Toews is out , Seabrook is out , Crow is out , rooks all over the place ... Yet they sit a top the conference , feels like it's done with smoke and mirrors sometimes but I'll take it and run . Still got over 50 games to go , a long time to fix a few things hopefully and be right come playoffs.
NHL.com is reporting Toews and Seabrook are in the lineup for the next game, which is great news for the Hawks. Your right too about them playing well with the injuries. Scary thing is, their only getting better.
Yup nice to see them both back in the lineup , nice win against the Rangers , they are a really good team ... hope to see them way down the road again.
You see, it's cool for an American to wear a Canadian sweater. More than half the people that see it have no fucking clue to what is at all, let alone that it's ferrin. Half of those who know it's sports gear couldn't point you to Canada if you put them at Niagara Falls. Toews expression belies the typical Canadian attitude about wearing a USA sweater. Specifically, this really sucks, and I feel so cheap. I'd say this. Solve that problem by not losing to the USA!!! Canada: Merica's bitch for everything, even hockey.
So Toews , Kane , Crow & Keith make the All Star game ... yet Breadman , Hoss & Artem are all left off . Toews admits he shouldn't be there ( rightfully so ) can argue the other 3 are in ... I am ok with Hoss not going , coming off injury take the time off ... Breadman & Artem got snubbed that's for sure , perhaps with a injury or 2 they still may get in.
Saw the Hawks in the Can in Denver last night. Colorado was taking it to 'em statistically through 40 minutes. The Hawks did what they do best in the final 20. Highly entertaining game. About 10,000 seats were festooned in various Blackhawk regalia, about 5,000 were represented by the Avs, and the rest were empty.
Actually the piss-yellow sweater is now reserved for special requests. It reminds me, and it represents, the nadir when the Sabres were magnificently abysmal. It's hideousness reflected the team. They're a much better team now, and I now sport the best uniform in sports - the standard home blue & gold. But, yes, one seat was beautifully adorned with Buffalo's #55. (I got several favorable comments, and met two Sabres fans. That was glorious fun!)
Hawks are on a roll with winning 7 road gms in a row now . Toews has found his game lately , really like the progress of the rookies , hoping they all stay as the trade deadline lingers. TVR has also found a spot that fits nicely on the D as well . Keep it up boys , still going to be tough to catch the Wild for 1st place but with one more game remaining you could say their 3 points out right now.
That was the first game that felt like a playoff game to me, this season. Hawks could have blown it open in the first and Wild could have won it in the third. Fun game to watch. I don't think the Hawks have the gas to catch the Wild, but the Wild are overdue for some wear and tear injuries and another slump. If Hawks have home ice, I'll feel much better about their chances in the spring than I do right now. Hopefully Schmaltz on Toews' wing works out. Panik needs to be upgraded, but he's been okay.
Stan always finds a way to buy at this time of year. Who do you think are the most attractive (among realistic targets) for the Hawks? Watch the Sabres; they're actually playoff-good against good teams, but suck hind tittie to losing teams. Their next two are vs. CO & then AZ, (the hind tittiest of them all). If BUF manages to snatch an L in one of these they'll be motivated sellers IMO. On some levels, (i.e., not on D), I think the Sabres & Hawks match up fairly well for a trade.
The Wild have their extended break starting now with the Hawks playing I believe 2 games so could close the gap but Wild would have 3 games in hand perhaps. I will say over all Panik has been pretty steady , he produced early when on the Toews line then they broke it up , now he's back on and finding the net on occasion. Wild reminds me of the Hawks from a few years back , just overall a fast paced game , can be dominated and sneak a few goals in and it's game on again just like last night.
I like watching a Boudreau teams. He lets them gamble. Minnesota hasn't gotten enough recognition the last several years because Yeo restricts so much offense and STL and Chicago dominated the division. Minnesota has the best 1-6 dmen in the conference imo and they have a little bit of everything up front. The big questions for them I have will be: Can Granlund/Koivu perform as a top line unit against top defensive AND offensive units in the postseason? Will Parise not breaK? Are their lines and pairs going to be flexible enough to make adjustments in a 7 game series? They are the best built team 1-23 in the conference, but I'm not betting on them because of those 3 questions. Q has been adept in his career at adjustments. Yeo knows everything about most of the Wild. Bruce has had problems in the postseason, although I think he overperforms most regular seasons, so it's not really a knock. Boudreau just hasn't matched regular season success to the postseason. Panik has been terrific for his cap hit. I think the position is weak, but Panik isn't supposed to be a top line player. He's filling in better than should be expected. I wonder what kind of extension he and his agent are looking at, I don't think he'll be in Chicago next year if he wants more than a year.
The Stanimal with some quotes about rookies and trades. Doesn't get more exciting than a chat with Stan. Not a whole lot of substance but I am interested in what he says about his own rookies and young players with so many moves on the way around the league this summer (Vegas). https://www.nhl.com/news/five-questions-with-chicago-gm-stan-bowman/c-286969140?tid=278387990
Panik has been terrific for his cap hit. I think the position is weak, but Panik isn't supposed to be a top line player. He's filling in better than should be expected. I wonder what kind of extension he and his agent are looking at, I don't think he'll be in Chicago next year. There, fixt.
haha, yes,. If I had to bet money, I would bet Panik is gone. I think he would get 3 x 2.5 today by most teams looking for a versatile player like that. He's been successful on the 4th line and first line. He's not a first line player, but having a depth player (kind of like Shaw was) that can plug in a big role for 5-10 games and then still be effective out it has value. Shaw was obviously a different skill set, I just mean in the sense that he could plug into 3 lines and pp unit and be effective in all those roles. I don't think Panik has much value in trade right now, seems like half the league has a useful role player or versatile depth player they're going to expose to the expansion draft.
Yeah, but tell that to the fans of each team. They're all convinced that their team has the gem that every other team should covet. The expansion draft will sort out a lot of this.
Johnny O back in the house , not the same player but with Jammer out not a bad pick up with commitment past this year.
