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Hawks' best opening is between Luongo's ears

So they backed in. So what?

The Blackhawks are in the postseason after surviving nothing but playoff games the last two months, and now they can relax and take a deep breath.

The worst is over. The most embarrassing possible outcome has been averted through the most fortunate of events, a Minnesota win over Dallas.

Finally, there's nothing to lose.

Few will pick the Hawks to defeat Vancouver, and for good reason.

The Hawks played a full season with half a team, and it's no way to defend a title.

Still, it's Vancouver that faces all the pressure.

The Canucks are the top seed in the NHL, the President's Trophy winners, and legendary for choking when the games matter.

The Hawks have taken them out in six games in each of the last two seasons as goaltender Roberto Luongo — who earned $10 million this season — has gone to pieces.

As soon as the games count — whether it's the NHL playoffs or international play — he puts on his boxing gloves and “the waiter” starts serving up rebounds like he can't wait to make a tee time.

You can be sure he's noted the daily standings for the last month, thinking the last team he wanted to see in the first round was the Hawks.

You just know the moment Minnesota took a 4-3 lead Sunday night that Luongo had to change his pants — and maybe his socks.

You have to believe he woke up Monday morning hoping it was all just a bad dream, but now his nightmare has arrived again.

The difference this year is once Luongo starts bobbing and weaving and boxing pucks, Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault might be willing to go with backup Corey Schneider.

After all, the Hawks are so deep inside Bobby Lu's head he should charge them rent.

Now, there's no attempt here to pretend the Hawks are as talented as the Canucks. It's not even close after the champs lost half a roster last summer, giving up the depth and character that got them through four playoffs series a year ago.

But the Hawks should be loose while the Canucks carry the weight of the world — or at least a country — and if the Hawks can steal the first game or even one of the first two in B.C., doubt will creep in, the Canucks will squeeze their sticks to dust, and the Hawks will have a chance.

It will be difficult if Dave Bolland doesn't return to the lineup, but Vancouver also lost checking-line center Manny Malhotra to a season-ending eye injury.

Mikael Samuelsson, the only Canuck with a ring, doesn't have a point since suffering a leg injury a month ago.

Key defenseman Alexander Edler (back) missed two months before playing the final two games, and defenseman Dan Hamhuis suffered two concussions but returned for the Canucks' last regular-season game — so the Hawks will look to get physical with both.

If they're healthy, the Vancouver defense is good and deep, and there's no comparison to the Hawks' schizophrenic blue-liners that offer mind-numbing inconsistency as their most endearing quality.

The Canucks' power-play is the best in the NHL, their penalty-killing second, and their faceoff percentage first.

Let's face it, the Canucks on paper are better in just about every way.

The Hawks are smaller than last year and third-worst in road hits this season, which means they won't put a beating on the Canucks like they did a year ago.

Brent Seabrook, 12th in the NHL in hits, is going to have to play huge, and perhaps the Hawks will have Troy Brouwer (fifth in the NHL in hits) back from a shoulder injury, while Vancouver misses pinball Raffi Torres the first two games (suspension).

Still, the Canucks don't have Jonathan Toews and they don't have a goalie who's proven he won't melt.

The same could be said, obviously, for Hawks rookie Corey Crawford, because he hasn't had the chance, but he just played a couple dozen playoff-type games and the pressure didn't seem to affect him.

Regardless, Vegas has good reason to make the Hawks the second-biggest underdog in the first round behind L.A.

Two years ago Vancouver was three minutes away from having a 3-1 series lead, and still nearly sent it back to B.C. for a seventh game during a wild Game 6 in Chicago. The Hawks were fortunate to win that series, and they were a better team two years ago.

Last year they merely destroyed Luongo's confidence, taking up residence in his empty skull and remaining there for a couple of weeks.

Luongo hated the sight of Dustin Byfuglien, but you can put just about anyone in Luongo's grill and he'll still be a mess because the one he really fears is Patrick Kane, who has torched the Canucks for 9 goals and 16 points in 12 playoff games.

So it's Luongo who wants revenge but must exorcise his playoff demons, and if the Hawks show up defensively against a powerful offense and can swipe a game out West they can make it a long series and perhaps turn Luongo to jelly again.

If he's average, the Canucks win. If the Hawks get in his head quickly, the Hawks advance.

It might be just that simple.

brozner@dailyherald.com

ŸListen to Barry Rozner from 9 a.m. to noon Sundays on the Score's “Hit and Run” show at WSCR 670-AM.