Earn your Feathers

Hawks vs. Blues

2011-11-09T08:09:00.000-06:00

They shit the bed! Do I need to write anything else? I should have played Modern Warefare 3 instead of wasting my time with this game! Next up is the Blue Jackets who are bad at everything including hockey.
Go Hawks!!

Blackhawks/Ducks Preview

2011-10-25T10:16:00.001-05:00

Anaheim Ducks (4-3-0) @ Chicago Blackhawks (4-1-2)

Time: 7:30

TV: Comcast SportsNet

Radio: WGN 720

Internet: Justin.tv/hawks33channel (password is “stoogetvcom”

The first of four meetings between these two clubs begins tonight in the United Center. Both teams are coming off losses in their previous games, with the Ducks losing a frustrating 5-4 decision to Phoenix on Sunday, while the Blackhawks of course fell to the Colorado Avalanche 5-4 by way of the shootout at the UC on Saturday.

For the Ducks, this is the first of a brutal 7 game road trip, in which they play 5 clubs who were playoff contenders. Hopefully, the Blackhawks can start this trip off on a sour note for Anaheim. This is the 2nd game of a 3 game homestand for Chicago.

The Ducks definitely have players, both up front and on the bluelines, who can hurt you offensively. Their biggest threat is reigning Hart Trophy winner and NHL MVP Corey Perry, who after coming off a 50+ goal campaign last season, has picked up right where he left off. Perry is tied for the team lead in points with 7. Players that also have seven points for Anaheim are Ryan Getzlaf, Ageless Wonder Teemu Selanne, and offensive weapon Lubomir Visnovsky. Other notables for Anaheim include Bobby Ryan, who when put with Perry and Getzlaf last season formed the best line in hockey, and their goaltender Jonas Hiller.

Hiller, after suffering through vertigo last season (which is part of the reason Ray Emery is Chicago’s backup goalie), has definitely seemed to lose a step in his six starts this season. Usually, Hiller can be considered one of the NHL’s top goaltenders. However, through six games Hiller has posted a 3-3 record with a subpar .892 save percentage and a 2.71 GAA. Hopefully the Blackhawks can inflate those numbers even more tonight.

Overall, aside from the opening night loss in Dallas, the hasn’t been too much to complain about in the Blackhawks overall game. Sure, they got stoned by a hot goalie in game 1, they zombie-walked their way through the late stages of the loss against Boston, and a couple of bounces didn’t go their way against Colorado on Saturday, but for the most part, when the Blackhawks can get their transition game going and limit the opponent’s chances, it usually turns out well for them. It also helps when your penalty kill, which was a big weakness for Chicago last season, is one of the most elite in the league. If the Hawks continue to play the way they have for most of the year, they should have no problems beating any team in the league. Sometimes, though, that can be a huge “if”.

Former Maple Leaf Jason Blake is out for Anaheim for about the next three months after undergoing wrist surgery last month. Thankfully, the Blackhawks still have no injuries to report.

Let’s Go Hawks

KTM

Blackhawks/Avalanche Preview

2011-10-20T10:51:00.002-05:00

Chicago Blackhawks (3-1-1) @ Colorado Avalanche (5-1-0)

Time: 8:00 PM Central

TV: Comcast SportsNet

Radio: WGN 720

Internet: Justin.tv/hawks33channel (password is “stoogetvcom”)

After an impressive, thorough, and all around dominant victory over the Phoenix Coyotes, the Blackhawks stay out west to take on the red-hot ~~Quebec Nordiques~~ ~~Big Falling Snow Pile~~ Colorado Avalanche at the Pepsi Center.

As was the case with Phoenix, it seems as if the Blackhawks never play well against the Avalanche. Memory seems to recall a game where Tomas Fleischmann scored a couple power play goals in the third to once again, as was the case more times than preferable last year, cost the Hawks much needed points. However, considering the Hawks haven’t played Phoenix well the last couple of seasons and beat them handily two nights ago, it should make all of us feel a little bit better.

The Blackhawks, coming off a game where they dominated in all phases of the game (cue Lovie Smith impression) , should really keep things in tact from Tuesday. As long as the Hawks win the special teams game (especially if the power play looks halfway decent), they should be ok. And if they can beat Semyon Varlamov…

When it was announced that the Avalanche gave the Capitals for a first round and conditional second round pick, most people (including me) thought they were crazy for doing so, especially with Varlamov’s less than great career in DC. However, he has been a huge part in the Avs success so far this season, going 3-1-0 in his first four starts. David Jones leads the team with 4 goals.

Peter Mueller and Brandon Yip are injured and will not play in tonight’s game. The Blackhawks (shockingly) have no injuries to report.

Corey Crawford is Coach Q’s guy in net tonight.

Let’s Go Hawks

KTM

Head West Young Man: Blackhawks/Coyotes Preview

2011-10-18T11:40:00.001-05:00

After losing a sloppy 3-2 game in the shootout to the defending Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins, the Chicago Blackhawks head west to take on the Phoenix Coyotes.

The Coyotes have played the Blackhawks well in recent vintage, winning five out of the last eight meetings between the two clubs.

Blackhawks

The Blackhawks come into tonight’s game with a good, not great, 2-1-1 record. I say not great because, in my opinion, they should have won the two games in which they did not pick up the maximum 2 points. A couple notes on the Blackhawks for tonight:

The power play needs to step up. The Blackhawks have one of, if not the most, talented groups of players in the NHL. And even though they finished 4th in power play percentage a year ago, it seems like every year there are always MAJOR issues with the power play. This time around, the power play needs to figure out how to make short, quick passes instead of the long 50 foot stretch passes that get picked off and throw back down the other way. The Hawks have scored 2 or fewer goals in half of the games they have played so far this season. Fixing the power play would go a long way toward breaking that trend.

4 games into the season and it’s already “Marian Hossa was playing great but now he’s hurt” time. The Hawks are optimistic that he’ll come back tonight, but remember, this is the Blackhawks. Ya know…the same team that listed Kim Johnsson as “day-to-day”. He hasn’t played an NHL game since.

Considering we haven’t hurt otherwise, Corey Crawford will be in net tonight for Chicago.

Any takers that John Scott will be in the lineup AGAIN tonight?

Coyotes

The Phoenix Coyotes are a team that many people considered a bottom feeder in the Western Conference a couple of seasons ago, especially considering all the “Coyotes back to Winnipeg…?” turmoil the team had been facing the last couple seasons (although now that Atlanta moved to Winnipeg it’s now become “Coyotes to *insert city here”…?”) and the fact that it didn’t seem they had the talent to be a top 8 team in the West. However, the Coyotes responded to that by being a top 5 team in the conference for the last two seasons.

The Coyotes top player is their captain, and only player on the team who was an original member of the Jets when the team moved from Winnipeg in 1996, Shane Doan. The old man has gotten off to a hot start again this year with 7 points in the first 4 Phoenix games.

The biggest change for the Coyotes in the offseason surrounded their netminders. Asshat Ilya Bryzgalov followed up his “stellar” performance against the Red Wings in round 1 of the playoffs last year by demanding he be handed a significant raise. The Coyotes declined to make an offer to the pending free agent, sending his negotiating rights to the Philadelphia Flyers. Replacing him in net are no other than Jason LaBarbera, who has been the backup in the Valley of the Sun for a few seasons now, as well as former Lightning netminder Mike Smith. Don’t expect master performances by whomever gets the nod tonight.

The puck drops at 9:00 for you locals back home in the Chi. A 10:00 start for us in the east. You can catch it on WGN, WGN Radio 720, or on http://www.justin.tv/hawks33channel (the password is “stoogetvcom”).

Let’s Go Hawks

KTM

Hawks Edged by Bruins

2011-10-16T13:49:00.000-05:00

I didn't get to watch this game until this morning so I got to enjoy this very frustrating game with a cup of coffee right before football started. I really don't blame the Bruins for laughing at Patrick Kane in the photo above. Lets get right to the bullet points.

The Kane/Bomb line is almost unstoppable. When players play there rolls and play them correctly it is fun to watch. Dan plays with heart and knows what he is suppose to be doing on the ice and that is freeing up Patrick enough to do what he's suppose to do.
Toews is having another slow start. The Toews/Brunette/Sharp line isn't even showing up and his bad back pass lead to the game tying goal in the 3rd period, that's not like our captain. *He also missed on a great opportunity on a shootout goal.
Hossa was a scratch because of an upper body injury. Hope it's not serious because Boss Hoss was playing with a chip on his shoulder and was in beast mode since joining the Hawks after having his first child.
Duncan Keith struggled with Nick Leddy again. I'm almost getting sick of seeing this pairing!
Props to Jamal Mayers for dropping the gloves again, nice to see the grit on the back end again.
Bickell's breakaway goal was fantastic he didn't do too much with the puck and just buried it 5 hole. It's also nice to see Bicks taking the body and doing it in the right situations he needs to be bringing this every night all season to be effective.
Big ups to the penalty kill. So far this season is looking like a strong point to the Hawks unlike last season. Nice job Stan Bowman for knowing what the Hawks where lacking and good job bringing in the right guys to fix the situation.
Dave Bolland had another good game. His line of Frolik and Bickell has been fantastic, now if we could only get the first line going.
We got 1 point!
Losing the momentum in the 3rd period with no puck support and letting the Bruins do basically whatever they wanted to do. Looks like we lost our legs and basically got pushed around the entire 3rd period.
Tim Thomas was awesome like he's been all of last season and the playoffs. Good start to the season for him.

Blackhawks Down the Jets!

2011-10-14T20:34:00.004-05:00

It’s a little too early for the Halloween puns, but the Blackhawks looked ghastly at the start of last night’s game against the Winnipeg Jets. With 2 goals nearly three minutes apart, Jim Slater (yeah I had no idea who he was either) looked as if he was about to single-handedly hammer the nail in the Hawks coffin (I said it was too early for the Halloween pun, not that I wasn’t going to use em) when Coach Q delivered what was obviously a pretty solid ass-chewing to his team. It was all goal horns and spinning red lights after that, as the Blackhawks took control and shut down the Jets with 4-3 victory.

I loved the Kane, Hoss, Carcillo line. On paper you think hmm…. But I have to say I was intrigued from the moment I heard Q was going this route. It made for some fun hockey.

Carcillo gets slagged off for almost never using his brain, but the truth is he has always been a better hockey player than most people think. Sure he looks like John Holmes younger brother, but the guy actually does have some game and when he’s on the ice and playing smart whoever is beside him is going to get plenty of opportunities, and last night this is exactly what happened. He’s never had the chance to play with this many “skill” guys and it’s going to be really interesting to see if he’s able to maintain the balance between his various personalities. We saw him do it last night and both Hossa, and Kane were both better because of it.

FEATHERS EARNED

Patrick Kane – Talked about elevating his game and is now doing just that.

Daniel Carcillo – Played smart, played hard, and looked like he belonged out there.

The chick from the Mike Anderson Chevy Giant commercial – Okay, I’ll admit that initially I thought she was kind of hot, but if I have to see her rock that fucking granny-wig while spouting “greeeaaat customer service” one more time I’m probably going to stab someone in the ear with a cattle prod.

Blackhawks/Jets Preview

2011-10-13T13:50:00.003-05:00

The ~~Atlanta Thrashers~~ Winnipeg Jets come into the United Center tonight looking for their first win of the season. This is the first Winnipeg Jets road game in more than 15 years, and generally, the franchise has struggled in Chicago. The Blackhawks have won the last two meetings, both 5-4 by way of the shootout. The Jets are coming off their home opener in which they were stomped on by the Montreal Canadiens. The Blackhawks fared much better in their home opener, as they routed the Dallas Stars 5-2 at the United Center on Saturday night.

The Jets aren’t that good of a hockey team, but they do have players who can hurt you. Nik Antropov, Evander Kane, 2011 first round pick Mark Scheifele, Zach Bogosian, and of course former Hawks Andrew Ladd and Dustin Byfuglien will all be offensive threats. Ondrej Pavelec will be netminding Winnipeg tonight.

The Blackhawks are coming off a much needed 5-2 victory over Dallas on Saturday. However, it appears a couple lineup changes will be in the cards for Chicago. Daniel Carcillo will be in the lineup tonight after serving a 2 game suspension for the beginning of the season. It also seems as if Carbomb will be skating with Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa. Why? Nobody knows…knowing Joel Quenneville the lines will be changed after the first shift of the game.

Also, Ray Emery will get his first start of the season. He was sick with the flu earlier in the week, but he is all ready to be between the pipes tonight for the Hawks. It’s probably a good idea to give Crawford a rest now, because knowing Joel Quenneville, Corey Crawford will start the last 39 games of the season.

The puck is set to drop at 7:30 at the United Center. It will be broadcast on Comcast SportsNet as well as WGN Radio 720. Let’s Go Hawks.

KTM

Roster moves and etc.

2011-10-12T18:29:00.001-05:00

Today we saw Brandon Sadd sent down to the minors after only 2 games. Saw this move coming miles away with Stalberg, car bomb, and Ben Smith getting ready to make there season debuts. Salak was also called up today just in case Crawford's groin isn't ready to go tomorrow night and Emery supposidly sick with the flu could give Salak his first start as a Blackhawk.

Hang on To Those Tickets After All

2011-10-08T22:33:00.001-05:00

It was a tale of two teams tonight at the UC as the Blackhawks dominated the Minnesota Southstars and showed what this team is capable of when everyone is on the same page. Gone was the timid squad that let Dallas dictate the pace of the previous night’s tilt. The Hawks defense clearly felt it had something to prove. They were jumping in all night and I’m pretty sure Keith spent as much time behind Raycroft as he did at the blueline. Seabrook, O’Donnell, and Montador all had assists, with Montidor looking considerably more comfortable out there.

On the offensive side the Blackhawks looked good. The skill level alone appeared miles ahead of where I thought they’d be at this point. The boys were reading each other and correctly anticipating where the plays were going to open up. That’s something we didn’t see early last season. The Blackhawks got goals from Andrew Brunette, Dave Bolland, Jonathan Toews, and Patrick Sharp. The

I hate to be one of those guys that make grandiose statements every time a player has a good game, but it’s becoming increasingly obvious that a healthy Dave Bolland is as valuable to this team as some of the “big contract” boys. The league is full of guys who can change a game with their stick, but is there another player whose team visibly responds more than the Blackhawks do when Dave Bolland is in the lineup?

FEATHERS EARNED

Dave Bolland - Scored two goals and brought some needed grit.

Marcus Kruger – Diving to block shots in the second game of the season? That’s the kind of play that earns feathers!

Jake Dowell – None classier. Nuff said!

Seasons Over!!

2011-10-08T11:14:00.000-05:00

Everyone please return your season tickets and hope for next year! I'm just fucking with you, I saw some bad, really bad and I saw some really good last night. Everyone needs to put the rope and step stools away, it's one fucking game.

Marian Hossa! Let me say that again Marian Hossa. He was in full Hossa beast mode last night and was trying to carry the load himself. I am very optimistic that Hossa is completely healthy and is going to have a great year with anyone you put with him.
Patrick Kane was a one man show last night on any line he was added to. He was the only Hawks forward (other than Hossa) to be able enter the zone and create on his own. He also held his own in the faceoff circle.
Duncan Keith had a tough game as you can see in the photo above leading to a breakaway chance for Dallas. He also blindly through the puck up the boards to a Dallas player for a goal.
Crawford is my number 1 star of the game. If it wasn't for Craw they would have gotten blown out of Dallas. The man saw 33 shots and only let in 2. If anyone had any doubts that he would have a sophomore slump needs to think again. He's been strong all preseason and has carried that over to the regular season.
Coach Q really pissed me off last night dressing 7 defensemen and playing Steve Montador as a forward was fucking stupid. I hate to say it but I would have rather seen John Scott dress for the 4th line last night.You will never see me write that again hopefully.
The kids played good. They didn't make any dumb mistakes in either end of the ice and play the boards well all night and created chances for themselves and there line mates.
Jamie Benn destroyed Hammer and the glass!
Sharp looked like he was hurting still.
Sami Lepisto sucks and pissed me off the whole game.

I have a wedding to go to tonight so I'm recording the game and will watch it Sunday morning since the Bears aren't playing and will have something up tomorrow afternoon.

Let's Do This!!!

