vs. 
FACEOFF; 7pm Central
TV/RADIO: NBCSN, CSN, WGN Radio
MUSIC CITY MAESTRO: On The Forecheck
The Hawks head into Nashville tonight to wrap up the regular season and…
Yeah, sorry folks. That sums it up basically. All yours.
I’m going to put as much effort into this wrap as the Hawks did in this game:
Discuss.
Well I, I am a time bomb. And I, I only live in that one moment in which you die. It’s not right. It’s not what I wanted then, but you know and I know there’s no going back.
I, I am a lost soul. And I, I send out a sickened light for anyone to see. A cry for help, yeah. A warning to stay away. A burning, a blinding, a bleaching, a death-mask white, yeah.
I, I am a poison. And I, I am still coursing through your bloodstream like a ghost, like wine. Gathering vintage ’til the day I hurt the most.
I, I am a landmine. And I, I lay under soil, burned out by battles you thought you’d won.
I’ve got time to wait for the footsteps of a memory that’s on the run.
Well I, I am a time bomb. And I, I lay forgotten at the bottom of your heart, I’m fine. Ticking away the hours ’til I blow your world apart.
at 
Game Time: 6:00PM Central
TV/Radio: CSN, NBCSN, 87.7FM The Game
Politics Is All One Big Ass Blast: Japer’s Rink, Russian Machine Never Breaks
With the Colorado Avalanche winning last night and usurping the top spot in the division, the Hawks are now sealed into the #3 seed in the Central Division and will start the playoffs on the road. However, there are still two games left in the regular season, the penultimate of which will take place tonight in D.C. against the already eliminated Capitals. Exhibition hockey in April. Wonderful.
I thought I’d knock this out today, with two games to end the season and attendance at HockeeNight’s thing on Saturday making Sunday completely useless. So let’s do our full season Atop The Sugar Pile.
The Dizzying Highs
Niklas Hjalmarsson – I named him The CI’s Player Of The Season in last night’s issue. And for me, everything has basically centered around him this campaign. Yes, Duncan Keith is the main cog in the engine, or maybe even the engine himself, that drives the Hawks game. But Keith was allowed to be that this season because Hammer was so good and earning the top assignments. It allowed Keith to dominate lesser competition, and when Keith is controlling the ice everything about the Hawks’ game opens up.
While we can look at almost every other Hawks and find a portion of their season that dipped or had a slump, it’s hard for me to remember a time when Hammer’s game varied 5% either way. The only time he looked vulnerable was lately when he had to be paired with Sheldon Brookbank. But who wouldn’t? Hammer’s poise defensively and with the puck has been startling to watch when you consider where he was two years ago. He never panics, he’s always in position, and his short but assured passes to the middle simple deflate every forecheck and start the Hawks the other way.
Has he been the all around game that Keith has? No. But he’s the best defensive defenseman on the team this year. He might be the best kept secret in the NHL, but I don’t think it’ll stay that way for much longer.
Sometimes the end of the regular season presents incredibly exciting hockey as both teams are fighting for their post-season lives or hoping to make a reputation for themselves as they head to the next round.
And sometimes it presents some absolute stinkers.
