After losing two straight games to the Chicago Blackhawks evening the series at three apiece, the Los Angeles Kings successfully denied the comeback as they skated to a thrilling 5-4 overtime win in game seven of the Western Conference finals.
Despite the Hawks ability to acquire three separate leads over the course of the game, they continuously allowed the Kings to stay within reach as Darryl Sutter’s resilient squad never took their foot off the gas pedal.
Following Patrick Sharp’s second period power play goal that gave Chicago a 4-3 lead, Los Angeles forward Marian Gaborik answered with his own tally to tie the game at four with 7:17 remaining in the third.
Ultimately, 26-year-old defenseman Alec Martinez secured the series victory for the Kings when his wrist shot from the point hit Nick Leddy in front and redirected up and over Corey Crawford’s right shoulder and into the net 5:47 into overtime.
WCF Game 7: Alec Martinez Heroics
Even prior to puck drop, every hockey fan around the world knew that a game seven between two of the top Western Conference powerhouses would provide us with undoubtedly the best, most exciting display of competition this year’s postseason has seen. A winner-take-all standoff for the opportunity to advance to the 2014 Stanley Cup finals is far and beyond what either of the teams could have possibly asked for at the start of the season back in October.
With the high amount of run-and-gun hockey that had been played previously in the series, many assumed the seventh and final game would be a stifling, tightly defended contest revolving around the two teams’ respective net minders dueling against one another. Contrastingly, that prediction couldn’t have been further from the actual outcome when the opening faceoff took place at the United Center Sunday night.
The game was filled with nonstop, back-and-forth scoring chances that were fueled by aggressive line rushes, forceful net drives, and a large array of defensive lapses that led to numerous odd-man opportunities for both teams.
One aspect that noticeably stood out among the rest was the incredibly fast pace that vigorously dictated the play. The sheer amount of speed in which both the Blackhawks and Kings exhibited within their games was unbelievable to watch. As a hockey fan, you couldn’t have asked for a better tone in a game seven.
The big story that unfolded was without a doubt each team’s star players coming to play in a do-or-die, must-win game.
For Chicago, their go-to guys were a prominent presence throughout the entire contest. Patrick Kane [two assists] once again put on a show as he and other depended-upon players such as Jonathan Toews [one goal], Patrick Sharp [two goals], and Brandon Saad [one goal, one assist] embraced the spotlight as well. Brent Seabrook, Andrew Shaw, and Marcus Kruger also contributed on the score sheet recording one assist each.
Not to be outdone, the top players on Los Angeles’ roster most certainly showed up in a similar fashion. In addition to Alec Martinez’s game-winning goal, the likes of Marian Gaborik [one goal], Jeff Carter [one goal], Anze Kopitar [one assist], and Dustin Brown [two assists] all played key roles in helping the Kings put pucks in the back of their opponent’s net.
More impressively, game seven production specialist Justin Williams added to his dominant reputation with one goal and one assist. He now has 14 points [seven goals, seven assists] in seven career playoff game sevens. Meanwhile, another big-time performer in these playoffs, 22-year-old Tyler Toffoli put up one goal and one assist as well. Defensemen Matt Greene [two assists] and Slava Voynov [one assist] also recorded three combined points.
Lastly, and not to be overlooked, both goaltenders gave outstanding performances for each of their teams keeping them in contention one-hundred percent of the way. Even though nine goals were scored throughout the game, Corey Crawford and Jonathan Quick combined to make 64 saves in 65:47 of ice time, many of which were game-saving stops that kept the tilt from getting out of hand.
While puck possession and gratuitous bounces inevitably determined the eventual outcome, game seven between the Blackhawks and Kings was indisputably a fitting end to what may have been the greatest series of the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs.
For the Hawks, only disappointment remains as they fail to get the opportunity to defend their championship.
As for Los Angeles, Henrik Lundqvist and the New York Rangers await them in the finals for a chance to hoist Lord Stanley again. Game one of that series takes place at Staples Center on Wednesday night. Will the Kings claim their second cup in franchise history or will the Rangers bring it back to the Big Apple for the first time in exactly a decade? We’ll all find out soon enough.
For the latest sports injury news, check out our friends at Sports Injury Alert.
Thanks for reading! Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @dasimonetta. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
Main Photo:
