Sharp, Niemi Help Blackhawks Even Series with Dominant 3-0 Win
Friday, April 23rd, 2010 | Chicago Blackhawks, Nashville Predators, NHL, Sports
The Chicago Blackhawks came out on a mission on Thursday night and it showed in their 3-0 shutout of the Predators in Nashville. Antti Niemi was solid in net and Patrick Sharp put the Hawks on the board 1st with a power play goal halfway through the 1st period. But the biggest moment of the night came when Tomas Kopecky and Dave Bolland of the Blackhawks committed 2 stupid penalties which gave the Predators a 5-3 advanatge for 1:51 seconds of critical ice time. Somehow the Hawks defense buckled down and kept the Predators from scoring a game-tying goal, and that seemed to take the life out of the Preds and their raucous fans.
When goals by Jonathan Toews and Sharp in the 2nd period extended the Hawks lead to 3-0, you could tell that the game was over. Although the Predators out-shot the Blackhawks for a 2nd straight game (33-30), Antti Niemi rose to the occasion with a sensational performance. He stopped all 33 shots on goal and he was successful in killing all 6 power plays for the Nashville squad. Both of Niemi’s wins in the series have been shutouts.
What a night for the Hawks. With their backs against the walls, the team came together to put forth one of the best efforts of the year. It was great to have Brian Campbell back on defense (he logged 14 important minutes) and the team looks forward to taking the lead for the 1st time in the series when the 2 teams resume play on Saturday afternoon at the United Center. Can’t wait…
1 Comment to Sharp, Niemi Help Blackhawks Even Series with Dominant 3-0 Win
[...] without a power play goal this post-season – 0 for 21. Now the Blackhawks can clinch the Quarterfinals round win on Monday night in [...]
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04/24/2010