Kane-tained: How the Kings have frustrated hockey's most dangerous playoff scorer
Chicago Blackhawks winger Patrick Kane built his reputation on scoring big goals, in big games. From lighting up Roberto Luongo, to his shorthanded game-tying marker against the Predators with time expiring, to his Stanley Cup-winning ghost goal, to the "shoulda kept your mouth shut" goal, to "showtime," Kane has come up big in high-leverage moments in the postseason, and he's done it repeatedly.
Kane is going to need to do it again if the Blackhawks hope to claw back from a 2-1 series deficit against the Los Angeles Kings in the 2014 Western Conference final. Kane has been quiet so far, with no points and seven shots in three games, but worse than simply a lack of production, the Blackhawks have been soundly losing their matchup with Kane on the ice.
The Blackhawks have been outscored 3-1 with Kane on the ice at even-strength through the first three games of the series. They've been outshot 22-18, and they've controlled a paltry 43.4 percent of five-on-five shot attempts. When Kane's broken through Los Angeles' defensive structure, Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick has been there to rob him.
Not only has Kane been quiet, his struggles are a major reason the Kings have taken an early lead in this series. So far, Kane's line has been a liability.
"I don’t think I’ve played up to par for myself the first three games of the series," Kane admitted this weekend. "It would be nice to turn that around and play good in Game 4 – take it as a new game, wipe the slate clean, come out with a good attitude Monday and see what happens."
Kings defenseman Drew Doughty, one of the best shutdown defenders in the league, suggested that Los Angeles' game plan is responsible for frustrating Kane, as well as his teammate Patrick Sharp:
You want to frustrate them, give them no room and play them physically. We know that Kane likes to pick up the puck, kind of be fancy, have a lot of room and gain speed that way. So we’re just trying to limit the ice for him – and play him hard. It’s the same with Sharp. Even though they haven’t done much lately, we know they’re going to have their best game in Game 4. We got to be prepared for that.
What makes Kane's struggles against Los Angeles so concerning is that Doughty and Selke-nominee Anze Kopitar haven't had much to do with it. Kopitar has spent only 4.5 combined minutes matched up against Kane at evens through three games. Kings coach Darryl Sutter, meanwhile, appears to be soft-matching Kane against the Willie Mitchell and Slava Voynov pairing.
Doughty? He's battling Jonathan Toews.
Struggling to win a matchup against a guy like Kopitar - easily one of the best two-way centermen in the NHL - is one thing. Struggling to win a matchup against Jarret Stoll? That's another.
"You can’t go into games thinking about scoring, or thinking you’ve got to have a big point night," Kane said of his approach to bumping the slump. "That’s only going to set yourself up for failure. The better way to engage it is: try to play fast, try to command the puck, try to get in and make plays and hopefully see a result at the end of the night."
Kane's right, of course. His lack of offensive production against the Kings is the symptom at the moment, rather than the disease. His line is giving up goals against while spending shift after shift in their own end, and that's the real problem for Chicago in the series. As far as remedies go, 'commanding the puck' sounds like a good place to start.