Blackhawks must cash in on opportunities
Ahead of Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final, Troy Murray analyzes the performances of the Blackhawks and Lightning goalkeepers, the production from Chicago's offensive stars, the importance of Wednesday's game, and the experience edge with the Blackhawks.
Q: Down one game and playing at home, will the Hawks go into Game 4 with even more of a must-win mentality than usual?
A: Absolutely. In every game in the playoffs, sometimes you feel that you haven't gotten the rewards for the efforts you've put in, but the bottom line is that however you do it, whatever it takes, you have to find a way to win games.
The Blackhawks haven't been able to do that the last couple games. They had opportunities. They've blown some key situations in both of those games. They have to have that sense of urgency, because it would be very tough to battle back from a 3-1 deficit.
Obviously this Game 4 is critical.
Q: How would you assess the performances of Corey Crawford and Ben Bishop in goal so far, especially given Bishop's questionable health?
A: First of all, you have to give a ton of credit to Ben Bishop to battle through whatever he was dealing with in that last game. It was very apparent at times that he struggled with his positioning and trying to regroup after making some movement, but for him to play as well as he did under those circumstances, full marks to him.
For Corey Crawford, he wasn't the problem. (The Hawks) have to do some things better in front of him. Both goaltenders have been in a position to give their teams the opportunity to win.
Q: Marian Hossa and Jonathan Toews both contributed in Game 3, while Patrick Kane was relatively quiet. What's it going to take for them to find the back of the net?
A: Hossa had a tremendous game. He might have been the best player the Blackhawks had on the ice, and might have been the best player overall in the game. He had some great opportunities, he was strong on the puck - if he plays like that, he's going to be able to score some goals.
For Jonathan, it's been a real battle the entire playoffs. He's gone up against the other team's top offensive forwards and sometimes defensive forwards whether it's head-to-head or a matchup against the line. They have Victor Hedman and Anton Stralman playing out there basically all the time that Toews is out there. If Jonathan is going to break out, he has to get to the middle of the ice and make the opportunities.
For Patrick Kane, I think that he's as disappointed as anybody that he hasn't registered a point in the first three games. You expect the Blackhawks' top players to respond the correct way, and they've always done so in the past, so I expect that Patrick Kane is going to bring his best effort to Game 4.
Q: The Blackhawks were in a similar situation in the 2013 Stanley Cup Final, behind Boston 2-1 before going on to win it. Will that experience factor into how they play Wednesday?
A: Experience certainly is a factor, as far as the Blackhawks understanding that they're not in the best position, but with hard work and determination they can turn things around. In the last series against the Anaheim Ducks, they were in the same situation. They chased that series until they won the last two games.
It's not going to be an easy task, but certainly the experience in this scenario of being down 2-1, they have the knowledge of what they need to do.
• Murray is in his 15th year as a member of the Blackhawks broadcast team and his eighth as the color analyst for the team's radio broadcasts. The Selke Award winner was a five-time 20-goal scorer who played 15 years in the NHL. Follow him on Twitter@muzz19.