Dein erstes Forum » We always seem to make things harder than it

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Higher-seeded teams with the lead in a best-of-seven series over the history of the NHL playoffs have had plenty of trouble putting the opponent away. Sometimes the brink of elimination has been what truly gets a team going. Consider the Chicago Blackhawks, though, when their foe is down. An ability to swoop down and delivering the finishing victory has become a clear trait of this team since coach Joel Quenneville took over and stars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews arrived. "The bigger the setting, the bigger the stage, they seem to rise to that challenge," Quenneville said. Since 2009, the first post-season appearance for Kane and Toews, the Blackhawks have not lost in any of the seven playoff series theyve been in that were tied after four games. Thats a 13-0 record in Games 5 and 6 of such matchups that were even at two each, including the Stanley Cup finals in 2010 against Philadelphia and 2013 against Boston. Theyll test that perfect mark once more on Tuesday in Game 6 against the Minnesota Wild, who fell behind 3-2 in this Western Conference semifinal series after losing 2-1 in Chicago on Sunday. "To do exactly whatever it takes ... is one of the hardest things in any series, to clinch it," said Blackhawks left wing Bryan Bickell, whos tied for the NHL lead with six goals this year in the playoffs. "But I feel we have the confidence and the poise and the relaxation that we dont get ahead of ourselves and just play shift by shift." During the Kane-Toews era -- which includes left wing Patrick Sharp and core defencemen Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Niklas Hjalmarsson -- the Blackhawks are 11-2 in games played with a chance to win a series. Theyre 5-1 on the road, with the only losses in those clinching situations against Vancouver, in 2011 in Game 7 of the first round and in 2010 in Game 5 of the second round. They rebounded in 2010 to win Game 6 and advance. The Wild are bound to be one of the toughest outs these Blackhawks have encountered. Theyre 5-0 at Xcel Energy Center since the playoffs began, outscoring their opponents 16-5 and allowing an average of 19.2 shots on goal per game. The Blackhawks were stifled in Games 3 and 4, unable to amount any kind of offensive rhythm. "The building has been electric. The fans have been unbelievable. Im sure theyre having a good time with the late starts," Wild defenceman Ryan Suter said, smiling. "Everything, its been a lot of fun for us. Were driving to the rink and you see the excitement outside the rink, and we just build off that." The Wild won two elimination games in the last round against Colorado and, to factor in franchise history, are 9-5 all time in those situations. Theyre trying to become the first NHL team to force consecutive Game 7s in the same post-season without holding a series lead since the New York Islanders in 1987. "Just get ready for Game 6 here. Thats our Game 7 right now," captain Mikko Koivu said. Quenneville declared injured centre Andrew Shaw out again for Game 6. Wild coach Mike Yeo said left wing Matt Moulson and defenceman Keith Ballard were skating on Monday but declined to speculate on their status. Suter took a hard spill in Game 3 in a tangle with Blackhawks right wing Marian Hossa, leaving the game briefly with an apparent injury to his right arm, but he and Yeo have said repeatedly hes fine. Really, at this point in the playoffs, any pain is mostly an afterthought. So, too, is the elimination scenario for the Wild. "I think we like the challenge. We always seem to make things harder than it needs to be. I dont know if thats a good thing to do, but it seems throughout the year thats kind of been the way weve gone about it," Suter said. So the teams will take the ice on Tuesday, with the pressure on each side higher than its been all season. "I think we know what theyre doing. I think they know pretty much what were doing, too," Blackhawks defenceman Johnny Oduya said. "From this point I think its just a matter of will and who wants to win the most and whos fresher and who plays better." CHICAGO -- The fast start for the New York Rangers was erased by the Chicago Blackhawks in a couple minutes during the first part of the second period. Playing the Stanley Cup champions in their building, Henrik Lundqvist and Co. came up with an encouraging response. Carl Hagelin scored the tiebreaking goal in the third period to lead the Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Blackhawks on Wednesday night. "We worked so hard, so this is a big one for us," said Lundqvist, who had 35 saves. "Playing such a good team and the position were in, were desperate for points and wins, so just a great feeling the way we played and got rewarded in the end with that big goal." The Rangers (22-20-3), who began the day in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, improved to 6-2-1 in their last nine games. They were coming off a 4-3 shootout loss at home against Columbus. Asked if the victory over Chicago could be a tipping point for New York, coach Alain Vigneault responded: "All I know is beating the Stanley Cup champions in this building is not an easy task." Jonathan Toews and Brandon Bollig scored in the second period for Chicago (29-8-9), which had recorded at least one point in a season-high 10 games. Coupled with Sundays shootout loss against San Jose, the Blackhawks lost consecutive home games for the second time this season. It was Chicagos first regulation loss since it was blown out at Toronto, falling 7-3 on Dec. 14. "Weve got too many guys right now that arent contributing to that level we saw most of the season," Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said. Marc Staal started the winning sequence with a long slap shot that was stopped by Corey Crawford, who also got in front of Hagelins first rebound attempt. But Hagelin stayed with the play and flipped the puck into the open right side with 5:57 left. It was Hagelins fourth winning goal of the season, tops on the team. He also is tied for the team lead with 11 goals overall. "Lately, we have a lot of confidence and try not to get too frustrated," Hagelin said. "Some games the puck goes in and other days it doesnt. But I think when youre creating chances yyou stay positive.dddddddddddd" Brad Richards and Mats Zuccarello also scored for New York, which earned its first win in Chicago since a 3-2 victory on Jan. 16, 2009. The Rangers and Blackhawks took turns controlling the action in the first two periods. The first belonged to New York, which made the most of a disjointed start for Chicago. Richards scored on a wrist shot at 5:06 and Zuccarello made it 2-0 when he skated behind the net for a wraparound that banked off the paddle of Crawfords stick for a power-play score at 9:29. Lundqvist had the secondary assist on Zuccarellos 11th goal. It was Lundqvists second assist of the season and 14th of his career. "Especially there in the first we were sloppy," Blackhawks defenceman Duncan Keith said. "We got better as the game went along, but unfortunately, they were able to get one late." Chicago bounced back in the second, using a power play to get back in the game. With Derick Brassard in the box for interference, Toews beat a screened Lundqvist high on the stick side for a rebound goal at 6:17. It was Toews 16th of the season and first since Chicagos captain scored twice during a 7-2 victory over Colorado on Dec. 27. The Blackhawks struck again 1:48 after Toews goal. Bollig skated alone down the left side and tied it at 2 with a well-placed wrist shot into the lower left side of the net. It was Bolligs fourth goal of the season. Crawford settled down after the uneven start and finished with 29 saves. He made a nice glove save on Rick Nash on a semi-breakaway with 2:05 left in the second, keeping the game tied at 2. He also used his right pad to deny Brassard early in the third. NOTES: The 26-year-old Zuccarello is tied with Richards, Hagelin and Chris Kreider for the team lead in goals. Zuccarellos previous career high was six goals when he was a rookie with New York in the 2010-11 season. ... The Blackhawks recognized their 10 Olympians on the centre-ice videoboard during a break in the first period. ... New York C J.T. Miller and D Justin Falk were scratched. ... Defencemen Michael Kostka and Sheldon Brookbank were scratched for the Blackhawks. 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