2011-10-04T00:48:00.000-05:00

Shhh…Can you hear it? That buzzing sound? It follows me everywhere I go. It’s like 10,000 wasps hovering just behind me at all times. It started on April 27, 2010. Just 5:22 into overtime Alex Burrows rips a slapshot over Corey Crawford’s right shoulder and before you can exhale, its goodnight, via con dios, see ya next year. It was at this moment that the buzzing began.

Think, if you will, of the opening scene in the Dark Knight. Listen as the Joker’s henchmen methodically go about their tasks in preparation for the big heist. Throughout this scene there is a low, menacing sound that suggests something is coming. The buzzing grows and grows. As it builds you realize that it’s leading to a moment, a confrontation yet to be seen. The buzzing speaks to you, and asks one simple question… Are you ready?

Does the Pope shit in the woods? Hell yeah we’re ready!!!

Questions - The biggest difference between this season and the start of last season is the reduction of question marks. New faces???? Fatigue??? Cup hangover??????? Opening night of last season was wrapped in a bundle of uncertainties We all new last year would be tough, and If we were honest with ourselves we would have used the two most hated words in a defending champions vocabulary…

“Transition year” No matter how confident I was in the Blackhawks ability to repeat, I think we all knew that it was going to be next to impossible to put that puzzle together after such a short off-season, and I truly believe the short off-season was a MAJOR factor in the Blackhawks struggles. All last season they denied that physical and mental fatigue was having a major affect, but as soon as the season ended most Blackhawks finally acknowledged that the quick turnaround was more of a factor than they had indicated. So as I see it, two of the “big three” reasons for the Blackhawks struggles have been addressed. So that leaves…

Uh, The players? Duh! (Sorry about that, Charlie Sheen stopped by to borrow some nasal cartilage and when he sees an open laptop…) Anyway, back to the players. Are there new faces? Absolutely. But the Blackhawks are in that rarified air in which their core group of players, who just won a Stanley Cup, hasn’t even hit their prime yet. Jonathon Toews is 23 years old. I’ll repeat that for you, Jonathon Toews is 23 years old. Let me ask this, out of all the superstars in the NHL is there anyone more likely than Toews to still be playing at his current level of ability10 or 15 years from now? And it’s not just Toews. Down the line the Hawks are loaded with young players who have a mountain of NHL hockey already behind them. Kane, Sharp, Seabrook, Keith, Bolland, are essentially young veterans who can provide that core stability amidst all the new faces. The other positive is the stable of promising youngsters. The Blackhawks have done a good job showing patience and giving young players the time necessary for their individual development, this coupled with some savvy drafting over the last few years, indicates a bright future. It should also be noted that the Hawks will give you the chance if they feel you’re ready, I’m looking at you Brandon Saad…

All in all, I think the Blackhawks are primed to make another serious Cup run. So on behalf of the EYF knuckleheads I’d like to say… DROP THE PUCK!!!!!!!!

Hawks vs. Wings (preseason)

2011-09-26T15:07:00.000-05:00

Red Wings edge Hawks 4-3 in overtime needing the shootout to win. There was a lot of good and some bad to take out of this game even though it was mostly a group of guys they where sent to either the AHL or there respective clubs as I'm writing this.

From what I've seen these first few preseason games is that every night there is a different rookie hero. Last night it was Brandon Pirri's turn to be that guy. He played very well being a difference maker on both ends of the ice.

I was very pleased to get an extended look at Dylan Olsen in real action. The only few times I've seen him and he was playing other rookies at rookie camp. I didn't think he played all that bad, he used his size and checked some people and for what it was worth tried to clear the front of the net. Which he isn't very good yet at doing that. Another season down on the farm will do the kid some good.

Jimmy Hayes had a good night getting a very nice patient goal. He also played good along the boards and used his size to hit some Red Wing scum.

Car bomb took some stupid penalties but didn't do anything really dumb that stood out to me. He has yet to drop the gloves this preseason. Probably trying to show the coaching staff he can do other stuff than just fight and be completely useless.

Frolik has had a really good preseason so far and I am really hoping he carries his efforts to the regular season. He's playing fast and he's playing confident in which why he is in almost every play when he's on the ice. Frolik could be a huge X factor this season if he can find his scoring touch again and help out our big guns.

All in all it's still a preseason game and they lost with the Rockford Ice Hogs but played well enough to pull out a victory against the hated Red Wings which is a good sign for what we having coming up through the system.

I want to touch on this subject real fast since word broke that Coach Q is thinking about trying Patrick Kane out at center when he is able to hit the ice for some preseason work. I just want to say that is the dumbest thing I've ever read I don't care what the reasoning is behind it. You are going to take one of the best right wingers on the club possible one of the best in the Western Conference and move him to center because your GM didn't get you a solid center in free agency? DUMB

This is to you Stan Bowman get us a solid 2nd line center you dumb ass!

I'm sure that will work out good for him/Hawks!

News and updates from training camp and first preseason game

2011-09-22T10:17:00.000-05:00

Training camp was once again sold out for the second straight year. It was fantastic seeing the Hawks back on the United Center Ice.All that speculation of Patrick Kane not being ready for training camp was a horse shit lie. He's not 100% by any means but he was on the ice for practice. He still can't really take any contact but he's on the ice shooting and passing and doing Kaner type of stuff.

Watching Dan Carcillo was the best part of training camp. Seeing him pull up a couple of times on Seabrook and tapping him on the back of the helmet basically saying your welcome for not running you through the glass and 3 rows of the UC. He also was ready to scrap when someone took a run at Stalberg, that was just a little preview of what to expect Dan to bring to the Hawks every night he is dressed.

JT looked like a beast where as his brother David looks like he needs a couple more years in the minors before is even a factor for the Hawks.

If anyone watched the first preseason game on Tuesday night you witnessed a fantastic N64, NHL94 classic from the view of the jumbo tron.

Here comes the Mark McNeil love fest and fan club starting already. He had a very nice game on Tuesday but for the love of god the 18 year old center will not, let me repeat myself again, WILL NOT make this team. The Hawks will give him some time in the minors to mature his game and become the first round center they want him to be.

Goalie show down: Salak looked shaky and a little bit of place. I'm not totally sold on him yet if you ask me. Emery looked better and is the seasoned vet. Emery also looked better at training camp so if i was the betting man and I am, I'm going with Emery to take this job and run with it. It looks like tonight the two of them are going to get the chance again to play against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The only 2 goals scored on Tuesday where from Rostisliv Olesz and Jamal Mayers. Nice to see a 4th liner get set up from a rookie and Olesz who I think is fighting to keep a job on the crowded roster.

Tonight's game is being broadcasted on WGN radio and on NHL Network if you get that channel.

Thanks for Reading
BZ

Kaner to Miss Training Camp?

2011-08-24T14:13:00.004-05:00

All of a sudden, there have been whispers regarding Patrick Kane's wrist injury. The general consensus seemed to be, based on comments from Kane and General Manager Stan Bowman, that #88 would be ready for the start of training camp. However, that all changed a few days ago when Kane was interviewed on Fan 590 in Toronto. You can here part of the interview here. Based on that interview, it didn't seem all that certain that Kaner would be back for the start of camp. It's not the most exciting news, or the most concrete but it's all we have to work with right now, so just roll with it. Until then...

KTM

More signings and notes

2011-07-17T15:25:00.001-05:00

Michael Frolik signed a 3 year contract extension right before the Blackhawks convention. When he was added to the convention list I knew that he was close or actually signed. This former 2 time 20 goal scorer was a high priority on Stan Bowman's list.

This can be a great signing if he goes back to his old form. He showed some flashes in the playoffs that he found his scoring touch, if and when him and Bolland can find some chemistry that 3rd line can put up some numbers.

As we all heard Patrick Kane is going to have surgery on Tuesday to repair his wrist. It is said he hurt it in one of the last games against Vancouver, 6-8 weeks for recovery and he'll be ready for training camp.

Kane was training this offseason and it wasn't getting any better so he was told to get it done sooner than later so he can be ready for the start of preseason. Kane has bulked up this offseason up to 185 lbs. from 160.

I've never been a fan of dogging Patrick Kane of not working hard, I've all ways believed that Kane (a point per game player) has nothing but upside to his game. There is only a hand full of these players in the NHL that put up points like him, and to all those rumors that the Hawks where shopping him "fuck off"! Unless they trade for one of the other point per game players don't even think about moving Kane. OK, but why would you do that? Stupid people start stupid rumors. Just saying.

Chris Campoli will not be brought back says Stan Bowman over the weekend at the convention. He priced himself right out of Chicago. I wouldn't be surprised if his rights get traded for some Gatorade or a bag of pucks for the UC. Oh well, thanks for the turn over in overtime in game 7 I'll never forget it Chris.

Signings, news and notes

2011-07-11T18:11:00.001-05:00

To begin the Hawks have signed Viktor Stalberg, Rob Klinkhammer, and Alec Richards. Stalberg's deal is a 2 year worth 1.75 million with a cap hit of 875K. Klinkhammer and Richards deals are to keep them down in Rockford for a little bit longer. Now all we are waiting for is Campoli and Frolik to get inked and we should be set unless Stan can pull off a trade and get me a damn 2nd line center.

In other news prospect camp finished up today and everyone is expected to make the Blackhawks roster this upcoming season. Sorry nobody from this weekends prospect camp will make this years team, I'm sorry to get your hopes up since everyone always has a boner for the high draft picks. But I do like what we've got coming through the system with good size (finally) and good speed/skill.

Stan has some trading chips in the minors if he really wants to try and make a trade. Not all these kids will make it to the NHL no matter how good they looked over the weekend or in college.

I want to go back to the Stalberg signing this to me was the one guy I didn't care if he came back or not, but Bowman's got a hard on for the kid. He really doesn't do one thing all that great out on the ice. He wasn't very good on the fourth line he couldn't play on the top lines and he can't play on the checking line. So what is he good at?

Skating.

Oh well, maybe he'll figure it out. Hopefully.

My plea to you Stan

2011-07-07T23:09:00.001-05:00

I know he will never read this but please, please do not plan on having Patrick Sharp play center this season unless he has to for injury reasons. Sharp is better suited for playing left wing for either of the top lines as we all seen last year.

I don't care right now where we get another quality center from but we need to find one.

I want to get a pool going for how long it takes Kyle Beach to fight Dan Carcillo this preseason. I'm going with the 2nd period of their first scrimmage against each other. If the Hawks where smart they would put those 2 on the same squad. Just saying.

News & Notes

2011-07-06T23:32:00.001-05:00

Unless you've been living under a rock lately you've gotta know that Campoli and Stalberg filed for arbitration. Who cares what happens to Viktor but Campoli if he gets priced out of Chicago will hurt seeing we might need his puck moving abilities.

Hoping Stan can get Campoli signed quickly.

Frolik is still not signed and not arbitration eligible . Stan has to get something done here as I think he can be a positive asset to this team still.

Tomorrow starts rookie training camp running through Monday. I will be in attendance on Saturday so I will get some info up asap after the scrimmages. Make sure to visit www.chicagoblackhawks.com to see what players will be there and the schedule.

Stamkos anyone?

2011-07-04T12:12:00.001-05:00

I've been reading a couple of rumors that the Hawks could be in the running for Steven Stamkos. Should the Hawks be in the market for him?

What I've been seeing is that the Tampa Bay is asking for top d-man. Who would the Hawks give up for him? Seabrook? Keith? And is that worth getting Stamkos?

Is trading Brian Campbell and Duncan Keith in one offseason too much too handlefor the Hawks blueline? The other rumors floating around is Doughty from the Kings to Tampa for Stamkos so I'm sure they would be asking for Keith.

But just imagine:

Smith,Toews,Kane
Sharp,Stamkos,Hossa

Just saying!

Happy 4th of July!

In Stan we trust.

2011-07-02T13:50:00.001-05:00

When free agency started at 11 a.m. central time Friday I really didn't know what direction Stan Bowman was going to go with his found cash. He decided to go with the veterans with some toughness.

He went after guys like Jamal Mayers (36), Sean O'Donnell (39), Andrew Burnette (37), and locked up Steve Montador (31) before the madness even started.

Then just when you thought the Blackhawks where done for the day Stan goes and grabs a nut job in Danny Carcillo. The whole Blackhawks world was thrown through a loop. Everyone got so upset by signing this guy, but I think the Hawks need a little bit of crazy on the ice.

Sometimes you need that guy who will stick up for Kane, Toews, Shrp, and Hossa no matter what and show the other teams (mainly Vancouver) you are not going to take liberties on our stars!

I don't think Stan is done yet. I still think Stan will get a second line center still and try to lock up Michael Frolik and Viktor Stalberg.

When the Hawks just kinda floated through the very frustrating season to watch last year I thought that they where just too soft of a team. So now I get my wish of having a bigger tougher team. I was complaining that we had no defensemen who wanted to clear the front of the net for Crawford nobody other than Hjalmersson that would block shots.

Nobody wanted to go to the dirty areas of the ice and score goals other than Ben Smith in the playoffs and should get a real nice look at making this team out of camp. Now we brought in Andrew to stand in front of the net and pick up those dirty goals and screen for our snippers.

Well i got my wish I just hope I'm right. Nice work Stan!

I'm Back!

2011-07-01T08:43:00.000-05:00

Sorry I've been gone so long I am going to try and give this another shot even with all my wedding crap and work shit. I will have a blog up over the weekend about free agency and what I think even if nobody cares. I think I'll be on my own for this but I don't really care so there!

Quick note I think the Steve Mantador was a good pick up for the Hawks. Good size likes to block shots and gives you a little bit of offense. I can deal with that!

Anyways have a good 4th of July and I will have something up over the weekend about the Hawks free agent pick ups.

Blackhawks Drop Their Second In Florida

2011-03-09T21:36:00.003-06:00

Close but no cigar. The Blackhawks came from behind tonight, but were unable to get it done in the shootout. I'm not sure what they saw in Toronto because anyone with eyes could tell that Marty St. Louis steadied that puck to a complete stop before zipping it past Crawford. That's exactly why the shootout is bullshit. The Blackhawks still get a very crucial point, which turned out to be even more important since the Wings were dropped by the Kings tonight in Detroit. Scoring for the Hawks came from Toews, Kane, and Sharp.

Happy Birthday to me!

2011-03-04T12:41:00.002-06:00

Happy Birthday to me at the ripe old age of 25!!!!!!

Flame Out

2011-03-03T01:55:00.005-06:00

With tonight's win at the UC, the Blackhawks fired yet another warning shot across the bows of the NHL's elite teams, letting the entire league know that this Hawks team won't be going gently into that good night. The Hawks lit up the red hot Flames (13-3-3 in their last 19) for a 6-4 win in a game the saw Jonathan Toews net another two goals, and Dave Bolland score a crucial 3rd period tally. The Blackhawks continued to display the growing confidence that comes with success. I can't be the only one who's noticed this team's swagger returning. Right now the Hawks are playing like champions defending their Cup. Gone is the shell-shocked team with the target one it's back. The fact is right now the Hawks are playing playoff hockey. You want consistency? Check. You want a core that made their bones in the Stanley Cup Finals? Check. You want a goalie who doesn't give 2 shits what your snipers can do because, fuck it, he was an Ice Hog last year? Check. You want a captain who leaves everything on the ice and won't settle for less from his teammates, and who happens to be playing at a level no one in the NHL can touch right now? CHECK. Now it's time to hoist the black flag and give the rest of the NHL the fight they were expecting all along.

Uh, hi... Remember me?

2011-03-01T00:03:00.000-06:00

I said it at the beginning of this season, way back when Brent had us do the roundtable discussion. I said it halfway through when things weren't looking so great. And I'm saying it again today. What is my bold statement, that is mine alone and nobody else's? Jonathan Toews shoulders will decide this teams fate. Okay, so I'm not even close to the only person that said it. I know the 2010 playoffs seem like a long time ago, but as any Hawk fan will tell you, something special happened during that long grind toward history. The special thing we witnessed was not the rebirth of a franchise (what the fuck does that even mean?) or the end of the Hawks historic cup drought. No, what we had the good fortune of seeing was a player make "the move" Sometimes the move is subtle, occurring over time. Other times it happens on one epic night. With Captain Serious we watched it build. Points, defense, leadership, repeat. "The Move" happened when Toews went from pretty damn good NHL center, who had an outstanding olympics, to Steve Yzerman / Brian Trottier incarnate. A player who is better than the sum of his parts. A player who knows going to the ugly places on the ice won't get him any facetime on NHL On The Fly, but goes there anyway. And we are seeing it again. From the now famous locker room tirade that rallied the troops for a victory over the Blues, to 23 points in his last 14 games. Toews finished his Conn Smyth winning performance with 29 points in 22 games. Looks to me like someone is playing MVP hockey at the moment. Oh, and don't give me that "well that was the playoffs, the regular season is different" horse-shit. You don't need George Parros Smarts (seriously, dude majored in economics at Princeton) to see that right now every game is a playoff game. Toews sees it. Now we find out how broad those shoulders really are.

