Blackhawks at Minnesota4-1 Loss Recap

"A Taste Of Collapse"

by Gatekeeper

The Blackhawks were in the former State of Hockey™, Tuesday night, to extend their road trip against the Wild. They were coming off back to back wins against two teams they should have beat in Calgary and Vancouver. Whatever the case, they were on a streak. Speaking of streaks, the Wild were attempting to sweep the Hawks in the season series, for the first time in franchise history. This would be a great time for the Hawks to go on a hot streak.


In other news, the Blackhawks and Wild honored Minnesota native and Chicago Cougars player Matt Olson with an auction and helmet stickers. A very nice and sentimental gesture by both organizations. On to all that sportsmanship, and shit.

The Blackhawks were stuck on stupid from the drop of the puck. They gave up a goal just two and a half minutes into the game, on the first Wild shot, no less. They followed the goal up with a dumb offensive zone penalty and then lost their top defender to an immensely stupid match penalty. Of course, they decided to finally take the game serious, for a moment, and tie the game, while shorthanded. This left them with one really good defender and four "other guys" for the remainder of the game. I guess we were all going to get to see just how thin their defensive corp was. Oh right, the shots were 8-5 in favor of Minny.

As one might expect, the second period opened up like the wild west. The Blackhawks took at least half the period to get their bearings, but actually settled down a bit towards the second half. By "settled down" I mean "played defend the castle". While they didn't give up many chances, they didn't generate many, either. The shots were 7-6 for the middle period which let to a WHOPPING total of 14-12 in favor of the Wild. Considering their defensive status, I cannot complain about this game plan, either. Hang in there as long as you can, and wait for a mistake. Lets just say they didn't hang in there long enough.

The Hawks "bend but don't break" defense didn't last long at all. The Wild took a 2-1 lead early, and then gave up the back breaker shortly after the half way point of the third period. They gave it an honest effort, but with a #2 defenseman and a bunch of #5s and #6s, they weren't going to get very far. Based on the circumstances this game could have gone down the road to shit town in a hurry. A 4-1 loss is about what I would have predicted, if you told me that both Keith and Seabrook would be out for a majority of a late season division road game.

The Good

• With Keith out of the game and the Hawks killing his 5 minute match penalty, El Capitan and the God of Thunder, Marian Hossa worked a beautiful 2-on-2 to tie the game shorthanded. Minnesota, those are two sets of enormous balls, feel them tickle your chin. That goal gave Hossa 499 for his career.
• Um, they didn't get slaughtered when they very well could have? I guess?

The Bad

• It only took the Wild one shot on net in two minutes and thirty seven seconds to take a lead. Jarret Stoll sniffed his way into the Hawks zone on a fairly harmless looking 2-on-1 but Scott Darling was off his angle and Stoll beat him stick side.
• In all the shenanigans, Andrew Shaw was on some revenge kick after the hit Matt Dumba put on Patrick Kane last meeting, so he spent the better part of the first 30 minutes chasing Dumba around. Shaw finally got him to scrap. The people in Carolina will love his grit, next season.
• Four minutes into the third period, Christian Ehrhoff got caught very deep in the Wild zone, leaving Hjalmarsson and Teravainen to cover for him. Mikko Koivu led the rush and caught a streaking Jared Spurgeon in behind a slowly recovering Teravainen. Spurgeon was in all alone on Darling and beat him to the stick side for a 2-1 lead.
• Trevor van Riemsdyk led the Hawks in ice time and team high 11 defensive zone starts. That's not good for anyone.
• There were 37 TOTAL shots in this game. Neither team managed more than 19.
  

The Ugly

• With Brent Seabrook sitting out, Duncan Keith took exception to being knocked on his ass by almost taking Charlie Coyle's head off with his stick. It was a pretty ugly play that Keith thought he would get away with, by trying to argue the old, "I slipped and fell". Any sane person could not argue with the call because it was clear in the replay that he was carelessly whipping his stick around like a machete. You can bet the Department of Player Safety will be weighing in on this one. Keith might get a rest for the remainder of the regular season for this bonehead play.
• Christian Ehrhoff didn't do himself any favors in the eye of the almighty Lineblender by taking a really lazy icing after Darling bailed out the defense with a pretty blocker save on a rare early second period 2-0. A questionable Ehrhoff pinch early in third period helped lead to the Wild go ahead goal. Based on Quenneville's past, unless Keith sits the remaining games with a suspension Ehrhoff might not see the ice again. Hell, even if Keith does sit, Ehrhoff might not see anything but the shrimp cocktail in the press box.
• With just under 9 minutes remaining in the game, the Wild took a commanding 3-1 lead. The only really solid remaining defender the Hawks had left, Nik Hjalmarsson, was running on fumes while getting double shifted. Nino Niederreiter beat Hjalmarsson up the half boards, and chipped a pass to a streaking Eric Huala. Huala beat Darling and, for all intents and purposes, put the game out of reach.
• To show you what a silly and subjective stat hits are, Patrick Kane led the Hawks with 3. LED THE TEAM!
• Hawks centers were completely pistol whipped at the dots, winning only 14 of 43 or 33%.

