The Catch-All Catch-Up

Once again, my apologies for the complete lack of attention to this blog.  It's been a couple months since the last post, and due to a combination of work, play, and moving, Reason to Believe has been given the short end of the stick.  No longer...now that football season is in full swing, with college having just completed its first weekend and the NFL opener this Thursday, I'll definitely be posting at least once a week, usually early in the week, and I definitely won't go two and a half months between posts again.  Without further ado, here's what's happened in the last couple months for my beloved Chicago teams.




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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.  

One Game For The One Goal

We're so close.  So very, very close.  The Chicago Blackhawks are one single game away from ending the NHL's longest Stanley Cup drought at 49 years, winning Game 5 of the 2010 Final to take a 3-2 lead going into tomorrow night's all-important Game 6.  After two disappointing losses in Philadelphia, the Hawks came out and did nothing special except play their best period of hockey in the playoffs, and maybe the entire year.  Just pure and total domination.  The Hawks with their reshuffled lines were simply flying, and Philly had no answer.  We jumped out to a 3-0 lead after one, and it could have been much worse if not for a couple admirable saves by Michael Leighton, who eventually was pulled in favor of Brian Boucher.  Seabrook, Versteeg, Sharp, Kane, and Byfuglien (who had two) all scored for the Hawks, who just blew the Flyers out of the water with seven goals, upping their home total to 15 in three games.  This was the first time in the series the Hawks played their game, and the Flyers just couldn't stay with them.  

ONE MORE

• Hey! Chris Pronger got called for a penalty! It's amazing how much he can get away with time after time, no matter how many times the NBC crew makes a point of showing all the illegal shit he gets away with.  By the way, I'm sure you've heard, but Pronger was a -5, definitely one of the worst games of his career.  He was on the ice for 6 of the Hawks' goals, and was sitting in the sin bin for the seventh.  
• Fittingly, the man who scored that goal while Pronger was sitting in the box was Dustin Byfuglien, who had no less than a monster night.  He had two goals and two assists, and some monstrous hits, including the biggest one on Pronger that many NHL experts had ever seen.  
• Amazingly, this was the second 11 goal game in this Final.  Just astounding offensive numbers being put up, perhaps aided by the mediocre at best goaltending on both sides.
• The powerplay really, really looked a lot better. The Hawks capitalized twice, but the Byfuglien one was a true thing of beauty.  Every single Hawk on the ice other than Niemi touched the puck, and the tic-tac-toe from Sharp to Toews to Big Buff was sublime.  
• Niemi, speaking of which, did what was needed to get the W.  He wasn't at his best, and hasn't played all that well in this series.  But all that means he's due for a great performance, as we've seen him bounce back from subpar efforts time and time again this spring.
• The shuffled lines really payed dividends.  Splitting up Kane and Toews was coming no matter what, but I loved Q splitting those two and Buff totally, putting one on three different lines.  By doing this, he forces Laviolette's and Pronger's hands: who do you match #20 up against? Is it the pairing of Toews and Hossa on the first line, which is just kinda unfair? Against Buff on the third line with Bolland and Versteeg? Or against the dynamic Sharp/Kane/Ladd combo? He picked Toews most of the time, and that line was held to only a single point, an assist by the Captain.  But the other lines prospered, with Buff having a monster night and Kane playing his best game of the series by a longshot.  These lines will stay the same, and for that reason, I think the Hawks will have a better chance tomorrow at the Wachovia Center than in either Game 3 or 4.
• Coverage in the defensive zone still needs to get better, as the Flyers stayed within shouting distance thanks to some shoddy clearing attempts by Hawks D-men.  Fix this.

Tomorrow night is going to be the toughest game of the year for the Blackhawks.  Philly's gonna come ready to play, make no mistake about it.  Lord Stanley will be in the building for the first time all series, but the Hawks cannot let their minds wander.  A big key will be scoring first - after Game 5, the Hawks are now 10-1 when leading after two periods, so grabbing a lead, silencing the crowd, and taking the momentum will be huge in this pivotal game.  The Flyers, as they've demonstrated on multiple occasions this spring, just will not die, so it's gonna be up to the Hawks to apply the killing blow.  We've learned a lot about the makeup and leadership of this team in the past two months or so, and it's going to be tested at least one more time.  We've already closed out Nashville and Vancouver this spring in road Game 6's, but this will be the toughest test yet.  By far.  As Sam Jackson says in Jurassic Park, "Hold onto your butts."

Well, Then

Give all the credit in the world to the Flyers, they really came out strong in the two games played in Philly this past week. Just as in their series against Boston, an overtime win at home seems to be the impetus for a stunning resurgence.  The Hawks lost that tight Game Three, and tonight's Game 4, a 5-3 game that wasn't all that close until the Hawks made it interesting with two goals scored with less than ten to go in the game.  They had some good chances to tie it up with Niemi on the bench, but it was too little, too late.  By all rights, the Hawks should have owned this game.  They had a good deal more faceoff wins than the Flyers, and they outshot them by a decent margin too, all good signs of improvement from the Game Three loss.  But Philly simply did all the little things right, and was greatly aided by two inexcusable, unforgivable defensive lapses by the normally solid Nicklas Hjalmersson (who's had a great postseason, it must be said), which led directly to two unassisted Philly goals in the first period, igniting the sellout crowd and sending the Flyers well on their way to tying the series.  Then, just as in the third period of Game Three, we scored a seemingly huge goal to quell the momentum, but the Flyers scored less than thirty seconds later to retake their two-goal advantage.  This cannot - cannot - continue.  We basically gave Philly two goals tonight, and another came when an errant shot hit Versteeg's ass and floated over Niemi's right shoulder while he was looking for the shot above his left.  Really the best thing to take away from this was the Hawks' shuffled lines being much more productive in the third period - if that continues, and we get the crowd going with an early goal or two on Sunday just like Philly did tonight, I think we'll be OK.  When it comes down to it, the Flyers held serve on home ice.  Is it disappointing, maybe even a little disheartening to come back tied in the series 2-2? It sure as hell is.  Now, maybe we were a little intoxicated with the Blackhawks' recent road success against Vancouver and San Jose, but I still thought they'd grab at least one.  They didn't, and now this series is a verifiable dogfight.  The Hawks are gonna have to toughen up significantly, and start winning some board battles.  Also, the passing needs to be crisper - I can't count how many times errant passes kicked off skates, or led the receiver just a little too much, sometimes leading to odd-man rushes for the opponent.  In the two road games, the Hawks just looked a little out of sync, a little out of sorts.  Perhaps a little home cooking is just what the doctor ordered...


