Everything Else

Pushing Forward Back – Looking At Jonathan Toews’s Selke Candidacy

By Sam Fels 1216 0

Let’s take a break from analyzing the Hawks bear-mauling of Scum last night — though it is fun to revel in — and focus on some other news that broke this week. As you know by now, Toews is one of three finalists for the Selke Award, given to the best defensive forward (and actually, center, but more on that in a bit). The others are the excellent Patrice Bergeron and the finalist-until-three-days-after-he’s-dead, Pavel Datsyuk. This has been coming for years, as we were trumpeting him for the award as early as the ’08-’09 season.

This is such an odd award, much like the Norris has become or the Gold Glove award in baseball has been (which is why Darwin Barney’s win last year was really a surprise). Because the true defensive centers really get no attention. Jay McClement is one who does excellent work, but he doesn’t score a lot so there’s almost no chance he’ll be considered. Gregory Campbell is another. You get the idea. So in order to win a defensive award, you really do have to score to get noticed.

Everything Else

Pushing Forward Back – Looking At Jonathan Toews's Selke Candidacy

By 999 0

Let’s take a break from analyzing the Hawks bear-mauling of Scum last night — though it is fun to revel in — and focus on some other news that broke this week. As you know by now, Toews is one of three finalists for the Selke Award, given to the best defensive forward (and actually, center, but more on that in a bit). The others are the excellent Patrice Bergeron and the finalist-until-three-days-after-he’s-dead, Pavel Datsyuk. This has been coming for years, as we were trumpeting him for the award as early as the ’08-’09 season.

This is such an odd award, much like the Norris has become or the Gold Glove award in baseball has been (which is why Darwin Barney’s win last year was really a surprise). Because the true defensive centers really get no attention. Jay McClement is one who does excellent work, but he doesn’t score a lot so there’s almost no chance he’ll be considered. Gregory Campbell is another. You get the idea. So in order to win a defensive award, you really do have to score to get noticed.

Everything Else

Morning Links 5/15/13

By Joe DeTolve 1256 0

Regular Season Recap: Chicago Tribune

Verdi talked with Joel: Daily Herald

Uno Mas: Cheer The Anthem

The three guys that need to be shut down: Blackhawk Up

Ben Smith is ready: Comcast Chicago

Josh Harding will win (and should) but No Hossa love? Puckdaddy

Well…they still are Kings of the Mountain: TSN

My Sens got shitpumped by The Flightless Birds: Ottawa Citizen

Sheer Turmoil from the top down and I love it: Calgary Herald

Everything Else

Whichever Way The Wind Blows: Wild 1 – Hawks 5 (Hawks win series 4-1)

By Sam Fels 1280 0

Well, that’s that then. An underwhelming series came to what was pretty much an underwhelming end. Sure, it looks glossy to have an emphatic scoreline, but I find the most encouraging aspect of the whole thing to be Quenneville’s quote that he wasn’t too thrilled with the last two games and feels that that there’s a few levels the Hawks are going to have to reach before we pack up the cats for the summer.

And I have to agree.

The Hawks weren’t great tonight, just as they weren’t great in Game 4. They did enough, some players more so and some less. And though it’s easy to say that you only have to pull out enough to win to beat the Wild when you’re Milton Berle, I don’t think it’s so simple as to just turn it on when you feel the challenge is up to your standards.

Everything Else

Morning Links 5/9/13

By Joe DeTolve 1166 0

Must be relentless: Chicago Tribune

Building Block Win: CSN CHICAGO

I really wanna know how much that jet costs: Verdi

This is Insane: MNWILD

Easy to see the talent gap:Star Tribune

Round and Round: CSN CHICAGO

Two Playoff games in nine years appears to be all: CBC

Scum down to the wire as told to us by Larry Horse’s favorite writer: Det Free Press

Scum Jr. on the brink too: LaTimes (AP)

Oh well…..CBC

The Right Move: CTV

Its time for Handshakes at Home!!!!

Everything Else

Explode And Make Up: Hawks at Wild Game 4 Preview/Pregame Thread/Mud Ritual

By Sam Fels 1324 0

Hawk Wrestler  vs.  Zakk-Wylde-by-Ivan-Chopik

FACEOFF: 8:30pm Central
TV/RADIO: CSN, NBCSN, CBC for you hosers, WIND 560am
HOLLYWOOD DREAM TEENS, YESTERDAY’S TRASH QUEENS: Hockey Wilderness

Tonight for the first time we get to see how the Hawks bounce back from a loss in the playoffs. Whether it was tactics or effort or discipline, the Hawks get a chance to correct it tonight and for all intents and purposes end this series. Because it’s highly likely that if the Hawks take a 3-1 lead back to Fort Kickass on Madison on Thursday, that will be that.

Everything Else

Blushes All Around

By Sam Fels 1203 0

This didn’t quite feel like a “Grind My Gears, ” so much as a more general musing. I guess these are things I think I think.

-I find it hilarious that in a week where most everyone was lampooning Hawk Harrelson for his “TWTW” southern-fried bullshit, some people still think it’s perfectly acceptable to then turn around and say a team lost a hockey game due to effort and want. And without any sense of how paradoxical that may be. But then again, it gives me material.

Granted, hockey unlike baseball is a game that can be changed by a team trying harder and pressing, in either direction. You can’t grunt and grimace and sweat your way through an at-bat (unless you’re Kevin Youklis), but you can through a shift and make a difference. So I’ll admit that.

But that’s not really what yesterday boiled down to.