Stanley Cup Final Preview
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS VERSUS TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING
Given the fact that we're in a salary cap era and have seen an increase in parity as a result, we're probably never going to get another dynasty in the traditional sense of the term. Chicago though is the cap era equivalent to a dynasty.
Instead of large group of players that find consistent success together over the span of years, the best teams nowadays are the ones that have found the right few players to build around and have the ability to effectively and rapidly replenish the ever changing supporting staff. Chicago is the gold standard for that formula.
Few at this point would say that there's a more effective duo than Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. Sure, Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are bigger stars and you could even argue that the Tampa Bay Lightning are the team with the stronger one-two punch with Tyler Johnson and Steven Stamkos. But that's speaking in general terms. When you need a guy to step when it matters most, when you're looking for players to guide a team through key patches, Kane and Toews have been phenomenal.
Both have won the Conn Smythe Trophy already. They're also major contenders to claim it again this year, which would put either of them in an exclusive group of multiple playoff MVP winners that currently consists of just Patrick Roy, Bobby Orr, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Bernie Parent.
When Kane and Toews won their first championship, they were backed by the likes of Troy Brouwer, Andrew Ladd, Tomas Kopecky, Dave Bolland, Dustin Byfuglien, and Brian Campbell while Antti Niemi was their starting goaltender. Those players were all moved at one point or another, primarily to keep the Blackhawks cap compliant. Despite that, depth isn't a major issue for the team. The Blackhawks' defense certainly isn't the deepest, but having forwards like Brad Richards, Andrew Shaw, Brandon Saad, and Marcus Kruger support the team's core is a luxury.
If they're not a dynasty, then they are the closest the 21st century has to offer and they're a model Tampa Bay hopes to emulate.
The Lightning are certainly off to a good start. Obviously they've reached the Stanley Cup Final, but part of what makes them stand out, even among teams that get this far, is their youth. Their top five scorers in the playoffs are all 25 years old or younger and all five of them have tremendous potential. Stamkos is the team's superstar, but when he failed to score a goal in the first round, Tampa Bay was able to move forward anyways because it was still backed by Johnson, Nikita Kucherov, Ondrej Palat, and Alex Killorn. If 20-year-old Jonathan Drouin is able to live up to his potential in a couple seasons, then the Lightning might have the best top-six in the league for years to come.
Their defense isn't as impressive and that's one area where Chicago would seem to have a healthy edge, but Victor Hedman in particular is a likely to make his presence known in this series. The towering defenseman plays big minutes and is a big factor with or without the puck. Going into this series he should be regarded as a dark horse contender for the Conn Smythe Trophy. As is Duncan Keith, although a stronger case could be made for him at the moment given that he has 18 points in 17 contests and has been averaging an incredible 31:35 minutes in the playoffs.
Between the pipes, both sides will feature great and arguably underrated goaltenders. Corey Crawford got off to a terrible start in the playoffs, but he's bounced back and now has a 2.56 GAA and .919 save percentage in 14 contests. Ben Bishop has made some ugly gaffes along the way, but overall he has a strong 2.15 GAA and .920 save percentage. You could give Chicago the edge in goal as Crawford has the benefit of Stanley Cup experience, but really either one of these netminders is capable of taking charge of any given game.
In a lot of ways this series feels like that of a young, upstart club taking on the aged dynasty even if neither squad truly fits those descriptions perfectly. In this case though, it's hard not to defer to Chicago's experience, especially given the talent on their roster and the number of big game players they have. Tampa Bay is a terrific team, but my prediction is that Chicago will win in six.
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-Patrick Kane
Bryan Bickell-Brad Richards-Marian Hossa
Patrick Sharp-Antoine Vermette-Teuvo Teravainen
Andrew Desjardins-Marcus Kruger-Andrew Shaw
Duncan Keith-Niklas Hjalmarsson
Johnny Oduya-David Rundblad
Kyle Cumiskey-Brent Seabrook
Corey Crawford
Scott Darling
WHO'S HOT
Jonathan Toews has lived up to his reputation by stepping up when Chicago needs him the most. He had five goals and seven points in the final four games of the Western Conference Final. Patrick Kane chipped in a goal and five points in Games 6 and 7 alone.
WHO'S NOT
Patrick Sharp was a big contributor in the first round and chipped during Chicago's sweep of Minnesota, but he didn't find the back of the net in the Western Conference Final. In fact, he has been limited to just two shots on goal over his last two contests.
NOTES
Michal Rozsival suffered a broken ankle in Game 4 of the second round and needed surgery as a result. He's not expected to return before the end of the playoffs.
Chicago is 7-0 in the playoffs when leading after 40 minutes and 32-0-0 if you include the regular season. The Blackhawks are also 9-1 in the playoffs when they score first and 3-4 when they surrender the opening goal.
The Chicago Blackhawks are going to the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in the last six years. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, just two other teams have done that in the last 24 years: the Detroit Red Wings (which accomplished that feat on two separate occasions) and the New Jersey Devils.
Patrick Kane has recorded at least two points in each of the last five games where Chicago faced elimination.
TAMPA BAY
Please note that Tampa Bay often dresses 11 forwards and seven defensemen and the projected lines below reflect that.
Alex Killorn-Valtteri Filppula-Steve Stamkos
Ondrej Palat-Tyler Johnson-Nikita Kucherov
J.T. Brown-Vladislav Namestnikov-Ryan Callahan
Brenden Morrow-Brian Boyle
Victor Hedman-Anton Stralman
Jason Garrison-Braydon Coburn
Matt Carle-Andrej Sustr
Nikita Nesterov
Ben Bishop
Andrei Vasilevskiy
WHO'S HOT
Steven Stamkos was held off the scoreboard in his last two games, but before that he went on an amazing run with seven goals and 14 points over the span of 10 contests from May 3-24. Tyler Johnson has been leading the charge for Tampa Bay though with 12 goals and 21 points in 20 playoff contests. He most recently contributed three assists over the course of Games 6 and 7 of the Eastern Conference Final.
WHO'S NOT
Ryan Callahan might be known for more than his work with the puck, but that's certainly an important aspect of his game. He hasn't been contributing in that regard though as he's been held to just one goal and four points in 19 playoff games.
NOTES
The Tampa Bay Lightning are going into the Stanley Cup Final at full strength, with the obvious exception of Mattias Ohlund, who hasn't played since 2011, but is still under contract.
The Lightning have reached the final round for the first time since they won the championship in 2004. The top two scorers during that playoff run were Brad Richards and Martin St. Louis. The latter of which they had to beat along with the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference Final. Now they'll have to face Richards.
Tampa Bay is also the first team to eliminate three Original Six teams en route to reaching the Final (Detroit, Montreal, and the Rangers).
The edge in special teams would go to Tampa Bay as the Lightning have converted on 22.2% of their power plays (compared to Chicago's 19.6%) and killed 81.2% of their penalties (Chicago's PK is at 75.5%).
