That was certainly a throwback. I was almost sure those kinds of games were pretty much relegated to the past but apparently David Backes’ mere presence made everyone so angry tonight that we took a trip back in time. A feisty one for sure, but one in which the Blackhawks answered their head coach with an important divisional road win.
It’s a late-hate so let’s just get to some observations about this one.
vs. 
PUCK DROP: 7pm
TV/RADIO: WGN For both
THOSE WHO CAN’T WRITE FOR THOSE WHO CAN’T READ: St. Louis Gametime
When you’re a team that is still trying to settle at least half the roster, and you have two returning d-men who have been out at least a month, you’d probably prefer a softer landing than traipsing down across Big Muddy into the gaping maw of the hellscape that is West East St. Louis. But you don’t get to raise objections once the schedule comes out (unless you’re Detroit), so that’s the task ahead of the Hawks tonight.
As most of you know, or at least I hope you do otherwise I’m a pretty crappy business man (and I am), C.I. isn’t just a website. It’s also a gameday program I produce for every Hawks’ homegame that we sell online and outside the arena. In order to do the latter, I’ve had a team of vendors covering all four corners of the UC.
Our vendor Scott has been with me for seven of the eight years I’ve been doing this. If you’ve bought a program from Scott, you know it. Gregarious, outgoing, a bit weird and scary (which makes him perfect for us) and always there when he can be. He’s usually been outside Gate 2 on Madison.
A couple weeks ago, on his way to the United Center, Scott had a heart attack. He’s back home now, so he’s out of immediate danger, but it’s going to be a bit before he can work anywhere again, whether with us or his day job. And the bills are starting to pile up for him. And I’m hoping we can lend a hand.
Well, at least they don’t play the Devils again. And at this pace they won’t have to worry about a Final rematch.
The Hawks tried something new against New Jersey this time, taking a lead and hoping that would force the Devils to be a little looser in their structure. But it was the Hawks who ended up employing that, with a couple defensive gaffes, some less than stellar goalie play, and a poorly timed penalty all adding up to a loss. Combine that in with the Hawks barely looking threatening after the first 20 as the Devils were once again able to basically put sand on their flame, and especially when they got a lead. Capped off by no line other than Kane and The Sons Of Rasputin able to get on the scoresheet, and the Hawks are dancing with .500 again by the pale moonlight.
vs 
Game Time: 7:30PM Central
TV/Radio: CSN, WGN-AM 720
Bruce Springsteen Is A Fraud And A Charlatan: All About The Jersey
After one of the more vomit-inducing, aesthetically displeasing performances of the Quenneville era last Friday in Newark, the Devils complete the season series tonight at the United Center fresh off getting shut out by West East St. Louis on Tuesday at home.
There are numerous, fundamental reasons why the NHL’s decision to move to a 3-on-3 is a flawed and misguided one, trying to solve a problem of their own creation. While sidestepping the history lesson, the NHL turned to the shootout to entice the casual fan, but then decided that they shouldn’t matter because it’s not real hockey. As a solution 3-on-3 still isn’t actual NHL hockey, but it does have a vague team aspect to it to resolve regular season games and avoiding shootouts, because removing shootouts entirely wasn’t an option. That the initiative is exceeding that low bar is empirically clear even about 20% of the way through the regular season.
Even the purists who align themselves with a solution that somehow loses the charity point that artificially inflates standings points (with 3 on 3 now doing so for individual scoring statistics) will through gritted teeth admit that 3 on 3 is at least exciting. But just because the situation is tense doesn’t mean that it’s actually well played or even a facsimile of the up and down pond hockey the flapping heads want to label it as.
For the second time this season, the Trib’s Chris Kuc has let it be known that the Hawks are after another blue liner in the trade market. This continues a pattern of Stan Bowman the past few years letting everyone in the world know what he’s looking for, which was a trait he had a couple years ago. And nothing gets into the press the Hawks don’t want, so this is no accident. It’s not really that big of a deal, because any punter with a vague concept of the rules of hockey could look at the collection of players dressing as d-men for the Hawks right now, let out a hearty “EEE GADS!”, and conclude the Hawks need someone else.
However, it is strange to make it so clear what you’re after, because every other GM is pretty much going to hold you upside down and shake. And maybe that’s why, so when the Hawks can’t find anyone they can say everyone was asking for too much. But whatever. Where are the Hawks going shopping?
