The National Hockey League (NHL) playoffs are about half way through the first round, and have already had 9 games go into overtime. 36% of the 25 games through Wednesday, April 23rd have gone into at least one overtime. The games have been close, and 6 of the 8 series are tied at 2 games apiece, or are 2 games to 1.
In the Western Conference, the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks‘ series with the St. Louis Blues is similar to the Anaheim Ducks – Dallas Stars series in that the series is tied at 2 games, and the home team has won every game, but the Blackhawks – Blues series has had 3 overtime games, while the Ducks – Stars series hasn’t had any.
On Wednesday, the Blackhawks’ Bryan Bickell tied the game at 3 with 3:52 remaining, which eventually led to overtime. Then 11:17 into overtime, Patrick Kane won the game for the Blackhawks with his 2nd goal of the game, and 3rd of the series. I wish he was as clutch in the Olympics, for Team USA. Now the teams go back to St. Louis for Game 5 on Friday.
In Dallas, the Ducks had a 2-0 lead after the first period, but within 6:33 of the 2nd period, the game was tied. Then the Stars added 2 more goals in the 3rd period, to even the series at 2-2. This series will also resume on Friday, when the teams go back to Anaheim. The Ducks are the top seed in the Western Conference.
The other series played on Wednesday night, was between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Columbus Blue Jackets. This series is now tied at 2 also, but these teams split home and away games. The Blue Jackets tied the game at 3 on a goal by Brandon Dubinsky with 24 seconds left in the 3rd period. Then won the game 2:49 into overtime on a goal by Nick Foligno. Game 5 is back in Pittsburgh on Saturday.
3 of the other series are at 2 games to 1, with the higher seeded team leading all 3 series. These would include the Colorado Avalanche over the Minnesota Wild in the Western Conference. In the Eastern Conference, the top seeded Boston Bruins lead the Detroit Red Wings, while the New York Rangers have the current advantage over the Philadelphia Flyers.
However, there are 2 series that have been one-sided, one in each conference. In the Eastern Conference, the Montreal Canadiens have already eliminated the higher seeded Tampa Bay Lightning in 4 straight games. 3 of the games were decided by one goal, and one went to overtime, but if you lose close or get blown out, it’s still a loss.
In the last series to be mentioned, the San Jose Sharks have taken a 3 games to none lead in their series with the Los Angeles Kings. They hammered the stingiest defense in the NHL regular season for 13 goals in the first 2 games, then added a 4-3 overtime win in Game 3.
The higher seeded teams still have the advantage in all 7 of the ongoing series. But it looks like there will be at least a few 7 game series in the first round of the NHL playoffs. That could take a real toll on teams that will face the rested Canadiens, and possibly the Sharks, if they finish off the Kings soon. Of course, they could be rusty when the second round starts, so you never know. I will be enjoying this all the way through the Stanley Cup Finals.
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Sports With Frank Thomas
