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It has been nearly five decades since long-suffering Chicago Blackhawks fans have seen their beloved team hoist the Stanley Cup. Not since the playing days of Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita and Pierre Pilote have the Hawks enjoyed a squad with as much talent as this one, and current stars like Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith have willed the team to within one victory of the club’s first Stanley Cup since 1961.

Standing in the way of the Hawks’ Stanley Cup glory is a gritty, determined Philadelphia Flyers squad that has already overcome incredible odds to get to where they are today. Though the Flyers have their backs against the wall, they are far from down and out. Tonight’s game six match-up takes place in Philly’s home building, where they’ve been all but unbeatable all playoffs long. They certainly aren’t going to roll over and hand Lord Stanley’s silver mug to the Hawks. Though they face an uphill climb they faced far longer odds as recently as the quarter-finals against the Boston Bruins. They were down 3-0 in that series and rallied to beat the Bruins in seven games, marking only the third time in NHL history such a comeback has been staged.

Keys to victory for the Blackhawks

Obviously, the number one key for any team in the playoffs is goaltending. First year netminder Antti Niemi has showed flashes of brilliance during Chicago’s playoff run, but he has also had some less than stellar performances, and his numbers so far in the finals have been subpar. He will have to find his A game tonight if the Hawks want to end this series in six.

Jonathan Toews must be a dominant force tonight. The young captain of the Hawks was awesome through the first three rounds of the playoffs, and is arguably the strongest candidate for this year’s Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. However, he has seen his stock slip during the finals. The Flyers have found a way to neutralize the slick center, and keep him from having a noticeable impact in the series.

Keys to victory for the Flyers

Mike Richards has to be much better. Much like his counterpart on the Blackhawks, the Philly captain has been all but invisible over the first five games of this series. Against Boston and Montreal Richards showed his leadership, dealing out a punishing hit or scoring a timely goal to swing momentum in his team’s favor. He will need to go to that well again tonight and find a way to lift his team up when they need it most.

Chris Pronger will have to bounce back from a horrendous game five. Much has been made of the fact that Pronger was on the ice for six of Chicago’s goals and in the penalty box for a seventh in Philly’s 7-4 loss to the Hawks in game five. The towering defenseman finished the night with a career-worst minus-5 rating. Obviously this is a performance that can’t be repeated if the Flyers are to stave off elimination. Not that he needs it, but Pronger will have extra motivation to be better tonight after the Chicago Tribune ran an unflattering Photoshopped picture of Pronger wearing a figure skating skirt, with the moniker “Chrissy Pronger” assigned to him.

Naturally, both teams will require their respective supporting casts to step up tonight. Though Niemi, Toews, Richards and Pronger will be focal points, in all likelihood it will be an unsung hero that makes the difference in this crucial game six.

Will the Chicago Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup tonight? Will the sun set on the 2009-10 NHL season? Or will the Flyers once again find some magic, and force the Hawks to game seven at the United Center? One thing is for sure: it will be an all out war tonight, and whoever emerges victorious will be bloody and bruised…and smiling.

Since I recently put together a list of the top 10 greatest Philadelphia Flyers of all time, I thought it only fair that I give the same treatment for their opponents in this year’s Stanley Cup final.

One of the original six franchises, the Blackhawks have not enjoyed the success of Montreal, Toronto or Detroit when it comes to Stanley Cup championships, but they have seen some legendary players in their locker room over the years. The cream of the crop of this list of the top 10 Chicago Blackhawks of all time would merit serious consideration on the list of the top 10 NHL players of all time. They may have only tasted Stanley Cup glory 3 times since they arrived in the NHL in 1926, but these great players have given the fans something to cheer about during the lean years. Here are my picks for the top 10 greatest Chicago Blackhawks of all time:

10 - Jeremy Roenick

Love him or hate him, you can't claim that J.R. wasn't a spectacular player when he broke into the NHL with the Blackhawks in the 1988-89 season. He only played 20 games that first year, but made an immediate impact with 18 points. That was just the beginning for Roenick, who eclipsed the 100 point barrier 3 straight times in the early 1990s, and enjoyed back to back 50+ goal seasons over that span. Always controversial, always entertaining, J.R.'s accomplishments are good enough to eke on to this list as one of the best Blackhawks ever.

9 - Doug Wilson

Known for his howitzer-like slapshot, Doug Wilson was one of the top offensive defensemen in the NHL during the 1980s. He quarterbacked the Chicago powerplay, and his 85 points in the 1981-82 season earned him the Norris trophy that year. He played 14 seasons for the Blackhawks, piling up 779 points during his time there, and it was a testament to his leadership that when the San Jose Sharks took him in the dispersal draft that preceded their entry into the NHL they named him their captain.

8 - Steve Larmer

This iron man right winger once played 884 consecutive NHL games, the most ever for a single team. He was a model of consistency for the Blackhawks, putting up 30 or more goals in all but 2 of his seasons (28, 29) with the club. 5 times he eclipsed the 40 goal mark, including his best season in 1990-91 where he had 44 goals and 101 points. Larmer dwelled in the shadow of star players like Denis Savard and Jeremy Roenick and never seemed to get the attention his accomplishments deserved, but with over 1,000 career points, most of them in a Blackhawks' uniform, it is easy to see how valuable he was to his club during his career.

7 - Chris Chelios

If this 3 time Norris trophy winner had spent more of his career with the Blackhawks there is no question he would be much higher up this list. Still, during his 9 seasons in Chicago this Illinois native made a huge impact, and was a fan favorite. He earned 2 of his Norris trophies as a member of the Blackhawks, and captained the team as well. He helped the Blackhawks make it to the 1992 Stanley Cup final, and earned 487 points during his time there.

