Dominance. One word that defines an unimaginable feat that one team has proven to accomplish one game after another. Some may have seemed a bit less impressive as others, however they still managed to overrun their opponents and continue to frustrate the other players on and off the ice.
Although the Chicago Blackhawks are a young team, their grit and determination has proven them to be a successful group and appear as an experienced squad of veterans. Not only have they done this throughout the entire playoffs but have done it as a whole not just a single line or player. Points coming from 3rd and 4th liner players and hits from the first line all stars. In game two Duncan Keith had already laid out 5 hits in the first period alone, a feat hard enough to attain from a fourth line aggressor. The goalie side of things was even more impressive with Antti Niemi coming up with a star performance of 32 saves looking calm and relaxed yet again under all the pressure resting on his shoulders.
With only 2 goals coming from the Blackhawks this time, some speculated that shooters were not as sharp but taking a deeper look into things you can see that a few streaks were broken and may have triggered new ones. Marian Hossa has not scored in the last Stanley Cup Finals in the past 3 seasons and with this goal coming in the second game, perhaps the Slovakian sniper has broken loose from his curse and start finding the back of the net within the next few rounds remaining in the finals.With added pressure being placed on the Hawks by having to play on the Flyers turf during the next two games, it will be interesting to see who steps up to play as an aggressive and determined individual. Everyone knows the outcome will determine how the series may go for one team and where it will end for the other. However, don't count the Flyers out just yet, as they have surprised us in previous series and shown us they do too have what it takes to dominate the opposing teams and win games when everything goes right. If I were to choose what happens, I would definitely like to see a game 7 with the Hawks taking it in the end. Until then, lets look forward to the outcome of the next game and either be comfortable with a 3 game lead or on edge with a one game advantage.
Keiffer Clarke - Out.
