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There were a number of moments, large sections of Sunday afternoon's rematch of the 2013 Stanley Cup Final that felt like the Game 7 that was never played.
The Blackhawks and Bruins traded goals, and control of the flow of the game through regulation and overtime. And it was kind of a shame that the game had to be decided with the NHL marketing gimmick known as the shootout instead of actual hockey.
But so be it.
The Blackhawks capped a weekend of two big victories over likely strong playoff teams, and set to rest—for now at least—rumors of their demise.
For the Hawks, the top line of Marian Hossa, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Sharp clicked again, with Hossa netting first star for the second straight contest. The "fourth" line of Marcus Kruger, Brandon Bollig and Ben Smith contributed as well, delivering a strong forecheck all game and Bollig cashing in with his fifth goal of the season on a nice feed from Kruger.
Kudos also to Corey Crawford, who seems to be rounding back into form after a long period out with injury. The Hawks' number one netminder played well against both Anaheim on Friday and the Bruins today.
These were big wins for a Hawk club that had been stumbling and bumbling of late against lesser competition. But as has been the case with this club over the last couple of years, they seem to have risen to the bigger tests and prevailed.
Up next for the Hawks, yet another 2013 playoff rematch when they head to Joe Louis Arena to take on longtime rival Detroit on Wednesday.
I'll be back with a preview before then,
JJ