Chicago and San Jose both took down worthy opponents in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Blackhawks handled Vancouver in six while the Sharks shocked the hockey world with their five game upset over Detroit.
The West's top two seeds will battle for a spot in the Stanley Cup Finals.
The regular season head-to-head match-ups favor the Hawks.
Chicago took three of four meetings with the Sharks, including a 7-2 blowout win in San Jose.
But those numbers don't matter at this stage.
This will be a fast paced series, with the Sharks owning a physical edge over the Hawks. But Chicago has shown that speed beats brawn, as evidenced by their disposal of Nashville and Vancouver, both physical teams.
San Jose has rested for nearly a week. They are bound to be a little rusty, giving the Hawks an advantage heading into the first two games at San Jose.
The Hawks, on the other hand, are coming off a huge morale booster. I expect the Hawks to steal a game in San Jose, bringing home ice back to Chicago.
But is home ice really an advantage for th ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Tyler Juranovich
NHL Western Conference Finals Preview: Blackhawks-Sharks
May 12th, 2010 by Tyler Juranovich Leave a reply »
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