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Blackhawks: Golden Knights vs Avalanche determines opponent

By Vincent Parise

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 23: Marc-Andre Fleury #29 of the Vegas Golden Knights makes a save in front of Joonas Donskoi #72 of the Colorado Avalanche in the third period of their game at T-Mobile Arena on December 23, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Avalanche defeated the Golden Knights 7-3. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 23: Marc-Andre Fleury #29 of the Vegas Golden Knights makes a save in front of Joonas Donskoi #72 of the Colorado Avalanche in the third period of their game at T-Mobile Arena on December 23, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Avalanche defeated the Golden Knights 7-3. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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The Chicago Blackhawks are definitely going to have a tough first-round matchup.

The Chicago Blackhawks did it! They won their play-in series against the Edmonton Oilers to advance into the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They were given a second chance in the return to play tournament and they took advantage. They defeated the team with the NHL’s two leading scorers on its team and a lot of people deserve credit. Now, they await word on which team they are going to play in the next round.

The Dallas Stars and St. Louis Blues are both 0-2 in the round-robin. Their next game against each other is going to determine the third and fourth seed in the Western Conference. The game between the Colorado Avalanche and Vegas Golden Knights today is going to determine who has the first and second seed. Whoever wins that first seed by winning the game is who the Chicago Blackhawks will face.

The Avalanche might remind some people of the Oilers but a much better version. The Oilers are headlined by the best player in the world in Connor McDavid. Colorado has what might be the second-best player in Nathan MacKinnon. He is one of the MVP caliber players that can change any given game all on his own. The Hawks went 1-3 this season against the Avalanche but that was a long time ago. They are much deeper outside of their stars than Edmonton so this would be an incredible challenge.

The Vegas Golden Knights are a different animal. Not many teams in the league run four lines better than them. They have one of the most underrated stars in the NHL in Mark Stone. He absolutely makes a case for a top-10 player in the league as he is one of the best two-way forwards in the world. They have two really good goalies in Marc Andre Fleury and Robin Lehner so they would present a major challenge all around.

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There is no telling who the Hawks would “rather face” in the first round because they are both incredibly good in different ways. Either way, they need the same intensity from guys like Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, and Corey Crawford. This is going to be fun to watch. Fans can catch the game between Colorado and Vegas on NBC at 2 PM.

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