Fantastic: HockeeNight
Yup:SCH
Call it whatever you want: Chicago Tribune
Clutch in the shootout: SunTimes
A new look: TSN
vs 
Game Time: 7:00PM
TV/Radio: CSN, NBCSN, TSN2, WGN-AM 720
Somebody To Shove: Hockey Wilderness
After an excruciating and seemingly interminable three days off filled with speculation and meatballery, the Blackhawks at long last get back to actually playing games that matter in the standings, rather than those more concerned with second guessing and dick measuring. They’ll do so against the visiting Wild, who have for the most part owned the Hawks this year, and are looking to get closer to clinching their second straight playoff berth.
Fraser on Toews: TSN
More like healing: Comcast
Keeping the kids close: Chicago Tribune
Not worried: Globe and Mail
Jonathan Toews: “Everyone seems to be a part of the bad habits that are kind of running contagiously through our lineup.”
DING DING DING. That also applies to the captain himself, though obviously he’s taking it upon himself as well.
Tonight was a perfect microcosm of what’s been this Hawks team lately, and honestly for most of the season at this point. Structurally they are off, not allowing them to play the game they need to, but their star power enables them to have a chance to win. Either Hossa, Sharp, and Toews drag them by the gonads to victory, or they lose. Lately, it’s been the latter more often. It’s disheartening because we all thought after being truly thumped last night due to structural problems there would be a response. There usually is from the Hawks. Tonight, they got worse. WAY WORSE.
And tonight, another layer of simple laziness was added to the mix (or is it lethargy?). The same breakout bullshit we’ve seen all year was still present, with forwards doing a flash mob in the neutral zone instead of breaking in packs and being available for their d-men to easily find. The Hawks then added a simple refusal to get back and pressure the Ottawa forwards from behind, consistently subjecting their d-men to odd-man rushes and open ice. Even Toews was guilty, as he wasn’t exactly busting it back to help out with Spezza in the middle of the ice for what really was the killer third Sens’ goal.
Really: CSN
Needless to say this probably was a bit more expensive than my upcoming nuptials: PD
How the playoffs work: Montreal Gazette
Sticks: Score Canada
Hope Springs Eternal: CBC
Let the Era of the Dragon commence: Youtube
The anointed hype sponge: CSN
Migratory birds: Chicago Tribune
Toronto Trolls: Sportsnet
Time to step up: CSN
New Blood: Chicago Tribune
Not a new concept to us around these parts: The Score
As the kids say”Filthy” CBC
So this happened: Puckdaddy
It burns: Cheer the Anthem
Lackluster:HockeeNight
Lucky to Escape from Philly: SCH
That was clearly not how you felt at the time: TSN
Just cleaning up some stuff going around today.
-Brandon Saad won’t travel to Philly tomorrow, which makes one think it’s pretty unlikely he’ll play against St. Louis on Wednesday. Saad basically takes all the depth scoring with him, especially with both Kris Versteeg and Ben Smith now on the top six, at least at times. Though at some point Andrew Shaw will score without the aid of Jonathan Toews. Maybe.
–JenLC at the old site breaks down how the Hawks can fit in Teuvo Teravainen if they bring him over (I don’t even know why I’m including the “if” any more). Basically it involves sending Antti Raanta down, as he doesn’t have to clear waivers, and calling up Jason Labarbera. This one makes sense in a few ways. The Hawks have two back-to-backs in March, and it’s questionable whether Raanta would be trusted with a start in either. He also really should be playing, and being in Rockford’s playoff push couldn’t hurt. After the Boston-Ottawa trip next week it’s likely Crawford would go the rest of the way anyway, so you might as well have Jason Labarbera back up. There’s a back-to-back to end the season in DC and Nashville, but there’s a decent chance one or both of those games won’t matter (if the Colorado Regression shows up, and members of Colorado Regression).
Oh, and Eddie O was on The Score banging the Teuvo Drum in his continuing efforts to carry the company message, because what this kid needs is tons of pressure on him when he arrives in a strange country with strange teammates in the hardest competition he’s ever faced.
