Is a Blackhawks Goalie Controversy Brewing After Scott Darling's Game 1 Heroics?

The Chicago Blackhawks don't have a goaltending controversy.

At least, not yet.

Corey Crawford on Wednesday night picked up where he left off at the end of last year's postseason by allowing three first-period goals—two of which were cringe-worthy, a third eminently stoppable—on 12 shots, and Joel Quenneville yanked him during the intermission.

That set the stage for Scott Darling to make 42 saves during the final two periods and two overtimes as the Blackhawks rallied for a 4-3 win against the Nashville Predators in Game 1 of their first-round series.

The Blackhawks were well on their way to defeat before Darling saved the day, especially in the third period, when he robbed Ryan Ellis with a right-pad save that kept the game tied at three and helped send it to overtime.

Duncan Keith made Darling's heroics matter with the winning goal in the second extra period.

So what do the Blackhawks do in Game 2? Go back to their Stanley Cup-winning, $6 million goaltender or stay with the sixth-round pick who was once cut from an ECHL team? The Chicago Sun-Times' Mark Lazerus noted that Quenneville will name the Game 2 goalie on Friday:

Quenneville isn't saying because he probably, genuinely isn't sure.

This isn't just strike one against Crawford; it's strike two. In last year's Western Conference Final against the Los Angeles Kings, Crawford was a canoe made of newspaper in a storm, taking on water for the final six games of that series before eventually drowning the Blackhawks.

He stopped 162 of 187 shots across Games 2 through 7, which included a horrendous late tying goal in Game 7 before he allowed the series-ending goal in overtime.

Including his nine saves on 12 shots Wednesday, Crawford has an .859 save percentage in his past seven playoff games.

With a soft short-side goal by Colin Wilson, a mental mistake on Viktor Stalberg's goal with Crawford trapped behind the net and a somewhat excusable third goal when Wilson tipped a Seth Jones shot, Crawford looked like he was re-enacting his 2014 postseason in a one-man show no one in Chicago wanted to see.

His Stanley Cup season is a bit of an anomaly as well, seeing as how it came in a shortened season filled with anomalies. Take 2013 out of the equation and Crawford has a career postseason save percentage of .910 in 34 contests that occurred after 82-game regular seasons.

It's no small thing to change goaltenders in the playoffs, but don't believe what you hear about how once the decision is made, there's no coming back from it. Quenneville could start Darling in Game 2, have him allow three goals on four shots and then go back to Crawford for the rest of the playoffs without blinking.

Still, benching a $6 million goaltender for a guy deemed unusable by an ECHL team is no small decision.

Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

Darling showed what he can do behind an elite team in limited action this season, going 9-4 with a .936 save percentage in 14 appearances, his only NHL experience. The last time Darling appeared in a playoff game before Wednesday was in the USHL in 2008 as a 19-year-old.

With Crawford stumbling in last year's playoffs, Quenneville didn't have a backup option upon which he could rely. Antti Raanta had an .897 save percentage in the regular season last year, and after entering this season as Crawford's backup, he lost his job to Darling. At no point in last year's playoffs did Quenneville pull Crawford for Raanta.

Quenneville didn't wait around this time, and he was rewarded with a win.

Patience is Quenneville's friend here, and time is on his side. Darling showed what he could do Wednesday, but Quenneville needs to treat naming Darling as a starter as a final bullet in his chamber, a desperation move, not a move for Game 2 when Chicago has a 1-0 series lead.

But after watching Darling stop 42 of 42 shots, including 38 in the third period and overtimes, Quenneville can at least find comfort in knowing he has a bullet in his gun he didn't have at this time last year.

All statistics via NHL.com. Advanced stats via Stats.HockeyAnalysis.com and Puck On Net.

Dave Lozo covers the NHL for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter: @DaveLozo.