Christmas Wish list in February

2011-02-21T20:57:00.000-06:00

Back to back winning games now and I'm still not satisfied with the Hawks play this weekend. Even if Stan Bowman stands pat with what he's got I'm going to make a Christmas wish list of what I want to see going into next season if we make the playoffs or not this will be no simple task for Stan the way the payroll seems to be shaping up.

I'll start with the goaltending. Stan has to resign Corey Crawford thats a must of the free agents coming up this summer. He has proven to be a solid number one goaltender in the NHL and has been a work horse since his playing days in the AHL not to long ago. A cheap veteran backup like Marty Turco (like Marty Turco but not actually Marty anyone but Marty Turco please!) should do as Crawford has shown the Hawks can lean on him to make a lot of consecutive starts. No matter if the Hawks make the playoffs or not don't think Crawford will be asking Niemi like numbers when pay day comes a calling.

The defense is a little different story though. I've been reading a lot of different blogs and rumors that Seabrook should be traded and why he shouldn't be traded and this shit and that shit. I want a line of bigger stronger defensemen so trading Brent Seabrook would be total shit in my theory. Any line with Nick Boyton and/or Jordan Hendry is just fucking horse shit and they wonder why they can't close out teams. I went to the game against the Wild and watching a team with some big defensive pairings that can move people out of the crease is fun to watch. I'm not asking to redo the Blackhawks defense I just want one pairing of big defensemen and Seabrook is that too much to ask for? Put Hammer and Soup back together put Seabs and Duncs back together and get me a third pairing of big penalty killing defensemen. Don't get me wrong I like Leddy but as a scrawny Duncs remake he's fine. Whatever!

First and foremost I want the Hawks to sign and bring back Troy Brouwer a guy who is one of the only guys on the team that isn't afraid to hit he has to be resigned and I want them to get a couple more Troy Brouwers next season. This team needs to get some grit and I hate to use the word soft but that's what this team has become "Finesse", truth hurts. My dad said this last year about the Hawks saying they where to soft and I argued but this year I have nothing to argue with and I agree with him fully. Adding a dumbass player like John Scott does not make you tough it makes the other teams goons start shit with him and still take full advantage of our superstars. Hossa needs a real center to help him and Frolik and to win some fucking faceoffs. I've been a big believer that centers and defense wins hockey games and I'm sticking to that.

I know it's a tough line to walk with the salary cap but improvements need to be made and I've been reading that Bowman wants some kids to come up and tribute but don't think Morin, Kruger, Klinkhammer, and either of the Hayes brothers will come up and turn the NHL on fire. Please Stan Bowman help this team.

Blackhawks have the assets to buy

2011-02-14T19:34:00.012-06:00

As we get closer and closer to the Trade Deadline the more I find the Chicago Blackhawks in the driver's seat. The Blackhawks have the championship experience, and a few of those players are still here. Also the Blackhawks have a very deep prospect group who can be used to get them what they need for another cup run.

The Blackhawks have a good amount of picks for the 2011 NHL Entry draft that could help them land a name for their playoff run. Along with their normal picks the Blackhawks have the Atlanta Thrasher’s 2nd Round Pick which was acquired along with Ivan Vishnevskiy for Andrew Ladd. The Blackhawks also have the Calgary Flame's 2nd round pick. For the 3rd round the Blackhawks acquired the Toronto Maple Leaf's pick from the Calgary Flames in the same deal that landed them Calgary’s 2nd round pick. Chicago also owns the Boston Bruin’s 7th round pick which was acquired for the Blackhawks 2010 7th round pick.

Now onto the players, first off is center Nathan Davis. The center has only played 72 games in the AHL in 3 seasons. He is quite often injured, and could be a piece to acquire something in return, maybe just for another AHL player who will play. Also at forward is Kyle Beach. The forward shows he has a very in-consistent game, and can hurt his team with dumb on ice acts. Beach’s value is a bit high right now, but along with that value also you would get his reputation that some teams may not like. However, there are teams out there who like Beach’s style and may be willing to take him in. two other pieces in the minors are Evan Brophey and Rob Klinkhammer. The 2 skaters have paid their dues in the AHL and may be ready for the jump to the NHL, and there may not be room on the Blackhawks roster for them.

On D the Blackhawk’s organization has a very solid depth core. Nick Leddy has proved he is going to be a solid NHL player, and a move won’t be made involving him. However after Leddy there are still quite a bit of Offensive D-men depth behind him. Brian Connelly, the Rockford Icehogs All-Star representative is having a very good year. However, when it comes down to it, Connelly will have a hard time to beat out some of these other players, especially since he lacks size. The towering Simon Danis-Pepin has yet to prove he is a full time AHL player. Danis-Pepin doesn’t use his size to his advantage, he has good vision and can create offensive opportunities, but he is so in-consistent he usually finds himself in the ECHL. Two other notable D-men who could bring value are Vishnevskiy and Shawn Lalonde. Lalonde has developed in a better 2-way player but still has that offensive play in him, and could be a valued piece, but I would rather him not be moved. Vishnevskiy is a very good offensive D-man. He is a solid power play quarterback, and has a tremendous shot, but sometimes it appears he lacks the “want” to play.

Finally there are the Blackhawks roster players. There’s not many but some could be moved. Viktor Stalberg, who I prefer not to be moved, may have some value out there. Also on D is Jordan Hendry. Hendry is still a bit young and could help either a rebuilding team or playoff contenders. He brings plenty of versatility as he can play wing or D. Also a long shot, but teams could be interested in Nick Boynton. Boynton brings cup experience, along with his gritty defensive ways could help a team who is looking for that style. It's a long shot, but with today’s cap, but never rule out the un-expected.

The Final decision comes down to Stan Bowman though. With the recent acquisition of Michael Frolik he is expected to build for a cup run. The Blackhawks have plenty of young guys who will join the organization soon, along with some newly drafted players. It may be time to move some of the Dale Tallon non-hopefuls for the future.

Recent Thoughts

2011-02-03T21:11:00.000-06:00

Watched the entire NHL allstar weekend since I've been sick and thought it was fantastic. The draft was fun and the skill competition was entertaining. The game was fun to watch even with out hitting and defense. All the Blackhawks showed up to play that night. Kane, Toews, Sharp, and Keith all had very good nights. I voted for Sharp I'll admit it. He played very well and made it known every time he was on the ice well deserved award Sharpie. It is always nice to have the rest of the country see what we see on any given night. I know they all saw it during the playoffs and finals but I enjoy watching our stars shine on the big stage as much as they can.

Hawks vs. Columbus was a great game to watch on a night where travel was nearly impossible in Chicago with a hurricane blizzard bringing chaos. Toews showed why he can be an unstoppable force in the NHL having 3 points in the 2nd period alone. Kane and Bolland scored and the Hawks took over the game after losing the lead in the second period. we really need Bolland to show up big time in the second half. Next up the much hated Vancouver Canucks in Vancouver. I promise I'll be around more in the second half of the season!

Two faced weekend

2011-01-24T20:01:00.000-06:00

The Hawks weekend started out very nicely winning convincingly up in the run down shack called the Joe. Corey Crawford had a very strong game only letting in one soft goal that he rarely ever does.The guy pictured in this blog punching the big ass known as Dan Carcillo scored 2 goals against his former mates.

Before the game got started it was announced that Patrick Kane will be an assistant for Nick Lindstrom for what reason I still can't figure out. I know Kane is a really electric player but there is a reason why he isn't an assistant on the Hawks but whatever the game is for fun and good for him it's an honor. Don't get offended by what I just wrote he just isn't a very good leader I don't think. Don't kill me!

Then 6'6" bag of horse shit came back to take some more abuse from the United Center crowed on Sunday and boy did Chris Pronger hear it from us. I got 2 out of the three fights I wanted to see on Sunday. Carcillo got fucked up by Jack Dowell and Scott Hartnell got jacked up from Bryan Bickell. I did have a few conversations with some Flyers fans and I was told that they did go to the game to see our new banner and maybe a chance to see the cup that didn't make an appearance and they still haven't had a chance to see since it was last skated on their home ice last spring.

They won 4-1 Saturday and lost 4-1 on Sunday but whatever I just wish that Pronger would have found John Scott and would have gotten his funny ass looking face pounded in.

4 Hawks in this years Allstar game

2011-01-11T21:24:00.000-06:00

Today the NHL released the rest of the rosters for the Allstar game. Joining Jonathan Toews and Duncan Keith will be teammates Partrick Kane and Patrick Sharp. Sharpie was a no brainer really as he's technically in the running for the Rocket Rashard trophy. I figured Kaner would make it just because, well he's Kaner. They will be joined by ex-teammate Dustin Byfuglien who will be playing defense representing the Atlanta Thrashers.

Remember over the summer when Stan Bowman said that Patrick Sharp is considered one of the core players when the rumors were swirling about him possible getting traded. What a mistake that would have been if he did trade him. Sharpie is locked up through next year but the Blackhawks should be already thinking about a contract extension. A guy who can play all three of the wing positions who's nickname is the sharp shooter should be considered like a Toews, Kane, Hossa or Keith. I know they don't have to push the envelope this summer but I know Stan has to be thinking and crunching numbers to figure out how to keep Seabrook, Sharp and Crawford. Seabrook and Crawford's contracts are up after this season.

Just a thought I know I'm jumping the gun but it's never to early to start thinking about locking up a guy like Sharpie.

Watch your Blackhawks Allstars here!

2011-01-11T19:27:00.001-06:00

Get the Leddy out!

2011-01-07T18:25:00.001-06:00

Guess who's back, back again, Leddy's back tell a friend. Sorry for the Eminem intro but that's what came to mind when I heard Nick Leddy was recalled today from Rockford to join the the big club. We all know the Blackhawks (coach Q) has been very upset about the defense as of late benching meat bag Nick Boynton and now sending Jassen Cullimore back down to Rockford.

Now what does this mean for Leddy? Well he's going to get some more experience at the NHL level and when we last saw him I felt he was getting more and more comfortable. Down in Rockford he had 10 points (2 goal and 8 assists) and was minus 7.

I like Leddy as a player I think he'll be a great d-man for the Hawks in the future but I still don't understand the fast track for this kid. Shawn Lalonde is having a good year down in Rockford and still isn't getting a look from the Hawks to get brought up. Shawn has 17 points (4 goals 13 assists) and is even (+/-) with 39 minutes in the penalty box. But for whatever reason the kid isn't liked very much in the organization. I just hope that the Hawks find what they are looking for on the back end. They should try and re-examine the the centers in stead. Go Blackhawks! Lets get 2 tonight boys!

Return Of Captain Serious

2011-01-04T16:56:00.003-06:00

Once again, we see what a healthy Blackhawks team is capable of. Last night in Los Angeles we watched the rejuvenated Blackhawks come in and manhandle the Kings who, by the way, had every reason to win this game, pride being the biggest reason of all. Every time the Kings have stepped on the ice with the Hawks this season they have come away a beaten team, and to be honest with you, I thought that trend would end last night. However the Hawks brought something that has been missing from their arsenal as of late; SWAGGER. The Hawks played hard and with an urgency we haven’t seen much of this year. Jonathon Toews made a huge return to the lineup by being in front of the net for the game-winning goal. The biggest contribution Captain Serious made was not on the score sheet, but rather in his display of natural born leadership. At times it seemed as if he thought Los Angeles was Vancouver in May of 09. As I said at the beginning of this season (I am by no means the only one to say it) this team will go as far as Toews pushes it.

Patrick Sharp continues to have the season of his life as he notched another two goals last night. He is third in goals at this point, and his ability to score in bunches should keep him in the “Rocket” Richard Trophy discussion until the end.

Corey Crawford looked steady and ready last night. His stop on Kopitar late in the third once again proved that he actually has ice water flowing through his veins when the game is on the line.

Oh yeah, I just picked up a copy of The Golden Jet and have to say that if you don’t own this book you are definitely missing out. Incredible photos from every stage of Bobby Hull’s career, with commentary from the Golden Jet himself. Every aspect of the book is first rate. Seriously, it belongs of the bookshelf of every Blackhawks fan.

Jonas Hiller steals one for the quack attack

2011-01-02T23:13:00.001-06:00

On a night where the goalie just couldn't be penetrated the Hawks put up 19 shots on Hiller in the 3rd period. No that's not a typo they out shot the Ducks 19-2 in the third period and if it wasn't for a dumb ass play by David Bolland the Hawks would have tied it up. With a wide open cage and Hiller flopping around Viktor Stalberg had the perfect shot to tie up the game late in the third. Instead of hitting the twine Bolland tried to redirect the puck (for what fucking reason I'm still trying to figure that out) right into Hiller's arm and over the net.

Corey Crawford got his first start in little over a week and stopped 16 shots. He really kept this game close and made some spectacular saves especially since he hasn't played lately due to sickness and Marty Turco plating better in his absence. But it didn't matter who was in net for us Hiller was standing on his head all night.

Blackhawks upper management needs to site down and take a look at the center position because the Hawks are extremely weak down the middle. Winning face-offs isn't a science you gotta be willing to out work the other guy and nobody seems to want to do that other than Jonathan Toews and he's not playing right now. Ryan Johnson held his own but I'm a big believer in a winning team is built by defense and centermen. Either way we have to get better in the faceoff circle.

Oh well we'll get the next one LETS GO HAWKS!

#1 Prospect signs on with Blackhawks

2010-12-31T17:50:00.002-06:00

According to Bob McKenzie of TSN, Minnesota Duluth's defender Dylan Olsen signs a 3 year deal with the Chicago Blackhawks. Olsen is expected to be sent to the AHL Affiliate Rockford Icehogs. Olsen the Hawks 1st round pick(28th overall)in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft has put 11 points (1 goal, 10 assists) in 36 games. Olsen is currently playing in the WJC for team Canada.

What does this do for the Icehogs? It gives them another young player who is going to develop into a solid player. Olsen the #1 ranked prospect in the Hawks organization brings the Icehogs average age down to 23.2. This move also gives the Icehogs their 4th 19 year-old player.

In the end the move is good for both the Hawks, and Olsen. Olsen gets to develop into the professional game sooner than expected, and the Hawks may get him developed a bit sooner.

Happy New Years!

2010-12-31T11:28:00.001-06:00

Happy New Years to everyone from the EYF crew and enjoy all the asses in the picture! I hope the new year brings some good shit to the Hawks and their fans!

Can't catch a break

2010-12-30T08:15:00.002-06:00

The night where we finally seem to get everyone healthy and ready to go we lose our captain Jonathan Toews for at least 2 weeks. Nik Hjalmersson and Troy Brouwer also seemed to get injured on the same night against the St. Louis Blues. A game in which the Hawks decided to not to show up and play anyways.

Well, this blows ass!

Last season we seemed to catch a few breaks here and there nobody was injured for long periods of time and they all didn't get injured at the same time. But karma is a bitch and what went right last year for the most part is going wrong this season.

And that is why I want to make a huge shout out to coach Q he has really done a tremendous job with this hockey team. Through the think and thin so far this season he has this team playing fairly good hockey. The Hawks could have taken a shit after Hossa and Kane went down instead they went on a winning streak. Even though I think it's harder to lose your captain and heart and soul. I do believe that coach Q will have this team fight through this as it is just another speed bump in their quest to defend the Stanley Cup.

Here come the Hawks!

2010-12-26T16:59:00.001-06:00

Tonight the Hawks get a late Christmas gift of a healthy Viktor Stlaberg and Marian Hossa. What great news for the Hawks after winning a few in a row now.

I know you are all wondering about Patrick Kane, but he is still a couple of days away. Can't get to greedy I'll take Hossa and Stalbergs return tonight. Now everyone don't get your hopes up to much that Hossa will come in and dominate and get a hat trick or anything like that. The guy has been out since late November and it will take him at least a couple of games to get his legs back under him.

