Nothing comes easy when lining up against Ducks
If the Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks meet for the second time in three years in the Western Conference final, don't expect many love taps to be exchanged on the ice.
No, the Hawks can once again expect a heavy dose of barbaric hits, crunching checks and maybe even an occasional sucker punch from a team that still thinks it can intimidate coach Joel Quenneville's squad.
The Ducks - who beat a watered-down Hawks team 4-0 in Anaheim Thursday - showed the world again that they're clearly OK with sending a message by going over the line after the whistle sounds.
The first infraction came late in the first period when Corey Perry slashed Ryan Hartman in the right hand, sending Hartman to the dressing room for evaluation.
"It happens in chippy games," said Hartman, who returned and ended up with five shots on goal in 13:41. "They hit, they do some of those things, but it's just part of hockey."
Hartman wouldn't take the bait when asked if that kind of play should be part of the sport.
"It happens," he said.
An even bigger cheap shot occurred six minutes into the third period when Nick Ritchie took offense to Michal Rozsival cross checking Perry. Ritchie, a 6-foot-2, 232-pound forward who is 17 years younger than Rozsival, crunched the Blackhawks' D-man with a vicious right hook to the face. It left Rozsival sprawled out on the ice for several moments. He left under his own power, and is considered day-to-day.
Ritchie received a 10-minute match penalty for deliberate injury and was suspended for two games by the NHL Player Safety board Friday.
Quenneville - like Hartman before him - wouldn't add much fuel to the fire when asked if the Hawks will remember this kind of bush-league play if the teams meet up again in May.
"When you have playoff rivalries, or series, it's easy to rekindle those (feelings)," the coach said. "I think that players see things, and at the end of the day, you've got to be smart."
Who will it be?
The Blackhawks' first-round opponent will likely be known after Saturday's games. If Calgary (94 points) stays tied or ahead or ahead of Nashville (94), the Predators will play the Hawks unless both teams win and the Blues drop their final two games against Carolina and Colorado. The Blues host the Avs Sunday.
Calgary finishes the season at San Jose, while Nashville is at Winnipeg.
Show him the money?
Artemi Panarin is tied for ninth in points among forwards with 73, but he may need to add to that total Saturday in Los Angeles if he wants to cash in on a $1.725 million bonus for the second straight year. Panarin needs to finish in the top 10 and the race is extremely tight with Winnipeg's Blake Wheeler tied with Panarin, Edmonton's Leon Draisaitl in eighth with 75, and St. Louis' Vladimir Tarasenko in 11th with 72.
If Panarin doesn't record a point, he would fall out of the top 10 if Wheeler gets one point Saturday against Nashville, and Tarasenko gets two more in the Blues' final two games.
Boston's David Pastrnak, Dallas Tyler Seguin and Anaheim's Ryan Getzlaf all have 70 points and could also pass Panarin with a big finish in their season finales.
Hawks game day
Blackhawks vs. Los Angeles Kings, 5 p.m.
TV: Comcast SportsNet
Radio: WGN 720-AM
The skinny: The Kings, who won the Stanley Cup in 2014, will miss the playoffs for the second time in three seasons. L.A. traded for Ben Bishop at the deadline, hoping to make a push, but he is just 2-3-2 with a .900 save percentage for the Kings. … Jeff Carter (32 goals) and Tanner Pearson (24) are the only players with more than 16 goals. Carter has scored just twice in the last 19 games. … The Hawks are 1-0-1 vs. the Kings this season.
Next: Stanley Cup playoffs
- John Dietz