Stanley Cup Final Preview: Special Teams

Instead of one huge blog post previewing the Stanley Cup Final, I thought it would be better to break things down by different aspects of the game and how Chicago and Boston match-up. Next up: Special Teams.

Chicago: With Duncan Keith, Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa, the Blackhawks have the potential to have one of the most potent power plays in the league. However, they won the President's Trophy despite their power play, which finished only 19th at a 16.4% success rate. Then, when the games got tight in the playoffs, that percentage has dropped even lower, to just 13.7%. 

Luckily for them, they boast one of the best penalty kill units in the league. Led my Marcus Kruger and Michael Frolik up front with Keith on the back end, Chicago finished the regular season with a 87.2% kill rate. In the playoffs, it's been far and away the best unit, only allowing 3 power play goals against through 17 games for a 94.8% efficiency.

Boston: Given that the Bruins are a more two-way oriented team, it`s no surprise that
their power play has not been among the best in the league. They finished 26th during the regular season with a 14.8% efficiency, while that number has risen marginally in the playoffs to 15.6%. David Krecji, Patrice Bergeron and Nathan Horton have been good on the power play, but the real surprise has been rookie defenseman Torey Krug, who leads the team with 3 power play goals in the post season. Overall the team has only scored 7 power play goals through 16 post-season games. 

However the penalty kill, as you would expect from one of the best defensive teams in the league, has been outstanding. During the regular season they were operating at a 87.1% kill rate, and that number has slightly dropped to 86.5% in the playoffs. With Zdeno Chara's huge body and stick controlling the front of the net, Patrice Bergeron's sublime faceoff skills and Tuukka Rask there to pick up the lose change, the Bruins penalty kill is to be feared. Just ask the superstars on the Penguin's roster, who weren't able to score a single power play goal against Boston in the Eastern Conference Final. 

Edge: Chicago (barely). Though the numbers indicate that both power play units are pretty similar, the Blackhawks have more dynamic talent on their first unit than Boston does. As for the penalty kill, the recent spectacular pk for the Bruins balances out the sustained success Chicago has been having.