Silverman: Blackhawks Will Meet Rangers In Cup Final, And It Will Be Epic
By Steve Silverman
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It may seem too soon to consider the Rangers' next opponent considering the awful display they put on Monday night in their 6-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 2, but it really isn't.
Yes, they have surrendered home-ice advantage to a good and hungry Tampa Bay Lightning team, and the chances are good that they will lose one of the two games at the Amalie Arena in Tampa before returning to Madison Square Garden.
But the resiliency that the Rangers have shown throughout the last two playoff years under Alain Vigneault should not be forgotten. The Rangers have battled back from 3-1 playoff deficits in each of the past two years, and a home loss is not going to derail them. They are strong and at times formidable, and they will find a way to get past Tampa Bay, even if it takes seven games.
It would certainly help if Rick Nash and Martin St. Louis could starting contributing, but that's another story.
Once the Rangers get past the Lightning, they are going to face one of two formidable opponents. The Anaheim Ducks and Chicago Blackhawks put on an incredible display Tuesday night. They battled late into triple overtime before the Blackhawks pulled the game out when third/fourth-line center Marcus Krueger shoveled a Brent Seabrook rebound past Ducks goalie Frederik Andersen.
The Blackhawks are a well-known commodity around the league because they have won two Stanley Cups since 2010, and they will play for their third if they can overcome the Ducks.
The Blackhawks are a team that depends on superstar performances in big games from Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith, Marian Hossa and Seabrook. They also have a top supporting cast and players like Johnny Oduya, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Andrew Shaw and Kruger regularly find a way to come through in the clutch.
Goalie Corey Crawford is somewhat flawed, but he also shakes off bad goals and bad games better than any other goalie, and he was the architect of their 2013 Stanley Cup title over Boston.
But this year's version of the Blackhawks has a big problem. Head coach Joel Quenneville has four dependable defensemen in Keith, Seabrook, Oduya and Hjalmarsson -- and that's it. Injuries have robbed the Blackhawks of their defensive depth. They have given former Flyer Kimmo Timonen, veteran minor leaguer Kyle Cumiskey and a few others a little bit of a run on the blue line, but those players are a major liability.
How the Blackhawks survived a three-OT game with just four quality defenseman will remain a mystery for a long time.
Any way you slice it, the Blackhawks would be a dangerous opponent. They are perhaps the most confident team in the league, and they simply don't believe they should ever lose.
The Ducks are trying to get to that level, and former Washington head coach Bruce Boudreau has four excellent lines that are all contributing right now. The Ducks have speed, quickness and decisiveness moving the puck through the neutral zone, but they are a bunch of strong and powerful bodies when they control the action in the offensive zone.
Ryan Getzlaf is their stud, and in addition to being a very talented player, he is big, strong and tough to move off the puck. Corey Perry is one of the most skilled snipers in the game, but he is also a nasty, dirty player who is not averse to crossing the line to help his team win.
Ryan Kesler may be the X-factor in this series. He would be the No. 1 center on most teams, but he is just the No. 2 pivot on this team because of Getzlaf's presence. Kesler was a dominant player on the Vancouver Canucks for years, and he will do anything to win. He is skilled and edgy, and nobody knows this better than Vigneault.
Forwards like Matt Beleskey, Jakob Silfverberg and Nate Thompson are all solid players who are capable of making big plays at key moments. The Ducks have more quality depth at forward than any of the four teams remaining in the playoffs.
The defense may be vulnerable, as Francois Beauchemin depends on skill and guile because he is not the skater he once was. Cam Fowler, Sami Vatanen and Hampus Lindholm are all quality players, and Lindholm may soon be a superstar.
However, as well as they can play, the Ducks' defense will leave a few openings. Andersen is a very capable goalie, but he is not in the Henrik Lundqvist category, nor is he close.
On paper, the Ducks are the healthier and stronger team, but the Blackhawks may just find a way to survive. They are relentless and experienced, and they know how to come through when other opponents fold.
They also know that the salary cap is about to hammer them, and this is their best chance to win their third Stanley Cup. They will break the Ducks' hearts, and they will face the Rangers in an epic Stanley Cup Final.
Too soon to consider? Perhaps, but the mind has lots of time to consider all the possibilities when triple overtime beckons. Oh, and regards to you, Pete Stemkowski, a Rangers triple-overtime hero from 44 years ago.
