The Chicago Blackhawks were swept out of the playoffs by the Nashville Predators on Thursday night to conclude a wild and unpredictable series. There are plenty of shocking stories to emerge from the four-game set, including the fact that Nashville goalie Pekka Rinne had just as many points (two) as Chicago stars Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane.
Another topic which will inevitably be debated long into the summer revolves around the play of Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford who was less than stellar in the series.
With goaltending being a critical weakness for the Blackhawks against the Preds, perhaps it’s fitting the team’s final game this year included one big goalie blunder.
With a little over 11 minutes left in the third and the Blackhawks trailing by just one, Crawford mishandled a shot and ended up putting the puck in his own net.
Initially, the shot came in and rang off the post before the puck settled in under Crawford. In an effort to scramble and find the puck, he accidentally knocked it back into his own net. It was an understandable mistake given the fact he had no idea where the puck went, but when viewed in the context of the overall series, it’s the final nail in the coffin for what was a mediocre effort in goal.
The Predators added on a couple more goals before all was said and done, but this was effectively the end of the Blackhawks’ season.
