For the 3rd time in the series, Dustin Byfuglien scored the game winning goal for Chicago as the Blackhawks completed an impressive four game sweep of the San Jose Sharks and earned themselves a shot to end the longest-running Stanley Cup drought in the NHL. The Hawks haven’t won a Cup since 1961, but after powering their way through the Western Conference, they will be favorites to take home the trophy this year.
With their playoff lives on the line, the Sharks came out flying, jumping out to a 2 goal lead through the first half of the game, getting goals from rookie Logan Couture and Patrick Marleau. Marleau’s shorthanded tally continued an impressive stretch of play as he has been the only Shark capable of beating Antti Niemi with any degree of regularity this series.
However, the Hawks stormed back in the last half of the 2nd, getting goals from Brent Seabrook and Dave Bolland to even the game before it headed to the final period. Seabrook’s goal needed to be reviewed before it counted, but replays showed that the puck did squirt over the line before it was knocked back out in a scramble. Dave Bolland continued an impressive offensive outburst, winning a battle for the puck behind the net and walking out front before beating Nabokov upstairs.
In the 3rd, Chicago got a powerplay and Byfuglien planted himself squarely in front of Nabokov, where he was able to redirect a quick pass from Patrick Kane, giving Chicago the lead for good. Kris Versteeg iced the game with an empty net goal on a pretty good little backhand from the neutral zone.
In a game that the Sharks had to win in order to stay alive, they were decidedly soft, especially in the 3rd period, where they managed just 3 shots. Niemi only faced 18 shots, while Nabokov stopped 23 of the 26 he had thrown at him. While none of the games were blowouts, the Blackhawks’ ability to adapt their style of play to their opponent’s continued to impress, as they were able to once again thwart a team with legitimate threats on offense and considerable talent on the back end as well. For the Sharks, these playoffs were definitely much more successful than their last few runs, but with personnel questions looming in the offseason, it will be interesting to see whether or not they’ll be able to repeat their success next year.
