As this death march of a season mercifully draws ever closer, the Hawks find themselves out for one last swing through the West in order to play two completely meaningless games bookending a game that really only serves schadenfraude purposes.

Since the Ghosts of Sports Past is really all anyone has these days, we figured we’d lean into a little bit here and there, and we’re proud to bring you the game day issue leading up to that evening’s game. You’ll recall this one went to overtime, and somehow every Shark on the ice lost track of a 275 lb black man in the slot to end things. The game airs at 7:00PM central on NBC Sports Chicago, enjoy in good health.

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Game Time: 7:30PM CDT
TV/Radio: NBC Sports Chicago, WGN-AM 720
Trillions of Tech Dollars Won’t Solve Homelessness Because It Is Cruel: Fear The Fin
No, unfortunately the season isn’t already over after one game 8000 miles away a week ago. In fact, there are still another 80 of these to get through after tonight’s home opener against the visiting Sharks, which will kick off a seven game homestand, which might be the longest this team has had in over a decade. And fortunately for them, tonight’s opponent comes in as an abject mess.

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Game Time: 8:00PM CST
TV/Radio: NBC Sports Chicago, WGN-AM 720
Elon Musk Is A Sociopath: Fear The Fin
To the remaining 8 people who still held onto any kind of reasonable playoff aspirations for the Hawks, yesterday’s display should have disabused anyone of that notion with a defensive performance against one of the worst offenses in the league that one would have go lunge into oncoming traffic to call “embarrassing”. They’ll get to follow that up tonight in Northern California against one of the prohibitive favorites to come out of the West in the Sharks. Terrific.

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Game Time: 6:00 CST
TV/Radio: WGN Ch. 9, WGN-AM 720
Housing Crisis: Fear The Fin
As the Hawks continue on this absolutely brutal stretch of the schedule which as salted the earth on an already napalmed season, tonight they welcome a presently underachieving Sharks team to West Madison.

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Game Time: 9:00PM CST
TV/Radio: WGN Ch. 9 Local, NBCSN, WGN-AM 720
Naked In Front Of The Computer: Fear The Fin
Though only a week has passed since these two former Western Conference powers “clashed” at Club 1901, both will be looking slightly different having now gone through the trade deadline at opposite ends of the buyer/seller continuum.
Game Time: 9:30PM CST
TV/Radio: CSN, WGN-AM 720
The Ol’ Diamondback Sturgeon: Fear The Fin
Now that the All Star wank-fest weekend has concluded in L.A., the NHL resumes what can be construed as the beginning of the end of the 82 game road to nowhere- the month between the the break and the trade deadline. And the Hawks will begin this stretch in San Jose at the start of a six game road trip while looking to correct some mistakes made to some of the also-rans of the league last week.

At this point in this era of the Hawks, there are no statement games. Ownership on down has given an organizational mandate on the standard to which this team is to be held, and that’s silver and parades. That being said. with this being the third game in four nights after playing a back and forth affair in West East St. Louis last night, it could have been very easy for the Hawks to kind of pack it in tonight without their 2nd line center, but that didn’t happen.

While this installment had minimal technical difficulties, that’s more than can be said for the Hawks last night. And now that that’s behind everyone, Sam, Slak, and I look ahead to the annual (and possibly last) Black Wednesday tilt in San Jose against the Sharks with old friend Derek, formerly of Fear the Fin. Links after the jump.

And so now we move west, young men and women to the hellhole that is known as the Pacific Division. Once the place where Vancouver collected 100 points by merely having a pulse, the division has seen a bit of a makeover since realignment. The Kings, Ducks and Sharks have all taken turns setting the coast on fire while Canada weeps. Where does this year leave us? Follow the jump, suckas.