But just having Boss Hoss's presence back in the lineup will do huge things for the Hawks, and what a game for him to decide to come back against those Blue Jackets this could be a very exciting sight for him and Stalberg. Either way lets get 2 points tonight and keep the winning streak alive! GO BLACKHAWKS!

Side note Corey Crawford is sidelined from an Illness so Toivonen has been called up. So we will see Turco in net tonight FANTASTIC!!! (Sarcasm!)

Merry Christmas!!!!!

2010-12-24T13:03:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas from the EYF crew! Now go get your drink on!

I'll take 2 more

2010-12-22T23:54:00.001-06:00

Hawks win 4-1 over the Sexual Preds. Jack Skille puts in 2 goals and nobody beat the fuck out of Shane O'Brian which is needed but I'll take the victory either way. Brian Bickell and David Bolland scored goals tonight also.

I walked into the UC wanting a Corey Crawford shutout and I was 8 minutes away from that when the Preds got a PP goal to ruin that for me. The Hawks played fantastic in their own zone all night again helping Crawford clean up the rebounds he did leave laying around.

Winning streaks feel good! Keep rolling Hawks help is still on it's way!

I Still Believe

2010-12-19T01:44:00.001-06:00

Okay, so I’ve always heard people say “watch out man, having a kid changes everything”, being the supremely confident person I am, I figured these folks just hadn’t mastered the fine art of multitasking. Well turns out everyone knew what they were talking about. When I asked Brent if he needed or wanted an extra contributor my daughter was around one month old, which it turns out is 90% mom territory. So I had plenty of time to write. Nobody bothered to inform me that dad’s role amps up BIG TIME after month two. Long story short, I’m shit at multitasking and being a dad, er, let me amend that, being a “good” dad is time consuming. The point I’m making is I haven’t been able to write as much as I’d like to. So before I start yammering my thoughts on the Hawks, I wanted to take the time to say thank you to Brent and the knuckleheads for being patient with me while I try and find my groove. Brent has always been supremely cool with us when it comes to this site. He gives all of us the freedom to write what we want, which is exactly why EYF is a great Hawks blog. You don’t get edited or filtered opinions from its writers. You get blue collar, meat and potatoes Blackhawks coverage in which a word like “tripe” is nowhere to be found. And just to embarrass him a little more, I’d like to let the world know that when he found out I was coming to Chicago by myself for opening night, Brent and his lovely future wife Brittany made sure I wasn’t alone by inviting me to hang with them all day. Neither of them had met me before. They’re just those kind of people. Where I come from they’d be “Good shits, those two” Okay, enough dick riding, lets talk hockey.

To quote Bob Dylan “There’s too much confusion here, I can’t get no relief” “Confusion” has been the word of the day everyday this season. Different lines, different pairings, different goalies, ect… You get the picture. If we’ve learned anything this season it’s the power of a cohesive unit. Hawks had it last year, and we saw what they did. They have been nowhere near a cohesive unit this season and the results are exactly as they should be. If you doubt this look no further than the play of the 3^rd and 4^th lines. A lot of these guys came in expected to be the weak link on a team of returning legends. I promise you proving all their doubters wrong is exactly what brought the 3^rd and 4^th liners together. We saw it early and we’re still seeing it now as guys like Skille, Bickell and Dowell have played with heart and grit while many returning starters just watch as they hustle right by them. Unfortunately those three names I just mentioned aren’t going to account for a ton of goals. The “legends” need to step up.

Has there ever been a team whose best players disappear so often? Is it just me or does it seem like the Hawks spend entire weeks waiting for someone to step up. You read the box score after a game and it’s a who’s who of guys who either played somewhere other than Chicago last season or saw limited ice time with the Hawks.

All that being said, I still like this teams chances to make some noise. With the young guys just now starting to really play like they belong and Kane and Hossa on the mend I think the Hawks are set to have a strong second half, and let’s face it, that’s when it really matters anyway. So the Hawks won’t have home ice during the playoffs? Good, they play better on the road anyway. They’ll have to face a high seed? Good, they only get motivated when their backs are against the wall anyway. Things are far from decided, and I have a strong feeling this is going to be a tale of three seasons. We’ll call the first half, The Forgettable First. The second half to come is now officially called The Reckoning, and lets just call the playoffs TRUE GRIT. I’m still a believer, who’s with me? LET’S GO BLACKHAWKS!!!

Icehogs earn win with a dramatic comeback

2010-12-19T00:30:00.008-06:00

In an un-expected physical game the Rockford Icehogs hosted the Lake Erie Monsters. The game was very solid defensive type game, with lots of chipiness, and great saves. Scoring would not come until the 3rd period when Lake Erie's 4th line took advantage. However, the Icehogs would draw a penalty to put them on the Powerplay. With the pulled goaltender Hannu Toivonen, the Icehogs capitalized on a 6-4 goal with 14 seconds left. Jeremy Morin would score his 7th goal when he skated to the side of the net and put the puck in front of the net to be deflected in for the goal. Morin's assists went to Brandon Pirri, and Brian Connelly. In Overtime Garnet Exelby executed a great keep in that sent the puck down to Rob Klinkhammer, Klinkhammer then sent the puck to Peter LeBlanc who scored the game winning goal after he stick handled around a defender, and deked goaltender John Grahme out of the net. The goal was LeBlanc's 5th of the year, assists going to Klinkhammer and Exelby. Toivonen finished the night with 25 saves, and earning the win. The Icehogs Powerplay also struggled setting up due to Nick Leddy not playing in the game.

2 Points! What the hell is that?

2010-12-17T22:57:00.000-06:00

Haven't been able to say that a lot lately. I will take a 4-1 Hawks win over the Detroit Scum any day of the week. On a night where Chris Chelios was being honored the Blackhawks decided to show up and play a really intense brand of hockey.

All night long the Blackhawks decided to play a very tight defensive game lead by 7&2 who had a fantastic night in all three zones. That doesn't mean I shouldn't give the first star of the game his due, Corey Crawford was very strong making 29 saves.

This is a good start when this team is on the verge of getting healthy. It's about damn time to get some winning ways right before Hossa and Kane look to take the ice. Kane was suppose to participate in last nights game but re-aggravated his ankle injury setting him back a couple more games. Lets just hope they can string some wins together and start climbing the standings! Go Blackhawks great win tonight!

My Question and Answer with Fight Night at the Joe

2010-12-17T15:08:00.000-06:00

Andy asked me if I would do a Question and answer for his Scum (Red Wings) blog and I obliged so check it out right here! I answered them as nicely as I could since it is a Scum website but I was very happy he asked me to do it for him.

Damnit! Got us again!

2010-12-16T07:46:00.002-06:00

Even though the Hawks came out looking for revenge they fell again to the Colorado Avalanche. If you caught the post game CSN interviewed a very irritated Jonathan Toews. I would be irritated to if I was him nothing seemed to work against these Avs. They really remind me of the Blackhawks from 2 seasons ago fast and to young to know any better.

Troops are on their way! Patrick Kane is reportedly coming back on Friday against the Wings. Marian Hossa and Frenando Pisiani should be back as early as next week. So Toews keep this team a float a little bit longer as you will have some help coming. On the shitty side I believe that Viktor Stalberge has a concussion after last nights brutal hit he received so I think he'll be missing some time as this is his second concussion in 2 years.

Let's just hope they can bring the pain against the Wings on Friday and get us 2 points versus the hated division rivals. Go Blackhawks!

Blackhawks drop the Minnesota South Stars 5-3

2010-12-08T23:23:00.003-06:00

With Kane and Hossa sidelined, the IceHogs… Um… Er… Uh… I mean Blackhawks came out and proved that there are still plenty of hollow-points in the clip as they downed the Dallas Stars 5 – 3 at the UC tonight. The Hawks got goals from Bickell, Toews, Morin, Brouwer, and Sharp.

It was a great night for anyone who wore an IceHogs sweater within the last year. The lineup was a who’s who of recent Hogs. Bickell, Skille, Dowell, Cullimore and Crawford all donned the “pig” last season, while Morin and Klinkhammer have been staples of the IceHogs lineup this season. Brian Bickell scored his second goal in as many games and finished with 2 points after grabbing an assist on Brouwer’s 2^nd period goal. Bickell wasn’t the only recent Hog to find the back of the net as Jeremy Morin scored the first of what is likely to be many NHL goals.

Shout out to Jake Dowell for continuing to know what it means to be a MAN. Every Cheap Shot Sean Avery Wannabe Hard Hitter in the league could stand to learn a few things from #28.

What can you say about Corey Crawford? The Blackhawks play better when he’s in the net. It’s not science, and we’re not splitting atoms here. Don’t ask why, just shut up and let it be.

The Rat is back. Dave Bolland had his second 2-point game in a row. He netted two goals against Calgary on Sunday and dished off two against the Stars tonight. He looked out of sorts for much of the early portion of this season, but appears to have rediscovered the offensive touch that earned him 73 points for the London Knights in 06 and the “Rat” persona that made Joe Thornton look like a fourth line center for the Muskegon Lumberjacks.

All in all, the Hawks are playing their most consistent hockey of the season. With 5 wins in 6 games the Blackhawks are trending in the right direction, and with many of the first year players hitting their stride, the loss of Kane and Boss Hoss might not be as devastating as anticipated. With the Sharks coming up twice and games against both the Kings and the Wings, the next 9 games will tell us plenty about what this team is made of. I say bring em all on and let chips fall where they may. Go Blackhawks!

Scoring on Icehogs mind with 8-5 win

2010-12-08T23:07:00.009-06:00

The Rockford Iceogs hosted the Texas Stars on Wendesday in what would be an offensive show. 13 goals was scored between the teams. Texas took a 2-0 lead into the 1st intermission. At 5:09 of the 2nd period Shawn Lalonde blasted home a goal for his 2nd goal of the year. The goal was set up beautifully by Igor Makarov and Ryan Stanton. Rockford would strike again just a little over a minute later when Kyle Hagel scored his first career AHL goal. Hagel's goal was assisted by Ivan Vishnevskiy, and Garnet Exelby. Texas would then score 2 more goals for a 4-2 lead, but Rockford wasn't going down without a fight. At 14:09 of the 2nd period Jeff Taffe put in his 6th goal of the year, Taffe's assists going to Mathis Olimb and Ryan Potulny. At 17:24 of the 2nd period Potulny would score a Powerplay Goal on a goal mouth feed from Taffe, Brandon Pirri also assisted on the Powerplay marker. 22 seconds later Hagel would score his 2nd goal of the night when he picked up a rebound and scored, assists going to Exelby and Vishneviskiy.
Rockford would come out where they left off in the 2nd period. Peter LeBlanc scored his 1st goal of the year after being called up by the Icehogs, Lalonde assisted on the goal. Just under a minute later, Brandon Bollig would score his 2nd goal of the year, assists going to Stanton and Lalonde. Texas however would score to make the score 7-5 in favor of Rockford, but 17 seconds later Olimb would score his 1st goal of the season on an empty netter, assists going to Taffe and Potulny. Hannu Toivonen backstopped Rockford to the win stopping 25 of 30 shots on goal.

Hits just keep on coming

2010-12-06T20:26:00.000-06:00

Last night was a good win for the Hawks and the 6th straight for Corey Crawford, but the Hawks lost star right winger Patrick Kane in the process. Reports all of the Internet range from a month to career ending ( I'm just kidding about the career ending but that is the stupid shit going around the Internet right now!) and that folks is what happens when the Hawks are being very tight lipped about the severity of the injury.

We'll talk about Kane more later lets look at the positives out of last nights win. The Hawks keep winning with Crawford in net and like I've said I don't care why or how but let them keep winning with him in net. He had a rough first period but rebounded very nicely for the win. I like how Corey doesn't let a goal or two effect him and it shows a good maturity and I think the Hawks feed off of that. I think the reins are starting to slip out of Turco's hands with every start Crawford wins and Turo looses.

When Kane left after his first shift it was very nice to see the rest of the Hawks step up and play an intense hockey game. The Flames showed up to play a jackass style of hockey and the Hawks made them pay for it every time they tried to take liberties with PP goals. Toews came to play and his leadership last night really shined when they could have rolled over and said FUCK Kane just got hurt and Hossa is hurt the Flames got the best of us tonight, and guess what they didn't they played hard.

Alright lets get back to Patrick Kane. If Kane is seriously hurt and is out any real length of time this will hurt the Hawks but will it be the end of the season? NO! Is missing Hossa and Kane going to suck? Hell yes! But I truly don't think Toews or any one else on the current Blackhawks roster let this team drown because of Kane or Hossa's injury.

There are some really good prospects who could get some time up like a Jeremy Morin who is playing very well since being called up. Now I'm sure you've all read and heard that he got sent down to Rockford. Don't look to far into that as it's an salary cap move and he'll be back for Wednesday's game versus Adam Burish and the Dallas Stars. But we will see who else the Hawks will call up for Kane on Wednesday.

Hawks looking for a win Sunday night

2010-12-05T00:30:00.000-06:00

I want to start this blog out by saying Happy Birthday to my wonderful fiancee who got tickets to the Blackhawks game yesterday for her Birthday from her parents. Boy did they show up for her Birthday, but as we where leaving the UC she says "Babe I think you where right they play like shit in front of Turco"

Just like last season when they played like assholes in front of Huet and they are doing it to Turco this season.

And I like Turco, don't take this as a hating blog towards Turco I'm just stating a fact that I've seen game in and game out for a couple of weeks now. I don't know why it is this way but this is the second year in a row now that the Hawks have looked to a young and in experienced goaltender and have rallied around him.

Now I'm not writing this to argue about system breakdowns and who's on what line and shit like that. All I'm trying to do is make people watch a little bit more closely as how they play in front of the two goalies. Being in attendance to that great game last night I don't think it would have mattered if Crawford was in net because Luongo stole that one with the Hawks having many point blank chances, but I don't believe that Crawford needed a night off so soon. He was the Icehogs work horse starting at least 45 games for the last 3 years.

That being said the Hawks are turning back to him for Sunday's match up with the Calgary Flames. I'm looking for the Hawks to rebound nicely and for Crawford to have a better game than he had against the St. Louis Blues even though he got the win that night.

Icehogs split with Houston

2010-12-04T23:48:00.019-06:00

On Thursday the Houston Aeros hosted the Rockford Icehogs in a school day game. In front of a 7,500 crowd, the Icehogs and Aeros didn't disappoint as the game ended with Houston winning in a shoot-out. Houston opened the scoring with 54 seconds left in the 1st period when John DiSalvatore scored. Rockford got on the scoreboard when Brian Connelly put home his 2nd goal of the year at 3:15 of the 2nd period. Connelly's goal was assisted by Jeff Taffe and Igor Makarov. At the halfway mark of the 2nd period, and almost half way mark of the game Ryan Potulny capitalized on an un-assisted break away goal for the Icehogs. Houston would then tie the game at 2 a piece when Jean-Michel Daoust scored. Connelly would again score for the Icehogs for his 3rd of the year and 2nd of the game. Houston would then strike later in the period when Cody Almond scoredto tie the game and send it to OT. Houston would then go on to win the shoou-out 2-1, the Icehogs shoot-out goal coming from Ivan Vishnevskiy.

On Friday in a rematch the game was a much tighter defensive game. Houston would score first when former Wisconsin Badger stand-out Robbie Earl scored. Rockford however would come out in the 2nd period and produce what was needed for the win. Vishnevskiy scored 2 minutes into the 2nd frame, assists going to Mathis Olimb and Hugh Jessiman. Potulny would later score the eventual game winning goal at 14:53 for his 6th goal on the season, assists going to Makarov and Taffe. That goal would be enough for the Rockford "D" to hang on to and get a solid victory.

Pirri making the most of his opporutunities

2010-12-01T22:06:00.017-06:00

There was lots of hype for Brandon Pirri when the announcement was made that he would play professionally over the summer. Not only has Pirri lived up to it he has been one of the best skaters for the Rockford Icehogs. Pirri has also earned a call-up to the Chicago Blackhawks, the tea who drafted him 59th overall in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. In 19 games for the Icehogs Pirri has put up 9 points (5 goals, 4 assists). Pirri has shown that he is an important piece to any hockey club as he can play the powerplay, and also kill off penalties. One of the Icehogs better players Pirri finds himself out on the ice in key situations.

