Morning Chirps: Draft Lottery reaction, Avs dominate Game 2

The ping pong balls did not bounce the Chicago Blackhawks' way last night. A goaltending change did not work out as hoped in Minnesota, and the finalists for the NHL’s top rookie were announced, but we all know who is going to win. Let’s get Chirping!

Blackhawks Chirps

• Last night, the worst-case scenario was also the most likely outcome for the Blackhawks in the NHL Draft Lottery, and that’s exactly what happened. The Blackhawks will select fourth overall in this June’s NHL Entry Draft. While the pick won’t be as sexy as landing Gavin McKenna or Ivar Stenberg, there will be plenty of good options.

• I joined my buddies on the CHGO Blackhawks Podcast last night, and we got to talk to Kyle Davidson and discuss some of the possible options at No. 4.

• The Ontario Hockey League Championship Series begins tonight. Jack Pridham and the Kitchener Rangers have home-ice advantage in the best-of-seven series against the Barrie Colts. The series is scheduled to play every other day. The winner will advance to the Memorial Cup.

• On this date in 1971, the Blackhawks beat the Montreal Canadiens 5-3 to take a 2-0 lead in the Stanley Cup Final. Lou Angotti scored twice in the second period after assisting on earlier goals by Bobby Hull and Chico Maki. Jim Pappin scored for the second straight game after scoring the game-winning goal in overtime of Game 1.

• Two years later, the Canadiens beat the Blackhawks 4-0 to take a 3-1 lead in the Stanley Cup Final. Hall of Fame goaltender Ken Dryden made 19 saves to earn his first career playoff shutout.

• In 1982, the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in franchise history by beating the Blackhawks 6-2 in Game 6 of the Campbell Conference Finals. Tom Lysiak and Grant Mulvey scored the final two goals of the 1981-82 season. The Canucks were swept by the New York Islanders, who won their third of four straight Stanley Cups.

• A decade later, in 1992, the Blackhawks went up 3-0 in the Norris Division Finals by beating the Detroit Red Wings 5-4. Chris Chelios led the way with three points, a goal, and two assists, while Dirk Graham scored twice.

• In 1996, Sergei Krivokrasov scored the biggest goal of his career, beating Patrick Roy 46 seconds into overtime to give the Blackhawks a 4-3 win over the Colorado Avalanche in Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals. The Blackhawks erased a 3-1 second-period deficit with goals by Joe Murphy and Jeremy Roenick. The victory gave them a 2-1 series lead, but this was the final win of the season as the Avalanche won the next three games.

• Blackhawks Birthday Roll Call, May 6: Jack Stewart, Harry Watson, Keith Brown, Bob Bassen, Mark Eaton, and Anton Babchuk.

NHL Chirps

• Wild head coach John Hynes put himself in quite a situation. He benched Jesper Walstead after he allowed nine goals in Game 1, on a night the entire team played poorly. Instead of letting his young netminder bounce back after playing so well in round one, he made the switch to Filip Gustavsson, who gave up four goals on 22 shots. The Avalanche rolled to a 5-2 win and take a 2-0 series lead with them to St. Paul for the next two games. They got goals from five different players, with 10 skaters finding the scoresheet. Nathan MacKinnon led the way with a goal and two assists.

• Anaheim Ducks captain Radko Gudas skated on Tuesday as he’s working his way back from a lower-body injury. Head coach Joel Quenneville ruled him out for Game 2 tonight, but expects the veteran defenseman to return at some point in the series against the Vegas Golden Knights.

• Speaking of the Ducks, forward Beckett Sennecke was named as one of the three finalists for the Calder Trophy, given to the league’s top rookie. Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer and Canadiens forward Ivan Demidov are the other two finalists. Just give the trophy to Schaefer already.

• Per Darren Dreger, Oilers defensemen Darnell Nurse and Evan Bouchard will play for Team Canada at the IIHF World Championships. Dreger also reported that Gavin McKenna will not play in the tournament as he wants to focus on the upcoming scouting combine.

• NHL Birthday Roll, March 6: Tim Bothwell, Martin Brodeur, Marc Chouinard, Fredrik Sjostrom, Brendan Gallagher, Jonas Siegenthaler, and Jake Livanavage.

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