We Are The Champions

First off, apologies for the lateness of this post; the Blackhawks, as you may have heard, won their first Stanley Cup since 1961 nearly two weeks ago.  Even though it looked as if the Flyers may force a Game 7 after tying the game late in the third, Patrick Kane gained sports immortality in Chicago by flicking home the Cup-winning goal several minutes into OT.  Shortly thereafter, his fellow legend-in-the-making Jonathan Toews was awarded the Conn Smythe, and then was handed the silver chalice by Gary Bettman, setting off a wild on-ice celebration.  There really isn't much more that can be said at this point...we've all heard about the all-night celebration, the 4:30am landing at O'Hare, and the parading of the Cup around certain downtown establishments the next day.  It was just a sweet, sweet couple of days as the realization that this franchise actually won a Stanley Cup set in.  In some ways, I don't think it really quite did until the victory parade that Friday, which was truly something to see.  An estimated 2 million people lined the Michigan Avenue, and I wasn't really prepared for the awe-inspiring display that went on.  Perhaps it was because MJ's Bulls never had parades in the 90s, just rallies in Grant Park, but the ticker-tape reception for the Hawks on their double-decker buses was simply stunning.  Surreal, really.  


It's quite remarkable to think about the turnaround this organization just completed, which really started in late 2007 when Rocky Wirtz took over the franchise after his father's death.  John McDonough was brought in as team president soon after, and those two men deserve all the praise they're getting for turning the team's financial fortunes around.  


But the man who isn't getting enough credit, in my mind, is the man who actually put the entire team, to a man, together, Dale Tallon.  The current GM of the Florida Panthers, Tallon had a hand in drafting, signing, or trading for every single member of the new champions of the NHL.  He was unceremoniously dumped after the qualifying offer snafu of last summer, and Stan Bowman was promoted to GM.  As good as it may be having the Bowmans in your organization (Scotty has 13 rings as a coach/front office man), this was Tallon's team all the way, and while I'm sure the organization will recognize him with a ring, it'd be a crime for his name not to be engraved on the Cup along with all of his players.  Best of luck to him in Florida. 


But even though Tallon built a champion here in Chicago, he did so by handing out some very large contracts that are proving to be a burden on the salary cap.    If you look at the core of the team, 14 players or so count for almost 50 million against a 58 million cap (or thereabouts).  Therefore, Stan Bowman (a professed numbers guy) has his work cut out for him.  While the top two lines will probably remain mostly the same, some faces will be different from those in the on-ice photo with the Cup.  Probably one or two of Sharp, Byfuglien, and Versteeg will be gone; if it were up to me, I'd lose Versteeg, because he's a third-line winger on this team making upwards of 3 million, a position that can be easily replaced with Skille or Beach in the years to come.  Much as we love Steeger, he's just a luxury that this team can no longer afford.  Another thread to watch will be Niemi's contract negotiations; he's obviously due a large raise, but how large? He's still restricted in his free agency this year, but he's a UFA next year, so do they lock him up long-term or lowball him? We shall see.  But let's just bask in the fact that the Hawks took advantage of their ridiculous depth this year and captured hockey's greatest prize.  


Something to look forward to: October 9, when the Hawks have their home opener, raise the banner for their 2010 championship, then take on the hated Red Wings.  Can't wait.

Oh and Toews is the new cover boy for EA Sports' NHL '11, following in Kaner's footsteps.  Two Hawks in a row...nice.

And finally, we might wonder what if history wasn't made?  Thankfully, it was, and may it be remembered forever.




Since coming down off that wonderful, wonderful high of one of my teams winning a championship, I've found myself completely and totally apathetic towards the 2010 edition of the Chicago Cubs.  I can't even really bring myself to want to go to a game.  Pretty much the entirety of the organization is rubbing me the wrong way.  The team on the field just sucks.  Can't hit (except for you, Marlon Byrd, and you, Tyler Colvin - you guys have had good years thus far).  Can't field.  Can't pitch.  Can't do anything right for an extended period of time.  I've come to the conclusion that this team, with the Piniella/Lee/Soriano/Ramirez/Zambrano core, had its best shot in 2008.  That was the window.  That was their shot.  It was kismet.  It was fate.  The 100-year anniversary of their last title.  Best record in the league.  And then a stunning, horrifying three-game sweep at the hands of the Dodgers in which they...couldn't pitch, field, or hit.  So that's bad enough; changes are most certainly gonna be made this offseason, and it's possible that in addition to a new manager (Lou is most certainly in his last months), a full-blown youth movement will be in effect.  Which is fine by me; the current iteration doesn't have what it takes, plain and simple.  


So as I said, that's bad enough; but then, we have the new owners, the Ricketts family, who talked a big game about keeping with traditions, doing exactly the opposite.  First, it was the damn Toyota sign, which is nothing but an eyesore rising above the bleachers.  Is the couple hundred thousand dollars that it brings in really worth it for this blight on an otherwise beautiful ballpark and baseball atmosphere?  It just looks plain terrible; Wrigley is not Fenway Park, with its hundreds of ads all over the outfield and Green Monster.  It works fine in Fenway, but Wrigley's different; it's supposed to be a pristine place where baseball can be viewed in its purest form, and Tom Ricketts, who's been a fan for decades, pledged to uphold that tradition.  This Toyota sign, and the noodle outside, and the elimination of the player intros on the organ (don't even get me started on how much it sucks to have Theriot being introduced with Enter Sandman) all have me souring on this new direction, this "Year One." More like Year One of More of The Same.  It's kinda sad, really.  Seeing the Blackhawks parade made me think of the celebration that would welcome a Cubs World Series win to the city, and I couldn't even fathom how great a day that would be.  But the play of the team and the direction the organization and the Ricketts's seem to be heading in doesn't thrill me at all, and sadly makes me think that that day is still a long, long way off.


On a brighter note, 9 days til NBA free agency and the commencement of the LeBron Watch.