So what makes this better for Pirri? Pirri along with the Blackhawks top prospect Dylan Olsen get the chance to play for team Canada in the World Junior Classic. For Pirri to get this type of opportunity someone has definitely been watching him play, and of course they like the way he has played. Though players have to be loaned to participate in this tournament, the Blackhawks would most likely send their young up and comer to participate in an event like this. Pirri could be joined by top prospects Jeff skinner of the Carolina Hurricanes, Brayden Schenn of the Los Angeles Kings, Tyler Seguin of the Boston Bruins, and #1 pick Taylor Hall of the Edmonton Oilers, all whom have to be offered out on loan from their parent clubs. Even if all those young stars are loaned out Pirri could make the team because he is so versatile in different roles. Here's to Brandon Pirri, show the world what you can do, and make the Blackhawks organization proud.

Crazy Train

2010-11-30T22:07:00.000-06:00

After the Hawks going up 5-2 going into the third period who the hell would have thought the game would end up 7-5 Hawks?

Not me!

Versus picked a very entertaining game to put on national TV. Kane and Toews scores 2 goals apiece and Kopecky has 4 points on a sea-saw type of game.

OH, and not to mention this game was fight filled of course because of the match up with the hated St. Louis Blues. We even got to see Rookie Jeremy Morin drop the gloves. Speaking of Morin I thought he played fantastic tonight was involved in the first 2 goals for the Hawks and he looked healthy and is an asset for the Hawks.

Corey Crawford got his 3rd straight start tonight as Randy pointed out last night. I feel as though he had a very good game going until the Blues got relentless with crowding the front of the net. A lot of the goals given up from the point where redirected at least one time before before getting to him but the Blues made life very difficult for Crawford tonight.

To end this recap in all my years of watching hockey I don't think I've ever seen the refs break up a fight before it ever really started and send both men to the box for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Hawks Return Home for Contest with Blues

2010-11-30T00:00:00.000-06:00

The Blackhawks return home as the conquering heroes, winning four of six games on the Circus Trip and getting back over .500. They return home to the United Center, facing a bout with their rivals to the south, the St. Louis Blues.

The Blues come in struggling after a torrid start to the season, having won just three of their last 10. Much of that can be attributed to the loss of forward T.J. Oshie, who is out with a broken ankle. Jaroslav Halak's road starts for the Blues aren't nearly as impressive as his home starts, either. His GAA is weak at 3.38 and his save percentage stands at just .878.

Corey Crawford returns to the United Center as the new fan favorite. He won all three of his starts on the trip, allowing just one goal in each, while starting goaltender Marty Turco allowed 11 combined in his pair of starts. Tuesday's start will be Crawford's third in a row, meaning the roots of controversy have been planted, or Joel Quenneville is just riding the hot hand.

For the Hawks to be successful, their stars have to come to play. We saw Jonathan Toews explode against Edmonton on the trip. Patrick Sharp and Patrick Kane scored the only two goals for the Hawks against the Kings. Itw as vital for these guys to have a good trip and they did just that. If Jack Skille is carrying the team like we've seen once or twice this season, it will be along night for the Hawks.

For Chicago on the injury front, Marian Hossa is a concern for the second time this season, following a collision with Nick Boynton. The hockey gods pointed a big fat middle finger at the Blackhawks, with Boynton emerging nearly unscathed. Hossa, however, had to be helped off the ice, leaving his status for Tuesday up in the air. If there is good news, it was a leg injury, not that shoulder.

When the puck drops at the UC on Tuesday, it will mark the first of four at home for the Hawks. They appear to have righted the ship, but now they have to do it at home, where they have struggled this year.

Hawks News: Crawford to Start, Hossa Injured

2010-11-29T16:20:00.001-06:00

The news most Blackhawks fans wanted to hear when the day started was quickly followed by the news almost no one wanted to hear.

Corey Crawford will be in net for the Hawks when they host the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday, at the United Center. It will be the third start in a row for Crawford, having allowed just one goal in each of his last two starts.

I've been driving the Crawford bandwagon for weeks now, given Marty Turco's penchant for giving up soft goals. The defense also seems to play much better with Crawford between the pipes, unlike the puck handling style of Turco. Similar to Antti Niemi last season, they appear to have confidence in Crawford and don't have to worry so much about covering an open net like they do with Turco.

On the flip side, there is bad news for the Hawks going into Tuesday. Marian Hossa was injured in practice in a collision with Nick Boynton and reportedly had to be helped off the ice. His status is uncertain for Tuesday's game.

The Blackhawks return home to the Madhouse for a tilt with the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday.

Blackhawks roll with the punches

2010-11-28T13:57:00.000-06:00

Last night was a great way to end the circus trip for the Blackhawks with a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings. Another circus trip over and the Hawks have a winning road trip for another year going 4-2. They are 2 games over .500 after this road trip. Last night the Hawks joined together and outplayed a very talented Kings team who has been struggling as of late.

Corey Crawford! What another great performance this kid gave us last night. He faced 22 shots last night and some really good quality ones at that. Crawford is really stirring the pot of goalie controversy in the dressing room. His performance last night really has to give coach Q and the Hawks coaching staff a hard time sitting the kid for Turco. I would be really surprised to see Turco Tuesday versus the St. Louis Blues. The one thing I really like about Crawford is how big he looks in the net and the confidence shows. Like I said the other night go with the hot hand and lets get a good winning streak together with a hot goalie.

This trip has done wonders for this team in the bonding category. They are playing as a unit now and you can see that in every shift. I'm really looking for this team to get a nice winning streak now that they are heading back home for the next 5 games. They need to bring there winning ways back to the UC with them and that starts Tuesday.

To end this on a high note here is the brutal fight between John Scott versus Kevin Westgarth.

Watch out Turco!

2010-11-26T18:03:00.000-06:00

Hawks win again in front of Corey Crawford 4-1. Crawford faced 27 shots and stopped all but one. The only period the Hawks got out shot was in the 3rd and it was only by one shot.

Now I'll admit I have not been the biggest Crawford fan, but the more I see of this kid the more I've been calling for number 50 to get more starts.

The only reason I am saying this now is because of the way these Hawks play in front of him. This team looks like a totally different team in front of Crawford and play confident while he's in net. The same can't be said when Marty Turco takes the net.

Let's stop for a minute and play the role of coach Q, tomorrow night do you go with Turco or Crawford?

For me this is a no-brainer you go with the hot hand right now and that is Crawford. He has won his last 3 starts and has given up 1 goal per game in that stretch. I think it's time for Q to think about giving some more starts to Crawford and tomorrow would be a great way of showing some confidence in the kid.

This is what they need right now they need to get confident in front of a hot goalie and Q needs to recognize this.Could be a great way for this team to get on a winning streak and I hope I'm not the only one that sees this. I really hope the coaching staff sees this and they make the right decision for the upcoming games.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T11:57:00.002-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving to all from the EYF knuckle heads!

Check out the "Gab"

2010-11-22T15:46:00.001-06:00

If you'll notice, my updates have been few and far between for the Blackhawks, mostly due to me working on my own site, Blackhawks Gab. While I have no intention of leaving EYF, I'm working diligently to get Blackhawks Gab off the ground. It's part of the Sports Gab Network, which has had some pretty big success stories from Jenn Sterger (lol), to a guy to got a book deal writing about the Steelers. I will return to EYF in the coming days to bring my personal spin on Blackhawks hockey, but I'd appreciate the help in getting the Gab off the ground. You can 'like' it on Facebook here. Look forward to being back and bringing you the best (and worst) in Blackhawks hockey shortly.

Oh Alain...

2010-11-21T16:04:00.002-06:00

I imagine the Vancouver Cannucks would be a much stronger team if coach Alain Vigneault concentrated more on coaching and less on crying. This was his comment after the Blackhawks throttled his team last night in B.C. (Bitchy City?) -

"We basically embarrassed ourselves in front of our fans, and they did everything they could to rub it in our face, (It's) 6-0 and they throw their number one power-play unit when it's 5-on-3. They have every right to do that. They did it. They were pushing it, and they did."

Okay, I’m not even sure where to start. Way to be a gracious loser Elaine. You sound exactly like you did during the playoffs last year, “Byfuglein, waaaaaaaaa!!!!” “Officiating is against us boo hoo!!!!” Is it possible the better team won last night and during the playoffs last year, oh, and the year before that?

That’s not the only thing though, because his statement is a flat out lie. After reading what he said, something just didn’t sit right with me. I was sure I saw both Skille and Dowell on the power play. I even remember Edzo commenting on the fact that it was nice to see Dowell getting rewarded for his hard work. So your fearless detective did a little research and by research I mean went to espn.com and sure enough Jesse Rodgers confirmed my assumptions, taking it further by noting that Boynton, Stalberg, Dowell, Skille, Brouwer, Bolland, Bickell, and Passani saw time on the 5 on 4 or the 5 on 3. Wow number one power play unit indeed!

Good eye Elaine!!!

Well, wasn't that special?

2010-11-21T14:57:00.000-06:00

Back to back games and we get a Dr. Jackyll and Mr. Hyde type of results.

First off I want to apologize for my lack of posting lately as I've started a new job last Monday and I'm getting settled doing that and I promise I will find more time for EYF in the upcoming weeks.

Anyways Friday we saw the Hawks take on the Calgary Flames and get absolutely man handled that game losing 7-2. Nothing really went right for the Hawks on Friday, they couldn't win board battles, couldn't hit, couldn't skate, Turco couldn't stop a beach ball on the night after his first shutout as a Blackhawk, and basically looked flat against a Flames team that is just awful. So going from Wednesday of completely destroying Edmonton the Hawks get their asses handed to them on Friday.

Then Saturday night comes versus the much hated Vancouver Canucks (who is suppose to be the best team in the West to start this season) and what do the Hawks do to bounce back after getting whipped, they play an outstanding game and fist the Canucks right where the sun doesn't shine! The only thing that could have been better on Saturday for the Hawks would have been keeping the shutout for Crawford but I'll still take a 7-1 win against my most hated team in the West on their home ice.

So like I said the night before this road trip started, we will really find out what kind of team we are dealing with on this road trip, and I think we are getting a good look at them. A team that if nothing is going for them will get destroyed but is good enough to chase good ol' Bobby Lou last night. So hold on to your hats folks this roller coaster isn't over yet!

As the Circus Trip begins!

2010-11-16T21:58:00.000-06:00

As we sit here on the eve of the start of the so called "circus trip" it's time for this team to bond on the road for 2 weeks as they will not see the UC till the 30th of November. Tomorrow night the Hawks face off against the Edmonton Oilers remember Edmonton payback is a bitch.

Will the coaching staff put together some lines and stick with them?

This team will be better off if coach Q sticks with some lines and spread the fresh legs on all the lines. I am one that also believes that the core is tired from not having any offseason rest, so my theory is that the core needs some fresh legs so those guys who are playing good because they didn't go through the playoff run and needs to be on 4 lines to bring some energy on all lines.

This trip will show us what we are going to get the rest of the season. The Hawks have been playing better away from the United Center this season and this trip they need to at least pick up points in every contest, all I'm asking for is a point per game here on this tough yearly road trip.

Is a point per game a little too much to ask for?

I don't think so, I think this team is better than what they've been showing. They showed us that on Sunday when they won finally at the UC putting up 43 shots on the Anaheim. Hopefully that is a start for the Hawks as we look towards this trip.

Blackhawks Clip the Ducks in Overtime - My Immediate Impressions

2010-11-14T20:58:00.003-06:00

Okay, now that’s more like it. Finally the Blackhawks played with fire from the drop of the puck until the final buzzer. They pressed and pressed and then they pressed some more. Every time the Ducks went for the puck there was an actual Blackhawk there to challenge them, which has been a nonexistent part of the Hawks game as of late.

Brent Seabrook was a Viking out there tonight. He was like a black hole swallowing everything that came his way. Dave Bolland resurrected his “Rat” persona by constantly being all up in Anaheim’s shit. It was this tenacity that caused Joe Thorton to literally lose his mind during the playoffs last year. The list goes on, Kane and Hossa both found there scoring sticks, Toews played hard throughout, Viktor Stalberg might be an actual cruise missile; I’d like to see a DNA test, and finally Jassen Cullimore continues to play at a higher level than expected. All in all this might be the most complete game the Hawks have played all season. Now lets hope the Hawks can stoke this fire.

Skille, Stalberg Show Up, Hawks Lose Again

2010-11-14T00:47:00.000-06:00

You know, I was awfully sure that Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane were the cornerstones of this franchise. Where have they been this year? You think with a struggling team, a pair of guys, with a work ethic like these two have, would make in appearance here and there.

If there is a good thing to pull out of the Hawks' 4-3 loss at Nashville on Saturday night, it's that Jack Skille has finally found the net. Despite solid play from Skille to this point, he had failed to register a goal on the stat sheet all season. He finally silenced some of those critics when he potted a pair against the Preds on Saturday night, but is still stuck on that fourth line.

Viktor Stalberg also continued to impress, despite being bumped down the third line. The former Maple Leaf added the other goal, but still played less than 10 minutes of ice time. Skille saw less than 12. Sure, there are only so many minutes to go around, but with a team struggling, isn't it worth it to give a couple of these young guys a little more time?

Yet, it's going to Tomas Kopecky. Yes, the same forward who seems to be on the ice for every opponent score and rocks for hands. He saw more ice time than Skille, Stalberg, and Troy Brouwer, the latter of whom started the night on the Hawks' top line.

It may be time for Joel Quenneville to open his eyes. Skille deserves a start on one of those top two lines. Stalberg got his shot, did well, and got demoted to the third line, so why not give Skille a shot to at least do the same? But Q is too busy trying to make Kopy into Andrew Ladd. (Not going to work)

It's tough to beat a team like Nashville at all. They don't have the most talent in the world, but they'll give any opponent hell for 60 minutes. It's even tougher when this core of Blackhawks that is so heavily leaned upon is very reluctant to show up. Is it time for the Circus Trip yet?

Give Me Fuel, Give Me Fire

2010-11-13T20:28:00.001-06:00

Okay, raise your hand if you thought the Black hawks would be 8-9-1 after their first 18 games. Probably not too many hands up, eh? I think we all expected things to be going a little better than this. If you hit up the blogs you’ll hear everything from bad line combinations to cohesion issues among the players as reasons for the Blackhawks struggles. I guess if we break this thing down there appears to be one obvious and recurring element in the Hawks game right now; they’re tired. As much as I don’t want to believe that the long Stanley Cup drive and subsequent “summer of fun” had taken a major toll on this team, it appears that it has. How else can you explain it?

The first indicator that there might be less fuel in the tank is the nightly second and third period collapse the Blackhawks are experiencing. From the second period onward the Hawks are losing board battles, they’re being beaten to the puck regularly and the scrums in front of the net, which were the Hawks bread and butter last season, are yielding nothing.

The next glairing indicator is the difference in energy between the players who played in the playoffs and those who didn’t. The Hawks best lines this season have been lines featuring Skille, Stalberg, and Dowell. Maybe these guys haven’t dropped a bunch of goals, but at least we know when they’re on the fucking ice, and more importantly the other team knows as well. I get the impression that our bottom lines make opponents way more nervous than our “superstar” lines. Every night these guys out-skate, out-energy, and out-hustle the lines in front of them. Wonder why?

I also don’t buy the argument that it’s taking time for the lines to gel. If you’ve ever played a minute of pickup hockey you know how quickly you learn the rhythms of the guys you’re playing with. No, I’m not saying the NHL and pickup hockey are the same, but come on; most of these guys have played together for years. It doesn’t take training camp, preseason and the first 18 games to figure out how the guys beside you play the game.

The other piece of the puzzle for me is the energy the Hawks can muster after a goal. The Blackhawks will look like the most lethargic team in history until they score a goal, but within 5 minutes of scoring said goal, they slip right back into the team that is half asleep out there. Now, we all know what this team did last season, so I’m not buying for one minute that they don’t have the fire or that laziness has set in. They’re the defending Stanley Cup champs, who battled through grueling playoffs to be the last team standing. I’ve never heard of a lazy team doing that. So for me it’s obvious, the Blackhawks are tired. I think the best we can hope for is to stay in the fight until the All-Star break and hope the Hawks can regroup and finish strong.

