Sunglasses on and bags slung over their shoulders, Blackhawks players
made their way Thursday toward the charter plane that was to take them
from O'Hare to California for a date with history.
The four-hour
flight provided an opportunity to rest after a grueling schedule that
included Wednesday's 5-2 victory over the Ducks that kept the Hawks'
season alive. More important is that Friday will provide an extra day to
relax before the teams take the ice Saturday night at the Honda Center
to determine the Western Conference champion.
The Hawks and Ducks have played every other day since the series began May 17, crisscrossing the country in doing so.
"You
take the rest as you can get it," Hawks winger Patrick Sharp said. "We
had a lot of travel this series back and forth for both teams. But
(we've) got a big game coming up. We'll take the extra day, get focused
and be physically ready."
The Ducks have not been shy about their
determination to wear down the Hawks physically — especially top-four
defensemen Duncan Keith, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Brent Seabrook and Johnny
Oduya — by finishing their checks.
Anaheim players have hit everything that moves during the series for a 304-219 hit advantage.
"Every
hit that we've had … it's all for this Game 7," Ducks center Ryan
Kesler said. "That's why we invested physically, and it's all going to
add up for Game 7."
The flaw in the plan is that the Ducks are
expending energy making those hits. And then there is the fact the NHL
conveniently — for the Hawks' sake, at least — added an extra day
between the final two games. All that investment by the Ducks might not
pay dividends.
"We're healthy," Sharp said. "We have a defense
core that wants to be on the ice ... they're fighting to jump over the
boards (and) want to play the heavy minutes. Up front, we're feeling
pretty good.
"Whether it's a physical game or a wide-open game, we like that style of play. We'll be ready for whatever they throw at us."
Added
center Antoine Vermette: "We're confident with our group, the way we
can approach games. If it's a physical game, we don't shy away from
that. Speed, we like to play that type of game."
The Hawks also
maintain they are on top of their game mentally. The series has been
intense from the moment the teams took warm-ups in Game 1. It has
featured three overtime games, including one that went to triple
overtime and one that went to double OT.
Throw in the do-or-die aspect of Game 7, and the pressure is on — something the Hawks embrace.
"We
all love playing hockey," center Marcus Kruger said. "We love playing
big games, just to get a chance to do that. You never get tired of
hockey. We play for these big games."
The Ducks will play in a
Game 7 for the third consecutive season — they lost the previous two —
while the Hawks will play in their fourth Game 7 in the past five
seasons. The previous three went to overtime, including a crushing home
loss to the Kings in the conference finals last year.
Sharp said Game 7s are different from any other regular-season or postseason game.
"It's
very similar to just playing overtime," Sharp said. "Right from the
drop of the puck in the first period, every shift is important. It's
magnified that much more in a Game 7. Our group has played plenty of
overtimes, also Game 7s, to draw experience from."
Coach Joel Quenneville loves the approach from his players.
"I
credit the guys, their focus, their preparation, their will to want to
win (and) finding ways to win," Quenneville said. "They love the
journey. They're competitive beyond what you could want it to be."
Source : my.chicagotribune.com
Chris Kuc, Chicago Tribune
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