Patrick Kane knew that 49 years had gone by since the last time the Chicago Blackhawks hoisted the Stanley Cup. He also might have been the only one that knew that streak was over. After taking a pass from Brian Campbell and moving the puck down the boards, Kane snapped a bad angle shot from the bottom of the faceoff circle and then skated around the net in celebration. There was no red light. No arena noise. No epic victory call from play-by-play voice Mike “Doc” Emrick. There was no reaction – except from the man responsible for bringing Mullet Mania to the Chicago. Kane’s shot went right through the legs of Philadelphia Flyers starter Michael Leighton and then disappeared underneath the bottom portion of the goal just four minutes and six seconds into the overtime session. A quick review by the officials and numerous replays for the fans made everybody realize what Kane knew right away – the Chicago Blackhawks were Stanley Cup Champions for the first time since 1961.
“I knew it went in right away,” Kane said. “What a feeling. I can’t believe it. We just won the Stanley Cup.”
Kane’s less-than-dramatic finish to the Stanley Cup Finals almost wasn’t necessary. For much of the third period, the Blackhawks carried a 3-2 lead acquired during the second stanza. But a late goal with 3:59 remaining in regulation by Scott Hartnell, who directed a deflection from Marian Hossa’s stick past Antti Niemi for his second score of the game, enabled to Flyers to prolong their improbable run into an overtime session.
But that’s where the resilience of these comeback Flyers ended. Kane made sure there would be no Game 7. He made sure there wouldn’t be another comeback. He made sure that Chicago would live up their hype and secure a championship the city and its fans sorely needed.
And it makes sense that Kane would be the guy to clinch the Stanley Cup for the Blackhawks. Sure, it could have been Hossa, who was just the third athlete in any of the four major American sports to appear in the finals in three consecutive years for three different teams. It also could have been Dustin Byfuglien, who was such a dominating force for most of the first three series and the final two games of the finals. But Kane, along with Conn Smythe Trophy recipient Jonathan Toews, were tasked with being the new blood of the organization.
Selected third (Toews) and first (Kane) overall in consecutive NHL Entry Drafts back in 2006 and 2007, respectively, these two young kids were the building blocks for a new generation in Chicago Blackhawks hockey. Long gone were the days of missing the playoffs and disappointing fans with high ticket prices and lacking home game broadcasts. This was a new era for Blackhawks hockey – one geared toward including the fans and making them proud to root for an organization poised for success. With Toews and Kane leading the way, this organization would be become a champion … eventually. Little did they know eventually would come this soon.
This was truly a team effort, though. Toews and Kane were integral pieces and there’s little doubt that Chicago would be heading toward 50 years without Lord Stanley had it not been for those two. But so many other players were key in this championship victory.
Niemi stepped into that unenviable role of rookie goalie in the NHL playoffs, and he shined. He wasn’t unbeatable, but he kept his team in games and made the big save when necessary. Byfuglien was a big, physical presence for the Blackhawks and netted a playoff-leading five game-winners. Hossa didn’t put up huge numbers, but he provided the invaluable experience of having played in the Stanley Cup Finals before. Patrick Sharp did contribute big in the stats department with 22 points, which ranks fifth among playoffs leaders. On defense, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook combined for a strong defensive pairing, while Niklas Hjalmarsson got himself noticed with a plus-9 rating and solid shot-blocking prowess.
Then there’s behind the bench, where Joel Quenneville guided his team efficiently through six-game series victories over Nashville and Vancouver, a four-game sweep past the No. 1 ranked San Jose Sharks, and then a six-game win over the Flyers. His decision to switch up lines in Game 5 by putting Kane, Toews and Byfuglien on separate units opened up the game and allowed Byfuglien specifically to get back on track and almost single-handedly pull his team within one win of the Cup.
For their efforts, the Flyers definitely deserve recognition here. They weren’t the Broad Street Bullies, but they had plenty of grit and spirit to their game. Entering the postseason as the No. 7 should have been a huge disadvantage. But they were not a typical seven seed and outplayed their ranking. The Flyers overpowered the New Jersey Devils, came back in miraculous fashion from a 3-0 deficit against the Boston Bruins and pretty much dismantled the No. 8 Montreal Canadiens without any problem. For a seventh seed to even get to the Stanley Cup Finals is impressive. To keep it as close as the Flyers did with the Blackhawks was even more so. But it all ended for them at home on one of the oddest Cup-clinching goals in league history.
I’m sure no Blackhawks fan will actually mind the anticlimactic way in which Game 6 ended. Nor will they mind that the championship soon to be paraded around their city in a few short days was actually captured by their beloved team on the road, in Philadelphia. After 49 years, you take it any way you can get it. And that abrupt goal might actually be a fitting conclusion to an entire postseason that provided plenty of surprises along the way.
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