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NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs: Chicago Blackhawks vs. St. Louis Blues—Game 7 Preview

By Dustin Murrell
Published on: 04:33 PST, Apr 24, 2016

The Chicago Blackhawks beat the St. Louis Blues after scoring 5 unanswered goals in the 2nd and 3rd periods of Saturday’s Game 6 of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. Trailing in the series 3-1 after Game 4, the Blackhawks won in double overtime on Thursday before their 6-3 comeback victory that will force the series to Game 7 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis on Monday. The winner of the Blues/Blackhawks series will advance to face the winner of the Dallas Stars/Minnesota Wild series.

Blackhawks vs. Blues — 2016 series

Chicago’s 6-3 victory was the first match in the series decided by more than a single goal. The Blues got off to an early lead in the series by winning their first home game 1-0. David Backes scored the only goal of the game for St. Louis, with an assist from Jay Bouwmeester.

The Blackhawks responded in Game 2. After the Blues got off to another 1-0 lead, Chicago scored 3 unanswered goals. St. Louis was unable to recover, and the game ended 3-2. Duncan Keith had a goal and an assist for Chicago, and Patrick Kane assisted on the first and last Blackhawk goals.

While playing on your home ice is normally an advantage, the Blues would travel to Chicago and pick up the next two wins: Game 3 (3-2) and Game 4 (4-3). Leading the series 3-1, the Blues had their opportunity to end the series at home in Game 5.

In a must-win situation, the Blackhawks went to St. Louis and forced the Blues into two overtimes before earning another victory on the road (4-3).

Two days later, in another must-win situation, Chicago pulled off the 6-3 victory in front of their home crowd, forcing a Game 7 in St. Louis.

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Blackhawks vs. Blues — rivalry history

As noted by the Chicago Sun Times, the first collision on the ice between Chicago and St. Louis dates back almost 50 years, to 1967. Much like the Cubs and Cardinals in Major League Baseball, it is one of the oldest and most storied rivalries in the league. Representing two of the biggest cities in the Midwest, it’s no surprise that the teams (in both the NHL and MLB) share the Central Division. At the conclusion of Saturday’s game, the two franchises had competed in a total of 356 times, Chicago leading the series 176-145-35.

In what many consider to be the peak of animosity between the two teams, the so-called “St. Patrick’s Day Massacre” on March 17, 1991, resulted in six players from each team being ejected for fighting. A total of 278 penalty minutes were handed out between Chicago and St. Louis that night.

Where To Watch

Game 7 of the 2016 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs First Round match-up featuring St. Louis Blues vs. Chicago Blackhawks will be on Monday, April 25, in St. Louis at the Scottrade Center. A limited number of tickets are still available to see the Blackhawks and Blues live in St. Louis. Where available, the game will air on NBC affiliate CSN Chicago. Outside of local markets, the Blues vs. Blackhawks will air on NBCSN in the United States and CBC and TVA Sports in Canada.

[Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images]

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