Tag Archives: Viktor Stalberg

Hawks avoid elimination with 2-1 OT win in Phoenix

Posted on April 22, 2012 by Brad Vandenberk| Leave a comment

By Brad Vandenberk

All the traditional jerseys were worn and all the superstitions acted upon as the Chicago Blackhawks tried to stave off elimination in the 2012 NHL playoffs.  Captain Jonathan Toews took his team aside after the morning skate on Saturday with no coaches involved.  The message was quite clear, they needed the win from this road game and needed the stars to pick up their game and get a win, preferably in regulation.

The last four games have gone to overtime with Mikkel Boedker winning the last 2 in Chicago with two weak goals getting by Corey Crawford.  Whispers were in the air of veteran Ray Emery possibly getting the start for game five.  Coach Q made the announcement that they were sticking with Crawford.  Mike Smith was automatically in for the Coyotes.

Earlier in the afternoon it was decided that Raffi Torres would sit in a suit for 25 games.  He was suspended for his hit on Marian Hossa during the first period in Game 3.  Read more »

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Blackhawks tie series 1-1 with more late night heroics

Posted on April 15, 2012 by Brad Vandenberk| Leave a comment

By Brad Vandenberk

Instead of white t- shirts on the seats of the Jobing.com arena, Game 2 of the western conference quarterfinal saw white pom pom’s riddled throughout the arena.  The Chicago Blackhawks needed a big win to avenge the loss they suffered on Thursday night in overtime.  Martin Hanzal’s tip past Corey Crawford gave the Coyotes and 1-0 lead in the series.  The Hawks were looking to head back to Chicago with a split in the series.  Read more »

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Blackhawks blow two-goal 3rd period lead in Detroit, win 3-2 in a shootout, finish 6th in West, await Pacific winner

Posted on April 7, 2012 by Brad Gardner| 3 Comments

By Brad Gardner

The sixth and final meeting of the season between the Blackhawks and Red Wings went down to a shootout, where Patrick Kane scored the deciding goal to give the visiting ‘Hawks a 3-2 victory. Corey Crawford played a strong game, despite giving up a pair of third-period goals, and did not allow a goal in the shootout to register his 30th win of the season.

Detroit’s third period comeback secured one point in the standings, thereby sealing up either the fourth or fifth seed of the Western Conference and a first round match-up against Nashville.

Despite the two points, Chicago settled into the sixth spot with 101 points (45-26-11 record) on the season. They will open the playoffs on the road against the winner of the Pacific Division.

The game played much like the rest of the season series. Each game between the two Central Division rivals has been decided by one goal. It was the fourth time in six games that the final score was 3-2 and the fourth time Chicago came out victorious. The ‘Hawks ended up taking 10 of a possible 12 points out of the season series against the Wings with a 4-0-2 record. Read more »

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Kane scores twice to force overtime, Blackhawks lose to Wild in a shootout

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Brad Vandenberk| Leave a comment

By Brad Vandenberk

After clinching their fourth consecutive playoff appearance on Saturday night, the Chicago Blackhawks were back in action Sunday evening to face the playoff-eliminated Minnesota Wild.  The night earlier the Hawks blew a 4-0 lead to a Nashville Predators quad which the Hawks could see in the first round of the playoffs. The Hawks came out victors with a 5-4 win.  With a win Sunday, the Hawks could leap frog both the Predators and the Detroit Red Wings for 4th place in the Western conference.  The Hawks sat in 6th in the West with home ice advantage in sight.  The question is – Do the Hawks want to face the Wings or Preds in the first round?  With Jonathan Toews now cleared for contact, the good ship Blackhawk will be cruising, heading into the first round no matter which foe they encounter.  After Corey Crawford stole a Hawks win last night in the country music capital, Ray Emery started between the pipes for this match.  This would give Emery a chance to get some game action in, in case he is called upon during the playoffs.  Andrew Brunette was replaced by Michael Frolik as the top line winger.  Brunette was seen limping around the arena early Sunday.  He was later declared out with a lower body injury.  The Wild played the night before as well, beating the LA Kings in a shootout.  Josh Harding got the start for the Wild.  Duncan Keith was serving the last game of his five game suspension.  He will return to the line up on Thursday, when the Hawks travel to Minnesota to face the Wild.  Read more »

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Hawks blow 4-goal lead then edge Preds 5-4

Posted on April 1, 2012 by Brad Gardner| Leave a comment

By Brad Gardner

The Blackhawks gave up another two goal lead in the third period and lived to tell the tale, taking two points against the Predators in regulation with a 5-4 win in Nashville. Brent Seabrook tallied the go-ahead goal at 8:19 of the third period to give the ‘Hawks just their second win in six games against the Predators this season.

With the win, the Blackhawks clinched a playoff spot and drew even in the standings with Detroit (off Saturday, now has a game in hand on both teams) and one point behind Nashville for fourth in the Western Conference.

The first period featured action at both ends of the rink with Chicago leading 16-12 in the shot column. The Blackhawks struck first on an early power play opportunity when Patrick Sharp got a fortunate bounce off a defenseman at 3:25 of the first period. Sharp picked up a loose puck and attempted to cross it to Patrick Kane. The pass instead deflected off Hal Gill as he attempted to fill the lane and past Nashville goaltender Pekka Rinne to give Chicago the early 1-0 lead. Read more »

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Hawks Let Blues Off Mat But Prevail 4-3 In Shootout

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Jon Fromi| Leave a comment

By Jon Fromi

Despite watching a two goal lead evaporate in the last ten minutes of the contest, the Chicago Blackhawks were able to come away with a huge 4-3 shootout win over the St. Louis Blues Thursday night at United Center.

