CrashingTheGoalie

Who is going to win the series?

The Windy City fans think they are going to win in six. The Sporting News writers believe that Vancouver will win in six or seven.

from the Chicago Tribune:

Blackhawks sweep (146 responses)

• 4743 total responses

Sporting News:

The biggest concern will be stopping Chicago’s power play, which at 29.2 percent was second to Detroit’s 31.8 percent scoring rate in the opening round. But Canucks penalty killers also put up a fine 95.8 percent success rate.

And the best penalty killer of all was goalie Roberto Luongo, who leads the playoffs with a 1.15 goals-against average and .962 save percentage. Nikolai Khabibulin has been strong in goal for the Blackhawks, but Luongo has the edge.

The teams split four regular-season games, but Vancouver won the last two — 7-3 at home on Feb. 7 and 4-0 in Chicago on March 29. Daniel Sedin invoked the playoffs after the most recent win, a game filled with fights and big hits, saying it would “show we can play in this building.”

The ‘Hawks had too much for injury-plagued Calgary, but Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews & Co. will need much more against the Canucks defense and goaltending.

Prediction: Canucks in six.

Chris Johnston: It’s tempting to be charmed by the enthusiastic young Blackhawks, but Vancouver will provide a much stiffer challenge than Calgary.

Like the Bruins in the East, Vancouver should benefit from having more time to rest after a quick first-round series.

We see this one going the distance and can’t imagine Chicago coming up with a Game 7 victory at GM Place. So …

Prediction: Canucks in seven.