SB Nation Stanley Cup Playoffs -- Semifinal Round
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Kevin Bieksa paced the offense with a pair of goals and an assist, while Roberto Luongo made 29 saves, as the Vancouver Canucks staved off elimination with a 4-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 5 of their Western Conference semifinal series.
There’s a lot of gruesome injuries out there you wouldn’t wish on anyone. Torn ACLs, ruptured spleens, etc. But I’m pretty sure most of us would deal with any of those if it meant that we’d never have to hear someone tell us we’ve ruptured our testicles. Such is apparently the fate of Sami Salo, who left Sunday night’s Canucks’ win in the first period after taking a slapshot to the groin.
And just so you understand the world we live in these days, Salo’s “solo” already has its own Facebook page. A Twitter handle and discussions with LeBron’s elbow can’t be far behind.
Update: And there he is.
Vancouver beat Chicago Sunday night 4-1 but they did it without defenseman Sami Salo, who left the game in the first period after taking a slapshot to the groin.
The shot hit Salo in the groin, but the injury appeared to be more serious than a typical strike in that area. He sprawled on the ice — a rarity for Salo, who through his numerous injuries has almost always made it to the dressing room on his own — and even after a few minutes could barely move with the help of teammates.
Salo has been taken to Northwestern Hospital for observation.
He wasn’t the only Vancouver defenseman to leave the game. Shane O’Brien also left the game in the second period after Chicago forward Dustin Byfuglien’s stick blade struck his forehead accidentally. O’Brien was bleeding profusely as he left the ice but he returned in the third period after receiving stiches.
Kevin Bieksa paced the offense with a pair of goals and an assist, while Roberto Luongo made 29 saves, as the Vancouver Canucks staved off elimination with a 4-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 5 of their Western Conference semifinal series.
Christian Ehrhoff and Alexandre Burrows also lit the lamp for the Canucks, who had dropped three straight after winning the opener of this best-of-seven set. The Canucks will have to win the next two games if they want to advance, starting with Game 6 back home on Tuesday.
The Canucks are 0-4 in the second round of the playoffs since last reaching the conference finals in 1994, when they eventually lost to the New York Rangers in a seven-game battle for the Stanley Cup.
The last time Vancouver overcame a 3-1 deficit to win a series was against St. Louis in the opening round of the 2003 playoffs. The Blackhawks, though, are 13-0 all-time when winning three of the first four games of a postseason series.
The Canucks won Sunday despite losing defenseman Sami Salo at the end of the first period. Salo was hit by a shot near his groin section and was taken to a local hospital for further evaluation.
Jonathan Toews, coming off a hat trick during a 7-4 victory in Game 4, had the lone goal for Chicago, which is trying to reach consecutive conference finals for the first time since 1989 and ’90.
Antti Niemi turned aside 20-of-23 shots in defeat.
For more on today's game, visit our Blackhawks blog at Second City Hockey and our Canucks blog at Nucks Misconduct.
(Sports Network) - The Chicago Blackhawks will try to clinch their second straight trip to the Western Conference finals tonight, when they host the Vancouver Canucks for Game 5 of the conference semifinals at United Center.
The second-seeded Blackhawks have won three straight since dropping the opener of this best-of-seven series and outscored the Canucks by a combined 12-6 margin while taking both Games 3 and 4 in Vancouver.
In fact, since losing Game 1 by a 5-1 count, Chicago has doubled the Canucks' offensive output, outscoring Vancouver by a 16-8 margin.
The Blackhawks won a wild one in Friday's Game 4 matchup at General Motors Place, as Jonathan Toewsscored three power-play goals to record his first career playoff hat trick in Chicago's 7-4 triumph.
Toews added two assists to tie a Blackhawks playoff record for points in a game, joining Stan Mikita (1973) and Steve Larmer (1990). The Chicago captain followed up a three-goal effort by Dustin Byfuglien on Wednesday. They are the first set of Blackhawks teammates to post hat tricks in consecutive playoff games since Tony Amonte and Gary Suter did so on April 23-24, 1994, against Toronto.
"It was one of those nights where you get some chances, throw it on net and it happens to go in. It's nice for your confidence," Toews said.
Patrick Sharp registered a goal and three assists for the Blackhawks, while Antti Niemi made 26 saves in the win.
"We came in here and won both games, which is a huge plus," said Chicago head coach Joel Quenneville. "You got a lot of momentum and want to go home and try to take advantage of it. But we know we've got to be smart, we've got to be disciplined. We should be excited about (heading) back home."
The Blackhawks are now just one victory away from a return trip to the conference finals. Chicago, which lost in five games to Detroit a year ago, hasn't appeared in consecutive conference finals since 1989 and '90.
Vancouver, meanwhile, is just one loss away from suffering the same fate it did last spring, when the Blackhawks ousted the Canucks in six games during the conference semifinals. The Canucks are 0-4 in the second round of the playoffs since last reaching the conference finals in 1994, when they eventually lost to the New York Rangers in a seven-game battle for the Stanley Cup.
Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin both scored a goal and collected one assist for the Canucks on Friday, while Roberto Luongo was beaten six times on 33 shots.
"We didn't react well to what was (happening) on the ice and they made us pay for it," said Vancouver head coach Alain Vigneault.
Luongo, the backstop for gold medal-winning Team Canada at the 2010 Olympics, has struggled through another disappointing postseason. Luongo is 5-5 with a 3.27 goals-against average and .892 save percentage in these playoffs and has surrendered 11 goals on the last 68 shots he has faced.
Luongo's struggles have been magnified by Vancouver's undisciplined play in this series. The Canucks gave Chicago eight opportunities with the man advantage on Friday and the Blackhawks scored four times. Vancouver came apart in the second period, taking four penalties in a span of 4 minutes, 40 seconds.
"There's no explanation. We lost our composure again," Luongo told his team's official website. "I don't know why it happened, we talked about it, we were all on the same page before the game started and I don't know, one thing led to another and we lost our composure again in the second period there."
After scoring just once on their first eight power-play opportunities of this series, the Blackhawks have notched six scores on their last 14 chances with the man advantage.
"We're not getting the kills we need," said Henrik Sedin. "Other than that, we're close. We have to be stronger mentally."
Vancouver is 3-4 all-time in best-of-seven series when trailing three games to one. The last time the Canucks overcame a 3-1 deficit to win a series was against St. Louis in the opening round of the 2003 playoffs.
The Blackhawks are 13-0 all-time when winning three of the first four games of a postseason series.
The third-seeded Canucks are 3-2 on the road in the playoffs after posting a 19-20-2 away record during the regular season. Chicago is 3-2 on home ice this postseason and went 29-8-4 as the host during the 2009-10 campaign.
If necessary, Game 6 of this series will take place Tuesday in Vancouver.
This marks the fourth time the Canucks and Blackhawks have battled in the postseason. Vancouver's only series victory over Chicago was in the 1982 conference finals, when the Canucks ousted the Blackhawks in five games before getting swept by the New York Islanders in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Second City Hockey: That's Not How We Planned It
The Canucks turned things around tonight in Chicago, winning 4-1 to stay alive against the Blackhawks. The Canucks played a solid game but Chicago did what they could to give the game away, says Second City Hockey.
May 10 12:36a by Sean Keeley - 0 comments