It's come down to this: a best-of-three to decide the victor of the Stanley Cup Final, with two games at the UC.  A win Sunday would go a looooong way towards bringing that Cup to Chicago.  It's the biggest game for this franchise in many, many years, I have no doubt that we'll see an inspired Hawks effort.  Bring it, gentleman

Halfway Home

There's really not a whole lot more to say about these Blackhawks.  No matter what's thrown at them, they just keep on winning.  Last night's was their sixth in a row dating back to the clincher in the Vancouver series, and they've now won four in a row at home and will put their seven game road streak on the line tomorrow night.  They haven't played their best hockey yet in this Stanley Cup Final, but still, somehow, some way, have earned a 2-0 advantage over a very solid Flyers team.  A vastly different game from the opener, the two teams were scoreless until late in the second when the Hawks erupted for two goals in 28 seconds, getting tallies from Marian Hossa (remember him?) and former first-rounder Ben Eager.  Hossa's was a scrappy goal, gained from fighting for a rebound in front of Michael Leighton, who performed admirably in defeat.  Eager's, however, was not; he blasted a laser beam of a wrister just over Leighton's glove, popping the water bottle in the process and sending a partisan crowd (who'd just finished celebrating Hossa's) into delirium.  The Flyers mounted a furious rally in the third, tallying on a power play with about fourteen minutes to go; they'd pepper Niemi with shots the rest of the way, but our Finnish netminder stood tall, and denied the Flyers' bid to wrest home ice away from Chicago.  It's possible that the United Center may have seen its last hockey of the 2009-2010 season, but time will tell.  Personally, if the Hawks were to win, I'd love for it to be on home ice.  But they have a lot of work still to do; this Flyers team has already shown this postseason that they are never willing to say die.

• Love that we've won two games with nary a point from either Toews, Kane, or Byfuglien.  That line has been totally shut out, although they played much better yesterday than in Game 1. The fact that we have seven goals in the series from eight different guys from the 2nd/3rd/4th lines is simply remarkable, and a true testament to the depth of this team that unfortunately may not be there after the cap situation plays itself out this summer.  But at least we're taking advantage of it now.
• I don't think I've ever seen a goal celebration quite as cathartic as Marian Hossa's in the second period.  He's been playing some great, great hockey, but hasn't quite been able to put the puck in the net.  I'm sure he feels like the monkey is finally off his back.  He's been the best forward in the series thus far by a longshot; he clearly does not want to be a three-time loser.  He almost had a second goal a few minutes later, if not for an active stick by a Philly defenseman.  He has 3 points in the two games, and if he keeps playing at the high level he's at right now, he'll pile up a few more before it's all said and done.  
• Ben Eager showed why he was a first round pick a few years ago.  While he's settled nicely into his role as an enforcer, he clearly hasn't forgotten how to score.  It was a nice little Ovechkin-type move, pulling the puck in before shooting it so as to use the defenseman as a screen - it clearly fooled Leighton
• Antti freakin' Niemi.  How good was this guy yesterday? He made at least five or six above-average to outstanding stops that saved this game for the Hawks.  Again, he showed his uncanny ability to bounce back from subpar games to play a great one.  Just think, a little over a month ago, we were all worried about how the Hawks' goaltending might hinder their run for the Cup.  How long ago that seems.  And all the talk inbetween Games 1 and 2 about who the Flyers goalie would be served to highlight what wasn't being talked about in Hawks camp - never was it talked about on radio, in the news, in the paper, online, whatever, about who would start in goal for Chicago.  It was always Niemi, without a doubt.  What a legend he's forging for himself.  He's 14-4 in the playoffs, a new record for wins for a Hawks goalie in the postseason.  If you'd told me that in October, I might have laughed in your face.  Kudos to the front office and talent evaluators for snagging this guy, he's been more than invaluable this spring.  In fact, I'll go as far as saying we're not as far as we are without him.  Period.
• The power play needs to get better.  It just never looked comfortable at all in the three opportunities they got, and they're gonna need to cash in on the road this week.  I think it will be, because for whatever reason, they just seem to shoot more on the road.  In fact, their whole game plan is just simplified on the road, which has directly led to the seven-game streak.  I fully expect a split at least over the next few days
• It'll be interesting to see the fire drills that are the road line changes for the Hawks as Joel and Co. try to get their matchups.  He's done a masterful job in the past two series of outwitting his counterparts, and hopefully that continues at the Wachovia Center tomorrow night.  

It's been a helluva fun ride this spring, and the Hawks are closer than they've been in decades to the glory that comes along with being crowned Stanley Cup Champions.  Only two more stinkin' games to go.  Two (2).  That's it.  That's all. That's the magic number.  This Flyers team has showed a lot of heart, and has also outplayed the Hawks for long stretches of each game. But these players know how to win, and know what it takes to do it the hard way.  They can win playing their game, and they can win playing Philly's game.  It's gonna be fun to watch over the next few days.  History could be made.  

We'll Take It

It certainly was last night

It definitely wasn't the prettiest Stanley Cup finals game ever played, but the important thing is the Blackhawks took a 1-0 series lead on the Flyers with a sloppy yet highly entertaining 6-5 win last night.  There were five goals in each of the first two periods, and then play settled down in the third when only Tomas Kopecky scored the decisive goal.  I wasn't able to watch the whole thing due to a family graduation party, but here are a few things I noticed while speed-watching on the DVR late last night

• The National Anthem last night was the greatest I've ever heard.  Simply astounding, goosebumps all over.  Don't believe me? See for yourself
• How about that second line of ours? Troy Brouwer with 2 goals, Sharpie with an absolute snipe above Leighton's glove, and Marian Hossa simply outclassing the Flyers on the boards, and feeding Brouwer beautifully on both of his goals.  Even though much is being made about his scoring drought, I simply don't care who's putting the puck in the back of the net at this point of the year, as long as it's getting done by someone.  In fact, none of our top three offensive weapons score: Kane, Toews, and Buff even were without a single point altogether last night, and Hossa didn't score a goal.  But we got scoring from all over the place, with Brouwer potting two, Sharp, Bolland, Versteeg, and Kopecky all netting one.  When the guy you bring in off the bench to replace Ladd gets the game-winner, it shows how absurd the depth of this team is.
• Oh, wait, I think Hossa just picked another pocket along the boards
• Also, Bolland's line was great again, completely shutting down the top Richards line.  And he got another shorthanded goal, his second and the team's fourth of the playoffs.  That's one a round.  That's ridiculous.  It was almost a carbon copy of his shorty against Luongo in the second round, breaking up a pass and taking the loose puck all the way to the other end.  May his great play continue
• How in the hell do we get called for four penalties (all earned, admittedly) while the Flyers are whistled for exactly zero?  I'm not saying it should always be equal, that's not possible - but there's no way Pronger shouldn't be called for a cross check or something with the way he was absolutely mauling Dustin Byfuglien in the first period.  Hopefully this rectifies itself in the next game.  By the way, very reminiscent of game one against San Jose - they get multiple power plays, we get none, but still pull out the victory.  Good sign
• I was not worried at all about Michael Leighton and his three shutouts from the Eastern Finals, and I was correct.  He was pulled after surrendering 5 goals on only 20 shots, which is pretty brutal.  Supposedly, he'll be starting in net again tomorrow night - I like that.  He played well against Montreal, but that team was simply worn down from two absolutely draining series against Washington and Pittsburgh, and just didn't have anything left.  This Hawks offense is vastly superior to Montreal, and I think Philly knows that now.
• Thought the defensive corps, other than the top pair, had a pretty subpar game.  Brian Campbell in particular, and Joel agreed - after his poor turnover that led to one of the early Philly goals, he only saw 14 minutes of ice time.  Fine with me - he has one of those games once in awhile, and we survived this one.
• Thought Antti Niemi didn't play all that poorly - he was on his back for two of the goals, and his support on the ice did almost nothing to help him.  Would he like to have a couple of those goals back? Sure he would; but after seeing the way he played in the third period, I'm confident he'll come back with a great effort tomorrow night.  I'm thinking it's going to be more of a low-scoring affair, so his performance will be highly intrinsic to their success.
• The ratings on NBC were the best for the opening game of the finals in 11 years, proving that it's not just us in Chicago interested in this franchise's resurgence.  Also, love the announcing combo of Doc Emrick and Eddie O, they do great work.  Could do without Pierre McGuire inbetween the benches, though - that gets a little old.  

