Chicago Blackhawks Don't Need Superman Effort Out of Corey Crawford to Win Cup

Of the recent Stanley Cup-winning goaltenders, Corey Crawford may not inspire the most confidence.

Wedged between a pair of championships by the Los Angeles Kings’ Jonathan Quick, Crawford won a title of his own in 2013. Before that, it was Tim Thomas backstopping the Boston Bruins.

Crawford’s reputation, whether earned or not, is more like that of the previous Chicago Blackhawks goalie who tended the twine during a championship run in 2010—Antti Niemi.

Niemi had a .910 save percentage and 2.63 goals-against average that spring. More importantly, though, he had 16 wins versus six losses.

Crawford’s numbers this spring are only slightly better than those. He has a .918 save percentage and a 2.50 GAA. He’s got 11 wins.

Now he needs just two more to raise his second Cup in three years.

That’s the thing about Blackhawks goaltenders when the team’s stars are playing well: They don’t have to be Superman. Clark Kent will do just fine.

In fact, for goalies who've played at least four games in the playoffs this year, Crawford's save percentage and GAA ranked 11th and 12th respectively. That's a pretty telling indication that while Chicago hasn't been winning in spite of Crawford, he certainly hasn't been the catalyst that has propelled them to success this postseason. 

Granted, Crawford was good in Game 4. Just as good as he had to be on a night Jonathan Toews scored his first goal of the series and Patrick Kane earned his first point. Brandon Saad netted his second goal in as many games, and the Blackhawks tied the series at two games apiece Wednesday with a 2-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Through the first 58 minutes, 40 seconds, Crawford allowed a goal on a play during which he lost track of the puck behind the net.

But it was in the final 80 seconds that he was exceptional, keeping the Lightning from scoring despite facing nine shots, including two near-goals from Steven Stamkos.

Chris O'Meara/Associated Press

He showed smooth and quick lateral movement.

He looked like the guy who played like the playoff MVP in 2013.

The Conn Smythe went to Patrick Kane two years ago, but Toews said recently that trophy should have gone to Crawford, who finished with a 1.84 GAA and .932 save percentage—the best he’s posted in any regular season or playoff run.

"If we had our choice, for sure it would have been him," Toews recently told Paul Skrbina and Chris Hine of the Chicago Tribune. "There is no doubt in our minds that he doesn't get the respect he deserves, but it doesn't bother him. He'll keep playing well and winning for his teammates."

There are times Crawford doesn’t get a ton of respect from his own coach. Joel Quenneville suggested his goalie was “just OK” to Yahoo's Greg Wyshynski after a shaky Game 2 performance.

Despite more than 40 playoff victories in his career, Crawford has provided plenty of examples of posting below-average numbers when average might have been good enough to make a difference.

Last year in the Western Conference Final against the Kings, he put up an .878 save percentage. The Blackhawks still went seven games and had every opportunity to make the Stanley Cup Final. In the first round this year against the Nashville Predators, no one would have blamed Quenneville if he didn’t bother giving his starter another shot after a couple of stinkers forced the coach to go to backup Scott Darling early.

And in these playoffs, Crawford has given up three or more goals 10 times. The 'Hawks record in those games is still .500 at 5-5. He doesn't need to be elite for the Blackhawks to continue to survive and advance. 

But if the guy from the 2013 Cup run shows up in Games 5 and 6, as he did in the dying seconds of Game 4, there may not be any need for a Game 7 back in Tampa.

"I thought he was outstanding tonight. Call it a goalie win,” Quenneville told reporters after Wednesday’s contest, as seen live on TSN. “Look how he battled. He’s a battler. It’s a great illustration how he stayed with it. He was moving and was following the puck. It was big. He was big. It was a nice response.

“We saw in 2013 what he’s capable of doing.”

It's what the guys in front of him are capable of that will have more of an impact in the next few games, starting Saturday in Tampa. With so much star power in front of him and the top two now showing signs of life, things are looking up for the Blackhawks.

As long as Toews and Kane carry forward their momentum, Crawford doesn’t have to be as good as he was two springs ago.

He just has to avoid being bad.