Never half-step ’cause I’m not a half-stepper.
Aren’t we all glad the regular season slog has ended? I know I am. If I had to turn NBCSN on one more time to see the Bruins and Flyers play in front of 17,000 comatose fans, I was going to go mental. More than usual, at least.
It is funny how quickly the regular season became a sideshow around these parts. It seemed like every outcome during the ’08-09/’09-10 seasons had life-changing implications. The 5 goal comeback vs. Calgary. Hossa’s 2 goal debut in a Silicon Valley spanking. The Toews hat trick on construction hat night vs. Pittsburgh. Vancouver thumping the Hawks 4-0 towards the end of the ’08-09 season to lock up home ice, put them on the fast track to the Pacific Division title and an ending which helped put Alex Burrows down in infamy.
I would be hard pressed to come up with three memorable regular season games in the past six years since. Maybe the game vs. Colorado where Carcillo scored in the final minute to extend the Hawks unbeaten streak to however many games and…I don’t think I can think of anything else.
If that’s not First World Hockey problems, I don’t know what is.
But that’s not why you called.
We keep moving along through the river, well to be more apt this underground garbage fire of a preview that is slowly encroaching on nuclear waste, to the forwards of the St. Louis Blues. And once you get past the first line, it gets pretty automaton, but you probably already knew that. It’s a raft of palookas and hired goons that are meant to make a bunch of sounds flashed on the screen from the Batman TV series (live-action, Pure West, not the cartoon, which I haven’t seen but am told isn’t bad). You know the plan, you know the players, it’s just a question of if the Hawks can execute the plays.
Alex Steen-Jori Lehtera-Vladimir Tarasenko
I’ve spent so long thinking that Alex Steen is just a guy that’s taken about two years for me to pivot and finally admit that he’s a plus forward. Is he really a first liner? No, probably not. But he’s struck up an understanding with Tarasenko that’s become pretty deadly and really Steen doesn’t do anything wrong. He’s always in the right spot making the right play, he just doesn’t do it with any flash so you have to really pay attention to him.
Take Me To The River, Take Me To Where All The Poisons Go – Blues Series Preview – Goalies & Defense
And so it begins anew, and the braintrust of the NHL gets what they ultimately want again with the divisional playoff format with a perennial occurence of legacy NHL rivalries along with an effort to fabricate new ones. The Hawks and Blues will meet in the first round for the second time in three years, with the Blues once again having home ice advantage thanks to their usual solid regular season. But even the florid, toothless cretins along the river are beginning to realize that that type of success and $2.50 gets one on the bus.
Because everything the Blues does is predicated on the prevention of quality chances against, it’s appropriate to take a look at their back end of the blue line and their goalies first.
The Rockford IceHogs reserved their spot in the Calder Cup Playoffs this week. However, Chicago’s AHL affiliate continued to scuffle along as the regular season comes to a conclusion this week.
Rockford dropped three of four on the road this past week. Three points in Charlotte early in the week assured the Hogs of a postseason appearance for the second consecutive season. This team is not giving off the shine of a group that will get out of the first round, though.
It’s hard to expect much from this group the way the latter half of the season has progressed. There are lots of new faces and probably more coming before the regular season ends. There are also a lot of questions for this team to answer in the final week of action.
First and foremost, who starts in net for Ted Dent in the playoffs?
vs. 
PUCK DROP: 6pm
TV/RADIO: WGN for both
WAITING TO DOT THE I: Jackets Cannon
As has been the case for the past three seasons, the Hawks last game of the season doesn’t amount to much more than a glorified scrimmage. There aren’t even individual milestones to grab. Hossa isn’t going to play, so 500 will have to wait until October (and none of us thought that would happen when this season started), Kane already has his 100 points. I guess they could go David Robinson here and try and get Kane six goals to get to 50. About the only thing worth watching is Corey Crawford getting one dress rehearsal before the playoffs. And considering the amount of players that the Predators are putting in suits, you can be pretty sure it’s going to be in St. Louis.
