The View from Chicago


-Courtesy of Steve Dangle and Leafs Nation

CHICAGO TRIBUNE

Chris Kuc: Kings dominate, push Blackhawks to the brink

The Kings consistently got behind the Hawks defense to set up shop in front of Corey Crawford and the goalie was unable to see — or stop — the onslaught. Bryan Bickell and Brandon Saad had goals for the Hawks, but it wasn’t even close to enough.

Shannon Ryan: Blackhawks’ special-teams struggles continue

Quenneville switched up the lineup for the game, swapping Patrick Sharp and Brent Seabrook in hopes of finding a spark. But it mattered little.

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES

Mark Lazerus: Blackhawks on brink of elimination after Game 4 loss

The Hawks now find themselves in a familiar position. As Keith put it, “It wouldn’t be worth winning the Stanley Cup if you didn’t have to go through any adversity.” But this might be the stiffest challenge yet for a Hawks team that’s risen to so many in the past.

Rick Telander: Kings just might be better than Blackhawks

A lot of folks think they’re the two best teams in hockey. Between them, they have won three of the last four Stanley Cups. If the survivor of this series wins the Cup this season, you could say that team is a budding dynasty.

Mark Potash: Blame for Game 4 loss rests squarely on woeful special teams

After going 0-for-2 on power plays in the first period, they were 0-for-2 on the penalty kill as Jake Muzzin and Dustin Brown scored power-play goals to help the Kings to a 3-0 first-period lead.

Mark Potash: Quenneville stands by Corey Crawford

The challenge for the Blackhawks was playing better now that they’ve had a full dose of the Kings’ offense, which was 26th in the NHL in the regular season (2.42 goals per game) but is first in the postseason (3.29 goals per game).

CSNCHICAGO.com

Tracey Myers: Four-goal deficit too much for Blackhawks in Game 4 loss

That’s good the Blackhawks are still confident, because they’re going to need that. What they also need are stops, be it on 5-on-5 or on that penalty kill. They’re not getting them. The cause isn’t lost, but it is looking shaky.

Tracey Myers: Facing elimination, Blackhawks focusing just on Game 5

The Blackhawks will have to have a lot more to get out of this one. Sure, it’s easy to draw the comparison to the Wings’ second-round series last year. But are they really similar? Those losses to the Wings were close; the Blackhawks were doing a lot right even in defeat.

ESPN.com

Scott Burnside: Hawks show it’s tough to repeat

Since winning Game 1 by a 3-1 count, the Blackhawks have been outscored 15-7 during their current three-game slide.

Scott Powers: Rapid Reaction: Kings 5, Blackhawks 2

The Kings won their third consecutive game and took a 3-1 lead in the series. A team has fought back from a 3-1 deficit to win a series 24 times since the NHL expanded all rounds to best-of-seven in 1987. The Blackhawks rallied from a 3-1 series deficit to defeat the Detroit Red Wings in the second round last season.

NHL.com

Corey Masisak: Kings handle Blackhawks, now one win from Final

Chicago has won seven straight series that were 2-2 after four games, but the Blackhawks couldn’t get themselves into that position. They did rally from a 3-1 deficit last season to defeat the Detroit Red Wings in the second round.

Shawn Roarke: Desperate Blackhawks know they can be better

Heading into Game 4, the Blackhawks argued they could claw back into this series by winning the individual battles. In the first period Monday, Chicago lost every battle and fell behind 3-0 after 16 minutes. It was a knockout blow from which the Blackhawks could not rise on this night.

Curtis Zupke: Kings score two more on power play in Game 4

The Kings remain a suffocating defensive team in these playoffs like they were in 2012, and they’ve added a potent power play that is capitalizing against what was one of the better penalty-killing units in the NHL.

THE COMMITTED INDIAN

FifthFeather: Island in the Sun: Kings 5, Blackhawks 2

All that said, the fancy stats and eye test will say that the Hawks are not that far off. They carried the play 5-on-5 for the majority of the game. Their lines (minus Handzus) seemed to generate a fair amount of quality scoring chances.

Sam Fels: Wish I Was Special

What’s the answer? It seems clear that the Hawks are going to have to pressure the points more than they have and leave themselves open for the cross-ice pass they’re guarding against now but not seeing. Maybe that’s just a different way to die, but this clearly isn’t working now

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