Preview: Blackhawks at Ducks

[May 19, 2015]  The Chicago Blackhawks attempt to wrestle home-ice advantage away from the host Anaheim Ducks and even the Western Conference final at one win apiece when they visit Honda Center for Game 2 on Tuesday. Chicago, which had been idle since completing a sweep of Minnesota in the conference semifinals on May 7, stormed out of the gate in the series opener and outshot Anaheim 16-7 in the first period but trailed 1-0 at intermission.

The Blackhawks went on to suffer a 4-1 loss, with former Conn Smythe Trophy winner Brad Richards scoring the lone goal off a turnover late in the middle session. Jakob Silfverberg, Nate Thompson and defenseman Hampus Lindholm each recorded a goal and an assist for the Ducks, who improved to 9-1 this postseason. Corey Perry was kept off the scoresheet, remaining at 15 points as he was overtaken by Tampa Bay's Tyler Johnson for the playoff scoring lead. Anaheim Anaheim owns a 6-0 record at home this postseason and a 5-0 mark when netting the game's first goal.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC, TVA

ABOUT THE BLACKHAWKS: Anaheim did a great job keeping Patrick Kane at bay, limiting the superstar to zero points and just one shot on goal. The 26-year-old had his five-game goal-scoring streak halted and also saw his seven-game point run come to an end as he was blanked for just the second time in 11 contests this postseason. Kane understands he and his teammates must perform better if they wish to accomplish their goal before the series shifts to the Windy City. "We still have a chance to come here and do what we want to do and take one from them and try to get home ice back in our favor," he said. "We have to come ready to play. I think we have a little bit of a better effort to offer, too."

ABOUT THE DUCKS: Silfverberg's two-point performance in Game 1 was his third in a row and gave him a total of 13 points this postseason - tying him for fourth in the league with Kane and Ducks teammate Ryan Getzlaf, who recorded an assist Sunday. Anaheim received two tallies from its third line in the opener as Kyle Palmieri gave it a 2-0 lead early in the second period and Thompson scored with less than eight minutes remaining in the third to make it 3-1. "We can contribute and take some pressure off guys like (Getzlaf, Perry, Ryan Kesler and Matt) Beleskey, those guys that kind of been running the ship for us offensively," Thompson said. "Whenever we can contribute and help out the team, it definitely bodes well."

OVERTIME

1. Beleskey notched an assist in the series opener but had his five-game goal-scoring streak snapped.

2. Chicago D Kimmo Timonen's playing time continues to dwindle as the 40-year-old Finn saw only 5:15 of ice time in Game 1 - his lowest amount this postseason.

3. Anaheim has scored a league-leading 18 goals in the third period this postseason while allowing only three.

PREDICTION: Blackhawks 3, Ducks 1

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