Basketball Betting

Blackhawks host Canucks in Game 1 of playoff rematch

Hockey Betting Lines

05/01/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A rematch from last year's playoffs gets underway tonight, as the second-seeded Chicago Blackhawks host the third-seeded Vancouver Canucks in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals at United Center.

These clubs met in this same round last spring and Chicago ousted the Canucks in six games. The Blackhawks have home-ice advantage this time around after competing against Vancouver as the lower seed in 2009.

The playoff meeting between the Blackhawks and Canucks a year ago marked the third time the clubs had battled in the postseason and the first time since the 1995 conference semifinals. Vancouver's only series victory over Chicago was in the 1982 conference finals, when the Canucks ousted the Blackhawks in five games before getting swept by the New York Islanders in the Stanley Cup Finals.

Chicago, which lost to Detroit in the conference finals a year ago, enters this series off a six-game series win against the Nashville Predators. The Blackhawks were dealt a pair of surprising 4-1 losses by the Predators in the conference quarters, but the Hawks also notched a pair of shutouts en route to winning the series in six.

Those shutouts went a long way towards proving Antti Niemi is a legitimate playoff goaltender, something not everybody was sure of heading into this postseason. The Finnish netminder's first playoff series was largely a success, as Niemi posted strong numbers with a 2.15 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage.

The Blackhawks know that goaltending is not what makes them a Cup favorite and the club played to their strengths against the Predators. Chicago is able to cull its scoring from all sorts of different places, including the blueline, and it makes the Hawks a difficult team to match up with.

All told, 10 different Chicago skaters scored goals in Round 1 and four players tallied more than once. Patrick Kane led the club with four goals and also added three assists, while captain Jonathan Toews paced the team with eight points on two goals and six helpers.

Marian Hossa, who played on the losing team in the Stanley Cup Finals in each of the last two years (Pittsburgh, 2008; Detroit, 2009), failed to register a point in the first two games of the Nashville series but notched one goal and six assists in the final four contests. His lone goal was a big one, as it won Game 5 in overtime for the Blackhawks.

Considering the Blackhawks made it to the conference finals last year at Vancouver's expense, it shouldn't be too hard for the Canucks to get motivated for this series.

The Canucks faced a dangerous opponent in the opening round this year in the young and talented Los Angeles Kings. Despite trailing 2-1 in the series, Vancouver stormed back to win the next three games and advance.

The next step, though, will be much more difficult. Vancouver has lost in its last four trips to the conference semifinals and hasn't made it past the second round since 1994, when the Canucks lost in the Stanley Cup Finals to the New York Rangers.

Roberto Luongo is the key for Vancouver finally getting back to the conference finals. The goaltender is considered by many to be the most-talented in the world, but has faltered at times for the Canucks in the playoffs. Hopefully, a 5-0 record in leading Canada to gold at the Vancouver Games will give Luongo the confidence he needs to carry the Canucks far into the postseason.

Luongo had poor overall numbers in the opening round against the Kings, posting a 2.92 GAA and a .893 save percentage. He was even pulled midway through Game 3 after giving up four goals on 16 shots. The good news for Vancouver is that Luongo played his best hockey in the final two games of the series, allowing a total of four goals on 58 shots in Games 5 and 6.

Mikael Samuelsson was the offensive star for Vancouver in the opening round, notching seven goals to tie a club record for most markers in a single series. The Swedish winger also added four assists to lead the Canucks with 11 points in his first postseason series with the team. Samuelsson, who won a Stanley Cup title with Detroit in 2008, signed a three-year deal with Vancouver last summer.

Samuelsson was placed on a line with his countryman, twin brothers Daniel and Henrik Sedin, midway through the series with Los Angeles. Daniel Sedin had four goals and 10 points in the series, while Henrik recorded eight points on one goal and seven assists. Henrik won the Art Ross Trophy as the league's leading scorer during the regular season with 112 points.

Canucks head coach Alain Vigneault made the switch to Samuelsson on the top line due to the struggles of Alexandre Burrows, who led the team with 35 goals during the regular season, but managed only an empty-net tally against the Kings.

The Canucks and Blackhawks played an entertaining season series in 2009-10, with each team winning twice over four games.

The last time the clubs met was in Chicago on March 5 in what was a nightmare game for Luongo, who was yanked after giving up five goals on 14 shots in the first period. Chicago went on to win that game by a 6-3 count. Overall, the 31-year-old Luongo is 11-8 with a tie in 21 career regular season starts against the Blackhawks.

Niemi suffered a similar fate in the previous meeting on Jan. 23 in Vancouver. Chicago's netminder was also pulled in the first period of that game after surrendering three goals on 12 shots in what turned out to be a 5-1 victory for the Canucks. However, Niemi also had a shutout this year in Vancouver, stopping 30 shots in a 1-0 victory over the Canucks on Nov. 22.

Game 2 of this series is scheduled for Monday night in Chicago. The Blackhawks were 29-8-4 as the host during the regular season, while Vancouver was 19-20-2 on the road.