13 down, only three to go.  It's gonna be a wild ride

Since the last time I wrote about them, it's been a mixed bag for the Cubs.  They've gone 2-3, the two wins being some of their best of the year and the losses being some of their more forgettable of the season.  The two wins were both shutouts, 1-0 over the Dodgers Thursday and 5-0 over the Cards Saturday.  The two starters in those wins, Lilly and Silva, combined for 14 IP, 5 hits, 16 K, and 3 BB.  Oh, and no runs.  That's beyond great; if we get anything close to this from our starters the rest of the year, we'll be OK.  The offense simply has to kick it into gear more consistently, as they've been stifled far too often thus far.  

By the way, Carlos Silva is now 7-0 on the year, the best start by a Cub starter since Holtzman in the 1960s.  Raise your hand if you predicted this in March.  Anybody? Anyone? Bueller? Didn't think so.  This guy's been so, so much better than anybody, even the most optimistic fan, could have hoped and/or wished for, so kudos to him on his great start.  That's more wins than he had in both his years in Seattle combined.  Wow.  Now if only the other Carlos could come somewhat close to these numbers.  Speaking of Big Z, he's returning to the rotation Wednesday, and Gorzelanny is moving to long relief, even if he arguably didn't deserve the demotion.  Somebody had to go, and it turned out to be him. Let's see how Z does...our season really hinges on his performance, in more ways than one.  We've gotta be able to count on him every fifth day to give us a quality start, but that just hasn't been the case the past couple years.  Should be interesting.  

So, a disappointing weekend against the Redbirds.  The game on Friday was over before the Cubs even batted, thanks to six hits and five runs given up by Randy Wells before an out was recorded.  They didn't score again 'til the 9th, but the Cubs just couldn't touch Carpenter (how many times has he beaten us as a Card? 10? 15? Feels like 30).  Yesterday's game was a measure of revenge, but today was just one of those "I'm Albert Pujols, and you're most definitely not" games.  3 HR in 3 AB, 2 BB, 4 RBI - and the three homers, especially the first two which made it easily onto Waveland, were all moonshots.  What can you do? Dempster had 2 strikes on him in those first two at-bats, but he still launched a couple small satellites into orbit.  It's gonna happen every now and then, might as well happen in a blowout.  As a result, we now sit 6 games out of first, and 5 behind the Cards.  Long way to go, but would have been nice to gain a couple games this weekend.  Let's make it back to .500, then go from there. 

But right now, it's all about the Hawks here in Chicago.  Everybody's talking about them, everybody wants to go to the games, it's quite an electric atmosphere.  Let's play a tighter game tomorrow, and head to Philly with the Flyers' backs against the wall.  


Side note - Roy Halladay threw a perfect game last night against the Marlins, the second this season, and third in less than a year (including Buerhle's last July).  That's pretty remarkable (aside from the inherent remarkability of a perfecto) - there's been more than a single perfect game in a season one other time, in the late 1800s (?!?).  Also, it's incredible to think that baseball had one perfect game (Don Larsen's) in forty-one years between 1923-1964.  It's truly been wonderful for true fans of the game, as it's something everyone hopes they see in person, and now it's happened twice in a month.  Good for baseball.  Congrats, Doc Halladay 

Step In The Right Direction

Last night's Cubs game saw the team play its best baseball of the season, in my opinion.  Ryan Dempster was simply dominant, going 8 strong shutout innings.  He's pitched pretty well all year, but has been prone to giving up an ill-timed homer here and there, resulting in his 3-4 record thus far.  But last night was exactly the type of outing the Cubs envisioned when he was given that big extension a year or so ago.  He got great defense behind him, and Derrek Lee provided all the offense Dempster would need, going 3-3 with a 2 run homer in the 8th following a run-scoring single in the 6th.  Even more impressively, his outing came against the Dodgers, one of the hottest teams in baseball.  It's the third straight win for the Cubs, as they climbed back to within 2 of the .500 mark, and are only four games out in the Central at this still-early stage of the season.  Keep it going, boys - this weekend is huge, with the Cards coming to town and a chance to really make this a wide-open race.


I never thought this Phil Jackson thing had any legs; this guy already did so much in Chicago, why would he come back? He's also getting pretty old, I gotta believe he only has another year or two in him before he decides to step down.  I mean, he's already a legend, with his 10 rings.  The Bulls have to be looking for somebody who'll hopefully coach a little more long-term than that.  I'd love for them to grab the Boston assistant Thibodeau, but he's probably going to go somewhere very quickly after the Celtics are eliminated, whenever that may be. Expect the Bulls to drag this out for quite a while.  35 days til free agency


Meanwhile, the whole city is awaiting Saturday night, when the Stanley Cup Finals will open at the United Center, with the Blackhawks taking on the Philadelphia Flyers.  What a run they've had - it took a shootout victory on the last Sunday of the regular season to even get into the tournament, and then they came back from the dead against the Bruins and advanced to the Finals by finishing off the miracle Canadiens.  It will probably be a tough series, but I think the Hawks have what it takes.  They've learned a lot about themselves this spring, and I think they realize the enormity of this opportunity and what they have to do to seize it.  Look for a rough, physical series, but the Hawks' superior talent on offense will rise above whatever Philly can throw at us to pepper Michael Leighton, who hasn't faced an offense like ours in these playoffs yet. 


Predicton: Hawks in 6, but I'd love for them to do it in 5 and win on home ice

12 Games (and 7 teeth) Down, 4 To Go

Another celebration would be quite welcome

Well that may not have been very easy, but it certainly was over quicker than most of us probably thought.  The Blackhawks swept the Sharks yesterday, winning Game 4 at the United Center 4-2, thereby earning a spot in the finals and a chance to hoist Lord Stanley's Cup, in my honest opinion the greatest trophy in sports.  The series certainly wasn't the whitewash a 4-0 game score would suggest; Games 1,3, and 4 were all tied going into the third period, and could have gone either way for the most part.  The Sharks definitely didn't play terribly; they forced us to earn the series victory by peppering goalie Antti Niemi with a large amount of rubber and making things difficult all series for the Hawks in the neutral zone.  But the men of the four feathers simply rose to the occasion with equal parts strength, skill, resilience, and pure guts, all perfectly on display in yesterday's clincher.


The Hawks fell behind 2-0 yesterday, and it looked like we might just have to travel out west again and attempt to put down the Sharks in a Game 5.  But at about the halfway point of the game, something clicked on the home bench.  The hitting picked up, passes were crisper, the whole team just seemed to kick it into gear.  Maybe some killer instinct surfaced in these players, who knows.  Whatever it was, the ice started to tilt in our favor.  We finally broke through, even though it took a video review to do so.  A mad scramble in front of the Sharks net ended up with the puck crossing the line by a good few inches, then being swept out almost immediately by a Sharks defenseman.  The play was whistled dead, but upon further review, Toronto determined that it was, in fact, a goal.  Chelsea Dagger blared out, the horn went off belatedly, and the crowd was back into the game.  