No Chemistry, No Energy, No Success

2010-11-11T00:49:00.000-06:00

The Coyotes, as of right now, are not the team they were last year. In 2009-10, this is a team that gave the Red Wings a run for their money in the first round, and could probably be partially credited with Detroit's disaster against San Jose after tiring them out.

But this is not the same Coyotes team from last year. Coming into Wednesday, they had just 13 points. Edmonton, the league's worst team, has 10. Yet, the Blackhawks are 0-3 against these teams, including losing back-to-back games 2-1.

Frustration is really starting to set in. Yes, it's a long season, but the Hawks have already played 18 games, at least two more than everyone else, with the exception of Anaheim. St. Louis is off to a scorching start, Columbus is playing well, and Detroit is just where they are every year. Yet, the Blackhawks still seem to have no motivation when they hit the ice.

While the Hawks were solid in the first period, I still didn't see much energy. How you can come out flat at the United Center is beyond me. It's your building, not to mention the fact that it's, arguably, the best hockey environment in the country. I haven't seen that same fire that the Blackhawks had last year. Where is it?

I have a hard time believing that teams are playing their best against the Blackhawks every night. Yes, Edmonton came out firing in that disaster a couple of weeks ago, but on Sunday they scored two goals in 14 seconds, and nothing else. The Coyotes did the same, scoring their only two goals in a span of 35 seconds. The Hawks could only muster one. From Bryan Bickell.

While Ilya Bryzgalov is a solid netminder, there's no excuse for the Hawks not to slip a few past him with the scoring ability of their top forwards. Wait, you mean Jason LaBarbera was in net? The same Jason LaBarbera that was winless and had a GAA near five?

It's time for Joel Quenneville to start making some changes. I'm not talking about moving Patrick Kane from right wing to left wing. I'm talking about taking John Scott off the ice. The dude is an enforcer, big deal. I don't see the Coyotes trotting out a guy that's 6'8'' just for the sake of having a big body on the ice. For all intensive purposes, Shane Doan is their enforcer and he's a perfectly average height. Throw Bickell out there and watch him bang. Scott can't skate to begin with, and the fact that he's seeing such little ice time makes him a waste of space.

It's time for Troy Brouwer and Jack Skille to start seeing some solid ice time. Put Brouwer up there with a Kane and Jonathan Toews line and let them work. I'm sick of hearing about how Skille can't finish. He's seen less than 10 minutes of ice time the last two games, and plenty of occasions in between. The guy needs a chance. Besides, what's it going to hurt?

Tomas Kopecky needs to be out of the top six. If you want to have him center something, have him center the fourth line until Dave Bolland comes back. After that, there's no reason to have him anywhere near a faceoff. He's got stones for hands and is minus-8 on the season. Not exactly the type of guy you want to attempt to mold into your core, as Q is apparently trying to do.

Things need to turn around fast. Early struggles on the road will get a pass, but when you're struggling this bad at home, changes need to be made, and I realize that a huge part of this is chemistry. When we say guys like Kris Versteeg, Andrew Ladd, and Adam Burish are missed, it's not because their replacements can't take on the physical work, it's that these guys were part of the glue that held the team together in their Cup run last season.

It needs fixing. Quennville has until Saturday to figure it out. The Predators won't go easy.

Old Habbits Die Hard

2010-11-10T23:07:00.002-06:00

35 seconds, that is how long it took the Hawks to lose this game. Two quick 2 on 1's and the Hawks would be down 2-1, but the Hawks would out play the Coyotes in the first and third periods and that still wasn't enough to win the game.

Bryan Bickell got the only tally for the Hawks in the first period. Skille played great again and remains on the third line. He had a couple of good shifts and was winning board battles, a guy who wins board battles and Q can't seem to find a place for him on any other line, huh? But boy Kopeaky does belong centering the second line!? FUCK!

Coach Q has just about tried everything to get this team going by pulling the team off the ice in practice, shuffling lines, benching key players and nothing seems to be working hopefully the road trip coming up can help because the Hawks are playing like dog shit at home and it isn't sitting well with Blackhawks nation.

I'm just hoping that like last season this team can bond and gel on the road and come back home a different team. Because I'm running out of ideas how to fix this shit and I wish I did. But the Hawks don't play again until the weekend so a couple more days off for the boys.

Hawks Looking for a Win Against Struggling Coyotes

2010-11-10T16:54:00.000-06:00

Have you heard? It was my understanding that everyone had heard...about these Blackhawks and their woes in the early season. Whether it's a matter of leadership, complacency, or chemistry, the Hawks are off to a rough start and look to get back on track against the visiting Phoenix Coyotes on Wednesday night, at the United Center.

The Coyotes, last year's Cinderella Story, are off to a rough go of their own, with the second least amount of points in the Western Conference, in front of just Edmonton. Even worse for the Yotes, they'll be without captain Shane Doan for a matter of weeks, with a lower body injury.

These may be the two least clutch teams in the league. The Hawks have really struggled in the third period of games this year, losing five of their six losses at home after carrying a league into the third period. The Coyotes also have a knack for squandering leads and have lost all five games they've played in overtime this season.

As he does seemingly everyday, Joel Quenneville gave the lines a shakeup for Wednesday night. Patrick Kane will switch over to the right wing slot and drop down a line. Tomas Kopecky will center the second line (wtf?), with Marian Hossa on that other wing. Patrick Sharp will move to the top line with Jonathan Toews and Viktor Stalberg.

Speaking of Kopy, it's about time to get this joker off the top lines. He got off to a nice start playing with Hoss, but he's not a top six forward. Switch him out for a guy like Troy Brouwer and have Sharpy center that second line.

Perhaps the biggest change Q made was the separation of Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. Quenneville is trying to elevate the play of his two Olympic defensemen and apparently splitting them up will do just that. Keith is a disappointing minus-5 on the season so far.

Chicago was just 1-1-2 in their series against the Coyotes last season, losing two of their four in a shootout. Putting the Coyotes in a clutch situation may actually be the best way to beat them, as recent evidence shows. As far as must-win games go, this is as must-win as it gets in November. Having lost three straight and struggling mightily at home, anything but a win for the Hawks would be disastrous.

Icehogs tough weekend

2010-11-08T22:54:00.013-06:00

What else needs to be said, the Rockford Icehogs went through a tough weekend. The weekend consisted of two losses, one to the Manitoba Moose, the other loss was to the Peoria Rivermen. The issue from the losses, NO OFFENSE by the Icehogs, the Icehogs scored 2 goals in 2 games, which is not a good sign.
On Saturday a late third period meltdown cost the Icehogs the game. The Icehogs took a 1-0 lead at 5:02 of the 1st period when Ben Smith put in his 2nd goal of the year on the powerplay. The goal was assisted by Igor Makarov, and Shawn LaLonde. at the 15:20 mark of the 3rd period Vancouver Canucks high touted prospect Cody Hodgson ties the game at 1. 50 seconds later, former New York Islander Jeff Tambellini gives Manitoba a 2-1 lead. 32 seconds after that goal Tambellini skates in and scores his 2nd of the night with a beautiful wrist shot. Final score Manitoba 3, Icehogs 1. Hannu Toivonen finished the night with 18 saves on 21 shots.
On Sunday the Icehogs squared off against the Peoria Rivermen. The Icehogs lose this game by a score of 5-1. Rockfords goal was scored by Hugh Jessiman with the assist going to Rob Klinkhammer. Alec Richards got the start and finished the night with 19 saves on 24 shots. The Icehogs record which is now 5-6-0-1 fell to the bottom of the AHL's West Division. The Icehogs need to settle down defensively, and hopefully find there offense for this coming week.

Hawks vs. Blues versus promo

2010-11-08T15:48:00.000-06:00

Kicked in the Groin!

2010-11-08T11:31:00.000-06:00

You're going to need balls of steel

That is how I am feeling this fine Monday Morning. I really want to sit here and pretend that I have the answers on how to fix what ails the Hawks. I know Randy and I have thrown the idea of bringing up Kyle Beach for some energy, but after looking at Capgeek that just doesn't look possible with our cap problems.

So, what do we do?

I really wish I had an answer for you! I do, but this is the reality that we live in and boy we were spoiled last year. Last year we had a team that didn't know how to lose, now we are watching a team that can't figure out how to close the door on teams and pick up any type of points.

Is it leadership?

No I personally don't think so. Toews, Sharp and Keith are great leaders still, but when it goes down the line guys like Andrew Ladd are still being greatly missed, and that's fine, but he's gone and we have to work with the crap we have.

I've had enough of the guys like John Scott getting minutes. I DON'T CARE IF HE CAN FIGHT! He is other wise fucking useless on the ice. Can someone explain to me why Jack Skille is on the fourth line? I don't fucking care if Joel Quenneville has a hatred for guys like Brouwer and Skille play them where they belong. Brouwer on the top line and Skille somewhere other than the fourth line. I'm sure I'll get hate mail because Skille can't finish and this and that but you know what fuck that! Skille only brings energy and skates hard for 60 minutes! That's right 60 minutes find someone else on this team right now doing that!

Hey guess what it's time to panic folks we are now in the second week of November and we are a 500 club. All the talk about still making the playoffs and still being good enough to make a run in April are going out the window every single game. It sucks I know hitting you with the truth so early in November with no help in sights. Maybe I was wrong maybe this team does need to go on the circus trip and get away from the United Center for a while.

Lets hope for a better game on Wednesday home against the Coyotes. Lets get a winning streak going boys!

14 Seconds

2010-11-07T23:22:00.002-06:00

That's how long it took for the Hawks to collapse in front of the UC crowd 2-1 to the Edmonton Oilers. It was very good to see 81 back on the ice. He just brings a presence that no one else can in all three zones.

Stalberg has to be moved down off of the top line! I've been on here praising the line of Kane-Toews-Brouwer and then Quenneville decides to go with Stalberg on that line instead. They need a guy who will stand in front of the net and battle down low in the corners.

Who much crow can this guy eat? I guess I'm going to find out. I will stand up and say I was one who did not like Corey Crawford very much but I will sit here and eat my crow as he has looked very solid in every opportunity he's gotten to play. He had a shutout going into the 3rd period before the Oilers broke through. Even giving up 2 goals within 14 seconds he looked very sharp.

John Scott dropped the gloves with Zach Stortini in which John destroyed by pulling Zach's jersey over his head beating his face in. I'll give John that much he can fight with the best of them. Anyone crazy enough to drop the gloves with him must be damn crazy.

Earn your Feathers fights of the week

2010-11-07T18:13:00.000-06:00

I've decided to pay tribute to the couple of good fights this week in the NHL. If you haven't seen any of these you are in for a treat.

I got to start with Sidney Crosby's fight from November 3rd 2010. As much as I dog the guy he held his own when the gloves came off.

This one has a good hit then a good fight between Crombeen vs. Stuart yesterday November 6th

Last but not least the Hawks gave us a fight this week with Dowell vs. Mair on November 3rd.

Hawks Injury Updates

2010-11-07T02:02:00.000-06:00

Going into Sunday's game against Edmonton, there is good news and bad news for the Hawks. Let's start with the bad news first.

Jeremy Morin was called up to start his first, of what fans hope, will be many games for the Blackhawks against Atlanta on Saturday. However, the excitement was short-lived. Morin was injured when he took a puck to the knee, the same one that caused him to miss a small stretch at Rockford.

While the injury to Morin isn't expected to be anything serious, it's more likely that he'll be sent back to Rockford after he heals up, just to make sure he's back at full strength. Though his time up was limited on Saturday, he looked good, seeing a few chances in nearly 10 minutes of ice time.

Onto the good, well fantastic, news for the Blackhawks. Not only did Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews play exceptionally well for seemingly the first time all year, but they will be joined by injured teammate Marian Hossa, who is slated to return on Sunday against Edmonton.

Boss Hoss has been out since October 27th, after suffering an upper body injury against the Kings. Before his injury, Hossa was having the best season, possibly out of any player in the league, recording 11 points in his first 11 games, including seven goals, while sporting a +4.

Though Kane and Toews were fantastic on Saturday, adding Hossa to the lineup makes this team that much scarier, if they are indeed climbing out of their slump as Saturday's win indicated. It starts with those three, all of which should be ready to provide intensity and avenge their previous loss to lowly Edmonton.

Stars Come to Play in Hawks Win

2010-11-07T01:46:00.000-06:00

It took long enough, but Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane finally decided that they wanted to join us for some hockey, and it couldn't have come at a better time. Even with the exceptional play of their youngsters, Chicago still needed a shootout to avoid disappointment against the Thrashers, edging them 5-4.

Facing an Atlanta squad with four members of their Cup-winning team, Chicago knew they had their work cut out for them, and they came out firing on all cylinders. Both of the club's young stars, Kane and Toews, netted a pair of goals, and combined for three assists. Toews played as strong as he had all season, scoring on a break away on Ondrej Pavelec before making him look silly on the shootout.

On the Atlanta side, three of the four former Hawks tallied in the loss, with Brent Sopel the only former Blackhawk to not find his way onto the scoresheet. The other three had an assist, with Andrew Ladd scoring ATL's only goal in the shootout.

In net, it was a bit of an early struggle for Marty Turco, giving up four goals, three of them in the second, before buckling down in the third and showing us all what he is capable of. He didn't allow a goal in the third period, overtime, and allowed just the one to Ladd in the shootout. Imagine what he'll look like once he starts coming for all 60 minutes.

The Hawks have another big one in store on Sunday, when they return to the United Center. While a game against Edmonton may not look like much, this is a team that make the Hawks look foolish in their last meeting not too long ago. Look for much of that same spark that was seen on Saturday to carry over into Sunday.

Happy Birthday!

2010-11-05T21:38:00.002-05:00

Earn Your Feathers wants to wish Cory a very happy birthday! Get drunk tonight and write a blog and thanks for all your help!

Hawks Recall Morin from Rockford

2010-11-05T17:32:00.000-05:00

Finally. Searching for something to up the excitement, the Blackhawks have recalled Jeremy Morin from Rockford, just in time for a tilt with his former squad, the Atlanta Thrashers.

Morin was acquired in the deal that sent a trio of Hawks to Atlanta. While it appeared that they had acquired a future stud, as well as a fourth line center in Marty Reasoner, Marty found his way to Florida in a cap-weary deal, leaving Morin as the prize of this summer's salary dump.

Morin didn't play with the big club in his one season in the Thrashers' organization, but he did score 47 goals with Kitchener, a minor league affiliate. He has three power play goals and four points for the Icehogs this season. In his debut with the Hawks this preseason, Morin had four points (three assists) in six contests.

No word on what line Morin could skate with on Saturday night, but I'd put my money on him being one one of those top two lines to add some speed. John Scott or Jordan Hendry will most likely be scratched as a result of Morin's call up.

Puck drops in Atlanta at 6 PM central time, in what should be an emotional contest for the Hawks. Look for them to find some fire starting Saturday.

Time for the Hawks to Panic?

2010-11-05T01:09:00.000-05:00

Who is sick of reading the articles about how we shouldn't panic yet and the Hawks will be fine? I'm attempting to be as patient as possible, but it's really wearing thin with these last few losses the Hawks have endured. They've come out flat against lowly opponents, and have little emotion to show for it.

I've never understood how tough it is to motivate some of these guys that play in Chicago. You're playing in the greatest city in the country and are coming off of a championship season. Then, everyone doubts you going into 2010-11. How much should it really take to get you fired up for all 82 games?

I haven't seen much of that emotion. Brent and I even toyed with the notion of bringing up Kyle Beach for some energy. The fact that this team couldn't even beat a currently terrible Devils squad really raises some red flags.

With a great lack of emotion and an inability to put the puck in the net, is it time for the Hawks to hit the panic button and get it in gear? It absolutely is. I've been one of the calm ones so far this season, and even though I didn't have to sit through that garbage game that the Hawks played on Wednesday night, I'm still ready for this team to start kicking it up a notch.

Yes, I realize the Hawks are currently the six seed. But keep in mind, three of the five teams ahead of them are in their division. Even Columbus is ahead of them. St. Louis is starting to look like a serious threat for both Chicago and Detroit in the central, so the Hawks really need to flip the switch.

It starts on Saturday in Atlanta, when the Hawks meet some former teammates. We can only hope there's a Patrick Kane sighting.

In case of fire please break glass!

