Bolland missed the last three games of the regular season and the entire first round because of a lower-body injury. Bolland has 37 points in 49 career playoff appearances, he should certainly help the Blackhawks up front.
Torres hit Kings forward Jarret Stoll last night and injured Stoll on the play. The hit did not look too bad but Torres has a history of suspensions, I think we all remember his 25-game suspension last season for his hit on Marian Hossa.
Stoll was hurt when he was hit by Sharks forward Raffi Torres. Torres will be subject to a hearing because of the hit.
Howard played very well in the first round series vs. Anaheim. He posted a 2.74 GAA and .911 SV% in that series which are not fantastic numbers but the Ducks scored more than a couple fluky goals on Howard. Brendan Smith scored on his own net and they had a couple go in by just throwing it on net and getting bounces, no fault of Howard's. He will need to be the backbone of the Wings again in the second round if they are going to take down the #1 seed Blackhawks.
Emmerton back as 4th center with Bertuzzi and Eaves.
Source said #Blackhawks winger Viktor Stalberg questioned his role--or lack of it--in certain situations.
The Los Angeles Kings went down 2-0 early in their series with the Blues, but they battled back and won four straight to finish St. Louis off in six. Quick has posted slightly better numbers than his round two counterpart Antti Niemi so far. He has a 1.58 GAA vs. Niemi's 1.86 as well as a .944 SV% vs. a .937 SV%. The Kings have the experience of last year's Stanley Cup run, but it won't be easy vs. a good Sharks team.
Niemi carried his strong regular season (24-12-6 / 2.16 GAA / .924 SV%) into the first round of the playoffs. He was excellent in the four games it took the Sharks to send the Canucks packing. He posted the playoffs sixth best GAA (1.86) and SV% (.937). He will go head-to-head with last year's Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jonathan Quick in what should be a thrilling goaltending duel.
Craig Anderson was great in the Senators 4-1 series win over the Montreal Canadiens in the first round. He posted the fifth best GAA (1.80) and was tied for second in SV% (.950). He has the daunting task of facing Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, James Neal, Jarome Iginla, Kris Letang... The list goes on and on with this Penguins team. Anderson will need to be Ottawa's best player in this series if they're going to shock the Penguins.
After Marc-Andre Fleury struggled early in the Penguins first round series with the Islanders, Tomas Vokoun came in a shut the door for Pittsburgh. He posted a 1.41 GAA and .957 SV% in Game's 5 and 6. After two performances like he had there is no surprise that Coach Bylsma will go with him in Game 1 vs. the Senators.
Holtby stopped all but one of the 29 shots he faced last night. He was good yet again but Lundqvist was just a little bit better. He will go head-to-head with 'King' Henrik again tonight in Game 7.
The Rangers needed Lundqvist to steal a game for them and that is exactly what he did in Game 6. He stopped all 27 shots that he faced including 12 in the third period. He will obviously be back in the cage tonight for Game 7, he has the ability to steal this one too.
Joe Colborne replaced Bozak in the lineup. Consider him doubtful for tonight's Game 7.
Rask continued his strong play last night, but was once again bested by James Reimer. Rask allowed two goals on 26 shots in the 2-1 loss. The series shifts back to Boston for Game 7 where Rask will try and close out the series for the Bruins. Rask and Reimer have identical .932 SV% in the series, let the Game 7 fun begin!
Reimer's playoff legacy continued to grow in Toronto last night. The 25-year-old netminder stopped 29 of 30 shots in the 2-1 win that froced Game 7 tonight in Boston. He has the 12th ranked GAA (2.58) and 8th ranked SV% (.932) in the playoffs. However none of that really matters in a Game 7, anything can happen.
Reimer stopped 43 of 44 shots in the 2-1 win in Boston. He was phenomenal, especially in the third period when Boston threw everything they had at Reimer. He held the fort and will be expected to keep the Maple Leafs alive in Game 6 tonight.
Hiller allowed four goals on 29 shots in the 4-3 OT loss in Game 6. It is cliche time for the Ducks and Red Wings tonight. It do-or-die, their backs are up against the wall, anything you want to say. Hiller has played well all series, but Howard has been equally as good. It all depends on who has the better Game 7.
Redden missed Game 5 with an undisclosed injury, we will have to wait until warmups to see if he will play.
Emmerton will be a healthy scratch for Game 7.
Eaves will draw back into the lineup after being a healthy scratch in Game 6. He has one assist in five games in the series.
