When it comes to playoff hockey, scoring depth tends to lead to Stanley Cups.
Think about it. The Kings, the Blackhawks, Detroit a few years ago. All of those teams had scoring from not just the top six, but the bottom six as well.
In a league where the best offensive players are usually matched up against the best defensive players, the mismatches can occur on the third and fourth lines.
Chicago's third and fourth lines are at vastly different stages at this point in the playoffs in comparison to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Teuvo Teravainen scored the tying goal in Game 1. The 20-year-old rookie plays third line minutes. The game-winning goal came from Antoine Vermette just two minutes later. Vermette plays a bottom six role on the Blackhawks.
That's just two of the 18 total goals the Blackhawks' bottom six have scored all through the playoffs.
The Tampa Bay Lightning have just four goals from its third and fourth line all through the playoffs.
The saying is "defense wins championship," but isn't that a thing of the past? Shouldn't the saying be more along the lines of "a lineup filled top to bottom with legitimate scoring threats wins championships?"
If that's the case, it would be hard not to say the Blackhawks will win their sixth Stanley Cup in their franchise's history.
(h/t Bleacher Report)
Photo Credit: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
