We make a far bigger deal of the Bulls' 2010 free agent Armageddon around these parts, but let's not forget that the stakes for our Blackhawks could be even higher once this season ends. While the Bulls need to add a player to turn into a contender, the 'Hawks are already there. All the good team has to do is keep the players it already has. This, of course, is much easier said than done.
The 'Hawks have reached their current status among the league's elite teams by shelling out lots and lots of cash. They've given mammoth contracts to free agents (Huet, Campbell, Hossa) and rewarded their own players (Seabrook, Byfuglien). This is all fine and dandy, or at least it was while cornerstones Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews worked off rookie contracts.
It's understandable if you're a bit underwhelmed by the way the 'Hawks have started the season. After going to the Western Conference Finals last year, most expected the 'Hawks to pick up where they left off, and continue to set the league on fire. Through the first 16 games, that hasn't exactly happened: though they're leading the Central Division, four Western Conference teams have more points, and four more teams have just as many (20).
There are reasons for this, of course. After staying remarkably healthy last season, the injury bug has bit the 'Hawks hard so far. We knew Marian Hossa would be gone until the winter, but Jonathan Toews, Dave Bolland, Adam Burish, and Ben Eager have also missed time. Some will continue to miss time.
Still, the 'Hawks are beginning to get healthy, and it showed last night in a 4-1 victory over the Kings. Jeremy Roenick, Sega Genesis, NHL '94, and "Swingers" not included.
Hawks players raise their sticks after rallying for a 6-5 overtime win Monday.
This was supposed to be a blog post about Chris Chelios and his inspirational comeback attempt with the AHL's Wolves. It was pretty much written and ready to go. But, we interrupt that moving tribute to the indomitable spirit of the 47-year-old future Hall of Famer to bring you this late-breaking news flash:
It's hard to get too upset over the Blackhawks' 3-2 loss in Detroit yesterday. It was an exciting game - lots of back-and-forth action, plenty of scoring chances for both teams, ect. - and though the 'Hawks lost, they certainly didn't look overmatched. Throw in that Chicago was missing two of its better players in Dave Bolland and Marian Hossa, and nothing I saw last night discouraged me from what I've thought all along: the 'Hawks are going to be one of the best teams in the NHL this season, and they have a legitimate chance to win the Stanley Cup.
Jonathan Toews, Cristobal Huet, Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa made the cover of ESPN the Magazine.
Do the Blackhawks deserve to be preseason favorites to win the Stanley Cup? ESPN the Magazine chose to adorn the cover of its NHL Preview issue with the Hawks quartet of Marian Hossa, Cristobal Huet, Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, pegged to a feature about the team's tumultuous offseason. The mag picks the Hawks to meet the Bruins in the Cup finals, with the Boston given a slightly higher power rating.
Various Internet pundits already are declaring that the Hawks now must overcome a cover "jinx" (not that such a thing actually exists, even when it involves Sports Illustrated's cover). But given that ESPN has featured hockey on its cover only 12 times since 1998, it's fair to say the Hawks will have to deal with the pressure of being in the national spotlight's glare this season.
Derrick Rose will renew excitement in Chicago come October, as will the Blackhawks.
Typical Sox: After taking three of four from the Red Sox, they get blown out by the A's on Tuesday and miss a rare chance to gain ground on Detroit. They're still eight games out, way too big a deficit to make up even with six remaining games vs. the Tigers.
Typical Cubs: They spank the Pirates for the second straight day, but again fail to gain any ground either on St. Louis (which rallied in the ninth to beat Milwaukee) or on wild-card-leading Colorado. Amazingly, the Cubs still haven't gained as much as a half-game on St. Louis on any day since Aug. 4, falling from a tie for the division lead to 11.5 games out.
Baseball season is over in Chicago, and no matter how exciting Jay Cutler and the Bears may be, we can't talk about them every day. So thank goodness that some familiar friends from last spring soon will be back in action.
Patrick Kane, cover boy for EA Sports' new NHL video game, was arrested Sunday.
Can this offseason get any worse for the Blackhawks? On the heels of the restricted free-agent fiasco, the demotion of Dale Tallon and Marian Hossa's shoulder surgery comes the stunning news that star Patrick Kane was arrested in Buffalo early today after an alleged altercation with a cab driver.
Deposed GM Dale Tallon will remain with the Blackhawks as a senior advisor.
It's a move that only seems surprising on the surface: Dale Tallon is out as general manager of the Blackhawks, despite the fact his young team captivated the city last winter en route to a berth in the Western Conference finals. But behind-the-scenes rumblings made it clear that Tallon had fallen out of favor, and the recent snafu involving the Hawks' restricted free agents provided a convenient opportunity to bring down the ax.
What a day in Chicago sports, huh? For those of us that like what happens off the field as much as what happens on it (guilty), yesterday was pretty crazy. When the dust settled, Ben Gordon was a Piston, Marian Hossa was a Blackhawk, Nikolai Khabibulin was an Oiler, and Marty Havlat was a Wild(?). Let's take a look at what all this means for the Bulls and the Blackhawks, after the jump....
Detroit's Darren Helm (upper right) celebrates his game-winning OT goal Wednesday.
A six-week odyssey of postseason thrills and chills ended abruptly for Chicago sports fans Wednesday night, but the significance of what two long-downtrodden teams accomplished will resonate throughout what should be an interesting offseason.
Ryan Dempster regroups after Freddy Sanchez's two-run homer in the fourth Monday.
First the Bulls captivated us with a seven-game instant classic vs. the Celtics. Then the Blackhawks took us on a joyride through the Stanley Cup playoffs. But the Red Wings are poised to turn out the lights on the Hawks' postseason party Wednesday, and if that happens, the spotlight's long-overdue glare finally will fall on the struggling Cubs.
Patrick Sharp celebrates his game-winning goal Friday with Brent Seabrook.
It doesn't get much better for Blackhawks fans than Friday night's 4-3 overtime victory in Game 3 against the Red Wings. Let's face it: Detroit is a much better team -- the Hawks built a 3-0 lead with the help of a ton of penalties, and it took the Wings (playing without injured star Pavel Datsyuk) about five minutes late in the second period to tie the score. But Patrick Sharp delivered in OT, and now, even if the Hawks don't win again the rest of the series, they have a signature victory that they can build on for the future.
