Coming into the post season the Chicago Blackhawks were an enigma wrapped in a riddle. They won the Central Division title as the Minnesota Wild went into a swoon.
They won the title on defense and sheer force of will of their head coach, Joel 
Quenneville.
But not on a great deal of offence.
For the second straight game in this opening series with the Nashville Predators, the Hawks were shutout, this time 5-0.
Pekka Rinne made 30 saves to stay perfect in this series and the Preds now have a 2-0 series lead heading home for games 3 and 4.
“It was almost like a chess match [in Game 1],” Nashville’s Ryan Ellis said. “For us tonight, we wanted to be more attacking. I thought we played solid defense last game, but it’s not fun playing defense for the whole game. Tonight I think it was a little bit more back and forth.”
That 2-0 series deficit at home is not something the Blackhawks are used to, in fact, they have not experienced that sort deficit in nine seasons.
“They’re doing everything defensively to frustrate us and give us nothing,” Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews said. “It seems like we’re trying to force plays that aren’t there sometimes, and when they get their chances, they’re taking advantage of our mistakes and it ends up in the back of our net.”
To add insult to injury, Rinne had two assists on the night on goals from Harry Zolnierczyk and Ryan Johansen.
“It’s not every night you get a shutout,” Rinne said. “It’s pretty rare. So, for sure, it feels great personally, but also as a team, we all have to feel good about it.”
Colton Sissons, Kevin Fiala and Ellis also struck for goals for Nashville.
[WATCH: All Predators vs. Blackhawks highlights] | [RELATED: Complete Nashville vs. Chicago series coverage]
Corey Crawford made 24 saves in taking the loss.
“I haven’t scored a goal in two games. Not acceptable. As an offensive guy, you pride yourself in that. I’ve got to be better personally,” Chicago’s Patrick Kane said after the loss.
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