CHICAGO // The Chicago Blackhawks and Philadelphia Flyers waged a Stanley Cup opener that was at times wild and sloppy, a high-scoring, up-and-down game with five lead changes and a winning goal from an unlikely hero. Tomas Kopecky, scratched in the previous five games and playing because of an injury to Andrew Ladd, took a pass from Kris Versteeg in the third period and beat Brian Boucher, the backup goalie, to send Chicago to a 6-5 victory on Saturday night.
The Blackhawks took advantage of the starter Michael Leighton, who was pulled, and Boucher to grab the early lead in the series and take the first step toward ending their 49-year championship drought. They also found out what they knew going in - it's going to be a difficult series against a gritty Philadelphia team on a remarkable run. On this night, pucks seemed to find the net as often as they did sticks as both teams had trouble with control. "The ice is below average," Philadelphia's Scott Hartnell said. "It's really chippy. Hopefully they'll be able to do a better job for game two, the ice guys." * AP
Game 1: Philadelphia 5 Chicago 6 Game 2: tonight, Philadelphia at Chicago Game 3: June 2, Chicago at Philadelphia Game 4: June 4, Chicago at Philadelphia Game 5: June 6, Philadelphia at Chicago* Game 6: June 9, Chicago at Philadephia* Game 7: June 11, Philadelphia at Chicago* * if necessary
