Ducks vs. Blackhawks: Game 4 Score and Twitter Reaction from 2015 NHL Playoffs

Antoine Vermette was a healthy scratch for the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final, but played the hero for the Blackhawks in Game 4.

The Blackhawks outlasted the Anaheim Ducks in a double-overtime victory, 5-4. The critical home win evened the series at two games apiece and featured three goals from the Ducks in 37 seconds in the third period, a game-tying goal from Chicago near the end of that third period and a thrilling first overtime that didn't feature a single goal.

Then Vermette ended it with a score in the second extra period.

Everybody breathe.

Despite allowing three goals in 37 seconds, Chicago goaltender Corey Crawford stopped 47 of 51 shots and turned away numerous golden opportunities for Anaheim in the sudden-death overtimes. Five different Chicago players scored, including Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews.

Tom Gulitti of the Record noted that the Blackhawks had the Ducks right where they wanted at the end of the game and also provided something of a silver lining for Anaheim supporters:

Neither team broke through for the majority of the first period, although the quick pace of play was notable. Corey Masisak of NHL.com pointed out that the Blackhawks controlled the tempo but the Ducks' defenders kept the home team off the board early:

Chicago continued to dominate the shots on goal (14-6 in the first period), but it took a short-handed opportunity to get it on the board. Brandon Saad took the puck nearly the length of the ice, capitalized on the opportunity and gave the Blackhawks the 1-0 lead at the first intermission.

The Chicago Tribune's David Haugh praised Saad's efforts, but Brian Hamilton of Sports Illustrated noted that the Blackhawks' left-winger received some timely help from and official in the process:

Bleacher Report's national lead NHL writer Dave Lozo pointed out that the Ducks certainly had a valid complaint with the first goal:

It was exactly the start Chicago needed after losing Game 3 at home, and captain Toews commented on his team's urgency, per Shawn Roarke of NHL.com: "Of course we don't want to go down three games to one but tonight we can think of it as our Game 7 and we'll go out there and play our best game of the series; find a way to win [and] put ourselves in a spot that we want to be in."

The Blackhawks picked up where they left off at the start of the second period and dictated the tempo and opportunities.

Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register acknowledged that Chicago was understandably desperate with a 2-1 hole in the series, but goaltender Frederik Andersen kept Anaheim in the game:

Anaheim finally generated some momentum in the attacking zone when it went on a power play of its own. While it didn't convert on the actual power play, it peppered Crawford with shots and forced the Blackhawks to play nerve-wracking defense beyond the two-minute advantage.

Crawford did well to block numerous opportunities, but Kyle Palmieri snuck one past him off a costly turnover from Niklas Hjalmarsson. Masisak described the sequence, while Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun-Times noted just how close Crawford was to escaping the siege:

The two teams entered the third period tied at one, and Tracy Myers of CSN Chicago highlighted why that was a concern for the United Center crowd:

That may have been the case, but Chicago drew first blood in the final period thanks to Toews. The captain put home the go-ahead goal (and his first since May 3) in the opening minutes thanks to impressive patience.

Lazerus described the play, and Scott Powers of ESPNChicago.com noted it was an ideal time for Toews' line to finally break through:

The Blackhawks opened up some breathing room a few minutes later when Brent Seabrook teed up a slap shot and fired it past Andersen for a 3-1 lead. Lazerus pointed out the discrepancy from the earlier postseason games from the Ducks:

Right on cue, the third-period narrative changed. Anaheim stunned the crowd and the Blackhawks defense with three goals in 37 seconds. In the blink of an eye, the Ducks changed the tone of the entire contest and put Chicago in a state of desperation.

Hamilton and Jon Greenberg of ESPN tried to make sense of the shocking turnaround, while Liam McHugh of NBC Sports put it perfectly:

StatsCentre said that the Ducks' three goals in 37 seconds "smashes previous record for fastest 3 given up by the Hawks in a playoff game (1:29- 4/7/1938 vs TOR)."

Out of the depths of despair, Kane pushed a power-play goal through to tie the contest at four. Marc Silverman of ESPN 1000 in Chicago noted that the power-play strike was a rare occurrence:

The game went to overtime after the incredible five-minute flurry, and it only felt appropriate.

Anaheim controlled the pace in the opening eight minutes of overtime and fired the first 10 shots of extra time. However, the Blackhawks earned a power play with less than 11 minutes remaining in the overtime period but failed to capitalize.

Myers pointed out how close they were to the victory:

Chicago missed another golden opportunity when Andersen stoned a wide-open breakaway shot from Patrick Sharp, and the game went into double overtime. Despite the missed chances from the Blackhawks, it was the Ducks with a 17-5 advantage in the shots department in the first extra period.

The Blackhawks turned the tables in the second overtime and controlled the tempo. They rewarded their fans when Vermette buried the game-winner into the back of the net. Myers pointed out how much of a redemption story it was since he didn't even crack the lineup in Game 3:

The Blackhawks' official Twitter account let out a sigh of relief on behalf of the entire city of Chicago after the 5-4 win:

What's Next?

Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals is Monday back in Anaheim.

It is a brand new best-of-three series thanks to Chicago's victory Saturday. Home-ice advantage is certainly important in theory (and Games 5 and 7 will be in Anaheim if it goes the distance), but the road team won two of the first four games in this series.

Mark Potash of the Chicago Sun-Times provided some more hope for Blackhawks fans:

Both teams will undoubtedly be tired after Saturday's double-overtime thriller and a cross-country flight to Anaheim before Monday's showdown. Whichever team comes out early and establishes the tempo in the critical Game 5 could ovewhelm the opponent's will on the way to a victory.

For now, Chicago can celebrate a thrilling Game 4 win.