Ducks vs. Blackhawks: 4 things to know for Game 6

Chicago needs two wins to reach the Stanley Cup final for the third time in six years, starting Wednesday at home against an Anaheim Ducks outfit that has yet to lose in regulation this post-season.

Here are four things to know for Game 6 at the United Center (CBC, CBCSports.ca, 8 p.m. ET).

Advantage Blackhawks? Ducks?

Who wins Game 6? That's easy, the Chicago Blackhawks. It's been a Western Conference final with alternating victories, so it's Chicago's turn after Anaheim's 5-4 overtime win on Monday, right?

First of all, the last four games in this series have been toss-ups. Secondly, the Blackhawks have been down 3-2 in a series four times under head coach Joel Quenneville and prevailed once, against Detroit in 2013, when they fought back from a 3-1 deficit. But in 2011, they forced Game 7 against Vancouver in the opening round on a Ben Smith goal (see below) and again last spring versus Los Angeles. Chicago is 9-4 in elimination contests with Quenneville behind the bench.

The optimist will tell you the Blackhawks have yet to lose back-to-back games in this post-season, and even though they are winless in four tries after multiple-overtime games, Chicago has rebounded to win the next game the previous three times. The Blackhawks' only other playoff defeat in 2015 was following a nine-day layoff, so on regular rest they're 8-0. Game 7 would be Saturday, giving Chicago an extra day of rest should they stave off elimination Wednesday.

What doesn't bode well for the Hawks is the fact teams with a 3-2 lead win the series nearly 80 per cent of the time. Anaheim has fared well in elimination games, having already swept Winnipeg and defeated Calgary in Game 5. However, under head coach Bruce Boudreau, the Ducks have been up 3-2 in a series three times and lost two of them — last year against Los Angeles and versus Detroit in 2013.

Keep Freddie busy

The save percentages for Anaheim Ducks goalie Frederik Andersen and Chicago counterpart Corey Crawford have dipped in each of the past three starts. In that time, Andersen has allowed 10 goals to Crawford's 11, so perhaps goaltending in this series should be ruled a wash. Andersen surrendered three soft goals in Game 5, including Jonathan Toews's steep-angled shot that forced overtime, but hasn't lost in regulation in these playoffs.

The Ducks jumped on Crawford for three quick scores in Monday's first period and the Blackhawks netminder also seems rattled by Anaheim's bumping him. Could Andersen, who has played 68 games this season after never previously surpassing 47, be tired? May the pressure be getting to him? Wednesday's contest will be the biggest for him in his NHL career, while Crawford led Chicago to a 2013 Stanley Cup title and has 68 post-season games under his belt.

Former Montreal Canadiens puckstopper Frederic Chabot, who served as Edmonton's goalie coach from 2009 to 2014, believes Andersen's Game 5 performance could be attributed to not getting in a rhythm quickly. Chicago fired pucks early at Andersen in the first four games of the series but was outshot 11-3 in the opening 20 minutes on Monday, so the lack of work may have factored in the Great Dane's struggles.

Offence from defence

It wouldn't be at all surprising if the winning goal Wednesday night came courtesy of a defenceman. Should that happen, odds are it would be with an Anaheim blue-liner firing the decisive marker rather than a Chicago rearguard. Cam Fowler and Sami Vatanen scored first-period goals for the Ducks in Monday's 5-4 overtime victory, with the Blackhawks' Brent Seabrook finding the net in the final minute of the second to cut into a 3-1 deficit.

While Vatanen and Hampus Lindholm are not household names, they have 10 and nine points, respectively, in these playoffs. Fowler has added eight points, with Chicago receiving only a goal and nine points outside of Duncan Keith and Seabrook.

No-quit Blackhawks

Don't wander too far from your television should the Ducks score first in Game 6 or build a seemingly sizeable lead early on. Remember, the Blackhawks are really never out of a game in this series. In the series opener, they fell behind 1-0 in the first period, only to answer late in the period of an eventual 4-1 loss. In Game 4, Chicago blew a 3-1 second-period lead in a span of 37 seconds. But Patrick Kane tied matters later in the period and the Blackhawks went on to win in double overtime on an Antoine Vermette goal.

On Monday, Anaheim jumped out to a 3-0 lead 15 minutes after the opening faceoff but Chicago closed to within 3-2 in the second period. Down 4-2 late in the third, Toews scored twice to force OT in a game the Ducks won 5-4 just 45 seconds into the extra period.