Several minutes later, Dave Bolland, or The Rat as he's come to be known in these last few weeks, got the better of the Sharks yet again.  He simply outhustled a defenseman to the puck behind Nabokov, spun around, wrapped around the far post and slipped a shot off somebody's arm and into the net to tie the game and send the UC up for grabs.  The guy's been a key cog in the success we've had so far, and it's pretty special considering he missed more than half the regular season recovering from back surgery.  


The third period was tense for twelve minutes or so, with chances being traded and the tension racheting up as the seconds ticked off.  You could sense the desperation emanating from the Sharks bench, as their lead in the game was completely gone and their foothold in the playoffs was becoming ever more precarious.  But as they've done so often this year, the Blackhawks answered the bell.  And who else would it be to win the game in this series, but Dustin Byfuglien? Taking a pretty feed from Patrick Kane, Buff punched the biscuit home and bedlam reigned on Madison Street.  This was his fifth game in a row with a goal, and his unheard-of third game-winning goal not of the entire playoffs, but of this series alone.  It even led to NHL.com producing a second "history will be made" commercial for Big Buff.  Truly incredible, and quite indicative of how this team has had role players step up to carry some of the load this spring.  


From there, it was full-out desperation mode for San Jose.  Nabokov was pulled with about 1:30 to go, but Versteeg put the Sharks down for good with an empty-netter, and the UC was in full celebratory mood.  Perhaps most encouraging about the sweep was the fact that the Hawks didn't have a letdown game like they'd had in the first two rounds; this points to an incredibly talented team peaking mentally and physically at precisely the right moment.  They advanced to their first Cup Finals since 1992, when yours truly was only three years old, and the Hawks (led by the likes of Chelios, Roenick, and Belfour) ran into and was swept by the great Lemeiux/Jagr Penguins team coached by the infamous Scotty Bowman.  Perhaps this year, whoever comes out of the East will suffer the same fate.


There've been so many intriguing storylines this year, it's almost hard to keep count.  There's the rise of Antti Niemi from zamboni driver to the backbone of a Stanley Cup contender, Byfuglien's switcheroo from defense to offense and his late-game heroics, Dave Bolland's tenacity, Toews announcing his arrival as a true member of the league's elite, and the franchise as a whole rising from the ashes of the Bill Wirtz era. [Side note: four or five years ago, ESPN The Magazine ranked all the major sports franchises in the country, and the Blackhawks came in absolute dead last across the four major sports.  That's about 120 teams right there, and looking at how far they've come in such a relatively short time is remarkable]  Or you could look at Duncan Keith, his seven missing teeth and possible Norris Trophy.  Or Marian Hossa, and his quest for a Cup a third year running.  Or Coach Q taking his first team to the Finals as a head coach.  The list goes on and on.  When I think about how far this team has come, I keep going back to the loss in the Conference Finals last spring to the Red Wings.  While the loss really stung at the time, it definitely is paying dividends right now.  That was a training ground for this moment; we learned a lot from the Wings, a great organization that knows exactly what it takes to win and keep playing into June.  The lessons learned last May were instrumental, I feel, in getting the Hawks into the prime position they're in to win their first Cup since 1961.


Now, there's only one chapter left to write.  While it was great to see the Campbell Trophy brought out onto the ice after the Hawks earned the title of Western Conference Champs, the subdued celebration in the locker room spoke volumes; this team understands it's a big accomplishment, but they're here for more.  Whoever comes out of the East, which could wrap up tonight with the Flyers holding a 3-1 series advantage, the Hawks will be the clear favorite.  


The time is now.  

Five To Go

Well, it certainly hasn't been easy, and Games 1 and 3 could just as easily been lost as won, but the Blackhawks are up 3-0 on the San Jose Sharks in the best-of-seven Western Conference Finals.  After coming home from the West Coast with two wins in their back pocket, the Hawks attempted to bring some of that road mojo back to the Windy City with them, staying at a downtown hotel after the morning skate to perhaps simulate a road atmosphere.  Maybe that was just what they needed to do, because they showed no sign of the passive play that lead to defeats at home in the first two rounds.  


Also helping them get off to a strong start was the waved-off goal that Joe Pavelski clearly kicked in upon further review.  The building got a little silent when they apparently scored, but momentum was back on our side once the ref waved it off after conferencing with Toronto.  I gotta believe that deflated the Sharks a little bit; I mean, you've just lost home ice advantage, you're down 2-0 in the series coming into a raucous United Center, the first item on the agenda is scoring first to take the crowd out of the equation, so you do, but it gets wiped out on replay.  That's gotta take something out of you.  The entire first period was featured great play on both sides, ultimately ending up scoreless thanks to the stellar goaltending in both creases.  


It once again took a 5-on-3 advantage for the Sharks to score on Antti Niemi, and Marleau did so with four minutes gone in the second.  This guy was brilliant again, scoring twice for the second straight game, and is really the only Shark playing well in the series.  If the rest of his linemates upped their level of play to where Marleau is, this series probably would have played out differently up to this point.  Unfortunately, the goal came with :01 remaining on the first infraction, so the Hawks had to kill thirty seconds or so of the remaining penalty.  I really was hoping this small piece of bad luck didn't come back to bite us, and the brilliant PK unit made certain that it wouldn't.  


Several minutes later, the game was tied on a goal beautifully set up by, who else, Jonathan Toews.  On a power play, he waited to the right of the goal, and flipped a pretty pass that somehow made its way through four or five sticks across the crease to Patrick Sharp, who made no mistake.  The assist by Toews extended his playoff points streak to 12, setting a new franchise record.  We're all running out of superlatives when talking about this guy.  May his great play continue.  Then, with seven minutes left in a pivotal tied game, he blocks a shot which caroms directly to a streaking Dave Bolland, who takes the breakaway and stuffs it juuuust past the pad of Evgeni Nabokov, who I must credit for playing his best game of the series (stopped 35 of 38 shots).  At this point, the building was rocking, the fans were in full party mode, and the Hawks seemed on their way to a victory.  But that Marleau guy just wouldn't be denied, stuffing home a rebound through a big scrum in front of Niemi with five minutes left in the game.  This goal was preceded by a bad icing taken by Patrick Kane, whose attempt at a home run pass failed, leaving his exhausted line out on the ice, which didn't help matters in front of Niemi at all.  


In fact, the Sharks dominated the third period, outshooting the Hawks 18-6, but Niemi came up big to send the game to an extra session.  (Side note: While the Hawks were only outshot 13 times in 82 games this year, the Sharks are doing so with regularity here.  In fact, they're outshooting us in the series by 20 or so overall.  Just goes to show how important Niemi has been for us)  However, we dominated the chances in the OT session, 11-5.  


The overtime was pretty damn tense, as the teams traded rushes back and forth and the goalies attempted to outdo one another with each save.  Nabokov in particular had a great stop of a deflected Kris Versteeg shot, barely reeling it in with his glove.  It took twelve minutes and change, but the Blackhawks finally sent the fans home happy when a great keep of the offensive zone by Brian Campbell lead to Bolland having the puck directly behind the Shark net and feeding Big Buff, who was 10 feet out, with a beautiful no-look pass.  Inexplicably, Byfuglien was left all alone directly in front of the net.  Nobody even saw him sneak in, let alone try and do something about it.  He took Bolland's feed and put it top shelf, rattling the water bottle before Nabokov even turned around to see where the puck was going, and the UC went beserk.  Buff is now tied for the team playoff goals lead, along with Kane and Sharp.  This guy truly is Mr. May - he's been a crucial part of the run this spring, starting in the Canucks series.  It's interesting to think about this question: What if Dustin didn't bust out? Who knows...keep it up, big boy.  

