Blackhawks win 3rd Cup in 6 yrs

Duncan Keith is the 2015 Conn Smythe Trophy winner (Playoff MVP).

By: Lamar "L.A." Smith

The Blackhawks up 3-2 with a chance to closeout at home spells bad news for the opposition. This was my previous prediction when I picked the Blackhawks to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning in 6 games.

Chicago is a city known for having great sports teams. The Jordan Era brought Chi-town six championships. The White Sox and the Cubs both have multiple World Series titles. The Bears have even won multiple NFL Championships and the 1985 Super Bowl.

However, Chicago sports teams have been dealing with an insurmountable amount of disappointment lately. The White Sox last won the World Series in 2005 but have only made the playoffs once since 2005 and the Cubs have not won the World Series in 107 years. The Bears have not won the Super Bowl since 1985 and currently have a drastically over paid quarterback who finds a way to perform below his high talent level on a consistent basis in Jay Cutler. The Bulls have not won since Jordan left Chicago in 1998 and Bulls' fans shed tears whenever Derrick Rose goes for a dunk or shoots a jump shot in anticipation he might hurt his brittle knees again. The Bulls also squandered a 2-1 lead versus LeBron and the 2015 Eastern Conference Champion Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Blackhawks has been the only team in Chicago who has produced for the "Windy City". Chicago won its 2nd title in the last 3 seasons and its 3rd in the last 6. Keith, Toews, Seabrook and Kane have been the core through this historic run during the NHL's Salary Cap Era.

Duncan Keith won the Conn Smythe Trophy becoming only the 9th defenseman to win the award. Keith also was second on the team in points and led the team in assists. The alternate captain also scored the Cup clinching goal in the 2nd period to break the tie.

Kane would put the game on ice when he scored his first goal of the series with just over 5 minutes left in the third period to put the Hawks up 2-0.

Duncan Keith's Cup clinching goal.

The supporting cast would help out the star trio of Kane, Toews and Keith. Seven other players had double digit point totals during the team's Stanley Cup run. "The Other Guys" made the difference for Chicago throughout the playoffs and would bring a 6th Stanley Cup title to the city of Chicago. Teuvo Teravainen led the team in points and goals in the Stanley Cup Final with 2 assists and 2 goals. Antoine Vermette scored the game-winning goal in two of the team's four victories in the Final despite only having two goals coming into the Stanley Cup Final.

The three best players in Chicago each have held the Conn Smythe trophy during the teams three titles: the captain Toews in 2010, arguably the team's best player Kane in 2013 and the alternate captain in Keith.

A dynasty may be considered 6 titles in 8 years by Jordan's Bulls in the NBA, 5 titles in 7 years by the Toronto Maple Leafs or 4 titles in 5 years by the Edmonton Oilers during Wayne Gretzky's tenure with the team. Though, in today's sports world where a lot of leagues are trying to prevent "super teams" and encourage competition fans may not see too many more runs like the Blackhawks.

The Hawks have a future star in the making in Brandon Saad and both of the team's best players Kane and Toews are still only 27 years-old and will start to enter the primes of their careers.

Are today's Chicago Blackhawks' a dynasty?

Three titles in 6 years and 4 Western Conference appearances in 7 years exhibits a level of success the public have not seen in years in the NHL. Joel Quenneville is starting to look a lot like Gregg Popovich due to his long-term success in Chicago.

The Blackhawks may not be classified as a dynasty but trust me Chicago is about as close as it gets.

Every goal of the Blackhawks 2015 Stanley Cup run.