There’s no rest for the Western Conference’s best teams today as their series rolls along on back-to-back days. Will they look a little tired or was yesterday just a warm-up?
Game 2: Chicago Blackhawks host Los Angeles Kings (8 p.m. ET NBCSN/Live Extra)
Chicago leads series 1-0
Yesterday’s 2-1 Game 1 victory by the Blackhawks showed that while the Kings might try to slow them down, they might have a lot of issues trying to do that all the time. Chicago’s speed around the edges changed the game on L.A. and it led to the Blackhawks dominating play for the most part.
The best part of a Game 2 is seeing how the team who lost adjusts. Judging by Game 1, the Kings have a lot of work to do and don’t have a lot of time to get it done. On the upside for the Kings, they’ve still got Jonathan Quick. He was outstanding in a losing effort stopping 34 shots. He was also one of the few guys who appeared to bring his “A” game for L.A.
Chicago, on the other hand, had a few outstanding efforts including Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Patrick Sharp, and Marian Hossa. Corey Crawford wasn’t too bad either despite spending most of the game twiddling his thumbs saving just 21 shots. The Blackhawks would like to make sure he stays similarly bored again tonight.
For what it’s worth, the last time the Conference finals saw teams play on back-to-back days was 2004 when Calgary and San Jose did it for Games 4 & 5 with each team winning one. The Kings hope they can make history repeat itself.