NHL Playoffs: Red Wings at Blackhawks Game 4

From the start of the day, Game 4 had a different feel than the other Chicago Blackhawks playoff games I have attended. First, it was the first afternoon game of the playoffs. The Blackhawks usually play Sunday afternoon games during the regular season but the weather is cold and on this Sunday it was warm.

Obtaining Tickets
While searching for Game 3 tickets on Friday afternoon, I also bought my ticket for Game 4 on Sunday. While searching ads on craigslist.org, I found an advertisement that was selling his single Game 4 ticket for $110 ($4 over the $95 face value plus Ticketmaster fees) – a good deal compared to what we paid for Friday night’s game. He emailed me back to say the ticket was still available and I agreed to meet him in the South Loop on Friday afternoon before Game 3.

CTA to game
Since I was meeting Blackhawks Jim at the game and we were planning to barbeque at his place in Wilmette after the game, I took the CTA to the game so I could get a ride straight to Wilmette. If heading to the United Center by public transportation, you need to get to Madison Ave. and then take the #19 United Center Express bus to the United Center. Since I live by Wrigley Field, I took the Red Line (‘L’) and got off at Monroe Ave. to catch the bus. I arrived at the United Center by 2 pm.

The Game
The Red Wings scored the first goal of the game short handed and that set the tone for the rest of the game. The Red Wings defeated the Blackhawks 6-1 in the most lopsided victory I have attended during the post season. Blackhawks backup goalie Cristobal Huet started because Nikolai Khabibulin was injured in Game 3. However, the one bright side for the Blackhawks was that they scored a power play goal – continuing the Detroit Red Wings record setting streak by allowing a power play goal for the 13th consecutive playoff game.