And just like that, the series is 3 games to none.  That kind of a comeback has only happened three times ever, and it's already happened once this year, so I like our odds.  Big game tomorrow - I'd love to see some killer instinct, weather the inevitable storm the Sharks will produce in the first 10 minutes or so, and advance on to (take a breath, niiiiice and easy) the Stanley Cup Finals.  And now for the gun fight:

• Hossa Watch, Day Sixty-Three (think Brian Fantana-style); obviously, he hasn't gone that long without scoring, but it's been quite a while (Game 4 against Vancouver, if memory serves).  He made his presence felt, and had a couple of absolutely golden chances, but he just seems to be fighting the puck and himself a bit right now.  I still stand by my prediction of him busting out soon - just wait and see.
• I keep hearing from all the NHL experts, online and on TV, about how great a series Joe Thornton is having.  I'm sorry, I know I'm no expert or anything, but he just isn't cutting it in my opinion.  All I've seen from him is a blatant slash of Dave Bolland off a faceoff (Bolland has completely gotten the better of him this series), taking a run at Adam Burish from across the ice, and blowing several golden opportunities.  All this from a guy who's supposed to set the offensive tone for his team.  I believe he's even pointless, or damn close to it.  Maybe it's because of how bad he's played in the past come April and May, but there's no way he gets a free pass here.  Thoughts?
• I loved the way the fourth line of the Hawks played - they were a high energy bunch, forechecking with abandon, delivering big hits all over the place, and Ben Eager even hit a post! Centering it all, John Madden is showing us why he was such a valuable acquisition last summer.  Experience of his caliber doesn't just come around all that often, and I have to believe his wisdom is coming in handy in the locker room and on the bench.  He's not playing too badly, either
• Antti Niemi, the resident Fin, played spectacularly again - he finished stopping 44 of 46 shots, the second time this series he's stopped 44.  Hard to believe that the goaltending was the biggest question all season, huh?

We took their best shot, and absorbed it with a gritty effort.  The same kind of showing will be necessary to finish them off tomorrow afternoon at the UC.  Boot's on the throat - time to finish the job.  It ends tomorrow.

As for the Cubs, they've had an up and down time since we last spoke, with two one-run losses and one one-run win.  As I've said before, they've been terrible in close games thus far in 2010, and that must change for them to contend in the Central.  Case in point: on Thursday, they battled back against a great Phillies team to tie the game three separate times, including Fukudome hitting a homer off a lefty (??) with the count 1-2 against him (?!??).  So we're down 5-4 going to the ninth, thanks to the phenomenal relief pitching of John Grabow (he's been so godawful this year, put him on the DL with a phantom strain of something).  Soriano, as he's been doing so much of lately, starts a rally with a single, then goes to third when Colvin singles behind him.  So, first and third, down a run, nobody out.  Feeling pretty good about our chances.  Starlin Castro battles hard, but strikes out.  Bummer, but still in decent shape.  Aramis Ramirez, he of the .166 BA, is next.  Also battles, but strikes out on one of the worst pitch selection/swing combos I've ever seen from him since he got here in 2003.  And then, Geo Soto pops out to Ryan Howard in foul territory behind first base.  So, to recap: tying run is on third, there's nobody freakin' out, and we fail to do so much as put the ball in play.  Unbelievable.  But it really kinda is, sadly.  

But they came back in Texas with a nice win today against the Rangers, with Randy Wells going strong into the ninth after a rough start, and Soriano and Castro providing the offense early on.  Game goes into extras, and we take the lead on three straight pinch-hits by lefties off the bench.  Colvin, Fukudome, and Fontenot double, single, and single respectively, to take the lead in the 10th.  Little Mike's was especially clutch, coming on an 0-2 count.  Marmol comes in, does his customary thing and walks the first guy, not even coming close the the zone.  Out comes KoYie Hill and Lawrence the immortal pitching coach, and all of a sudden Marmol's got his unhittable stuff back and harnessed.  I don't get it with him; is there like a switch in his head that is subconsciously switched? He'd never give up runs if he had good command.  Oh well...we'll take the W.

Oh, and the Bears are at it again at Halas here in Lake Forest.  God I can't wait for September.

This duo is going to decide where this season ends up - should be fun to watch if nothing else.

68 days to Bourbonnais

38 days til LeBronapalooza starts

Namaste, and good luck to all you out there

The True Road Warriors

For these Blackhawks, there truly is no place like the road.  With last night's 4-2 win in San Jose, they not only took a commanding 2-0 lead going back to Chicago, they tied the NHL record for consecutive road wins in a single playoffs with seven straight.  Tellingly, of the four teams to do it previously, three won the Stanley Cup.  I like those odds very, very much.  It's been quite a road trip (the Hawks haven't played at home since May 10), definitely the most successful of the season - we closed out Vancouver in British Columbia, then headed down south to take the first two in the Shark Tank, widely regarded as one of the toughest arenas in the league.  In this seven-game streak, we've outscored our opponents (NASH, VAN, SJ) by a ridiculous 31-13 margin.  Could it be that, after early struggles against the Preds, the Hawks are peaking at the exact right time? I think so - the franchise is 18-2 all-time when leading 2-0, so while they probably won't sweep, they'll at least head back to SJ up 3-1, with a great chance to advance to the final round of the tournament.  On to the bullets...

• Jonathan Toews has established himself as the clear frontrunner for the Conn Smythe, awarded for the MVP of the entire playoffs.  Jaroslav Halak has made an incredible run, but it seems like he and the Canadiens may have run out of gas against the Flyers.  Toews had a goal and a helper last night, running his career-high points streak (talk about getting hot when it counts) to eleven games, and adding to his league-leading playoff points total, which now stands at 23 in only 14 games.  If this guy continues to improve, we're going to be scary-good for a long time to come
• The entire top line, Toews included, had an absolutely monster night.  Toews had 2 points, Kane had 2 assists, and Big Buff had a goal and an assist.  Ever since Coach Q paired Byfuglien up with the Wonder Twins, that line has been nigh unstoppable.  Toews has been a monster, Buff has made life a living hell for the Sharks in their crease, and Kane is just making plays left and right even though he hasn't found the back of the net all that often since the Nashville series.  Imagine how much trouble the Sharks would be in if all of a sudden, he got red-hot as well.  
• The first twelve minutes really were a mirror image of the same time period in Game 1, with the Sharks coming out fast and loose and having many golden opportunities to pot a goal or three.  Just like Sunday, however, Antti Niemi was more than up to the task.  He wasn't as spectacular as Game 1, but he was solid as a rock.  He only faced 27 shots, perhaps a consequence of the Sharks admitting after the first loss that they were going to try and go top shelf on the Hawks netminder.  Regardless, he still came up with several great stops, and seems to be gaining confidence as the postseason carries on, and his elevated play in these first two games  bodes well for continued success.  
• Marian Hossa, even though he didn't score, still had a great influence on the game.  On Brouwer's goal, he picked the pocket of some poor Shark behind their net ("I'll be taking that, thank you very much") and fed it to Nic Hjalmarsson, who promptly fired on net and scored off of Troy Brouwer.  It's plays like this that show Hossa's true value to this team; even though his scoring has left a lot to be desired (only 2 G in 14 games), he's made his presence felt on both sides of the ice.  Whether it's forcing a turnover, drawing a penalty, or doggedly pursuing the puck in the defensive zone, he's really showing how good of an all-around hockey player he is.  Also, the pressure to score can't be weighing on him too much, what with the plethora of offensive weapons the Hawks are blessed with.  I still stand by my prediction that he'll break out soon...just nice to know it's not completely necessary for the Hawks to advance.
• Brian Campbell looks more and more comfortable each time out since returning from his broken collarbone late in the first round series.  He was a +3 last night, and his return has really strengthened our defensive corps, and his pairing with Hjalmarsson is turning into a great second banana to the top pairing of Keith and Seabrook.  May their great play continue.
• Some leader Joe Thornton is, huh?  Your team is down 2 goals in the third period of a crucial game, and you blatantly slash the opposing center, who's completely gotten into your head, before the linesman even drops the puck? Real smart, there, pal.  Real smart.  He's shown absolutely nothing in this series so far; I'm sure Sharks fans are so pleased with the -10 rating their asisstant captain now has accumulated in the playoffs. What a joke.
•  Speaking of Dave Bolland, his checking line was phe-nomenal again last night.  Besides pestering the top Marleau/Thornton/Heatley line, they also contributed on the score sheet.  Andrew Ladd opened the scoring with a 30-foot wrister to beat Nabokov glove side on a nice rush with Kris Versteeg, a big blow to the Sharks and their fans.  

