Hawkey Central

It's been a long 2,547 days.

Yes, local hockey fans, it's been that long since you've watched your beloved Chicago Blackhawks compete in an NHL Stanley Cup playoff game.

That's, oh, roughly 220 million seconds.  Three million minutes.  Sixty-thousand hours.  Better savor every moment of this year's run.  You just never know.

Seriously, on April 25, 2002, the host St. Louis Blues defeated the Blackhawks 5-3, taking the conference quarterfinal series 4-1 and sending Chicago hockey fans into an excruciating drought.

But, today, Thursday, April 16, 2009 - the Hawks return to the ice to compete for Lord Stanley's Cup.

Number of players on the Hawks' 2002 roster?

As one might expect - since the team is exceedingly young - zero.

The 2002 squad was led by the likes of Andrei Nikolishin, Alexei Zhamnov, Lyle Odelein, Chris Simon, Jocelyn Thibault - those were the days.  But it was a healthy mix between veterans and youngsters.

This year - that's one area other teams plan to beat the Hawks in - experience.

Having Joel Quenneville behind the bench is a plus, he won a Stanley Cup as an assistant coach with the Colorado Avalanche and knows what it takes.

But as the young Pittsburgh Penguins learned last year, winning 16 games to capture one of the most coveted trophies in all of sports is no easy task.  They suffered through growing pains.  This year, they should be better for it, and indicated that with a convincing 4-1 first-round win over Philadelphia last night.

Now it's the Hawks' time, and they can prove the critics wrong.  I'm talking to you, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, Martin Havlat, Brian Campbell, and Brent Seabrook.

And oh, by the way, having both Nikolai Khabibulin and Cristobal Huet doesn't seem like such a bad idea anymore, does it? (Not at all, the goaltending cushion is their greatest strength.)

The Hawks finished the season in playoff form, rattling off a 7-2-1 record in their last 10 games.  In the Western Conference, only the St. Louis Blues and Anaheim Ducks are walking into the playoffs on such a hot streak.

They'll need to pounce on Calgary, and pounce early.  Score the first goal, get the crowd involved, and win game one.  From there, the rest should come naturally.

Chicago's already beaten the Flames four times this season.  The playoffs are a different animal, but the home ice advantage and offensive firepower tilts the ice in the Hawks' favor.

But even if they get past the first round against a team that in fairness did finish with the same amount of wins (46), the playoffs is a long, grueling stretch, filled with twists and turns, injuries, and surprises.

Don't miss a second of the action.  You might just have to wait another 220 million.  In the NHL, especially with the parity today, you just never know.

My prediction: Chicago in 5.

Thanks to Timeanddate.com for the fascinating numbers.

And the game article for the Hawks' last playoff game can still be found here:

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/cup02/games/2002-04-25-stl-chi.htm

It seems like the Chicago Blackhawks have been sitting in fourth place in the Western Conference all year long.

Certainly the last several weeks if nothing else.

The Detroit Red Wings remain the class of the Central Division, and since the top three spots go to division leaders, the Hawks have been stuck at No. 4.

They've faced hardly any competition for that slot, which guarantees home ice advantage for the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.  Is that where they'll stay?

After its 3-1 win over Atlanta this evening, the Hawks trail the Red Wings by 11 points.  Passing Detroit is the only way they'll get into one of the top three places this season.

And the Hawks are nine points ahead of the Dallas Stars, who currently occupate fifth place.

Anaheim, Vancouver, Minnesota, and Columbus all have their eyes set on that spot - 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th respectively.  All five of these teams are within just two points of each other.

The top of the conference has been a complete opposite of the logjam at the bottom, rankings that have jumbled quite a few times in recent weeks.  San Jose has been No. 1, Detroit has been No. 2, Calgary has been No. 3, and Chicago has been No. 4.

With just 30 games left in the regular season,  fourth seems like a pretty likely result for the Hawks unless they go on a ridiculous hot streak or have a percipitious fallout.

For a team that's just dying to get back into the playoffs for the first time since 2001-2002, fourth would be just fine.

Breakaway for Patrick Kane, one move this way, one move that way, he shoots -- scores!

Hawks fans have heard this before, many times.  Kane isn't denied often on such golden opportunities.  And he wasn't denied last night in Montreal.

He made Tim Thomas of the Boston Bruins look silly on the play, using the exact same move that resulted in a goal against Thomas in the Hawks-Bruins shootout at the United Center a few months ago.  Five-hole.  Not a chance for the Eastern All-Star.

