The Chicago Blackhawks will try to stave off elimination once again when the defending Stanley Cup champions host the top-seeded Vancouver Canucks in Game 6 of the Western Conference quarterfinals.
Canucks vs. Blackhawks, Game 6: Vancouver Tries To Stop The Bleeding, Eliminate Defending Champs
The eighth-seeded Blackhawks have had their backs against the wall since losing the first three games of this series, but Chicago has certainly gotten the Canucks' attention by blowing out Vancouver in each of the last two meetings. Another win for Chicago this evening will set up a decisive Game 7 in Vancouver this Tuesday.
The Canucks will be led onto the ice by goaltender Cory Schneider and not Roberto Luongo, who was pulled from the last two games after allowing four goals on 12 shots in 21-plus minutes in Game 5. Schneider yielded one score on 14 shots in Game 5.
Chicago recorded a 7-2 home victory in Game 4 and then slammed the Canucks by a 5-0 margin when the clubs met on Thursday.
Vancouver has been eliminated from the postseason by the Blackhawks in each of the last two springs. Both times Chicago ousted the Canucks in six games during the conference semifinals.
Chicago won it all for the first time since 1961 last spring, but an offseason salary purge contributed to Chicago just making the playoffs as the West’s eighth seed. Joel Quenneville’s club will now have to come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a series for the first time in club history to keep its season going.
The Canucks have never lost a series that they have led three-games-to-none. Vancouver’s only series defeat with a 3-1 lead came in the 2003 conference semifinals against Minnesota.
For more on this game, head over to Nucks Misconduct for Vancouver coverage or Second City Hockey and SB Nation Chicago for Blackhawks coverage.
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