Well, after a long West Coast trip, the Hawks are finally coming home again.  The series continues Friday night at the United Center, with the Hawks looking to grab a stranglehold on the series.  We have to be better at home, there's no doubt about it, especially because if we hold home ice from here on out, we will win the Stanley Cup.  It's as simple as that.  Ten down, six to go.

On a related note, former Hawks GM Dale Tallon was hired by the Florida Panthers to the same post.  I'm frankly surprised at how long it took for another team to snap him up.  He did a great job building this team, whether it was selecting Kane and Toews in the 06/07 drafts, trading for Sharp and Versteeg, signing Campbell and Hossa, etc etc.  Sure, he made some missteps (Huet and the qualifying offers fiasco come to mind), but it cannot be denied that he built a team that has a fantastic chance to win the Cup.  He has the third pick in this year's draft for Florida, the same pick he used on Jonathan Toews four years ago.  If he gets anyone close to what the Captain has become, Florida will be headed in the right direction.  Best of luck to Dale, who served the Hawks well in his 33-year tenure with the team.

As for the Cubs, they're on a modest 3-game win streak.  The starting pitching continues to be solid, and the bullpen has been better lately.  In another twist in the Carlos Zambrano saga, Lou said yesterday they're going to stretch him out over a few outings in preparation for inserting him back into the rotation, basically admitting at the same time that the move of Big Z to the bullpen was a failure.  I liked the move at the time, as the thought of the two Carloses at the end of the game was very tantalizing.  But he never adjusted to the short work needed in the bullpen, and the emergence of Sean Marshall in the 8th inning set-up role has negated the need for Z there.  But who goes out when he comes back to the rotation? Dempster, Lilly, Gorzelanny, Wells, and especially Carlos Silva have all pitched decently-to-great this year.  I truly don't see who you demote here.  I guess Lou will cross that bridge when they get there.  A positive from Monday night's game was Aramis Ramirez finally coming through in the clutch again.  Mired in a monthlong slump, he (hopefully) busted out with a walkoff homer in the 11th inning to send the paying customers (what was left of them, anyways) home happy.  The Cubs need him, and Derrek Lee, to start hitting the way they're capable if they want to have any chance of competing in the Central this year.  Here's hoping that this little streak is the beginning of better baseball on the North Side this summer.  

Blast from the Past: Mark Prior, the star-crossed ace of the next decade multiple Cy Young winner savior of the Cubs franchise top draft pick and former "employee" of the Cubs, was hit in his pitching shoulder AGAIN by a batted ball while tossing batting practice to a local team in another aborted comeback attempt.  This guy literally cannot buy a break.  I really wonder what might have been if the injury bug hadn't bit him so hard.  Memories of towel drills and simulated games are still all to vivid in my mind.  If you're a veteran of 2003-2006, you'll know exactly what I mean.  I recall watching him shut down the Braves completely in Game 3 of the 2003 NLDS at Wrigley Field, tossing a complete game 2-hitter.  At that time, it seemed like he was untouchable in more ways than one, but it was clearly not meant to be.  In no way, shape, or form would I have ever believed that he'd be totally out of baseball less than a decade later.  What a shame.

Jay Cutler appeared on the Waddle and Silvy show on ESPN-1000 in Chicago yesterday, and by his account, the relationship between him and new O-coordinator Mike Martz is getting stronger by the day.  If Martz can build dangerous passing attacks with the likes of Jon Kitna in Detroit and whatever QB was playing for San Francisco a couple years ago, I'm really excited to see what he can do with a guy as talented as Cutler.  Mini-camp opens Friday for the Bears, and it's then that we'll really see what kind of progress they've made.  In an offense as complex as Martz purportedly runs, it all comes down to the guy under center.  The 2010 season for the Bears hinges on this relationship; if they click, the playoffs are a definite possiblity.  If they don't, pink slips are gonna be in vogue at Halas Hall in early 2011.  It all starts Friday.

42 days, 8 hours, and 30 minutes until NBA free agency opens

72 days until Bourbonnais

Go 'Hawks on Friday

Gettin' That "W"

First things first; log on to NHL.com and find this gem


What if Niemi only stopped 43?


Yes.  Yes.  Such a huge amount of win.  Just an awesome moment.


Later, I turn on the Cubs game, and Aramis walks off against the Rockies. Maybe this is what turns him around and gets him out of that godawful funk he's been in. That's a good night, folks.  Big game for the Hawks tomorrow - let's hang another home loss on the Sharks.  Til we meet again...

A Good Start

Earlier today, the Blackhawks won an absurdly entertaining Game One of the Western Conference Finals 2-1 over San Jose.  Both teams had been fairly hot, with San Jose having won five straight at HP Pavilion, and the Hawks owning a five-game road playoff win streak.  The phrase "something's gotta give" comes to mind.  Both showed little to no effects of rust due to several days off, and scoring chances and runs of dominance were traded throughout (85 total shots were launched, with SJ edging out Chicago 45-40).  It was exactly what most observers expected out of this matchup - great hockey befitting the matchup of the 1 and 2 seeds in the conference.


But what it all came down to was the play between the pipes - Antti Niemi was sparkling in net, and Evgeni Nabokov just wasn't quite good enough.  Our resident Fin stopped 44 of 45 shots (32 in the second and third combined), many of them quality chances from the swarming Sharks.  In what was easily his best game as a Hawk, in my opinion, he kept his team in the game after the Sharks drew first blood on a Jason Demers power play goal, a deflected shot that went bar-down, blocker side, meaning Niemi had little to no chance of stopping it.  Other than that, he was absolute M-O-N-E-Y.  His best sequence was towards the end of the second period; the Sharks were on one of their five power plays, and a failed clear attempt by John Madden meant that San Jose had about 45-50 seconds of constant pressure on the Hawk net, and Niemi more than met the challenge.  His best stop of the night, and leader in the clubhouse for best stop of his career, came on a putback attempt by Ryan Clowe, where Niemi dove to his left and swiped the puck away with his outstretched glove.  Check it out on NHL.com, it was that good.  Coming into the playoffs, many Chicago fans weren't sold on Niemi, he being the owner of all of fifty career starts (most elite netminders have more playoff career starts than that), but those doubts can be pretty much set aside now.  If there was ever a time to fold, it might have been here, in the NHL's toughest place to play, with rabid fans waving those stupid white towels, facing arguably the league's top offense - but he most certainly did not.  Niemi rose to the challenge, as he has all postseason long.  He has two shutouts in these playoffs, and outplayed gold medalist Roberto Luongo in the semis.  If we weren't sure about him before the Nashville series, we sure as hell are now.