The Kane tally put the Western Conference up 11-10 with less than five minutes to play at the Bell Centre, but Jay Bouwmeester of the Florida Panthers tied the game 1:02 later to force overtime.  The East took the game in a shootout after goals from Alex Kovalev of the Montreal Canadiens and Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals.

In regulation, Jonathan Toews also scored for the West.  His goal came off his patented wrist shot, also past Thomas, about two minutes into the third.  Toews first settled down a rolling puck, then fired it past the sprawling goalie.

Brian Campbell, who started the game, also reached the scoresheet with an assist on Dan Boyle's second period tally past a shaky Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers, who surrendered a game-high six goals out of the six goalies.

And Chicago also got a little extra play, as the play-by-play on VERSUS repeatedly brought up the success of the Jan. 1 Winter Classic at Wrigley Field.  Doc Emrick and Eddie Olczyk also spoke of the Hawks' resurgence in the Second City.

Not a bad showing for the Blackhawks, not bad at all.  Now if only someone could please explain to me why Chicago's leading goal scorer Patrick Sharp was left off the Western Conference roster?

The team is back in action Wed. night in Anaheim.  The game is set for 9 p.m. CST.

A local man is a million dollars richer and he's not in any way affiliated with the Chicago Blackhawks organization.  He's actually a Hawks fan.

Cary Stolarczyk beat enormous odds to win a contest sponsored by the Illinois Lottery at the Wed., Jan 21 game against St. Louis.

Of the 22,000+ seats in the United Center, his seat in section 326 was the lucky one of the game.  If Chicago scored with exactly 10 minutes on the clock of the second period, he'd win a million dollars.

Yeah right, right?

Not only did Martin Havlat score with 10:00 on the scoreboard, it turned out to be the Hawks' only goal of the game, as the team suffered a rare home loss 4-1.  It was just their third regulation home loss of the season.

Stolarczyk said "there was a lot of cursing" when he found out he won, according to the Tribune Icing blog by the Chicago Tribune's Chris Kuc.

The story even garnered international attention.  This article appeared on the Polish Web site sport.pl (also zczuba.pl).

The promotion began at the Wed., Jan. 14 game against the Buffalo Sabres.  Who knew someone would actually cash in?  It's funny too because I was at that game on Jan. 14, and my sister and I were joking about it -- "No way that would ever happen," I told her.

This just in: The Winter Classic drew the largest television audience for an NHL regular-season game since 1975, according to ratings released today by NBC.

It's big news for a sport lagging behind others on a national level and hoping to land a major broadcast deal perhaps in the next few years with national sports leader ESPN.

The stat also speaks volumes of the resurgence of hockey in the city of Chicago.  Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Kris Versteeg and other sharp-shooting youngsters have brought star power to the Windy City.  Goaltending has been solid, the defense has contributed offensively, and head coach Joel Quenneville has done the rest since taking over Denis Savard.

And who says the sport is dead in the United States?  Approximately 4.4 million viewers tuned in, per NBC, the largest total since a New York Rangers-Philadelphia Flyers regular season match-up on Feb. 23, 1975.

Hockey has gotten a bad wrap in the U.S. in recent memory between the Jarko Ruutu-Andrew Peters biting incident in Buffalo and the dispicable tactics of Sean Avery.  An event as magical as Jan. 1's contest at Wrigley Field helped a little, and news of these ratings will help a lot more, especially on the business table as the NHL negotiates sponsorships for Jan. 1, 2010 and future television deals.

The sport has a ways to go, most worrisome is the increasing trend of low-scoring games (Americans like points, hence the fantasy crazy), but it is making positive strides and this is another one.

Hawks' Notes: Chicago bounced back from two consecutive losses with a 3-1 win at the United Center Sunday night.  They're back in action Wednesday at 7:30 when they'll host my hometown team the Buffalo Sabres, who have won four of their last five.  I'll be attending that game and will try to get some video and photos to post later.  Early indications are the goaltenders will be Cristobal Huet for the Hawks and former Blackhawk Patrick Lalime for the Sabres, though that could change.  It will also be defenseman Brian Campbell's first game against his old team.

Right winger Adam Burish opened the scoring with his first goal of the season and that was all the Hawks needed, as Chicago blanked Phoenix 6-0 tonight in Arizona.