6 - Pierre Pilote

Pierre Pilote is widely considered the best defenseman to ever play for the Blackhawks, and thus is an easy choice for a spot on this list. He won 3 Norris trophies during the 1960s as the NHL's best defenseman. He won a Stanley Cup with the team in 1961, and the following season was named the captain of the team. He racked up nearly 500 points during his NHL career, and in 1975 was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

5 - Denis Savard

In one of the greatest gaffs in NHL draft history the Montreal Canadiens passed over this francophone superstar in the 1980 NHL entry draft, allowing Chicago to snap him up with the number 3 pick that year. Nicknamed Savvy for his clever puck-handling skills, Savard immediately proved that the Canadiens had made a poor decision in passing him over. In the first 8 years of his career with the Blackhawks, Savard eclipsed 100 points on 5 separate occasions, including an incredible 131 point season in 1987-88. Most of his 1,338 career points came as a member of the club, and he is the third leading scorer in Chicago Blackhawks' history.

4 - Tony Esposito

You know the competition is tough when Hall of Famer Tony O can only crack the number 4 spot on the list of the greatest Blackhawks. Though he had played a few games with Montreal the previous season, his career really began with Chicago in the 1969-70 season. He won the Calder trophy that year as the NHL's best rookie, racking up an incredible 15 shutouts that season, a modern day NHL record that still stands today. He was one of the best goalies in the game during the 1970s, capturing the Vezina trophy on 3 separate occasions, and playing for Team Canada at the legendary 1972 Summit Series against the Soviets.

3 - Glenn Hall

Wow, back to back goalies on the list. The man they called Mr. Goalie tended the nets for the Blackhawks in the 1950s and 1960s, and much of his incredible 502 game playing streak was played in a Blackhawk uniform. He backstopped the Blackhawks to their last Stanley Cup in 1961, and won 3 Vezina trophies. He won a Calder trophy with the Red Wings, and a Conn Smythe with the St. Louis Blues, but Mr. Goalie's greatest years came as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks.

2 - Stan Mikita

Stan Mikita spent his entire NHL Hall of Fame career with the Chicago Blackhawks, and his 1,467 career points are the most in the history of the team. He was arguably the most dominant centerman in the 1960s, helping Chicago to a Stanley Cup in 1961, and leading the league in scoring on 4 separate occasions. He was also twice awarded the Hart trophy as league MVP and played in the All Star game 9 times. His current ranking of 12th all time in NHL scoring history show just what a deadly offensive threat this Slovakian great really was.

1 - Bobby Hull

At the number 1 spot of the top 10 best Blackhawks of all time is one of the truly legendary superstars of the game. Dubbed The Golden Jet for his incredible skating speed, Hull was an unstoppable force on the left wing for the Blackhawks. He and Stan Mikita were one of the greatest one-two punches in NHL history. Hull won the Art Ross as the league's leading scorer 3 different times, and won back to back Hart trophies in 1965 and 1966. He was known for curving his blade, and unleashing wicked slapshots that threatened to take goalies' heads off. 5 times in his career he eclipsed the 50 goal mark, and he finished his career with 610 overall, second most ever at the time of his retirement. It is staggering to think what his goal-scoring numbers would have been had he not defected to rival league WHA during the 1970s. He racked up an additional 303 goals in that league. One of the purest snipers the game has ever seen.

Younger fans of the team may be wondering why Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane aren’t on this list. While I have little doubt that they one day will bump a pair of players off this list, this young superstar duo aren’t there yet. If they can bring a Stanley Cup to the Hawks for the first time in almost 50 years it will go a long way to cementing their legacy.

A couple of weeks ago when I wrote my article on the top 10 Conn Smythe Trophy favorites, Chicago’s Jonathan Toews didn’t appear anywhere on the list. However, in the intervening time he has arguably leap-frogged every other play other the list, including playoff standouts like Joe Pavelski and Jaroslav Halak, both of whom have seen their stock drop in the third round.

Other early favorites like Sidney Crosby, Mikael Samuelsson, and Tuukka Rask have all been sent packing, and thus are out of contention altogether. Of the remaining players the Montreal Canadiens’ Halak and Mike Cammalleri, and the Philadelphia Flyers’ Mike Richards remain the only legitimate threats to deny Toews the Conn Smythe this year.

Though he had a relatively slow start against the Nashville Predators in round one of the playoffs, Toews has been on a tear ever since. His dominating performance in the Chicago Blackhawks’ series against the Vancouver Canucks is the single biggest reason his team is still competing in this year’s playoffs. Forget Dustin Byfuglien, forget Niemi, if not for Toews and his performance, particularly in the hostile environment of GM Place, the Blackhawks would be golfing right now.

In the first two games of the series with the San Jose Sharks Toews has continued to wield a hot stick, and again proved himself the ultimate road warrior of this year’s playoffs. In two games against the Sharks so far Toews has three more points, giving him 23 overall, good enough for the league lead in that category. His 11 powerplay points are also first among playoff skaters and his 17 road points have helped his Blackhawks win a record-tying 7 straight road playoff games.

Yes, there is still a lot of hockey left to play, and a lot can happen in between now and the time Gary Bettman hands the Stanley Cup to the captain of the 2010 champions, but if Toews continues to play as well as he has been to date it is hard to imagine anyone but him as the favorite to take home the Conn Smythe this year.