Well-deserved after a mammoth effort

Overlooked in these playoffs has been the contributions of one Patrick Sharp.  He's been perhaps our most consistent offensive weapon besides Captain Jonny Toews, who extended his playoff point streak to 10 games.  His second period goal not only tied the game, but it seemed to loosen his team up after playing catch-up for pretty much the whole game up until that point.  Basically, he got us up off the mat and into the game.  His goal seemed like a bit of a changeup, as Nabokov looked as fooled as some hitters do as they wave at a pitch that isn't even in the hitting zone yet.  Not the prettiest goal, but we'll most certainly take it, especially considering the circumstances.  

Not overlooked in these playoffs is the reemergence and impactful play of one Dustin Byfuglien.  He came up big again, scoring the game-winning goal with about seven minutes left in the game.  It seems the playoffs really are his time of the year.  The faceoff his goal came off of was Toews vs. Thornton, top gun vs. top gun.  While Thornton won most of his faceoffs early on, he faltered in the third, and the Hawks took advantage.  Toews won the draw, got it to Kane, who found a wide-open Buff in the slot, and a quick slapper found the back of the net.  Hopefully that short sequence is a harbinger of great things to come.

After we took our first lead of the day, every single person watching knew it was simply a matter of time until the Sharks began their final push to salvage the game, but they really racheted their play up another notch.  Niemi stood tall yet again, denying everything launched at him.  The Hawks nearly gave it away, committing a tripping penalty with just under a minute left to go.  With the Sharks also pulling their goalie, they had a 6-on-4 advantage, and Hawks fans everywhere were pulling their hair out.  We got a break therein, though, if that's even possible.  While replays clearly identified Dave Bolland as the perpetrator, the officials sent Kris Versteeg to the sin bin instead.  This is noteworthy due to the fact that Bolland is one of this team's better penalty killer, certainly more adept at that role than a Versteeg.  Regardless, the Hawks continued their stellar postseason on the penalty kill (87.9% for those of you keeping track) and killed this one off, and winning their first game one of a series since Calgary last spring in the process.  

One matchup that obviously bears watching as the series progresses is the top Sharks line of Marleau/Thornton/Heatley against the top Chicago D-pair of Seabrook and Keith.  Earlier, Keith and Seabrook both posted a +2 rating, while holding the top SJ line to nil in 5-on-5 play (all three men on said line were -2 for the day, leaving the new playoff legend best center in the series "rejuvenated" Jumbo Joe Thornton at a whopping -8 for the playoffs thus far).  I think it's safe to say our boys won round one.  

Now, for the hail of bullets

• Once the Hawks found their footing, and started to really cycle the puck in the SJ zone, there was really nothing the Sharks could do to stop us.  If the Hawks continue to do so, and thereby dictate the pace of these games, we stand a good chance of moving on
• The pace was crazy, perhaps to be expected from two teams that hadn't played in a week and 4 days, respectively
• To be fair, the Sharks did dominate for stretches, but the Hawks sustained and overcame those bursts with the depth of their defensive corps and the spectacular goaltending of Niemi
• Marian Hossa is gonna have a monster game one of these days, I tell you.  He was an absolute beast on the puck in both zones, and had a game-high six shots on goal.  It's not a matter of if, but simply when
• It's now six straight for the Hawks on the road in the playoffs - there are only good things that can come of this
• Five power plays for the Sharks, exactly zero for the guys in the white shirts.  A win on the road going 4/5 on the PK and not having a single power play - love it.  The Sharks can't be pleased they lost a game where that occurred, because we will get some calls...at some point
• Also taken, besides Game 1, was home ice - always nice to have, even though we've been wildly uneven at home so far in postseason play
• This is the first Game 1 victory for the Hawks since the OT win at home vs. Calgary last spring.  Some guy named Havlat tied the game quite late in the third, and the fans went home quite happy

Great way to start off the Conference Finals, but it only gets tougher from here - the Sharks will be in near-desperation mode come Tuesday night, as going down 2-0 to this team would be disastrous.  Also, you know the fans in the Bay Area still have the Sharks' recent playoff failures in the back of their minds - let's make another one for 'em.  

At the same time the Hawks were skating in SJ, the Cubs were battling the Buccos at Wrigley.  Good God...the Cubs...where to begin.  They suck right now.  That's were.  When they hit, they don't pitch.  When they pitch, they don't hit.  And sometimes they do very little of neither.  You know you suck when you lose five straight to the freakin' Pirates.  

But thankfully, they couldn't make it six, as the Cubs prevailed 4-3.  Lou Piniella got his 1800th win as a manager, becoming on the 14th man ever to do so.  Congrats, sir, here's to at least 70 more or so this season.  The winning tally came off a Xavier Nady pinch-hit RBI single in the eighth, set up by an Alfonso Soriano single, steal of second (!?!) and taking of third on a wild pitch.  Carlos Marmol was especially unhittable in closing it out, striking out the final two hitters and making Ron Santo laugh at their utter inability to hit his slider.  

It was only the 3rd Cubs win out of their last 12 - things have gotta turn around damn soon.  We're already 5.5 games out of first, and the Cardinals have been losing lately too, so it could be a lot worse.  In order to do so, the Cubs have to be better in close games.  When they score four or more runs, they play something like .800 ball.  But when the games are close, low-scoring affairs, they curl up a fetal position.  21 of their first 38 games have been decided by 2 runs or less, and they're only 7-14 in those games.  That's .333 baseball, which is not very good.  Fix this, boys - at some point this summer, I was actually planning on enjoying myself at Wrigley.     

Meanwhile, minicamp starts Friday; 74 days and counting until Bourbonnais.  Bearsssss

History Is Made Again

The Hawks got another "History Will Be Made" commercial made about them on NHL.com, this time for Dave Bolland's shorty


What if Bolland played like he was short-handed?


Love. It.  


Looks like the Hawks will be opening the conference finals in SJ on Sunday afternoon, thanks to the Flyers pushing Boston to Game 7 Friday night at TD Garden.  For the sake of the sanity of my friends here in Beantown, I hope they come to their senses before it's too late.  Being a...I don't know, survivor, victim, veteran, take your pick, of a serious collapse on the brink of advancement (goddamn you to hell, Jack McKeon, Josh Beckett, and every single other member of the 2003 Marlins), I know the pain it would cause, and wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy.  Well, maybe my worst enemy, but definitely not my buddies.  Best of luck to the B's, also because it would set up an epic B's-Canadiens Eastern Conference Finals, which would be great for the sport.  Speaking of which, the defending champions are gone thanks to those Canadiens, who stunned Pitt  5-2 in Pennsylvania earlier tonight.  Wow.  Just wow.  What a run they're on right now.  Team of destiny, folks.  Defending champs are gone? 8-seed vs. the 6 or 7 in the East? Let's beat the Sharks, shall we?