With the victory, the Blackhawks have taken four of six games from the top team in the Western Conference. They also move another step closer to locking up a spot in the postseason with a solid performance.

The pace favored the Hawks early, but Chicago didn’t get on the board until midway through the opening frame. Kent Huskins committed a high stick on Andrew Shaw a little over two minutes in. Although the Blackhawks got a shot on goal on the power play for the first time in nine attempts, a single shot was all Chicago could muster.

The first score came when Nick Leddy found Bryan Bickell in the neutral zone in the eleventh minute. Bickell entered the Blues zone with Dave Bolland, where he skated to just above the left faceoff circle before sending a wrist shot past Jaroslav Halak at the 10:38 mark. Read more »

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Brodeur stops 37, Devils edge Hawks 2-1 in Newark

Posted on March 28, 2012 by Brad Vandenberk| Leave a comment

By Brad Vandenberk

After a gruesome loss on Sunday to their division rival Nashville Predators, the Chicago Blackhawks were on the road to play the New Jersey Devils.  This would be the first and only meeting this year between the two clubs as each team came in sitting in the sixth position in their respected conferences.  The Hawks are currently holding a five point lead in sixth, while the Devils are feeling the heat from the Ottawa Senators who are just two points behind them in the East.  This game would mark the 17th straight contest that Jonathan Toews was not in the line up.  The good news is he has been skating for seven consecutive days and sees a return in site.  Duncan Keith was serving game two of his five game suspension given to him after hitting Canuck Daniel Sedin with a head shot just six days ago.  On the brighter side, Steve Montador returned to the ice as a winger on the fourth line after missing 22 games with a concussion.  He started with fourth line duties to ensure Monty eases himself back into game shape.  Marcus Kruger also returned from an upper body injury giving the Hawks their second line center back.  With the two players returning, Jimmy Hayes, Brendan Morrison and Michael Frolik were scratched.    Carter Hutton was recalled from the IceHogs due to Ray Emery suffering an upper body injury during Sunday night’s debacle.  Corey Crawford got the call from coach Q to start as fellow Quebecian Martin Brodeur was between the pipes for the Devils.  Read more »

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Blackhawks lay down for Predators

Posted on March 25, 2012 by Brad Gardner| 4 Comments

By Brad Gardner

The Nashville Predators have had a way of bringing out the worst in the Blackhawks this season. That trend continued on Sunday as the Predators won a convincing 6-1 decision over the Hawks in Chicago. The Hawks finished with more shorthanded chances than power play shots as they stared down a multiple goal deficit for much of the contest. Nashville has now taken nine of a possible ten points against Chicago this season and has a four point lead in the standings as both teams have six games left to play.

Corey Crawford started the game but allowed four goals on 15 shots in 42 minutes before he was pulled in favor of Ray Emery. The veteran Emery allowed two third period goals on nine shots. The six goals against was the most for Chicago since February 2nd when they gave up eight goals to the Oilers while deep in the throes of that nine-game losing streak. Read more »

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Lindbloom’s View: From sands of the Hillbilly Riviera

Posted on March 25, 2012 by Rich Lindbloom| Leave a comment

The Thrill Is Gone… 

By Rich Lindbloom

Ah, but the hatred is alive and well. With the emergence of the rum dummies on the western side of the Mississippi, otherwise known as the Blues, our rivalry with a team that personifies the word “malfeasance” had been put on the back burner. To be quite honest with you, with the arduous schedule we’ve had in March, I didn’t even get that worked up about playing the Canucks last Wednesday. This was a bit unusual when one recalls for the past three years these affairs have more resembled terrorism than hockey. They’ve always been a highly sought after ticket. After about two minutes of watching this battle royale, I quickly recalled what fuels one of hockey’s best rivalries. My complete and utter disdain for the blue and green men returned with a vengeance. Read more »

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Hawks keep rolling, beat Capitals 5-2 at the UC to earn 40th victory of the season

Posted on March 19, 2012 by Brad Gardner| Leave a comment

By Brad Gardner

The Blackhawks controlled play for much of the game when they hosted the Washington Capitals at the United Center in the only meeting of the season between the two teams. Andrew Shaw opened the scoring and finished with two goals to lead the way in a complete team effort by the ‘Hawks in which they held Washington to just 18 shots en route to a 5-2 win.

The ‘Hawks scored first for the third straight game on a deflection by Shaw in front of the net. Bryan Bickell carried the puck over the line and hit Shaw with a rink-wide pass. He made a drag move around Brooks Laich to get to the center of the ice, but his shot was kicked out by the pad of Michal Neuvirth. Duncan Keith picked up the rebound and fired it back towards the traffic in front where it deflected off Shaw for a 1-0 Chicago lead.

The speed of Viktor Stalberg helped to extend the lead a few minutes later when he beat Washington defenseman Dmitry Orlov to a loose puck and converted on the breakaway against Neuvirth. Sharp dumped the puck down the ice and Stalberg left Orlov in his dust on his way to recovering the puck and tucking the shot behind a downed Neuvirth. Read more »

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