Burish, who was celebrating his 26th birthday, also had two points.  Jonathan Toews added two goals, while Kris Versteeg, Ben Eager and Colin Fraser also scored.

In his first start since the Winter Classic, Cristobal Huet picked up a surprising shutout, just his second such effort of the season.  Huet has been largely inconsistent on the year and his only other shutout came against the hapless Ottawa Senators on Dec. 10.

And just like that, the Hawks continue to roll, winners of 10 of their last 12 - the only two losses coming of course to the mighty Detroit Red Wings.

They return to action Thursday night in Denver before playing in Nashville on Saturday.  The team kicks off a three-game homestand on Sunday against the Predators.

Yes, the Detroit Red Wings beat the Chicago Blackhawks 6-4 in the Winter Classic at Wrigley Field on Jan. 1.  Yes, the event was a success in many ways, from "Take Me Out To The Hockey Game" to the incredible crowd-assisted rendition of the Star Spangled Banner.  And yes, the ice held up well - it was a fast-paced hockey game with plenty of goals.

You probably knew all that from the intense media coverage by ESPN, the Tribune, Sun Times, and WGN Radio.  But here's something you probably haven't heard: The key turning point to this game happened before the puck even dropped.

The problem lied in Joel Quenneville's decision to give Cristobal Huet the nod between the pipes in this one.  What was he thinking?

Huet has been one step behind Nikolai Khabibulin all season long, and he proved that again yesterday.  He did not give the Hawks the best shot at winning; Khaby would have done that.

If you missed the stat sheet, Huet yielded six goals on 30 shots.  Khabibulin came out of the bullpen in the third and pitched a shutout - allowing no goals on 13 shots.

There's no question about it - none - that Khaby should have been the starter.  I know Coach Q likes to rotate them and Khaby got the start in the loss at Detroit, but it was just wrong for him to choose Cris in this pivotal game on the international stage.

This game could have really upped Chicago's morale as the team keeps at its playoff push in 2009.   It could have led to more excitement and more people pulling for this team.  Instead, the Hawks were embarassed, blowing a 3-1 lead after one on a series of weak decisions by Huet, which included horrible rebound control.

For those watching the game on television, like me, nothing was more terrible to see than Huet's horrifying grin while the 6th Red Wings goal was being reviewed (and ultimately was declared a good goal).  WHY in the WORLD was he smiling?

With the exception of Pavel Datsyuk's brilliant goal, I blame Huet for the Hawks' collapse, and not the Wrigley Field curse.  The coaching staff should also be ashamed for allowing him to start this game.

Other than that, I have no problems with this year's Winter Classic.  It was a treat to watch.

The Detroit Red Wings tamed the surging Chicago Blackhawks 4-0 at Joe Louis Arena on Tuesday, handing them their first loss in 10 games.

With that, the Hawks' franchise-record nine game winning streak is history.

Detroit netminder Ty Conklin made 36 saves to record the shutout.  Johan Franzen had two goals, while Pavel Datsyuk and Tomas Kopecky also scored for the victors.

Nikolai Khabibulin turned away 35 shots in the loss.

Each team was missing a standout defenseman due to injury, as Nicklas Lidstrom and Cam Barker sat the game out.  Their status for the teams' next game on Jan. 1 is not certain.

Chicago had pulled within four points of the Wings during its nine game winning streak, but now falls six points back of the Central Division leaders.

They'll get another shot at Detroit in just two days.  They also still have two games in hand on the Wings.

Of course, that game in two days is the long-awaited Winter Classic at Wrigley Field.  Weather report has the temperature hovering in the 32 or 33 degree range, not ideal but manageable, and once again the National Hockey League has lucked out as no rain is in the forecast.  One of these New Years, it isn't going to be so fortunate.

For one look back at last year's Winter Classic between the Penguins and Sabres at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo, here's a slideshow of great pictures from that event.

Chicago wrapped up its western road swing tonight in Vancouver, British Columbia with a 3-1 win.  The Hawks finished the trip 3-0, also winning in both Edmonton and Calgary.  They're now off until Dec. 26 when they host Philadelphia.

Here's the transcript to the live blog for those who want to take a look back:

As usual, the refresh button will be your best friend if you'd like to follow along, and I encourage you to leave a comment or two while you're at it!

11:32 p.m.: The horn sounds, and that's it.  Chicago 3, Vancouver 1, final.  The young Hawks weathered the storm at the energetic GM Place.  A real character win for them.  They remain just five points back of Detroit, still with a game in hand.  Hope you enjoyed this.  Thanks for stopping by!

