Early Storylines to Watch in Conference Finals of 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs

It took long enough for us to get to this point—both NHL conference finals are tied at one game apiece as each series shifts locations for Games 3 and 4.

Marcus Kruger scored with 3:48 remaining in triple overtime early Wednesday morning to end a game that started Tuesday night to give the Blackhawks a much-needed 3-2 victory against the Ducks. The Lightning used a Tyler Johnson hat trick in Game 2 of their series to beat the Rangers 6-2 and tie that series at 1-1.

There are a few storylines in both the West and the East worth examining. Since the Rangers are involved, so is Rick Nash. The Blackhawks are essentially playing with four defensemen, making their marathon Game 2 against a rugged Ducks team even more of a concern.

Read on to see the three storylines worth watching in the East and West.

Does Rick Nash Need to Score for the Rangers to Win?

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Rick Nash has two goals in 14 games this postseason. The good news: That's two more than he had through 14 games last postseason. The bad news: Two goals isn't a lot for a player of his caliber.

There's no question Nash isn't playing the passive, perimeter game he did last year, but he's been showing signs of becoming that player again in this series. Despite the poor output, he was good throughout the Penguins series and had his moments against the Capitals, but he hasn't been able to finish against the Lightning.

"He's working extremely hard," coach Alain Vigneault said to the media in Tampa on Tuesday. "He's getting physically involved. He's getting some looks. Would I like him to finish on some of those looks? Yes. Do we need him to finish on those looks? Probably, yes. He knows that."

Nash had a chance to tie Game 2 in the third period with a short-handed chance, but Ben Bishop denied him; seconds later, Alex Killorn scored to make it 4-2. Those moments could decide the Rangers' fate this round.

Can the Lightning Get Scoring from Their Bottom-Six Forwards?

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The Lightning have seven goals this series—three from Tyler Johnson, two from Alex Killorn and one each from Steven Stamkos and Ondrej Palat.

In the series-clinching Game 6 win last round against Montreal, all four Lightning goals were by top-six forwards. The last time the Lightning received a goal from a bottom-six forward was Game 2 against Montreal, when J.T. Brown scored.

While the Rangers need more from their stars, the Lightning could use a little help from the supporting cast.

"If we want to advance, we're going to need more than [Palat-Johnson-Nikita Kucherov] to score," coach Jon Cooper said before Game 2 vs. the Rangers. "Depth is a big thing. You look across the hall, and they haven't scored a ton of goals in the playoffs, but they're getting a balanced attack from a lot of guys. It's not the Rick Nashes that have scored every single night. They've had other guys chip in. And they're advancing, and that's how we're going to have to do it is we need more guys to chip in."

Will Experience Make a Difference?

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The Rangers have played 11 rounds of postseason hockey since 2012 and eight rounds since 2013. There has been some roster turnover, but a lot of the guys on this year's team were there for the Cup final run last year.

The Lightning have a few players with experience, but for most of them, the four-game sweep at the hands of the Canadiens in the first round last year was all they knew entering this year's playoffs.

"We're still a young team," Alex Killorn said after Game 2. "A lot of guys this is their second shot at the playoffs. We like to talk about how young guys were last year; I think you go through a Game 7 with Detroit, a tough series against Montreal, you start to learn and you start to build a little bit on that."

The stakes will only get higher as the series progresses; how will the Lightning react in comparison to the seasoned Rangers?

Do the Blackhawks Have Enough Defenseman Depth?

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Duncan Keith. Brent Seabrook. Niklas Hjalmarsson. Johnny Oduya.

That's a great top four the Blackhawks have on defense. Beyond that, however, it's a nightmare.

With Michal Rozsival out for the season, coach Joel Quenneville turned to David Rundblad for Game 1 against the Ducks. He was on the ice for two goals, both of which were mostly because of his mistakes. Kimmo Timonen has been a disaster as well, and even with Kyle Cumiskey replacing Rundblad for Game 2, Quenneville is still giving his top four major minutes and scarcely using his other two guys.

"You know your defense over the course of a season is going to have some stretches where you're going to be missing guys," Quenneville said Monday. "Based on performance, you're going to be moving guys in and out and around."

Either someone on that bottom pairing needs to improve, or Chicago will try to win this series with four defensemen, which is asking a lot considering they've played the equivalent of three games in three days. As my colleague Jonathan Willis wrote before Game 2, "it could well be that defensive depth ends up costing the Blackhawks their third championship of the [Stan] Bowman era."

This is probably the biggest storyline in either conference final.

Who Wins the Battle Between Jonathan Toews and Ryan Kesler?

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Two of the game's best two-way centers, Ryan Kesler and Jonathan Toews, have seen a whole lot of each other through two games. Maybe that changes in Chicago, when the Blackhawks have the last change and may opt to use Toews more against Ryan Getzlaf.

Toews and Kesler took 21 faceoffs against each other in Game 1, with Kesler winning 11. In Game 2, Kesler won 15 of 26 draws, and the two had plenty of physical battles, which included Kesler pulling away from Toews and nearly scoring on a deflection during the third overtime.

Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau is probably happy to use Kesler against Toews as often as possible, freeing Getzlaf to have his way against either Brad Richards or Antoine Vermette. How Quenneville handles the matchups with the series shifting to United Center bears watching.

Can the Blackhawks Score More at Even Strength?

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Through about 176 minutes, the Blackhawks have two goals at five-on-five against the Ducks, the last one coming in the sixth period of Game 2. In their past four games, the Blackhawks have just four goals at even strength.

You take a win any way you can get them on the road to start a playoff series, but this isn't a winning formula for the series.

The Blackhawks have 25 goals at five-on-five in 12 playoff games, which is slightly better than their 155 in 82 regular-season games. They've gotten the job done at five-on-five prior to this series in the playoffs, and they'll need to get better at home in Games 3 and 4.

Dave Lozo covers the NHL for Bleacher Report.