The Western Conference finals series between the Anaheim Ducks and Chicago Blackhawks will be decided in Game 7. In other news, water is wet.
Was there really any doubt these two teams would need all the games to settle this? The answer is no, there was not. Which is about the only thing about the 2015 conference finals, East and West, that hasn’t been suspenseful.
The West’s Game 6 did not disappoint. There were moves like this:
And saves like this:
And judge for yourself whether this was yet another missed goalie interference call in a season full of them:
But there’s no denying that all this chaos has been good for business. The first nine games of the conference finals (through May 24) averaged 1.906 million viewers, up 10 percent on the first nine games of the 2014 conference finals (1.739 million). The double-overtime Game 4 between the Ducks and Blackhawks was the highest-rated conference final matchup in two years — since the deciding Game 5 of the 2013 Western Conference Final between the Blackhawks and Kings (2.89).
Buckle up for the next few days. It’s going to be one bumpy thrill ride.
*****
Another conference final series goes the distance, and I’m pretty sure that playing “Chelsea Dagger” in public counts as a human rights violation at this point. But first, some great news from Mark Stepneski:
Stars goaltending prospect Philippe Desrosiers with a 27-save shutout tonight as Rimouski defeats Quebec, 4-0, at Memorial Cup.
— Mark Stepneski (@StarsInsideEdge) May 28, 2015
The Oceanic’s win over the Remparts forces a tiebreaker to be played tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET (Sportsnet/TVA Sports/BTN livechat). The winner will meet the Kelowna Rockets in the Memorial Cup semifinals. SportsNet has a recap, as well as a nice little video interview with Desrosiers himself. [SportsNet]
Brandon Saad opened the (deceptively lopsided) scoring for the Chicago Blackhawks last night. There were many other highlights from Game 6, but NHL.com called this one “Kneel Before Saad” and now you understand why I MUST SHOW YOU IT.
Duncan Keith had a great night at United Center even by his own standards, with assists on all three of the Blackhawks’ second-period goals. Admit it, you want another look at that sweet feed to Marian Hossa.
The New York Rangers need to put on their road faces if they want to win Game 7 at home, says Dan Rosen. (Fun fact: The road team has won four of the six Eastern Conference finals games so far.) [NHL]
Now it’s confirmed that flu has struck the Lightning. Tampa Bay forward Alex Killorn spilled the beans in a conference call yesterday that defenseman Braydon Coburn missed part of Game 5 due to the bug, while forwards Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat missed Tuesday’s morning skate for the same reason. [Tampa Bay Times]
CoachWatch 2015 continues: The San Jose Sharks have called a 1 p.m. PT press conference to announce the selection of ex-New Jersey Devils coach Peter DeBoer as their replacement for Edmonton-bound Todd McLellan. [San Jose Mercury News]
And what are the Oilers getting in McLellan? A better signing than the one that brought Mike Babcock to Toronto, says Jacob Messing at The Hockey Writers. Do you agree? [THW]
Elsewhere, CBC Sports tweets this provocative headline:
Talks are reportedly “heating up” between Sabres and Dan Bylsma: http://t.co/38wbp9cOit pic.twitter.com/JV7zsmPcGl
— CBC Sports (@cbcsports) May 28, 2015
Seattle still wants an NHL franchise, but it may have to get the NBA back first, and that could take longer than expected. [Sports Illustrated]
Meanwhile, last year: A Blackhawks fan says drunken L.A. Kings fans beat him nearly unconscious in Staples Center during a 2014 playoff game. So he and his wife are suing the team’s owner, Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), for $1.5 million. The lawsuit alleges that beer and wine were oversold to inebriated ticketholders, that security was “inept, understaffed and ineffective,” and that the Kings’ in-arena entertainment team made a bad situation worse by broadcasting taunts over the loudspeaker system that targeted the Hawks and their supporters. [Los Angeles Daily News]
Finally: More joy for Texas hockey.
Your @AllenAmericans are headed to the ECHL Kelly Cup Finals. http://t.co/njQ5nKTfHi Photo Lauren Lyssy pic.twitter.com/ksazuHZRXj
— #RockYourRed (@AllenAmericans) May 28, 2015
The Americans will take on the South Carolina Stingrays (Washington Capitals), who proceed to the finals with a triple-OT win in their own Game 7. (Fun fact: The only Stingrays alumnus to win a Stanley Cup is the Dallas Stars’ own Rich Peverley. Raptor Jesus played for the Rays in 2004-05, when the team was a Boston Bruins ECHL affiliate.) The Kelly Cup schedule is now online. [ECHL]