Lightning vs Blackhawks

TAMPA -- All season long Chicago Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville has preferred to keep his two best forwards on separate lines.

Now, at the most important time of the year, he has veered away from that philosophy of balance in favor of the fireworks that can be produced when captain Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane play together.

Toews and Kane will at least start Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, TVA Sports) together on the top line with Brandon Saad, giving the Tampa Bay Lightning a high-powered line to worry about shutting down.

"Last two games, they were so good together, it's tough to get them apart now," Quenneville said, referring to Games 6 and 7 of the Western Conference Final against the Anaheim Ducks. "We'll see how the game goes matchup-wise. Certainly have some balance if you get them apart. Together, pretty dynamic the last two games."

TAMPA -- Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper is not ready to tip his hand on how he plans to handle situations when Chicago Blackhawks forwards Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews are on the ice together in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final at Amalie Arena on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, TVA Sports).

Cooper expects Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville to mix up his lines frequently during the best-of-7 series and hopes to have a plan for each change he makes.

"We'll just have to see how things go, how things start," Cooper said. "I can't predict what he's going to do. I'm fairly certain the lineup he starts with won't be the lineup he finishes with. He'll move things around."

TAMPA -- Joel Quenneville sat at the podium for his 2015 Stanley Cup Final Media Day press conference adorned in his typical Chicago Blackhawks track suit.

The initials embroidered on his jacket were a reminder that this season has been anything but typical for the Blackhawks.

Quenneville's jacket says "CR" to honor Clint Reif, an assistant equipment manager who died in December. Many of the Blackhawks were stunned again in February when former teammate Steve Montador, who played for Chicago in 2011-12, died.

"It's tough," defenseman Brent Seabrook said. "As tough as the season is, going through situations and things like that, it's tough. We miss them and yeah … I don't really know what to say other than that. It's just tough."

TAMPA -- Jonathan Drouin is so accustomed to hearing the question at this point, the Tampa Bay Lightning rookie has the answer down pat.

Throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with Drouin a healthy scratch for all but three games, the forward has been asked what the experience has been like, how he is keeping up morale, and whether it is frustrating for the No. 3 pick in the 2013 NHL Draft to sit and watch his teammates pursue the Cup without him.

Now that the Lightning have reached the Stanley Cup Final against the Chicago Blackhawks, with Game 1 of the best-of-7 series at Amalie Arena on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, TVA Sports), there was no reason for those questions to stop, and Drouin has perfected the answer.

"Yeah, pretty much," Drouin said with a laugh Tuesday at Media Day. "It's really tight now."

Great food and craft beer are on the line now that the mayors of Tampa and Chicago have made a friendly wager for the 2015 Stanley Cup Final.

Tampa mayor Bob Buckhorn and Chicago mayor Rahm Emmanuel agreed to terms for the best-of-7 series between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Chicago Blackhawks, which begins Wednesday with Game 1 at Amalie Arena (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, TVA Sports).

Buckhorn is wagering a case of Cigar City Invasion Pale Ale as well as 122 mini Cuban sandwiches and the Original "1905" Salad from Columbia Restaurant, a 110-year-old restaurant in the Ybor City section of Tampa.

Emmanuel is countering with 122 slices of Eli's cheesecake, a case of craft beer from Slap Shot Brewing, a mustard fried catfish and peach cobbler from BJ's Market, and Giordano's best deep-dish.

The Stanley Cup was first awarded in 1893, 122 years ago.

CHICAGO -- Chicago Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville was coy Monday when asked whether forward Bryan Bickell sat out the final 40 minutes of Game 7 of the Western Conference Final because of injury or poor play.

"We'll say it was my decision, but we'll say a little bit of both," Quenneville said.

Bickell and center Marcus Kruger each will play in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, TVA Sports), Quenneville said.

TAMPA - Despite having two days off, Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said it hasn't sunk in that he will be going to his first Stanley Cup Final.

The Lightning advanced with a 2-0 win in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final against the New York Rangers on Friday. They will face the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 1 of the Cup Final at Amalie Arena on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, TVA Sports).

Tampa Bay returned to the ice for a light practice Monday, and Stamkos said he's ready for the challenge.

"I don't think it's really truly going to sink in until we drop the puck, to be honest," Stamkos said. "I know there's going to be a lot of smoke and mirrors with the media attention and all that. We came [Monday] and it was sort of a light day to get things organized. We just want to focus in on the business aspect, the game itself. That's what we're preparing to do. Get these next couple of days out of the way and it's game on."