11:30 p.m.: That makes for a great segue!  Toews will be signing autographs at the Millenium Verizon Wireless Store at State and Monroe on Monday, Dec. 22 from 3 to 4 p.m.  Those who attend will also have a chance to win tickets to the Winter Classic.

11:28 p.m.: With Sanford on the bench, Jonathan Toews throws a dribbler into the empty net!  Just 32 seconds remaining.  Chicago's about to win its SEVENTH straight for the first time since 1981.

11:27 p.m.: Penalty over.  Crunch time now.  1:45 and counting.

11:24 p.m.: Mattias Ohlund just missed on a short-handed try.  He was left open in front of the net but fired wide.

11:22 p.m.: Willie Mitchell is off for interference.  Tough, tough time to take a penalty for VAN, who seemed to be putting on tons of pressure.

11:21 p.m.: Canucks really pouring it on now.  Pavel Demitra has a good chance but is stopped by Huet.  Five minutes to go.  Can the Blackhawks hold on?

11:16 p.m.: Huet turns away a backhand by Steve Bernier, parked just three feet in front of him.  Now just seven minutes to go.

11:12 p.m.: Blocked shots, sticks in their face and sound clearing attempts, the Canucks had ZERO shots on that power-play opportunity.  11 minutes to go in regulation.

11:07 p.m.: First penalty of the third.  Duncan Keith gets two for flipping the puck over the glass while in the defensive zone.  May not like it, but that's delay of game every time.

11:04 p.m.: Martin Havlat stoned by Sanford on a 2-on-1.  Looked like it was going to be a sure goal.  Potential game-changing save...remember that one.

10:58 p.m.: Final period just starting.  Hawks come out flying, Sanford is forced to make two big saves in the first minute.

10:53 p.m.: Shots 23-23 after two.  Don't say this often, but Huet's been the difference so far.  Should be a good third between two of the West's best.

10:42 p.m.: End of the second period. Chicago 2, Vancouver 1.

10:39 p.m.: Starting to open up a bit with chances both ways.  About two minutes to play in the second, Hawks still up a goal.

10:35 p.m.: Huet calmly scoops up a loose puck with his glove.  He's looking relaxed back there, much better than the first.

10:32 p.m.: Make that 0-for-5.  Only one shot on goal that try.  Good kill for the Hawks.

10:28 p.m.: Canucks PP is 0-for-4 so far, but they do have nine shots.  This PP starts with a CHI clear.

10:26 p.m.: Dustin Byfuglien shoots wide on a breakaway!  Frustration penalty after has him off to the box.  Two for cross-checking.

10:25 p.m.: An interference call on Kane negates that.  Some 4-on-4 hockey, then Chicago killed the rest of the Kaner penalty.

10:21 p.m.: Too many men on the ice called on VAN, that's a killer.  Hawks can gain some real momentum here with a power-play goal..

10:17 p.m.: Canucks pick it up a bit after that second Chicago goal.  Huet just made three nice saves.

10:12 p.m.: And as we see so often in the NHL, the Hawks come right back down the ice and Patrick Sharp with a quick wrister from the slot gives the
Hawks a 2-1 lead.

10:11 p.m.: Huet out of position again, what else is new, and the Canucks have an open net...but they fan on the shot, it grazes the post and sails wide.

10:07 p.m.: Patrick Kane accepts a pass from Ladd, flips the puck to his backhand and sends a shot over Sanford's shoulder.  Nice-looking goal and just like that, it's 1-1.  Just three minutes into the period.

10:05 p.m.: Two shots, but no goal, and the penalty is over.  And Huet just stopped D. Sedin on a mini breakaway!

10:03 p.m.: Here we go.  Canucks start on the PP.

10:00 p.m.: Shots are 11-10 Chicago after one, but Vancouver's had the best chances so far.  Huet has looked a bit shaky.  The second will start any moment.

9:45 p.m.: End of the first period. Vancouver 1, Chicago 0.

9:44 p.m.: Nothing going again.  Just one shot on goal for that PP.  And now Dave Bolland's off to the box as the penalties continue.  Only 24 seconds on the clock, so this penalty time should carry over to the second.

9:40 p.m.: Another penalty to Vancouver.  O'Brien is off for holding the stick with just over two minutes left in the first.  Chicago has a good chance to tie the score here and they seem to be gaining their legs.