2010-11-04T11:06:00.002-05:00

Last night I was receiving a ton of text messages of anger and disbelief. I read multiple blogs of pure anger from a couple of different sites including one from Cory right here *see below blog. I was extremely upset just like everyone else and it literally took all of my strength and willpower not to sign on here and rant and rave about the loss, but instead I decided to bitch in text to Randy and Cory and sleep off my anger and see how I felt in the morning.

So let me start by saying that it is very, VERY hard for new line mates to start gelling when they are being shuffled every other game. Now this isn't all Joel Quenneville's fault for shuffling the lines all the time, injuries have not made things any easier on this club early on. If you haven't noticed the only lines that have found any type of chemistry are the lines that played together last season. The line of Kane-Toews-Brouwer played good again last night winning board battles and cycling the puck.

I totally agree with Hockeenight that "It's past the time for saying "it's still early". It no longer is. The time is now. This team needs to once again play with fire, with urgency." and that "They need to play like champions."

All I'm asking for is when Bolland comes back and Hossa comes back please Joel set some lines and let them play, whatever lines you put out give them a week or so to gel. I was also upset as much as everyone else that the fourth line was Scott-Pisani-Hendry nobody in their right mind ever wants to see that line again, but I do understand that Joel is trying his damn hardest to get wins out of a limping team right now.

So I'll say it again Joel please when this team is health especially before we go on that long circus trip please, I'm begging please let these guys try and find some connections with some other line mates. If we go limping into that long trip it will only get worse.

KEEP THE FAITH HAWKS FANS!

MORE OF THE SAME

2010-11-03T22:19:00.001-05:00

I’m not really sure what to say. Tonight the Blackhawks fell at the UC to the 3 – 9 New Jersey Devils. The Devils came into this game ranked 30^th in goals per game, 25^th in goals against, 29^th in power play pct, and 16^th in penalty kill pct. They are a bad hockey team, yet somehow the Blackhawks found a way to once again be the lesser team on the ice. I’m not going to write a long-winded examination of tonight’s game because I simply don’t have the energy to continue breaking down the same mistakes every single night, players with bricks for hands, losing as many board battles as possible, complete lack of energy… Let’s hope this team finds some motivation soon because at this point they are proving every single doubter right.

Rockford Icehogs @ Milwaukee Admirals Recap

2010-11-03T21:54:00.005-05:00

The Rockford Icehogs found themselves down by a score of 2-0 after 2 periods. The Icehogs showed that they still had fight in them coming out scoring two unanswered goals.
The Milwaukee Admirals struck first with a first period goal by Jamie Lundmark for his 3rd goal of the season. A little more than two minutes later former Chicago Blackhawk Aaron Johnson put the Admirals up by a score of 2-0.
Rockford however came out with a bang in the 3rd period. Kyle Beach puts in a Power Play goal for his 3rd goal on the season. The assists went to Ben Smith, and Ivan Vishnevskiy. With just a little over a minute left Jeff Taffe puts in his 4th goal of the season. Taffe's goal was assisted by Igor Makarov, and Vishnevskiy.
The Icehogs then battled the Admirals in a shootout with the Icehogs coming out on top in the shootout 4-3, with the final score 3-2 in favor of the Icehogs. Brandon Pirri, Beach, Vishnevskiy, and Taffe all scored for the Icehogs in the shootout. Hannu Toivonen finished the night with 22 saves on 24 shots. A hard fought two points earned for the Icehogs, great job boys!

Hawks vs Rejects

2010-11-03T16:06:00.000-05:00

NEW JERSEY DEVILS (3-9-1) AT BLACKHAWKS (7-6-1)

LIVE TONIGHT AT 7:30 P.M. CT

TV: CSN CHICAGO

RADIO: WGN CHICAGO

NHL.COM PREVIEW

Season Series: This will be the only meeting for these 2 in 2010/2011

New Jersey Devils: After all the drama surrounding Ilya Kolvalchuk and his over the top contract the Devils came out of the gate tripping over their own 2 feet. Now sitting at 3-9-1 in the first week of November one can only sit and wonder was getting Kolvalchuk the best move for this organization? To make things worse the Devils will be without star Zach Parise for 3 months after having knee surgery.

Chicago Blackhawks: Blackhawks lost a close one to the New York Rangers on Monday from what I'm calling as a goalie win. The Hawks are showing signs of life again and look for the boys in the Indian head sweater to give a good effort tonight for the 2 points. Turco will be in net and the fourth line is shaping up to look like Pisani centering Scott and Hendry.......sorry I'm back I threw up again after having to write that.

My 2cents: This should be a cake walk with this Devils team in complete disarray. The Devils have a very young defensive group and they are giving up a ton of shot on Marty Brodeur. I'm looking for the Hawks top line of Kane Toews and Brouwer to continue their strong play and take advantage of this young defense of the Devils. I'm expecting nothing but 2 points from this game, the Hawks have shown that they can dominate bad teams and they should continue to do that tonight. Let's get 2 points tonight boys! LET'S GO BLACKHAWKS!

Rockford Icehogs @ Milwaukee Admirals

2010-11-03T14:52:00.019-05:00

November 3, 2010

Rockford Icehogs (4-4-0-1) @ Milwaukee Admirals (4-3-1-1)

7:00 PM C.D.T

AHL Live: http://ahl.neulion.com/ahl/

Radio Feed: http://www.wnta.com/WNTAPlayer.aspx

Rockford's Leading Goal Scorer: Rob Klinkhammer(3), Jeff Taffe(3), Brandon Pirri(3), And Jeremy Morin(3)

Rockford's Leading Point Scorer: Brian Connelly 9 points (9 Assists)

Rockford's Wins Leader: Alec Richards (3)

Rockford's GAA Leader: Alec Richards (2.96)

Milwaukee's Leadings Goal Scorer: Linus Klasen (7)

Milwaukee's Leading Point Scorer: Linus Klasen 10 points (7 goals, 3 assists)

Milwaukee's Wins Leader: Mark Dekanich (4)

Milwaukee's GAA Leader: Mark Dekanich (1.98)

This should be an interesting game as both teams are towards the bottom of the West Division. expect this to be a hard fought game hopefully with the Icehogs coming out on top. The Icehogs get some offensive fire power with Ryan Potulny and Ben Smith being sent down. After making his first appearence last Wendesday, expect Hugh Jessiman to make an impact against his former team.

Sympathy for the Devil? Nope.

2010-11-03T01:42:00.001-05:00

It's hard for me to not look past this game and look at the matchup against Atlanta on Saturday, but the Hawks will still host the New Jersey Devils at the UC on Wednesday night, looking to get back on track after a tough loss against the Rangers on Monday.

New Jersey has gotten off to an extremely poor start, winning just three of their first 13 contests, including dropping their last two against Los Angeles and Vancouver, while mustering up just one goal between the two games. Even worse news for the Devils: Zach Parise is going to miss at least three months after knee surgery. To show Parise's impact on this New Jersey squad, as if it wasn't already obvious, I found an interesting stat for Wednesday's game preview, stating that Parise scored or assisted on 38% of the Devils' goals last season. Doesn't bode well from the boys from the Garden State.

For the Hawks, it will be about offense. Brian Campbell was solid in his return, and should steadily improve as he re-adjusts to the game speed. Duncan Keith has played out of his mind recently, with nine points in his last four. However, the loss of Marian Hossa has the Hawks' offensive attack reeling, and will need to take advantage of a week New Jersey blue line.

The key for the Hawks will be those second and third lines. The top line has been set, with Troy Brouwer, Jonathan Toews, and Patrick Kane performing splendidly in their last couple of games. Even that fourth line, centered by Jake Dowell, has been doing its job and picking up a little of that offensive slack. Tomas Kopecky must show improvement (-8 over his last five) on that second line for the Hawks to be successful against the Devils.

Good news on the injury front for Chicago is that Hoss was skating with the team on Tuesday, though he had a no-contact jersey on. He's still probably a week away, but is showing steady improvement. Dave Bolland could also be back as early as this weekend, when he is eligible to come off of the IR.

Overall, the Hawks have a tremendous opportunity for a breakout game against a struggling New Jersey crew. They're facing a team that averages just over a goal per game, so the focus will be offense, making an offensive explosion quite likely. I look for the Hawks to get back on track as they head into an emotional game against some former mates in Atlanta this weekend.

Don't Panic!

2010-11-02T21:05:00.002-05:00

We all knew it wasn’t going to be easy and we all knew it was going to take some time. Now that October has ended we can look back on the most anticipated month of Blackhawks hockey in recent memory. The Hawks exit the month with an 7-5-1 record, getting wins against Buffalo, Columbus, St. Louis, LA, and Minnesota, while falling to Colorado, Detroit, Nashville, Columbus, St. Louis, and New York. Patrick Sharp and Marian Hossa have been huge bright spots so far, while Viktor Stalberg and Jack Skille have taken full advantage of the opportunity they’ve been given.

After Tuesday’s practice Troy Brouer commented that the Hawks are by no means hitting the panic button, while Patrick Kane commented that it sometimes takes time get everyone on the same page. To me these comments are reassuring. As a fan I’m in panic mode at all times, so it’s good to hear the professionals handling their business like, well, professionals. The Blackhawks are the defending Stanley Cup Champions, and I promise they know what they’re doing.

Chaos = Chaos: It’s really no surprise the Blackhawks have lost some close games and let leads slip away in the third. With the constant (and necessary) line adjustments we see a team that has played, for lack of a better word, hesitant hockey so far. There is a lot of standing and watching or standing and then reacting too late, which is what you’re going to have when players are trying to learn each other’s rhythms. It’s all part of the feeling out process. Truth be told, I think the Blackhawks have maybe been guiltier than other teams in this area, but we can probably chalk that up to some of the new additions being a bit timid about coming into a team that has formed into a very tight unit. I think we are seeing the end of this confusion as we get further into the season.

Injuries Hurt: It started with Brian Campbell and has continued all the way through the month of October. The injury bug has bitten the Blackhawks. Patrick Sharp, Patrick Kane, Dave Boland and Marian Hossa have all missed ice time in the first 13 games of the season, and lets not forget Hjalmarsson was suspended for two games. When you look at the players who’ve been out of the lineup it’s a wonder that we were able to string together any wins, but that leads to my next point…

* Leadership Goes A Long Way: The Blackhawks have had every reason to crack in the part of this season; No summer, huge expectations, personnel upheaval… Yet when the chips have been down the Blackhawks have played their best hockey, and we have the “core” to thank for that. We heard all summer about the “core” and how keeping this element together was the most important thing. It turns out they were right. The Blackhawks veterans, while not always shining, have shown the new blood exactly what it means to wear the Indian head. Whether it’s Duncan Keith playing as if his soul depends on it, or Niklas Hjalmarsson not thinking twice about throwing his body to the ice to block a puck in October. It’s this style of hockey that wins championships and it’s this style of hockey that can win another one. Have faith Blackhawks fans. This team is not done yet!!!

Cool Down

2010-11-02T12:35:00.000-05:00

OK, I had some time to cool down from last nights loss and I wanted to come on here and say that even though they lost they did do a lot of good things in their efforts. I was up late enough last night to almost watch the entire game again with a level head. This was a total goalie win on the part of king Henrik.

Last nights blog was rage fueled so I didn't really even mention the good things the Hawks ended up doing. That top line of Toews-Kane-Brouwer looked strong all game. I am personally a fan of that line since last year. Those three work very well with each other and when Kane finds a open Brouwer in the slot Brouwer 8 times out of 10 buries the shot. I want to see more of that line and less of the Sharp-Kopecky-Stalberg line that was god awful.

Brian Campbell even though he's hated because of his contract and by the way who the fuck cares how much the guy makes! If someone offered me that type of money I would have taken it to. I've missed you carrot top, he is so steady for the Hawks on the back end just moving the puck up the ice. I do hate his cap hit but man this team needs him more than people think.

The 4th line played very well again last night. That line seems to be coming together very nicely and Jake Dowell seems to be getting his NHL legs and his faceoffs have been getting better winning 43 and losing 54 at a 44% winning percentage. Last night again every shift that Q gave them was a good shift they are doing their jobs.

Quick notes for today: Hawks have sent down Ben Smith and Ryan Potulny to Rockford and Marian Hossa was practicing today, but what I've seen is that he's wearing a no contact jersey still could be good news to see Boss Hoss getting closer to returning.

Power Rangers win

2010-11-01T20:59:00.000-05:00

Yea what he said!

Hawks lose to the Rangers 3-2 in Madison Square Garden. I'm really kind of frustrated from this loss so I'm going to get right to the recap.

We started out strong playing in all 3 zones being aggressive then guess what the wheels feel off again and we reverted back to playing shitty hockey. Losing board battles with no puck support it was deja vu to the Edmonton game all over again. Coach Q must be pulling his mustache hairs out already.
The Rangers block 30 something shots to the Hawks 15 and we sit here and wonder why the Hawks lost this game. The Blackhawks still out shot the Rangers 35-23. Am I the only one who thought the Rangers could do whatever they wanted to do in their offensive zone late in the game?
Are the Hawks missing Bolland?
Are the Hawks missing Hossa?
Brian Campbell looked good tonight for his first game back but not fully rust free. It should only get better with him getting more ice time. I really think Hammer looked a lot more comfortable knowing he had his side kick back.
John Scott is still useless!
Ben Smith is still enjoyable to watch he hasn't made to many mistakes and goes out there and works hard every shift. I always end up giving a lot of credit to the kids who come up and just play their hearts out. He seems to be very hockey smart.
One last thing I have to bitch about. MSG is just a horrible place to watch hockey on TV I can only imagine how bad it is live in person. They have bad shadows on the ice on TV and I couldn't believe you would even be able to see the puck from the upper levels in that dump. If you've been their for a hockey game and it's nice please leave a comment and tell me I'm a dumbass and tell me how it really is.

Hawks vs Rangers

2010-11-01T11:38:00.002-05:00

BLACKHAWKS (7-5-1) AT RANGERS (5-4-1)

6:00 P.M. CT.

TV: NHLN, CSN CHICAGO, RADIO: WGN CHICAGO

NHL.COM PREVIEW

This Year: This is the only meeting for these 2 original 6 teams.

Last Meeting: The Hawks beat the Rangers in overtime here in Chicago December 9th 2009. That was the Dustin Byfuglien over time winner.

VS

New York Rangers: The Rangers are trying to find an identity for themselves in the early season. Having lost back to back home games early last week they went up to Toronto and Henrik Lundqvist decided to take matters in to his own hands shutting out the Maple Leafs. The Rangers average more goals for and more goals against than the Blackhawks this season.

Blackhawks: After the bad loss at home against the Edmonton Oilers the Hawks rebounded with a solid game in Minnesota. They played a better and tighter checking game and pulled out the 3-1 victory. Marty Turco had a very solid rebound game after getting pulled after the first intermission on Friday. Brian Campbell was on the ice this morning taking drills with Nik Hjalmarrson so his return is looking good for tonight. It is also being reported that Bickell and Boynton will sit tonight.

My 2cents: I want to start by saying that this was a long drinking weekend so sorry for no post game from Saturdays win but we will all take the 2 points. I am expecting this team to start playing tighter from now on as coach Q probably had a meltdown after the loss to Edmonton. I expected Saturdays game to be more of a defensive game and I was right finally about something. I'm excited to see Campbell's return to the lineup and I am sure so is Hammer. Going into the Garden and winning is not an easy thing to do but this team needs to get some momentum going. Look for this to be another defensive and tight checking affair early on. I don't want to see this game go into a gunslinger mode. Either way lets get 2 boys!
LETS GO BLACKHAWKS!

Hawks vs Wild

2010-10-30T17:25:00.001-05:00

Blackhawks (6-4-1) vs. Wild (4-3-2)

7:00 p.m. Ct.

Live on WGN T.V. and WGN Radio

NHL PREVIEW

Last Year: Hawks went 3-0-1 against Minnesota last season. They have not faced each other yet this season.

VS.

Yea this guy!

Minnesota Wild: Minnesota are on a five-game homestand in which they've lost to the Los Angeles Kings in shootout and won against the Washington Capitals. The Wild have one of the leagues best PP's right now and should look to take the advantage against the Hawks. Niklas Backstrom has been playing better of late for the Wild in net.

Chicago Blackhawks: Another back to back for the Hawks as they have to forget about the bad lose in front of the United Center crowed against the Edmonton Oilers. Marty Turco and Cory Crawford got light up in net for the Hawks. Look for the Hawks to have a good comeback game after that horrible lose.

