Tonight at 9:30 p.m. ET, the Chicago Blackhawks and Nashville Predators skate against each other live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville for Game 5 of their Western Conference Round 1 Stanley Cup playoff series.
Chicago looks to win a game on the road to advance to the second round for the third straight campaign while Nashville hopes to do its job on home ice and force a Game 6 back in Illinois.
These teams have alternated wins and losses in each other's buildings thus far.
The Blackhawks won Game 1 by a 4-3 score in double overtime and the Predators bounced back with a 6-2 drubbing in Game 2. As the series shifted to Chicago, the home team picked up a 4-2 triumph in Game 3 and followed it up with a 3-2 triple overtime victory in Game 4.
This game can be live streamed for free here.
The Predators now bring the series back to the Bridgestone Arena after dropping both games in Chicago and will look to win their second straight game played in Nashville. Nashville won a Western Conference-best 28 home games in the regular season.
"We have to put it behind us as soon as possible," Predators defenseman Roman Josi said after Game 4, according to NHL.com. "This isn't over, so we have to look forward to Game 5."
The Blackhawks were lifted a minute into the third overtime on Tuesday by defenseman Brent Seabrook, who blasted a shot from the point and found the back of the net to pull his team ahead 3-1 in the series.
Antoine Vermette and Brandon Saad also lit the lamp for Chicago in the win while Nashville got contributions from Colin Wilson (power play) and James Neal.
Wilson's marker was his fourth of the series and his four points rank him second on the team, just one shy of Craig Smith (2-3--5).
Jonathan Toews (two goals, three assists) and Marian Hossa (five helpers) are tied atop the scoresheet from the Blackhawks.
The biggest story of this series has undoubtedly been rookie goalie Scott Darling, who has started to shine. Darling took over for Corey Crawford in Game 1 and stopped all 42 shots he faced, leading the team to a double overtime win.
After Crawford started Game 2 and yielded six goals in a loss, Darling took over and won Game 3 in regulation then stopped 50 shots in Chicago's triple overtime win in Game 4.
Darling has allowed just four goals out of the 135 shots he's faced this series.
Nashville counters with Pekka Rinne in the blue paint and he has had a great series despite some tough-luck losses. Rinne has turned aside 133 of the 146 shots he's faced in this set.
The Blackhawks look to advance while the Predators try to stave off elimination when these teams take the ice for Game 5 of their Round 1 Stanley Cup playoff series live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
© Copyright 2024 Sports World News, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
