The Chicago Blackhawks came out on fire in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup finals and took down the Philadelphia Flyers 7–4.
The Blackhawks now have a 3–2 series lead with the chance to wrap up their first Stanley Cup since 1961 on Wednesday in Philadelphia.
In a reversal of Saturday’s Game 4, in which the Flyers took a 4–1 lead and hung on for a 5–3 win, Chicago took a 3–0 first period lead and matched the Flyers thereafter.
Chicago changed up their lines with the intention of reigniting a struggling captain Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, and Dustin Byfuglien.
“Credit to coach Q-ey,” said Patrick Sharp in an on-ice interview with NBC after the game.
The game plan worked as Byfuglien broke out of his slump with a four-point performance. He scored the nicest goal of the series so far, completing a tic-tac-toe passing play on the power play. Posted in front of the net, as usual, he redirected Toews’s centering pass past Boucher.
“He [Byfuglien] sets the tone with his size. When he gets going he’s hard to stop. We didn’t have to say much to him. He had the fire in his eyes,” said Sharp.
Up till Game 5, the upper hand had been held by rugged Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger who entered Game 5 with a +7 rating. But he lost the battle to Byfuglien and was repeatedly booed by the Chicago crowd. He took the penalty that led to Byfuglien’s goal. Pronger ended the night a -5.
The Flyers tried to fight back, led by the line of Danny Briere, Scott Hartnell, and Ville Leino. That line was responsible for Philadelphia’s first two goals.
But everytime Philly would score, Chicago would answer back. They pegged back Philly twice in the second period and third period.
It was truly an offensive explosion much like Game 1, where the goalies, who would be backups on other teams, played like backups.
The Blackhawks really needed to reassert themselves after losing the momentum after the two games in Philadelphia. They were able to outhit Philadelphia and capitalize on the Flyers penalties.
The Blackhawks now have a 3–2 series lead with the chance to wrap up their first Stanley Cup since 1961 on Wednesday in Philadelphia.
In a reversal of Saturday’s Game 4, in which the Flyers took a 4–1 lead and hung on for a 5–3 win, Chicago took a 3–0 first period lead and matched the Flyers thereafter.
Chicago changed up their lines with the intention of reigniting a struggling captain Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, and Dustin Byfuglien.
“Credit to coach Q-ey,” said Patrick Sharp in an on-ice interview with NBC after the game.
The game plan worked as Byfuglien broke out of his slump with a four-point performance. He scored the nicest goal of the series so far, completing a tic-tac-toe passing play on the power play. Posted in front of the net, as usual, he redirected Toews’s centering pass past Boucher.
“He [Byfuglien] sets the tone with his size. When he gets going he’s hard to stop. We didn’t have to say much to him. He had the fire in his eyes,” said Sharp.
Up till Game 5, the upper hand had been held by rugged Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger who entered Game 5 with a +7 rating. But he lost the battle to Byfuglien and was repeatedly booed by the Chicago crowd. He took the penalty that led to Byfuglien’s goal. Pronger ended the night a -5.
The Flyers tried to fight back, led by the line of Danny Briere, Scott Hartnell, and Ville Leino. That line was responsible for Philadelphia’s first two goals.
But everytime Philly would score, Chicago would answer back. They pegged back Philly twice in the second period and third period.
It was truly an offensive explosion much like Game 1, where the goalies, who would be backups on other teams, played like backups.
The Blackhawks really needed to reassert themselves after losing the momentum after the two games in Philadelphia. They were able to outhit Philadelphia and capitalize on the Flyers penalties.
