Submitted by Admin on April 23, 2011 - 12:33
The NHL Playoffs are off to an exciting start and the most watched game of the first round has to be the series between the Vancouver Canucks and the Chicago Blackhawks. The Blackhawks looked as though they were going to be swept out of the series but hae rebounded with back-to-back wins and this is a close series once again.
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The Blackhawks aren't going down without a fight. In fact, they're taking the fight to the Vancouver Canucks and beating them handily.
After losing three tight games to open the series, the Hawks have blown out the Canucks in back-to-back games to force a Game 6 in Chicago.
As Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault said after Game 5, "(the Hawks) have all of the momentum right now."
The Hawks still trail 3-2 in the best-of-seven series, but they're playing loose and physical. The Canucks are reeling and so is their goalie, Roberto Luongo. The Hawks have chased him in back-to-back games, but he will likely start Game 6.
Hossa wasn't the only star to show up for the Hawks, who were without defenseman Brent Seabrook for the second game in a row as he recovers from a concussion. Duncan Keith, Patrick Sharp and Patrick Kane all had productive nights.
The Canucks have insisted throughout this first-round playoff series they are not the same team that was eliminated the last two playoffs by the Chicago Blackhawks. A 3-1 series lead over the defending Stanley Cup Champion Blackhawks should have been enough to prove it.
It wasn't. Not the way they lost Game 4 on Tuesday in Chicago, a 7-2 blowout that brought back a lot of bad memories.
By the time they got back to Vancouver to prepare for Game 5 Thursday, the Canucks were surrounded by negativity. The good news is that they're used to it. Overcoming the ups and downs that come with playing in Canada was a team goal during a record-setting regular season.
The Blackhawks are 8-3 in their last 11 games as a home favorite of -110 to -150 and the Canucks are 21-7 in their last 28 road games vs. a team with a winning home record. That makes this a very exciting matchup to watch and wager on at Skybook!