Answering key questions as Hawks enter Shark Tank
It's the matchup everyone wanted in the Western Conference finals between clearly the two best teams.
For most of the regular season the Blackhawks and San Jose Sharks battled for first place in the conference in a race that wasn't decided until the final day.
The Sharks finished with 113 points to the Hawks' 112.
That's how close it is between these two teams.
The Hawks and Sharks get to settle things once and for all starting Sunday at HP Pavilion in a series that has all the makings of going the full seven games.
Q. Does either team have an edge?A. It's hard to find one. Both are big, strong and fast.The Sharks have home ice, but the Hawks are 5-1 on the road so far in the playoffs and won both regular season games at HP Pavilion.The Sharks have their stars in Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Dany Heatley, Dan Boyle and Joe Pavelski, and the Hawks have theirs in Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Marian Hossa, Duncan Keith and Patrick Sharp.San Jose goalie Evgeni Nabokov is more experienced, but the Hawks' Antti Niemi has answered every challenge thrown his way.Q. Is HP Pavilion really a tough place to play?A. It's cozy and loud - maybe the loudest arena in the NHL. But the Hawks seem to thrive playing in hostile environments, such as GM Place, the Saddledome, Joe Louis Arena and the Shark Tank.Q. Who is going to check the 6-foot-4, 235-pound Thornton and linemates Marleau and Heatley?A. The guess is Hawks coach Joel Quenneville will give that assignment to Dave Bolland, Andrew Ladd and Kris Versteeg. They stopped the Sedins cold last series.That would leave the Toews line to play against the Pavelski line.Q. Which Shark should the Hawks worry about most?A. Pavelski is having a great postseason, but Marleau is a dangerous, dangerous player. He's fast, strong, has great hands and is fearless going to the net. It will be interesting to see if Versteeg can handle him, if that's the matchup.Q. Can the Hawks bruise the San Jose defense like they did to Vancouver?A. The Canucks' defense was soft, face it, but San Jose's isn't. The Sharks have some bruising defensemen of their own in Rob Blake, Douglas Murray and Niclas Wallin that can handle the punishment.Expect the Hawks to finish their checks on Boyle, just as the Sharks will try to do on Keith. Murray is a big hitter, so Hawks forwards better be watching for him.Q. Can Dustin Byfuglien play as big a role in this series as he did against Vancouver?A. Let's put it this way: he better. Byfuglien was the No. 1 star in the Vancouver series with his net presence and physical play. If he can rattle Nabokov like he did Luongo, the Hawks will be in great shape.Q. Did the Hawks learn anything from going to the West finals last spring?A. You would hope so. You would hope they learned the need to be ready from the start of Game 1, because these early games and just as important as the later ones.Q. What's at stake for the Hawks?A. More than maybe even they realize. Due to the salary cap problems the Hawks face after the season, and they are sizeable ones, this is going to be the only chance for this particular group to win a Stanley Cup. General manager Stan Bowman has warned there will be changes next season, win or lose, perhaps as many as six or seven players, so the time is now.Q. Has Hossa had a good playoff up until now? A. While he has scored only 2 goals in 12 games, Hossa has 10 points, is plus-5 and has been excellent at both ends. He is perfectly capable of having a breakout series, and don't be surprised if he does.Q. Who has the coaching edge?A. San Jose's Todd McLellan came from Detroit, so he knows how to deal with playoff pressure and is a calm presence behind the bench.Quenneville never has taken a team past the conference finals, which his critics love to point out. Quenneville has had a good playoff, making the right personnel changes after losses, but the Hawks have started slowly in too many games, and that needs to change.Q. What is Kim Johnsson's status?A. Don't expect the defenseman back for the rest of the playoffs. He hasn't even skated since suffering a concussion March 13 in Philadelphia, and even if he did improve you can't jump back into the last two rounds of the playoffs after missing two months.The Hawks would love to have that trade for Cam Barker back, but they can't. Johnsson is an unrestricted free agent so we've likely seen the last of him.False12702000Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith, left, and San Jose Sharks center Patrick Marleau battle against the boards for control of the puck during the first period.Associated PressFalse <div class="infoBox"><h1>More Coverage</h1><div class="infoBoxContent"><div class="infoArea"><h2>Stories</h2><ul class="links"><li><a href="/story/?id=380667">Booing has become sweet music to Campbell's ears <span class="date">[5/13/10]</span></a></li></ul></div></div></div>