So Many Great Stories From One Great Blackhawks’ Run
There was one goal, one year and one main theme. The Chicago Blackhawks won their first Stanley Cup since 1961. This is the simple theme, but underneath, there are so many storylines that fit this franchise.
If we start with the management, the team was built around the front office of a new president in John McDonough, [...]
Lots of Things Point to Blackhawks Losing Tonight
It could just be a thing that us Chicagoans do, that point of view where you expect your team to lose and make things difficult when it matters most. It could also be the fact that the Blackhawks have lost 10 straight games in Philadelphia dating back to 1996. Yet, maybe it is the opponent and [...]
Flyers Enjoy Adversity, Hawks Enjoy Series Lead
It took a couple of badly played games with rough starts, some poor defense and a Philadelphia surge to give the Chicago Blackhawks a wake-up call. Chicago is a team that had one bad month in March and did struggle early in the Nashville series. Yet, overall, they have not had to play through much of a stretch [...]
Panic Button for Hawks? No, But Lots of Work to Do
Well, so much for that seven-game win streak in the playoffs where everything was going smoothly and Chicago was going to dominate against the 7th-seeded Flyers. Philadelphia has turned their game on at home while the Blackhawks have been slow on defense and not getting enough from their top line.
This evening’s 5-3 Flyers win evens [...]
Blackhawks Can Play Physical As Well, Lead Two Games to None
There is certainly a lot of speed and skill on the Chicago Blackhawks. Yet, at the same time, they have plenty of guys that like to mix things up a bit and don’t mind taking some hits and dishing a lot more out as well. Daniel Carcillo entered the game for the Flyers today after [...]
Depth, 3rd Period Defense Lead Hawks to Game 1 Win
Tomas Kopecky has not been playing the last few games, but it was his turn to make his presence known this evening against Philadelphia. On the same night where the City of Brotherly Love saw their baseball pitcher go perfect, it certainly was not a perfect evening for either hockey defense or goaltender. Many players [...]
Who Needs Teeth When You’re Duncan Keith?
Norris Trophy finalist, Big contract extension, Olympic Gold Medal, Western Conference winner. Chicago defenseman Duncan Keith has received a lot of honors this season. He spends almost half the game on the ice, and that includes Sunday’s clincher against San Jose where he lost seven teeth.
Keith was given a 13-year contract extension this season, and [...]
Big Buff, Big Win: Blackhawks Going To The Stanley Cup
It takes a certain player to make big plays in the postseason, and the Chicago Blackhawks have many of those. Yet, the one guy you cannot miss is Dustin Byfuglien. It may have taken years for people to pronounce his name right (me included), but they can surely do that accurately now. Buff-lin scored with [...]
Another Nail-Biting Game, But Hawks’ Fans Have Nails and San Jose is Out of Hands
San Jose did a lot right in tonight’s Game 3, and they did a lot right in the first game. Yet goaltender Antti Niemi continued his brilliance, and Chicago received some more timely goals to take a commanding 3-0 series lead. Dustin Byfuglien scored this evening’s game-winner for the Hawks in overtime on a nice [...]
If Niemi Plays Like Today, See Ya San Jose
Blackhawks goaltender Antti Niemi has not had to be great this postseason, but he just had to be solid and not allow soft goals throughout a series. This changed in Game One against a very talented Sharks team that was developing into a juggernaut on their home ice. San Jose controlled the action at numerous [...]
