|
 Toews, Chicago's captain, scored on a backhand just after
Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford stopped a drive by Blues
captain David Backes. Defenseman Duncan Keith shoveled the rebound
up ice for Toews' break out from the neutral zone.
The Blackhawks have won three consecutive games to turn a 2-0 series
deficit into a 3-2 series lead with Game 6 on Sunday in Chicago.
"It's a tough goal to let it in, but it is what it is right now; we
got to go into Chicago and win the game," Blues left winger
Alexander Steen said. "It was a rebound, and (Keith) just threw it
away. (Toews) was cheating a little bit."
Toews had just jumped on the ice in a line change, and Blues' right
defenseman Roman Polak had just jumped off on one. That allowed
Toews to be open for what Chicago coach Joel Quenneville called a
"fortunate break."
"Dunc made the pass and Jonny buried it," Quenneville said.
An unfortunate break for the Blues.
"Yeah, they got a break," Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said. "Instead
of us shooting it in the net on the rebound, it hopped over our
stick. ... Instead of going in their net, it went into our net."
And the Blues have a serious case of dejà vu. Against the defending
Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings in the first round a year
ago, the Blues won at home with Steen and defenseman Barret Jackman
scoring the winners, then lost by shutout and 4-3 in LA, then in
overtime in Game 5 before dropping Game 6.
Against the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks, the script has
been similar. Steen and Jackman again scored winners in the first
two games, the Blues lost two Chicago before dropping Game 5 in OT
by the 3-2 score.
The difference this time is that only two games went to OT last year
but four of five games have this year, which ties for the most ever
in one playoffs series for the Blues. A series against Minnesota in
1968 had four OTs, as did another vs. Dallas in 1999. The Blues won
the series in '68, and lost to Dallas in '99. The Stars were coached
by Hitchcock.
Hitchcock cited "big errors" and the Blackhawks ability to finish as
the keys in the series.
"We made four or five mistakes and paid for it three times,"
Hitchcock said. "It seems that against a team that has this type of
finish, if you make a big error, you pay for it. That's what's
happening.
"In this series we've played extremely hard, at times dominated,
played to our potential and structure, but when we made an error
like of the first goal and on the third goal, we've paid for it.
We're paying for our mistakes, and they have people who know how to
finish."
For his part, Toews just said he skated on the breakway as "fast as
I could."
"I wasn't even sure where their D-men were; just got going as fast
as I could and take advantage of a chance," he said. "I just kind of
reacted to the puck coming down the ice. Just kind of a play where
they threw it down the ice."
Keith told reporters that seeing Toews would give him too much
credit, but he told Toews something else.
"He said he saw me; he could be joking, he could be serious. I'm not
sure, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt," Toews said. "It just
happened so fast. I jumped on the ice and got the puck and it just
came right to me and it happened to go in. The celebration --Â just
wasn't sure if it was real or not, it happened so quick.Â
"It was instinctive. I wasn't trying to think of what I wanted to do
there, just tried to get him moving. "
Him would be Blues goalie Ryan Miller, who declined comment after
the game.
Chicago right winger Marian Hossa and left winger Ben Smith scored
for the first time in the series, as did Blues right winger T.J.
Oshie and defenseman Alex Pietrangelo.
Pietrangelo tied the score 2-2 at 1:42 of the final period setting
the stage for the fourth overtime game of the five games in the
series.
Quenneville said the third period wasn't as dramatic as the first
two games, which he called "excruciating."
The Blues received a boost with the return of Backes to the lineup
after missing two games with a brain injury, suffered on a hit by
Chicago defenseman Brent Seabrook in Game 2 on Saturday. Backes
returned in the last game of Seabrook's NHL suspension.
[to top of second column] |
Seabrook will return Sunday for Game 6.
"It will be good to get him back," Quenneville said. "He plays
significant minutes; he's part of our special teams as well. But at
the same time, let's commend (Sheldon Brookbank) on doing a great
job."
St. Louis failed to score on two early power plays in the first
period, getting only one shot on goal against Crawford. Failing to
put the biscuit in the basic proved to be costly when the Blackhawks
took a 1-0 lead 16:11 into the game.
Chicago left winger Bryan Bickell chipped the puck around Blues
defenseman Roman Polak at the right point, then led a 2-on-1 rush
with Hossa against defenseman Barret Jackman. Hossa took the pass on
the right wing, moved to the center and shot. Miller stopped that
salvo, but Hossa buried the rebound.
The Blues had a golden opportunity to tie the score short-handed a
little later, but Crawford robbed right winger T.J. Oshie's break-in
on a 2-on-1 rush with Pietrangelo.
Missed opportunities were a common theme for the Blues, who would
had 29 shots on goal against Crawford and 36 either blocked (21) or
off-target (15). Chicago had 30 shots on goal against Miller and
attempted 30 other shots — 18 blocked and 12 off-target.
"Yeah, again, same story," Steen said. "We had plenty of chances to
take bigger leads and didn't. It cost us. Two power plays early in
the first period and we didn't capitalize. In the playoffs, you have
to score on your chances."
Chicago outshot the Blues 9-6 in the first period, but the Blues
actually attempted one more shot than the Blackhawks — 19-18. The
Blues had eight shots blocked and missed the net with five. Chicago
had five blocked and four missed nets.
The Blackhawks failed to build on their lead with a power play early
in the second period, with Miller making a stop on defenseman Duncan
Keith and corralling the puck with his glove before it crossed the
goalline.
The Blues tied it up at 11:04, with Oshie lighting the lamp diving
to his left to put the puck past Crawford. Steen and Jackman
assisted, with Jackman transitioning the puck after right winger
Ryan Reaves hit Toews to separate him from the puck at center ice. Chicago reclaimed the lead at 17:10, with left winger Ben Smith
sending a backhand upstairs and past Miller on the rebound of a shot
by Brookbank. Right winger Patrick Kane put it on a tee for
Brookbank's shot.
The period ended with Kane and Blues right winger Adam Cracknell
taking coincidental roughing penalties with 16.5 seconds on the
clock.
St. Louis tied the score at 2 at 1:42 of the final period with the
teams playing 4-on-4. Pietrangelo put the puck past Crawford on a
2-on-1 pass from left winger Jaden Schwartz.
NOTES: St. Louis Blues captain David Backes back, C Derek Roy took a
seat in the press box. Blues coach Ken Hitchcock also scratched LW
Magnus Paajarvi and D Ian Cole and D Carlo Colaiacovo, each for the
fifth straight game, as well as Niklas Lundstrom, essentially the
playoffs practice goalie, for the 11th consecutive game. ... The
Blackhawks made no lineup changes, scratching D David Rundblad, LW
Jeremy Morin, C Peter Regin and C Joakim Nordstrum, and the slew of
players recalled from their AHL affiliate in Rockford, Ill. ... The
Blues sent RW Dmitrij Jaskin back to their AHL affiliate.
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