Rozner: Blackhawks' Corey Crawford will not shrink from Game 7 moment
Composure is a something we'll hear a lot about in the hours leading up to Game 7 of the Western Conference finals.
The Blackhawks have a history of showing up, while the Ducks have a history of going to pieces - no one more so than head coach Bruce Boudreau, who has lost five out of six Game 7s.
Players will talk about trying to have fun and embracing the stage, while others worry about how their nerves will affect them with so much at stake Saturday night in Anaheim.
"I think the finality of it is what stands out," Boudreau said. "I mean, one group is going to go home and one group's going to go play for the Stanley Cup."
The Hawks will be flying back to Chicago on Sunday either way, but whether they move on will depend largely on how Corey Crawford handles the Ducks' physical play in front of the net.
The moment will not be too big for Crawford. We already know that. He was the best player on a Stanley Cup-winning team two years ago.
But the Ducks have been beating on him for two weeks, and he's been reacting too often to the Anaheim tactics, some of which clearly cross the line.
Still, if the refs aren't calling it, Crawford must avoid taking the bait.
"You don't want to be scored on where you felt he was in your space," said Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville, measuring his words carefully. "I just think you got to keep pushing forward, let the referees do their job and you do your job.
"Together as a team, we'll fight through everything."
If it seems to Crawford like Corey Perry is living inside his jersey, he might as well be. Perry is either in front of Crawford or on top of him every time the Ducks cycle, and for nearly every Anaheim goal with the Ryan Getzlaf line on the ice, Perry has been in Crawford's kitchen.
And if it's not Perry, it's one of the other Anaheim forwards. They aren't shy about spending time in the blue paint, even while Crawford is hacking away at their knees and ankles.
On Anaheim's first goal Wednesday night, the Ducks won the draw to start the power play and Perry went right to the net. As Cam Fowler was shooting, Perry was flailing in front of Crawford and waving an arm in front of Crawford's mask.
With Crawford distracted, Patrick Maroon easily redirected the shot into an open net and Crawford put his palms to the sky.
On the second goal, Jakob Silfverberg was just outside the paint as Clayton Stoner was shooting high glove side from the point. Silfverberg intentionally clipped Crawford's glove and the goaltender had no chance to make a play.
Crawford screamed at the refs, but there was no chance he was getting help from the stripes.
Asked how he's handling the interference, Crawford smiled and said, "I think I'm doing a great job of staying out of it.
"It's nothing I can control. It's high intensity out there. I'm not getting calls but everyone's getting a little (ticked) off here and there. It's no big deal."
Meanwhile, Frederik Andersen rebounded nicely from a poor Game 5 and was terrific in Game 6, but the Hawks have scored 14 goals in the last three games.
"I don't think we've figured anything out," said Patrick Sharp. "We've done a better job of capitalizing on our opportunities.
"He's a good goalie, good team in front of him. Makes it tough to get to the net. When he sees the puck, he's going to stop it. We expect him to play his best in Game 7. We have to find a way to beat him."
Quenneville isn't trying to reinvent the wheel this time of year, knowing the key is always traffic.
"I think the last few games, we're scoring some goals, which is not an easy thing to do," Quenneville said. "It seems like this round of the playoffs, both sides, it's gone in a little bit more than it has the prior two rounds.
"I just think we got to get the bodies and pucks to the net. That's what we're focusing on. I don't care how they go in."
So the Hawks will continue to shoot and hope for net presence, knowing Andrew Shaw will always try to get there if he can.
Shaw says the Hawks know too well from last year's Game 7 against Los Angeles that they can't waste any shifts, let alone a period.
"We need to play a full 60 minutes," Shaw said. "We can't let them back in the game if we get ahead, and we can't let them get ahead with the big spurts when they get a bunch of goals.
"(Game 6) means nothing if we don't bring it and get that one Saturday."
So it's all set up for one last terrific game between two great teams with a trip to the Stanley Cup Final on the line.
If you have a heart condition, this one might not be for you.
• Listen to Barry Rozner from 9 a.m. to noon Sundays on the Score's "Hit and Run" show at WSCR 670-AM.