Everything Else

bruins country bear jamboroo vs AltLogo

Game Time: 7:00PM Central
TV/Radio: NBC, CBC (Anglo), RDS (Franco), WGN-AM 720
Subbacultcha: Cup of Chowder, Days of Y’Orr

For all of the mewling on both sides about the various issues surrounding both the Bruins and Blackhawks, today the series finds itself pretty much exactly where everyone thought it would be. And with the series being tied 2-2 after the Hawks regained home-ice advantage on Wednesday, tonight’s game 5 is critical in taking a grip on the series.

Everything Else

Just cleaning up some stuff from last night, whatever that was. Or maybe trying to sort out why I’m not dead yet. I should be. Maybe that’s waiting for the conclusion of this madness.

I’ve said all along this series that I will no longer doubt this team. That every time I felt the axe about to fall I would no longer accept that it was coming down upon them. Of course, I can’t actually follow my words, because after the Looney Tunes marathon of last night I once again felt the cold chill and was ready to embrace it. No way could they find the reserve to conjure up one more goal in OT with a ravenous Bruins team looking sure to score on the first clean look they got. And yet the Hawks just seem to have this We’re-Not-Fucking-Losing gear that they can bring out when they absolutely have to have it. While I hate comparisons to the 2010 team, and will even if they end up accomplishing the same thing, I will say this version’s balls are bigger because they don’t have as much talent to simply break teams over time. But no one’s told them that, and no one should.

I’ll learn too late. And that will probably be just fine with everyone if it keeps going the way it has when I lose the faith.

Everything Else

AltLogo at bruins country bear jamboroo

Game Time: 7:00PM Central
TV/Radio: NBCSN, CBC (Anglo), RDS (Franco), WGN-AM 720
Feed The Tree: Cup of Chowder, Days of Y’Orr

Dating back three years to the 2010 Final against Philadelphia, the Hawks have lost the first game away from the United Center in six straight series. Overall in that time frame, the Hawks have gone 7-10 on the road, and 3-4 this post season. And in order to win this series, the Hawks will now have to win at least one game on the road, with the first of potentially three games in Boston tonight.

Everything Else

AltLogo at centerpiece-king

Game Time: 8:00PM Central
TV/Radio: NBCSN, TSN (Anglo), RDS (Franco), The Loop 97.9 FM
All I Wanted Was A Pepsi: The Royal Half, Jewels From the Crown, Battle of Cali

And now the scene shifts westward with the Hawks taking a 2-0 series lead onto Figueroa Ave. Sunday’s Game 2 loomed large at the time, as the Kings have yet to lose on home ice this post season, and have won 14 straight at Staples. Based on that, this series is still far from over, as it could very well be tied heading into the weekend. Had the Kings taken one on United Center ice, this could very quickly have looked like an imminent 3-1 hole for the second straight series. But that, they say, is why they play the games.

Everything Else

Everyone is tired: LA Times/Chicago Tribune

Composure is key: Comcast

Western Conference Finals by the numbers: HockeeNight

A “Regular” Dog apparently is a good luck charm: PuckDaddy

A Tender subject: ESPN Chicago

Ready for more moments: Verdi

He is capable: Daily Herald

One day I will sit down and teach myself advanced metrics: Puck Prospectus

While his analysis has gotten better lest we forget his track record:The Hockey Writers

The two league system which must exist:Winnipeg Sun

Everything Else

Yeah, I know. The light out of the darkness is looking awfully faint, if it can be seen at all. There’s an overwhelming urge to start declaring who takes the fall, who doesn’t, what changes need to be made going forward, what went wrong, all that.

But really, this is not over. Maybe it feels like that to you, but the margins of this 3-1 deficit just aren’t all that large. To overturn it, a massive transformation doesn’t have to be engineered. In fact, a lot of the Hawks are doing already is all that needs to be done. It just can’t be interrupted.

Last night, aren’t we essentially talking about the difference in Leddy and Kindl taking the exact same shot from the same place, both hitting the inside of the post, one going in and one going out? That’s pretty much what separated teams last night.

You can’t win all three games tomorrow night. You can only win the one. So how do the Hawks go about doing that?