, and .875 save percentages in Games 6, 5, and 4, respectively.
The line of Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry and Patrick Maroon will also have to perform better in order to advance as well after a rough showing in a possible clinching Game 6.
Here were their lines as of last game:
|
Maroon |
Getzlaf |
Perry |
|
Beleskey |
Kesler |
Silfverberg |
|
Cogliano |
Thompson |
Palmieri |
|
Sekac |
Rakell |
Etem |
|
Lindholm |
Beauchemin |
|
Fowler |
Despres |
|
Stoner |
Vatanen |
Bruce Boudreau hinted at changing his lines around for Game 7, but we’ll have to wait and see.
The Ducks are 2-4 in Game 7s and have lost their last two, which have come in the previous two seasons. Boudreau’s teams are 1-5 in Game 7s.
The Blackhawks are 1-2 in Game 7s under Quenneville, including last year’s heartbreaker against the Los Angeles Kings.
Game Information
When: 7 p.m. CT
Where: Honda Center
TV: NBC
Radio: WGN-720
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