9:39 p.m.: Hockey Night in Canada just highlighted Brent Seabrook.  Apparently he's from British Columbia...says tonight feels like a home game for him despite wearing the away sweater.

9:36 p.m.: Nothing going there.  No big chances and we're back to even strength.

9:33 p.m.: The penalty kill seems to give Chicago some momentum.  Andrew Ladd draws a penalty with some great forechecking and Kevin Bieksa is off for two minutes.

9:29 p.m.: A brief stoppage to repair some broken glass, but back underway.  And the Hawks PK does its job - successfully killed off the penalty.

9:26 p.m.: Sanford's staying in the game, but the PP goes to the home team, who by the way looks very sharp in their retro third jerseys - blue sweaters with green stripes and a hockey stick logo slapped on the chest.

9:24 p.m.: Don't like to see this.  Sanford is down, appears to be injured, after colliding with his own defenseman Shane O'Brien.  They're giving Troy Brouwer a penalty on the play, apparently for being tangled up with O'Brien.

9:22 p.m.: The bodies are starting to fly and the intensity is picking up.  Good thing too because it's been kind of a slow start besides Vancouver's early barrage of chances.

9:19 p.m.: Canucks with a few good chances, they're playing hard here in the early going.  Shots are 4-1 VAN, about five minutes in.

9:15 p.m.: Daniel Sedin lights the lamp early on a fortuitous bounce in front of the net.  That's what you get for parking yourself there.  Chicago D has to do a better job of clearing him out.  1-0 VAN just 3:45 in.

9:14 p.m.: We're under way at General Motors Place.  Kind of quiet in the early going to be honest.  Teams still feeling each other out a bit.

9:09 p.m.: Got to do a prediction.  Despite Chicago's great play recently, the Canucks organization is still on a high from the news about Sundin
and I think they will ride that energy.  I'm going with Vancouver 4-3 in OT.

9:05 p.m.: Cristobal Huet gets the start for Chicago (17-6-7, 41 points),
fourth in the Western Conference.  The Canucks (18-11-3, 39 points),
fifth in the West, are playing their first game since acquiring
big-name free agent Mats Sundin, but he won't be in the lineup.  Curtis Sanford gets the nod in net for them.

The Chicago Blackhawks continued their winning ways on Tuesday, embarrassing the Edmonton Oilers 9-2 and pulling even closer to the Central Division-leading Detroit Red Wings.

The Hawks creeped within five points of the Evil Empire from Motown with the victory, which was broadcast across Canada on TSN, still with a game in hand.

All but three Blackhawks made the scoresheet - Jonathan Toews,  Brent Seabrook and Matt Walker forming the pointless trio - as the Hawks recorded nine goals for the first time in 13 years and exploded for their largest offensive output of the season (they had seven against Phoenix earlier this month).

The onslaught included five special team tallies (four power-play, one short-handed) and plenty of boo's from the blue and orange-clad Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta.

Troy Brouwer and Patrick Kane each had three points for Chicago. Andrew Ladd and Cam Barker chipped in two assists each, while Duncan Keith, Cam Barker and Colin Fraser added two points a piece.  Nikolai Khabibulin earned the win in net.

Quote of the night goes to TSN's play-by-play announcer after the Oilers scored their second goal late in the third period (making it 9-2): "And Pouliot gets Edmonton within a touchdown."

It was that kind of night for the Oil, who fell to under .500 at home on the season (4-5-2) and continue to sit near the cellar of the Western Conference.  Despite a 4-1 start to December, their devastating defeat will likely reignite chatter of head coach Craig MacTavish being on the hot seat.

Meanwhile, the Hawks racked up their fourth straight win and have won five of their last six.  They stay in Alberta for a Friday match-up at the Calgary Flames and will complete their western road swing with a date with the Vancouver Canucks, slated for Hockey Night in Canada.

While Red Wings fans continue to discount this Chicago squad, it again put forth a performance that proved the team belongs among the Western Conference elite.  Detroit also has their own problems to deal with, losers of two of their last three and the 25-3-2 San Jose Sharks next on their schedule.

The Hawks' recent surge not only shows what the team is capable of, it's going to make that Jan. 1 Winter Classic game all the more meaningful, as Chicago really is going to give Detroit all it can handle for the Central Division lead.  Such anticipation bodes well for Chicago, the sport of hockey and the NHL in general.