Sports - NHL - Canucks

POSTED: Thursday, Apr. 30, 2009

Blackhawks believe they can advance past Canucks in Stanley Cup playoffs

CHICAGO - They began to believe about a month into the 2008-09 season.

It was then that the Blackhawks started thinking their preseason plans of merely reaching the playoffs for the first time in seven years weren't grandiose enough.

"Those goals changed probably in November," veteran defenseman Brian Campbell said. "Now it's dream big and go after it all. We have the horses to do it and who knows what can happen."

What has happened so far is the Hawks already have surpassed what earlier would have amounted to a successful season and now have their sights set on making history as they make their first appearance in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs since 1996. They will take on the Vancouver Canucks in a best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal likely beginning Thursday night at General Motors Place.

The Hawks are flying high after dispatching the Calgary Flames four games to two Monday night with their 4-1 road victory.

"That was the goal at the start of the year, to make the playoffs," winger Patrick Kane said. "Then you see how rookies step up and different players come into their own. So far the year has been pretty successful. We don't want to stop here, though. We want to keep going."

It's the third postseason meeting of all time between the Hawks and Canucks, with each team claiming a series victory. The Hawks swept Vancouver 4-0 in the 1995 Western Conference semifinals in the last meeting between the franchises. Vancouver topped the Hawks 4-1 in the 1982 Campbell Conference finals the first time the franchises met.

"Since the start of the year guys weren't happy with just saying the fans are back and it's a fun team to watch," forward Adam Burish said. "We wanted to show that we're a good hockey team and we're ... going to do more than just make the playoffs.

"It's more than just being OK. We want to be a great team. We want to go deep in the playoffs."

The hopes of a deep run were bolstered as they dismantled the Flames, including the feat of closing out the series with a playoff victory on the road, something the Hawks hadn't done since defeating the St. Louis Blues 2-1 on April 18, 2002.

"That's what 'Q' (coach Joel Quenneville) talked to us about before (Monday's) game," Burish said. "If you want to win the big prize, you have to win on the road. We hadn't been able to do that yet. It's just another steppingstone for us to get some confidence in a different kind of way.

"Holding off a team that was desperate in the third period and winning a game on the road is big for us and our confidence. It's little things on our way that we can hang onto and build off."

The Hawks, who are making their 54th all-time appearance in the Stanley Cup playoffs, split the regular season series with Vancouver. The Hawks won the first two games Oct. 19 at the United Center and Dec. 20 at GM Place before the Canucks took the final two Feb. 7 at GM Place and March 29 at the UC.

Vancouver has been resting and waiting for its next opponent since sweeping the Blues in the quarterfinals.