1. Divorce saves the family in Game 5.
Throughout the playoffs, the trio of Patrick Kane, Dustin Byfuglien, and pivot Jonathan Toews were a dominant offensive force — until they ran into Michael Leighton and the Flyers’ defense. Head coach Joel Quenneville mixed things up with amazing success. Byfuglien found chemistry with Kris Versteeg and Dave Bolland as all three added tallies on the night and “Big Buff” had two goals and four points in Game 5. Sharp helped Kane regain his scoring touch and then late in the second period the tiny forward twice did windmills around Chris Pronger.
2. History favors Blackhawks.
In the 20 previous Stanley Cup Final series tied 2-2, the club winning Game 5 has won the Cup 14 times. Three teams have done it in the last decade (Colorado ’01, Tampa ’04, and Pittsburgh ’09). Teams winning the first two games of the finals have won the Cup in 31 of 33 years with two exceptions: Detroit (2009) and Chicago (1971).
3. Staying out of the penalty box.
In the Finals, the Flyers have been whistled an average of eight penalty minutes per game — well off their average of almost 17 minutes during the regular season. Discipline is one reason this series isn’t over, and why Daniel “Car Bomb” Carcillo has been a healthy scratch the last two games.
