Morning Chirps: 3 Blackhawks to play for Team USA, Pridham nets his first playoff goal

A trio of players from this season’s Chicago Blackhawks roster will hit the international stage in a couple of weeks. Meanwhile, Friday was another big night in the Stanley Cup Playoffs as three teams took 2-1 advantages in their series.

Blackhawks Chirps

• Ryan Donato came back to earth this season after a career year. It’s not very difficult to figure out why he had a dip in production. However, his numbers were still better than his career averages, so he gave exactly what should have been expected.

• According to Scott Powers, Oliver Moore, Wyatt Kaiser, and Sam Lafferty will play for Team USA at the upcoming IIHF World Championships. Moore had revealed this during his exit interview.

• The Brantford Bulldogs lost for the first time in the Ontario Hockey League playoffs last season. They were defeated 5-3 by the Barrie Colts, evening the Eastern Conference Championship Series at one win apiece. Marek Vanacker scored the game's opening goal on the power play. Defenseman Adam Jiricek, as a St. Louis Blues draft pick, had the other two tallies for the Bulldogs. Utah Mammoth prospect Cole Beaudoin had two goals in the third period, including the game-winner.

• The OHL Western Conference Championship Series between the Kitchener Rangers and Windsor Spitfires opened up with an overtime thriller. Jack Pridham tied the game at 3-3 late in the second period with a power-play goal. This was his first postseason goal after scoring 46 in the regular season. He has 11 points in 10 playoff games. Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Sam O’Rielly scored at 18:08 of overtime to give the Rangers a 1-0 series lead.

• On this date in 1971, the Blackhawks blew out the New York Rangers, 7-1, to even the Stanley Cup Semifinals at 2-2. The Blackhawks got goals from seven different skaters, including Jim Pappin, Stan Mikita, and Dennis Hull.

• In 1985, Darryl Sutter was the hero with a goal in double overtime to beat the Minnesota North Stars 7-6, giving the Blackhawks a 3-1 lead in the Norris Division Finals. Denis Savard was the offensive leader with two goals and four points in a game that saw 94 combined penalty minutes. Future Blackhawks head coach Craig Hartsburg had two goals and an assist for the North Stars.

• In 2009, the Blackhawks rolled to a 5-1 win over the Calgary Flames, going up 3-2 in the Western Conference Quarterfinals. Brent Seabrook had a power-play goal and two assists. Patrick Sharp, Kris Versteeg, Andrew Ladd, and Cam Barker all found the back of the net.

• In 2014, the Blackhawks and Blues needed overtime for the fourth time in the first five games of their first-round series. After Marian Hossa and Ben Smith scored in regulation, Jonathan Toews called “game” in overtime to give the Blackhawks a 3-2 series lead.

• In 2015, the Blackhawks beat the Nashville Predators 4-3 to win their first-round series in six games. Six of the seven goals were scored during a crazy second period. The Blackhawks fell behind 2-0 and 3-1, but goals by Sharp, Toews, and Patrick Kane drew them even going into the third period. Duncan Keith scored the series-clinching goal with less than four minutes to play. Both he and Toews finished with three points.

• Blackhawks Birthday Roll Call, April 25: John Harms.

NHL Chirps

• If you like overtime hockey with a ton of physicality, then the series between the Lightning and Montreal Canadiens is right up your alley. Game 3 was the third straight contest that couldn’t be decided in regulation. This time, it was Lane Hutson giving the Canadiens a 2-1 series lead with a missile through traffic early in the extra session. Montreal’s fourth line produced all three goals. Alexandre Texier and Kirby both had a goal and an assist, while Zach Bolduc had two assists. Brandon Hagel scored his fourth goal of the series in the losing effort. Game 4 will be on Sunday night.

• The crowd at the Delta Center was hyped for the first home Stanley Cup Playoff game in franchise history. However, the Vegas Golden Knights came out and dominated the early part of the game, getting 10 of the first 11 shots on goal. The Mammoth withstood the early onslaught and scored the first four goals of the game on just eight shots. Lawson Crouse put the game out of reach with a pair of second-period goals. The Golden Knights drew within two goals late in the third period, but never got any closer.

• I have one piece of advice for the series between the Edmonton Oilers and Anaheim Ducks: bet the over! These two defensively challenged teams played another back-and-forth game full of momentum swings. The Oilers scored first, then fell behind 2-1, and took a 3-2 lead before falling behind 5-3 early in the third period. Connor McDavid netted his first goal of the playoffs on a third-period power play to get within a goal, but the Ducks added a late insurance goal before scoring into an empty net to take a 2-1 series lead. Connor Murphy picked up an assist on Kasperi Kapanen's goal in the second period. Jason Dickinson missed his second straight game with an undisclosed injury.

• The Minnesota Wild have a must-win game today against the Dallas Stars as they will look to avoid falling down 3-1. Injured forward Mats Zucarello, who missed the last two games, has been upgraded to a game-time decision for Game 4. However, Yakov Trenin has been ruled out of today’s game.

• The Colorado Avalanche go for the series sweep of the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday afternoon, but they will likely be without defenseman Josh Manson. He is still being evaluated for an upper-body injury suffered in Game 3. With a 3-0 series lead, there is no reason for him to rush back if he’s not 100%.

• Ellliotte Friedman reported that the Toronto Maple Leafs are down to two finalists for their general manager job. One of them is Stars assistant general manager Scott White. The other is former Arizona Coyotes general manager John Chayka, who Friedman says is the favorite for the gig.

• Rick Bowness will be back behind the Columbus Blue Jackets bench next season, and he will be allowed to build his own coaching staff. The team announced that assistant coaches Mike Haviland and Scott Ford, as well as video coach Aron Augustitus, will not be retained. Haviland was an assistant coach for the Blackhawks from 2008 to 2012 and got his name on the Stanley Cup in 2010.

• NHL Birthday Roll Call, April 25: Pat Egan, Alexei Emelin, Rich Clune, James Sheppard, Colby Cohen, and Cole Schwindt.

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