My 2cents: The Hawks have called up Ryan Potulny from Rockford. Dave Bolland is going to miss at least 2 games to an injury being reported as nothing to do with his back injury from last year. It looks like Turco will be in net tonight. The Hawks should be upset with the loss last night and should come out firing on all cylinders. Look for a closely contested game though.

Blackhawks Fall to the Oilers 7-4

2010-10-29T22:05:00.002-05:00

Normally I would start with some innuendo about how the Blackhawks picked the right night to play scary, it’s Halloween blah, blah, blah… Not this time. As a Hawks fan, you have to hope this is a one off loss, but stacked with a home loss to the Blue Jackets, a loss in which the Hawks had the lead in the third period, you have to wonder what this season is going to look like. No one doubts that the Hawks are a good hockey team, but these last two losses are definitely edging the Hawks out of the “elite team” status. This team is going to have its hands full all season against those same elite teams, thus making games against teams like Edmonton and Columbus “must win”. The Blackhawks can’t afford to lose to bad teams. That’s the reality of the situation.

MAKE SMART DESICIOSN- Making smart decisions has not been the Blackhawks strong point this season, but tonight was something else entirely. The same dumb mistakes that have cost the Hawks all year continue. Giving up the puck, not skating hard, losing board battles. Where is the “true grit” on this team? We know it’s there. Skille has been a fine example of that. The rest of the team needs to find their inner grinder.

SHOOT THE PUCK- I can’t count how many times I’ve seen a Hawk forward have a wide open look only to pull up and try to work in that one extra pass. Hossa would probably have 3 more points right now had he just taken some of those shots. Kane has also been guilty of spending to much time looking for the open man. Sometimes you just have to take the shot. Pucks on net leads to rebounds and rebounds lead to goals. Sharp has never met a shot he doesn’t like, and it might not hurt the rest of the boys to think that way as well.

Maybe I’m just reacting to an ugly loss against a bad team, but when you see a team make fixable mistakes on a nightly basis it’s hard not to get frustrated. So much of this stuff is Hockey 101, and maybe that’s why we can be encouraged. The Hawks are a few simple mistakes away from being the team we all know they can be. No need for an overhaul, just a few repairs.

Hawks vs Oilers

2010-10-29T12:20:00.000-05:00

7:30 P.M. CT

Edmonton Oilers (2-4-2) vs. Chicago Blackhawks (6-4-1)

TV: Comcast Sportsnet Chicago

Radio: WGN Radio Chicago

NHL Official Preview

Last year: The Blackhawks swept the bottom feeding Oilers in all 4 games last year in convincing fashion.

Edmonton Oilers: Last night they lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets but rookie Taylor Hall got his first NHL goal. Edmonton started out fast this season and dropped like a brick just like we all thought. It will take some time for the young group to get their NHL legs but this looks to be another bad season for the Oilers.

Chicago Blackhawks: Hawks escaped Wednesday night with a victory against the Los Angeles Kings. This game with the Oilers should not be taken lightly as they have now lost the god known as Marian Hossa for a couple of weeks. For the Blackhawks to win this one they need their other top stars of Toews and Kane to start producing and Patrick Sharp to continue his hot streak of 8 goals in his last 7 games.

My thoughts: If the Oilers are as bad as we all think they are this should be a great game for the Hawks to get their board battle game fixed. Who knows what the lines will look like with Ben Smith called up from Rockford. Will they have Smith playing the wing or taking faceoffs only the Q knows that. The lines could look something like:

Sharp-Toews-Kane
Kopecky-Bolland-Skille
Stalberg-Smith-Brouwer
Pisani-Dowell-Bickell

Or you can take those names and throw them into a hat and see what you get that's about how good you can figure out what the lines will look like. Lets get 2 tonight boys! LETS GO BLACKHAWKS!

Tomahawk Talk 10-29-10

2010-10-29T11:43:00.000-05:00

Lots of stuff going on right now in Blackhawks hockey just going to jump right into things.

This week Hockeenight welcomes Blackhawks Down Low onto the puckcast. Be prepared to listen to an hour and half of Sopel's dong. (Hockeenight)
Sam Fels looks scared about Hossa being out a couple of weeks. (Second City Hockey)
Fifth Feather breaks down the Hawks upcoming stars in the minor leagues. (The Fifth Feather)
Paint It Blackhawks breaks down the 3 stars from the win over the Kings. (Paint It Blackhawks)
Tonights match up with the Oilers broken down by the guys over at Blackhawks Down Low. (Blackhawks Down Low)
Blackhawk Up boxing with the Kings enough said! (Blackhawk Up)
Paint It Blackhawks takes a look at the Rockford Icehogs. James does a great job following them as well as the Hawks. (Paint It Blackhawks)
Forklift breaks down the Hawks-Kings game from Wednesday. (Hockeenight)
Second City Hockey's break down of the Hawks win over the Kings and their observations. (Second City Hockey)

Ok that's the best of the best from this week I will have a game preview up in a little bit for the Hawks vs. Oilers tonight check back for that blog.

Ben Smith Recalled from Rockford

2010-10-29T10:42:00.002-05:00

Ben Smith

The Blackhawks have recalled Ben Smith from the Rockford Icehogs to take the place of injured Marian Hossa.Here are Ben's stats from Rockford 8gp 1G 3A 4points -3 2pim.

For whatever reason Hawks have a crush on him and decided he was a better call up than Kyle Beach or Igor Makarov. Like Randy said yesterday the Blackhawks need a little crazy right now in the lineup and Beach would have been perfect for that to bring some energy to a team that looks flat.

I'm actually pretty sure that the Hawks will play the Rockford shuffle for a little bit until they find what they are looking for so we might get to see Beach or Makarov sooner than we think. I'm going to see if David can put a blog together on Ben Smith before the puck drops tonight so we can get a better feel of what we are going to see out of him.

Icehogs "D" Showing Development

2010-10-28T22:30:00.000-05:00

Some fans, actually most fans would look at the Rockford Icehogs blue line and think they are young and in-experienced. Well it's true, but as each game goes on for the Icehogs you can see the improvement from these players. out of seven Icehog defenders only two of them have three or more professional hockey seasons. These Defenders Ivan Vishnevisky, who came over in a trade with the Atlanta Thrashers for Andrew Ladd, the other defender, Garnet Exelby who was signed by the Icehogs after he was released from the New York Rangers Training Camp.

So is there a motivation for their improvement success? Of course, maybe even a little friendly team competition between the top four guys. Knowing that an injury can happen at anytime,(knock on wood) anyone of these defenders has to be ready for that call.

So who are these top four guys, well one of course is Vishnevskiy. The offensive defenseman is a threat on the powerplay, with his great set up skills, and wicked shot. Vishnevskiy has put up 5 points(1 goal, 4 assists) for the Icehogs.

The next defensemen many Blackhawk fans already got a glimpse of in Nick Leddy. Since joining the Icehogs Leddy has been solid getting top line minutes and quarterbacking the power play from the right point. Though he only has 1 point in three games, Leddy's play has been solid team wise which would earn him the call.

Then there is Shawn LaLonde. though hes considered the #3 or #4 defenseman for the Icehogs, this kid is definately showing he has what it takes to be a Blackhawk. Though he isn't getting top minutes LaLonde has definately proved himself with the time he has gotten. He has put up 5 points (1 goal, 4 assits) and hasn't shyed away from any physical play either as he was in a fight last week against the Abbotsford Heat.

Finally there is the Icehogs leading scorer in points (8 assists) Brian Connelly. Connelly is probably the #1 defensemen for Rockford as he is out there in every situation, and can produce offensively, and defensively for the Icehogs.

The Hoss is Out, Who's in?

2010-10-28T18:08:00.001-05:00

The details are still a little vague, but it appears Marian Hossa is going to be out a couple of weeks with an upper body injury. The inquiring minds immediately set their sights on Igor Makarov or Jeremy Morin to take his spot, but will the Hawks go with youth?

I don't think there's any question that the Hawks will call somebody up from Rockford, given that Hoss will be out for longer than Patrick Kane was last week. This really leaves two main options for the Hawks: Makarov or Morin. Then, of course, there's always Kyle Beach. (Half joking)

Both Makarov and Morin showed flashes in the preseason and hinted that they could be ready for some time with the big club. Morin has performed better in the limited time they've seen at Rockford, with four points (three goals) in six games. Makarov has three in eight games.

Another solution could actually be Beach. The biggest criticism is his Carlos Zambrano temper, but the Hawks could use a bit of fire right now. Plus, the penalties he tends to take can't be any dumber than the one Troy Brouwer took against Columbus. He has five points in eight games, but does have 17 penalty minutes. His head probably still isn't ready for the bigs yet. But like Brent said, this team could use a little crazy right now.

There's also that possibility that they call up Brandon Pirri again or give Ryan Potulny a shot, and have Tomas Kopecky back out on a wing, where he was before Wednesday night. I have a hard time seeing the Hawks going with a guy like John Scott up at the forward spot again, especially since Hoss is going to be out a couple weeks, and Chicago needs a little longer of a solution.

As long as it's not Jeff Taffe.

Skille Filling Role with Hawks Well

2010-10-28T17:28:00.000-05:00

Going into camp this season, Jack Sille knew he had his work cut out for him. After spending a good deal of time in the organization, with little to show for it, Skille knew it was do or die.

What the Hawks got in Skille was a guy who could end up filling in brilliantly for a departed role player, like an Andrew Ladd. It doesn't show on the stat sheet, but Skille has made an early impact. Also, doesn't he look like Connor McaLeod of the Clan MacLeod from Highlander? No? Must just be me..

Either way, Skille may have a little Christopher Lambert in him on the ice. He has been fast and physical for the Hawks in the early going. He doesn't put up stellar numbers (just a pair of points on the season), but his movement off the puck is fantastic. He played very well to start on Chicago's fourth line, with former Wisconsin teammate Jake Dowell and new acquisition Viktor Stalberg.

Skille's work paid off when he was moved from the fourth line, to the top line with Jonathan Toews and Patrick Sharp. His first game on that line was Wednesday's contest against LA, and with the Hawks grinding it out in the win, there weren't a whole lot of points to go around, but Skille had an impact.

That impact is just what the Hawks are looking for on that first line. Skille throws his weight around (six hits Wednesday) and moves well, which leaves the scoring to the other guys like Toews and Sharpy. I have little doubt that Skille will become a key contributer as the season progresses, whether it shows up in the box score or not.

Like a Boss is hurting

2010-10-28T13:15:00.001-05:00

Blackhawks RW Marian Hossa (Upper Body) "Likely out a couple of weeks" says caoch Joel Quenneville.- Espn

I was going to write up a post game but then this news struck and decided this was more important than the win versus the Kings. This is horrible timing for a team struggling to find chemistry and continuity in it's lines. The only 2 players for the Hawks that have been contributing in any way is Marian Hossa and Patrick Sharp.

This being an upper body injury the rumors are flying right now is it his shoulder again? Is it a concussion? Who knows and we will probably never know. Either way it's not good news for the Hawks best player of the month of October. Now it's time for the other stars of the Hawks to step up! I'm looking at you Toews and Kane.

I'm going to go out onto the ledge right now and start yelling for Jeremy Morin. Let the kid come up and get some time on the NHL roster he earned during preseason and this is his chance to do it. I know I'm probably barking up the wrong tree but, hey a guy can dream right!

Anyways Boss Hoss please have a speedy recovery and return quickly!

Hawks win in frustrating fashion

2010-10-28T00:23:00.002-05:00

Ok, I get it the Hawks won and get 2 points out of the deal, but I am really frustrated in this Hawks team already this season. I know last years team was a team of destiny but seriously it's the little things that this team isn't doing that is frustrating me.

Let's start with board battles. Every race to the puck was won tonight by the Kings, and the Hawks are seriously lucky that Marty Turco was on his game other wise we would not have won. We are now 11 games into this season and this team still can't figure out how to win a board battle.

How does this change?

It's not easy winning board battles but it's called puck support and having support help out.

Why all of a sudden this Hawks team is giving up a ton of shots on goal?

Simple, comes right back to the board battle in the offensive zone. Like I said they are not winning board battles and setting up the cycle for any type of offensive control. I had a discussion with the guy next to me tonight about how this Hawk team is being a one or two shot and done in their zone type of team this year.

BRIAN CAMPBELL'S RETURN WILL NOT FIX THIS!

I know I shouldn't be so upset with a win but fuck it's just the fundamentals that are lacking, what we all thought would be the strong part of this team is lacking the fundamentals just as bad as the forwards.

The defense (all of them) are making bad mistakes in their own zone turning the puck over and trying to complete stupid ass break out passes. As of right now this just doesn't look like a Joel Quenneville coached team.

Can this be fixed?

Yes! Puck support needs to be better in all 3 zones. Play as a team and help each other out. I do welcome the return of Brian Campbell he should help reduce the turn overs in the defensive zone with his ability to carry the puck out of his zone. Either way we are almost a month into the season and things need to start changing.

Marian Hossa took only 3 shifts in the second period last night and has some kind of upper body injury. Hopefully not to serious as this team really needs the services of Hossa right now. I'll update you the minute I hear anything.

With my rant complete Cory or I will have a more in depth post game blog tomorrow if you made it this far in this blog thanks for reading and listening to my rant.

Looking for Help!

2010-10-27T17:52:00.001-05:00

I am currently looking for anyone who knows the Icehogs and is wanting to blog about them. I want my Hawks readers to be updated on the them and the players who are coming up through the system. Please contact me at Brent@earnyourfeathers.com for more information. Thanks.

Hawks vs Queens

2010-10-27T12:17:00.000-05:00

Tonight starting at 7:30 p.m. Ct on CSN Chicago and WGN radio Chicago. 6-2 Queens vs. the 5-4-1 Hawks.

It's been a long 3 days since we last seen Blackhawks hockey and we are hoping that they got rid of the demon that is losing in these past few days. Pat and Eddie kept going on and on about this team looking tired and I will have to agree with them, so when I'm sitting in the 300 level tonight I better see a refreshed and better looking team.

Vs.

The match up of Drew Doughty and Duncan Keith will not happen tonight

as Drew is on IR for a upper body injury and should be returning to the Kings blue line sometime this weekend. Speaking of returning to the the blue line it's being rumored that Brian Campbell is getting close to being on the ice for the Hawks. I've read a couple of reports including Randy's that he could be back as soon as Monday.

We will be seeing Dustin Brown tonight as the NHL has looked into his hit on Antti Miettien and determined that it was a shoulder on shoulder hit and not a shoulder to head hit. The Kings captain was penalized and thrown out of that game versus the Wild for the hit.

This is actually one of the match ups I wanted to see in the playoffs and this Kings team was deemed the next Chicago Blackhawks. I don't see it though. They do have a good Defensive unit lead by the young Drew Doughty, but wait it doesn't end their they have ex-penguin and Stanley cup champion Rob Scuderi and newly acquired Willie Mitchell. Don't forget about the young and very talented Jack Johnson and the back end also.

I love the goal tending situation on L.A. right now with Jonathan Quick and Jonathan Bernier. Quick has started the season out strong for the Kings standing at 5-1 with a 1.95 GAA and a 926 Save% look for him to be in net tonight.

Lets get 2 tonight boys! LETS GO BLACKHAWKS!

Blackhawks License Plate

2010-10-26T21:50:00.000-05:00

Today the Blackhawks announced the Illinois Blackhawks license plate. I want to know what you the readers feel about this. When has marketing and advertising gone to far?

I think it's a really cool idea but whats next? Toilet paper with Jay Blunk and John Mcdonough's faces on it? This idea doesn't make me want to shell out the extra couple of bucks it costs to get it, and I personally feel that Illinois is so deep into debt that this is an easy way to make a few extra bucks on a hot team that could sell you toilet paper with somebody's face on it if they wanted to.

Whatever though, it's been a really nice 3 day break for me and the Blackhawks I'm sure. As you can see I am digging really deep for something to write about since the Hawks aren't playing! During my mini vacation from the new season make sure to check out my boys new White Sox blog (I know I'm not a Sox fan either) 35th Street Sox he knows his shit trust me.

Alright I'm going back to vacation until tomorrow and I will have a pre game up before the start of tomorrows game versus the Kings.