Just another road trip for the Blackhawks? Hardly

PHILADELPHIA - As much as the Blackhawks have tried to make this like any other road trip, the truth is it's not.

How can it be when the Hawks can win the Stanley Cup tonight at the Wachovia Center by beating the Flyers for a fourth time?

"No, it's a different feel," Patrick Kane said following Wednesday's morning skate. "I think it's definitely the most important game of the year, for sure. I think, to be honest with you, everyone's just, I wouldn't say nervous, but definitely anxious and excited to get this thing underway.

"I think one of the things that we have to do tonight is make sure we're not worried about the end result and what could happen. Make sure we're playing the game the right way."

The Hawks tried to do the same things they always do on the road starting last night.

"The routine is usually the routine, and it's when guys get out of their routine that there's trouble," Troy Brouwer said. "Last night we played some Mario Kart like we always do and we had the final rankings of the year and (Niklas) Hjalmarsson won.

"We had a load of fun with it last night, joking around and having a good time."

Patrick Sharp said he slept well, got up this morning and treated it just as any other game day.

"It was actually a pretty normal night," Sharp said. "I was more worked up for Games 1 and 2, to tell you the truth.

"I'm trying to approach everything the same because the more you can block out those distractions, the what ifs, I like to call them, what if we win or what if we lose, that doesn't help anybody going into a game. I just want to focus on playing as hard as I can tonight."

Hawks coach Joel Quenneville claimed he had no special pregame speech planned for what could be the greatest moment of his career.

"I'm never good at that stuff," Quenneville said. "I think we keep the same approach going into key games and the big games. It's basically look at one shift, fine tune our game here and look to play our best game of the year."

Quenneville has confidence in his team's ability to perform under pressure.

"They've played in some big settings and some big stages," Quenneville said. "Back in the Winter Classic last year, playing in the conference finals - a lot of Olympians this year, playing some big games throughout the season.

"As we've gone through in these playoff rounds, I think the guys just welcome the next challenge and their focus and concentration always seems to be in the right place. Looking and gauging everybody's demeanor today, it seemed very reassuring."