Be Careful What You Wish For

The Canucks wanted this rematch ever since the end of their season at the United Center last May, and they got it.  Exactly one year after eliminating the Vancouver with Kaner's hat trick at a raucous UC, the Hawks celebrated by...eliminating the Canucks once again, dominating 5-1 en route to a second consecutive Western Conference Finals berth.  8 down, 8 to go.  

The first period was exactly what Hawks fans simultaneously hoped for and feared in this series, a wide-open, up and down style of play (favoring the Hawks) and Bob playing spectacular, and making several highlight reel saves (the Sharp breakaway save was particularly noteworthy).  Niemi held his own, however, allowing the Hawks to come out of the first knotted in a scoreless tie.  Then, at the two-minute mark of the second, the offense went to work.  Troy Brouwer, tapped by Coach Q to play instead of Kopecky after several games on the bench, redirected a beautiful feed from Sharp to take a 1-0 lead.  Thirty-six seconds later, Versteeg capitalized on a terrible neutral zone turnover and wristed one past Bob to quickly suck any and all life out of GM Place.  Things settled down for the rest of the period, but Duncan Keith took a penalty with a minute left; a goal here would have put the 'Nucks right back into the game, but a Dave Bolland short-handed goal with about forty seconds left pretty much broke Vancouver's back.  It was the Hawks' third shorty of the playoffs, leading the league, and they've all been hugely critical goals.  There was Kaner's with an empty net to tie Game 5 against Nasvhille, arguably the biggest goal of the playoffs yet; Sharp's to tie Game 2 at home against the Canucks, which was instrumental in salvaging one at home to begin this series; and then Bolland's basically closed it out.  All in all, it was a dominating second period for the Hawks, who not only won the period 3-0 but also dominated in the circles, winning 15 of 18 faceoffs.  In fact, Game 6 was much better for them faceoff-wise; they stuggled the last couple games, but won 30 last night as opposed to Vancouver's 22.  It's really important for their puck-possession gameplan, so let's hope they have continued success against San Jose.


The Canucks finally broke through a little under four minutes into the third, igniting the crowd and cracking the door open juuuust a little bit.  Joel, realizing the flurry that was to come, wisely took his timeout, settled his team down, and sent them back out.  All they did snuff Vancouver out, with Kane and Byfuglien (how fitting) victimizing Sideshow Bob merely 25 seconds apart.  And with that, the Hawks moved on.  They dominated the 5-on-5 play last night, and it was without doubt the best Hawks effort of the series. 


Side note: we completely have Roberto Luongo's number.  For the second consecutive elimination game, we put up a crooked number on the scoreboard against him (7 last year, 5 last night).  For the playoffs, he finished with a save % of .895, and a GAA of 3.22, just simply not acceptable numbers for a goalie who's supposed to be of an all-world caliber and carry his team through the playoffs.  After the game, he said that "I still don't believe they're a better team than us." You keep telling yourself that, bub.  Let me ask you, Bob - what do we have to do to convince you? Is ending your season prematurely two straight years not enough? If not, I don't know what is.  Have a good summer, Bobby Lu.     


Impressively enough, it was also the Hawks' fifth straight road triumph in these playoffs, which has got to give them a lot of confidence as they open in San Jose, probably on Friday.  Overall, it was a weird series, with neither team playing especially well on their home ice.  Even the lone home win, by Chicago in Game 2, required a come-from-behind effort to scrape by.  Key statistic: the Hawks outscored Vancouver 11-3 in the third period, something that would be wonderful to have continue in the conference finals.  Also, as a team the Hawks are 4-0 following a loss in the postseason, which points to their resiliency and bounce-back ability, both of which are quite invaluable at this time of year. 


As for players of note, first on the list for this series must be Dustin Byfuglien.  He was an absolute force, and his hat trick in Game 3 was just icing on the cake.   His physical presence in the crease knocked Luongo and the rest off their game, and the 'Nucks never really recovered.  Even when he wasn't potting three, he made big contributions.  Last night, he knocked Alex Edler out of the game with a big first period hit.  Edler usually takes one of the points on their power play, and as a result of his absence, Pavol Demitra took his spot, tried to make a play, and coughed the puck up to Bolland who went down and scored.  It's the little things, people.  Second, Captain Serious, Jonathan Toews.  What more can be said about this guy? Not only will he not let this team be denied, he's simply picking them up and carrying them on the offensive end.  Not that nobody else is scoring, because a lot of guys are stepping up in the postseason, but Toewser leads all players with 20 points, including a 9-game points streak.  That's walking the walk right there, and his team is following suit.  Antti Niemi also deserves some notice; he's been exactly what this team needs, a guy who makes the stops he's supposed to, and a miraculous one every now and then.  He's not gonna steal many games, and the Hawks aren't asking him to; but he won't blow any for them.  Sound familiar?  See: Detroit Red Wings, the past 15 or so years.  His overall numbers are fairly pedestrian, but he's 4-0 after a loss with 3 goals allowed for a 0.75 GAA.  That's what we call clutch, ladies and gentlemen.  That being said, he's going to have to step it up against the Sharks, an offensive juggernaut playing some great hockey at the moment.  Special notice goes to the Bolland/Ladd/Versteeg line, who drew the assignment of containing the Sedin sisters, and passed with flying colors.  Not only were the Sedins a total non-factor in the series, but that line played outstandingly in the Canucks zone, coming up with some huge goals in big-time situations.  And lastly, Joel Quenneville simply pushed all the right buttons in this series.  Whether it was inserting Burish/Eager after the Game 1 loss, or Brouwer into the lineup last night, all his moves turned to gold.  And he joined a group of elite Chicago head coaches who've taken their teams to consecutive conference finals/championships, including a certain other coach who was also known for his legendary mustache.  Well done, sir.


So, on to San Jose.  The Hawks went 3-1 against them during the regular season this year, including 2 OT wins and that 7-2 drubbing in SJ back in Hossa's debut in November.  It's the two teams' first playoff meeting, and it should be quite an exciting series, as both teams feature explosive offenses, to say the least.  Both teams are relatively healthy, with no major injuries to speak of thus far.  It'll probably be a Friday night start, as the HP Pavilion in SJ has events booked for tomorrow and Saturday night.  It was an accomplishment for the Hawks to reach the conference finals last year, but this year is different - we need to take the next step, especially with Detroit out of the picture.  Our quickness could be the factor - will San Jose be able to skate with us?  I think the defense corps of the Hawks will be a deciding factor, I like our top pair over any other still remaining in the playoffs and our depth outclasses the Sharks as well.  It's the last series where the Hawks wouldn't have home ice, and I think it's a blessing in disguise that we're opening on the road, where we've played much better this postseason, for whatever reason.  At the same time, we must play better in Chicago and protect home ice for any Cup dreams to become reality.  


Early prediction: Hawks in 6


Tonight, the surprising Canadiens, this year's team of destiny, attempts to pull off a second consecutive miracle series win, this time against the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins.  Jaroslav Halak clearly has God on his side, so I don't see why they don't keep the ride going.  Boston needs to have a Hawk-like effort on the road to finally put down the Flyers, who are slowly gaining players back.  It'll be interesting to see how their backup goalie performs, but I think the Bruins advance tonight.  


These games, and our series coming up, should be quite fun to watch, but for now, just enjoy sending those pesky Canucks home once again.

Who's laughing now?