Chicago vs. Anaheim Preview
Check out Corey Abbott's preview of the Eastern Conference Final, between the New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning here.
ANAHEIM DUCKS VERSUS CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS
If there's one thing no franchise wants, it's to be typecast as a team that shrinks when under pressure. Like the San Jose Sharks who made the playoffs every season from 2003-04 to 2013-14, but couldn't reach the Stanley Cup Final once.
Chicago doesn't have to worry about that unpleasant distinction, but the jury is still out on this current version of the Anaheim Ducks. Certainly they won the Stanley Cup back in 2007, but that was when they had Teemu Selanne, Scott Niedermayer, and Chris Pronger leading the charge. Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry were a big part of that playoff run too, but Anaheim relies on them far more now than it did back then.
The Ducks latest run has included three straight division titles, but this is this is their first journey to the Western Conference Final over that three year span. Getting this far is an accomplishment under any circumstances, but keep in mind that their previous opponents - the Winnipeg Jets and Calgary Flames - were teams that just barely clawed their way into playoffs in defiance of earlier expectations. The Chicago Blackhawks are an entirely different beast.
Chicago is one of the most successful franchises of this decade and is led by two superstars in Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews that have a reputation for stepping up in the playoffs. Perry and Getzlaf can match or even beat the duo when it comes to offensive production, but then Chicago also has Patrick Sharp and Marian Hossa to support them and a cast of younger players that might step up in any given game like Andrew Shaw, Brandon Saad, and Teuvo Teravainen.
In order for the Ducks to match Chicago in terms of offensive depth, they'll have to hope for that Jakob Silfverberg and Patrick Maroon stay hot. Both played well above expectations against the Jets and Flames, but expecting that kind of output against Chicago's sound defense might be a stretch. Still, even if you were to concede that Anaheim isn't as offensively deep a team as Chicago, the gap isn't as big as it once was. The Ducks acquired Ryan Kesler last summer to give them a great second-line anchor that can prove to be the difference in the playoffs. So far he's fulfilled even the loftiest of expectations with four goals, nine points, and a 63.7% faceoff success rate in nine playoff games.
Indeed rather than offensive depth, the big difference between these two teams might be their defense. Chicago's top four of Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Niklas Hjalmarsson, and Johnny Oduya is superb and battle tested. The Ducks have a solid blueline, but it's also a young one. Other than Francois Beauchemin, no member of their top four is over the age of 23 yet and that experience gap might become more apparent as the stakes are raised.
We might also see that displayed in the goaltending battle as 25-year-old Frederik Andersen is set to play in the Conference Final for the first time. He was great against the Jets and Flames with a 1.96 GAA and .925 save percentage in nine contests, but as is the case with his teammates, this will be a far bigger test for him. To be fair though, it's not as if Chicago's goaltending isn't something of an X-factor. Corey Crawford struggled in the first round and was superb in the second. We'll have to wait to see which version of him shows up against the Ducks.
There's a lot to like about Anaheim and I have to admit to having a soft spot for them. I want to see them succeed. I don't want to look back at them in five years and be able to draw comparisons with the 2004-14 San Jose Sharks. But if I were asked to objectively state which team is more likely to advance to the Stanley Cup Final, then I would have to respond with the Chicago Blackhawks. Anaheim should make them work for it by pushing this series to six games and it's not like it would be a huge upset if the Ducks end up ousting them. But it would be at least a bit of a surprise.
CHICAGO
Note: Line combinations are subject to change going into the playoffs. They also often change on a game-to-game and shift-to-shift basis.
Brandon Saad-Jonathan Toews-Marian Hossa
Bryan Bickell-Brad Richards-Patrick Kane
Patrick Sharp-Antoine Vermette-Teuvo Teravainen
Andrew Desjardins-Marcus Kruger-Andrew Shaw
Johnny Oduya-Niklas Hjalmarsson
Duncan Keith-David Rundblad
Kimmo Timonen-Brent Seabrook
Corey Crawford
Scott Darling
WHO'S HOT
Patrick Kane is on a seven-game point streak and has found the back of the net in five straight games. He has a team-high 13 points in 10 contests. Jonathan Toews isn't far behind with four goals and 11 points in the 2015 postseason. He had two assists in Chicago's series clinching 4-3 victory over Montreal on May 7.
WHO'S NOT
Brandon Saad hasn't been a significant offensive contributor for Chicago yet in the playoffs. Through 10 contests he has three goals and no assists with his last marker coming on May 1. That's a far cry from the 2014 playoffs when he had six goals and 16 points in 19 games.
NOTES
Michal Rozsival suffered a broken ankle in Game 4 of the second round and needed surgery as a result. He'll be out for 12-16 weeks, which means that he's not expected to play again in the 2015 postseason.
This is the fifth time in seven years that Chicago has reached the Western Conference Final. Over that seven year span, only four teams have been able to eliminate Chicago: Detroit, Vancouver, Arizona, and Los Angeles.
Including the regular season, Chicago is 30-0-0 when leading after two periods.
ANAHEIM
Patrick Maroon-Ryan Getzlaf-Corey Perry
Matt Beleskey-Ryan Kesler-Jakob Silfverberg
Tomas Fleischmann-Rickard Rakell-Andrew Cogliano
Kyle Palmieri-Nate Thompson-Tim Jackman
Hampus Lindholm-Francois Beauchemin
Cam Fowler-Simon Despres
Clayton Stoner-Sami Vatanen
Frederik Andersen
John Gibson
WHO'S HOT
Corey Perry had two goals and four points in Anaheim's first 2015 playoff game and he hasn't cooled down since. Perry has only been held off the scoresheet twice in the postseason and he'll enter this series with seven goals and 15 points in nine contests. While Perry's success is impressive, but not surprising, 24-year-old Jakob Silfverberg has been turning some heads. After posting back-to-back multi-point games, he now has three goals and eight assists in nine playoff games.
WHO'S NOT
Anaheim has a 8-1 playoff record thus far, so as you might imagine, no one is really looking all that bad. Kyle Palmieri is perhaps as close as you get and even that's a stretch. He has no goals, two assists and a neutral plus/minus rating in nine playoff contests. But while those numbers aren't great, he wasn't really expected to do much better than that in the first place. Still, of the Ducks forwards that have played in all nine games, Palmieri is one of just three to have two or fewer points and the others are rookie Rickard Rakell and fourth liner Tim Jackman.
NOTES
The Ducks are relatively healthy with the obvious exception of Sheldon Souray, whose career might unfortunately be over.
This is Anaheim's first trip to the Western Conference Final since it won the Cup in 2007. It's also the first time head coach Bruce Boudreau has led a team this deep into the playoffs despite his years of regular season success.
Anaheim only needed nine games to get this far. That's the least of any other squad, although Chicago's 8-2 record in the playoffs is a close second.
