Home Ice Disadvantage? How To Win on the Road in the Playoffs

Last night's decisive win by Chicago is just following the odd pattern that has been happening in this year's postseason. After a round and a half of amazing playoff hockey, teams aren't having a hard time scoring, they just can't seem to do it on home ice.

In past years, teams with crazy fans managed to use the adrenaline in the building and send their fans home happy and honking their car horns. The white-out in Phoenix is legendary for rallying the troops and creating a win. Even Montreal and Detroit, teams whose fans bleed their teams' colors, couldn't get the W on home ice.

What's the deal? It's not like the better teams are swooping in and shutting out the opposition. The lower ranked teams get wins as well, sometimes big wins, but they also win away from home!

What it really comes down to is the product of what the "new NHL" has become. The level of intensity and skill is at such a high that every point, every penalty kill and every win has to be earned with blood, sweat and hell of a lot of effort. Each and every team who has made it to the second round has top calibre players suiting up night after night and all of them wants to raise the cup, whether on their home ice or not.

There's only one solution: want it more than the other team does. Skate onto the ice and take the win, regardless of fans booing your goalie or cheering when your team gets checked hard into the boards. The only way to shut them up is to put it in the back of the net.

It can be done. Montreal finished off the Capitals in Washington's arena, San Jose has won three out of their seven wins on the road and the Blackhawks have won three out of their six victories away from the Windy City.

How did each of them do it? They were hungry for a win. It's that simple. How did Montreal knock out the high-octane Capitals? Same way they managed to beat the Pens in Pittsburgh the other day, determination. In the 2010 NHL if you don't want it more than the other team they're not going to hand it to you on a silver platter. If Montreal wants to stay in this series, they need to take it from the Penguins tonight right from the first faceoff or they're going to be looking at a one-game-knockout.

It's even crazier in Boston. The Bruins are all over the Flyers who blew past the Devils in round one but seem to just not want it anymore. Rask, Savard and Recchi want to go all the way and it looks like nothing is going to stop them. Same story on the west coast, as San Jose is showing the Red Wings they're not going to flop this year like they did in the past.

Fight for every advantage and you'll win. Whether the fans are all dressed up in your team's colors or not, it's about taking the win from the other team. When you want it more than they do, who cares about home ice advantage?