There were three moment that stand out in the Chicago Blackhawks’ 2-0 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning that secured Chicago’s third Stanley Cup in sixth years. *In the second period of a scoreless game, Tampa Bay star Steven Stamkos had a breakaway against Corey Crawford. Stamkos seemed to do most everything right, juking with […]
Stanley Cups are won and lost every year when one goalie takes at least a game or two in the Finals and invites his team to hop on his back. It might be a stretch to say Blackhawk goalie Corey Crawford single-handedly produced his team’s series-tying 2-1 win in Game 4 over the Tampa Bay […]
Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals was the best one yet. All three games between Chicago and Tampa Bay have been one-goal games, with the corresponding game-end drama. But this was the first game that combined the up-and-down tempo that had been predicted, a high quality of play and still had plenty of drama. […]
The play was much more aggressive in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals then it had been in Wednesday’s series opener, and that was reflected in the goal totals, as Tampa Bay nipped Chicago 4-3 to the series at a game apiece. But the more you dig into the numbers, the more it’s apparent […]
The Tampa Bay Lightning came into existence in 1993 and have won one Stanley Cup, back in 2004. The Chicago Blackhawks are an Original Six team, born in 1927 and with three Stanley Cups before the Lightning were even born. Now the Blackhawks seek their third Cup in six years. These very different heritages collide […]
The Stanley Cup Finals being tonight at the Staples Center in Los Angeles (8 PM ET, NBC). The Los Angeles Kings are the betting favorite against the New York Rangers. Here’s a look at how the Kings got here, which includes debunking some myths…
There is still a championship to be settled outside the world of the major sports, and that’s in the College World Series. UCLA took Game 1 of the best-of-three final against Mississippi State last night, and the Bruins can bring home the national title with a win tonight (8 PM ET, ESPN).
The Boston Bruins and Chicago Blackhawks begin the final leg of the championship journey on Wednesday night when the two Original Six franchises open the Stanley Cup Finals. It’s the first time a pair of NHL originals have met for the Cup since 1979, a year Montreal won its fourth straight title over the New York Rangers. TheSportsNotebook does its final series preview of the season, as we see if Chicago is worthy of their status as the 8-5 favorite to win it all.
It was an anti-climactic finish to the NHL season last night in Los Angeles’ Staples Center, but none of the locals were complaining. The Los Angeles Kings jumped all over the New Jersey Devils early in the game, rattling off three power-play goals in the first period and cruising home to a 6-1 win that put the finishing touches on their six-game series win in the Finals and the hoisting of the franchise’s first-ever Stanley Cup.
The New Jersey Devils stayed alive in the Stanley Cup Finals last night with a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings, a victory that moved them to within 3-2 in the series, and sent a clear message that the words “Game On” now apply to the Cup Final after Los Angeles first came in as the favorite and then won three quick games. That’s the basic storyline. What’s not noted is that the Kings have not been playing well the entire series.
The New Jersey Devils kept their focus and kept playing the solid team defense that’s characterized their work in these Stanley Cup Finals and it finally paid off with a victory as the pulled away from the Los Angeles Kings in a 3-1 win at the Staples Center Wednesday night. With the Kings still needing just one more win in the next three games it’s almost certainly just a stay of execution, but it was something Jersey could feel could about and it’s pointed to areas Los Angeles needs to improve if they’re close out this championship without giving their fans a heart attack.
You can praise the Los Angeles Kings’ goalie Jonathan Quick for his role in the team’s 4-0 shutout win over New Jersey in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals, putting the Kings up 3-0 in games and one win from their first Cup ever. You’d be right to do so. You can praise the Los Angeles team defense and you’d be right to do so. But as much as New Jersey Devil goaltender Martin Brodeur is an icon, and as much as TheSportsNotebook in particular respects him, last night was about the Devil goalie.