Chicago Blackhawks vs. St. Louis Blues
The Chicago Blackhawks welcome the St. Louis Blues to the United Center for Game 3 of their increasingly aggressive first-round series in the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The series is now tied 1-1 as each team has grown more and more determined to not just defeat, but slaughter their opponent. After losing in OT 1-0 after a monotonous and relatively tame three periods, Chicago hit St. Louis with full force on Friday night to the tune of a 3-2 victory. The return of 2015 Conn Smythe winner Duncan Keith dramatically improved Chicago’s game, with the recently suspended player racked up a goal and an assist. Goaltender Corey Crawford and forward Andrew Shaw also contributed significantly to the win.
Chicago will need to improve their top line’s efficacy if they are to outplay the Blues. There have been several opportunities for the Blackhawks’ top line, but there haven’t been enough, and in those few opportunities, the group hasn’t scored. Andrew Ladd, Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa need to pull themselves into playoff shape.
The Blues needed to increase their physicality and overall aggression in order to be a match to the Blackhawks, and Game 2 was a solid show of effort in that direction. Forward Vladimir Tarasenko amped up his offensive opportunities and risked penalties to make one of the Blues’ two goals and an ultimately revoked second goal. Going into the third game, they need to focus on producing those early goals, neutralizing the crowd and getting an early boost.
Between Tarasenko’s invalid goal and Shaw’s controversial goal right in the crease, the second faceoff between Central Division rivals was a flurry of frustration that will no doubt explode in upcoming games.
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Game 2 airs tonight on NBC Sports Network at 8 PM EST, with a live stream available on NBC Sports Live Extra.
Date: Sunday, April 17, 2016
Start Time: 3:00 p.m. ET
Location: Chicago, IL
Stadium: United Center
TV Info: NBC Sports Network
Live Stream: NBC Sports Live Extra
For more coverage of the NHL Playoffs, make sure to check out our NHL hub page.
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