The #Fatrick Stankus Fatsy Stats

• The Blackhawks team overall corsi was 57%, which is really good. Another time when the eye test and the stats don't really match.
• Michal Rozsival should have tire tracks up and down his back with his team low -4 corsi and -7 fenwick.

The Lineblender
Ladd - Toews - Hossa
Panarin - Teravainen - Kane
Fleischmann - Rasmussen - Panik
Desjardins - Kruger - Shaw

Keith - Hjalmarsson
Ehrhoff - van Riemsdyk
Svedberg - Rozsival

Blackhawks at Vancouver3-2 Win Recap

"From Canada With Love"

by AtomicFroster

The Chicago Blackhawks take to the ice for the second night in a row as they finish off a back to back in my home province of British Columbia and play the struggling Vancouver Canucks. Darling gets the nod and will play two games in two days, a rare thing for a NHL goalie, but really what do they do anyway other than let pucks hit them? Right Gatekeeper?! The two teams are headed in opposite directions as the Canucks have scored only three goals in their last six games and the Hawks netted four just last night in Cow Town. 

The first period starts with the Hawks lineup looking a little different than of late, Kruger rejoining the team last night, Rasmussen in for the first time in nine games, and Anisimov out with a case of lower body general soreness; he is listed day-to-day so Teuvo will take his spot up on the second line. Some would want you to believe that he's a healthy scratch and in Q's doghouse but I don't believe the hype. Also the third D pairing is featuring Ehrhoff rather than Uncle Rosival. The frame would be a rather boring one if not for a late period goal by Fleischmann set up by TVR and Ehrhoff. The Hawks did have the better of the chances and almost doubled up the Nucks on shots. 

Shots: Blackhawks- 13  Canucks- 7

The second starts with Henrik Sedin taking a tripping penalty and sending the Hawks on the PP. Can the Hawks break their horrid streak of power plays? No-- the Hawks don't score and are now 0-23 at this point. Eleven and a half minutes in, the Canucks put a point on the board via an Alex Burrows one timer wrist shot set up by Linden Vey from behind the net. The goal seemed to wake up both sides and the pace for the rest the period was quickened with the Canucks controlling the majority of the chances. Hawks fend off the push and exit the period all tied at one.

Shots: Blackhawks- 9  Canucks- 6

The final frame starts with the same pacing as the second ended but this time with the Blackhawks controlling most of the play. It's too bad you can't score a third hand assist: Panarin with a great heads up play slap passes the puck from his own zone to a streaking Kane but the pass is to hot for Kane to handle. He takes it behind the net, passes to TVR who one touches it to Teravainen, who then buries it in the open net. Toews takes a 4 minute rest in the box for a highstick and the PKers along with Darling come up large, killing the penalty. Unfortunately, the Canucks do end up evening up the score at two with a Baertschi goal the was generated from Panarin over handling the puck in the offensive zone. Luckily the tie was short lived as Toews sets up a Ladd slap slapshot putting the Hawks over the Canucks 3-2.  *sidenote the Canucks pulled the goalie with only couple minutes left as to not upset Gatekeeper.

Shots: Blackhawks-10  Canucks-15 

Total Shots: Blackhawks-32  Canucks-28 

THE GOOD

• Winning the second game of a back to back which has been next to impossible for the Hawks this year;
• TVR's play tonight was exactly what we are looking for from the young D man;
• Darling getting two wins in two days this close to the playoffs is great, it will give him the confidence he needs;
• All lines looked be able to handle them selves on the ice unlike the weeks past where maybe one would show up; and
• I, @atomicfroster got my first win making my recap stats 1-2-2;
• Blackhawks clinch a playoff spot for the eighth straight year.

THE BAD

• While I liked Panarin's pass to set up a Teuvo's goal I was not impressed but his turnover that lead to a Baertschi goal; and
• I'll go easy on them tonight and leave it at that (even though it should not be this close with the worse team in the league). 

THE UGLY

• News came that Crawford may not play again during the regular season, being thrown into the fire come playoffs is a less than desirable situation;
• Anisimov, is he hurt? is he scratched? Calling him day-to-day rather than scratching him is a easy was to avoid the media storm that could have ensued; and
• Letting @atomicfroster beat you! 

Ladd - Toews - Hossa

Panarin - Teravainen - Kane 

Fleischmann - Rasmussen - Weise

Desjardins - Kruger - Shaw 

Keith - Hjalmarsson 

Svedberg - Seabrook 

Ehrhoff - van Riemsdyk 

Blackhawks at Flames4-1 Win Recap

"Rejoice And Give Thanks"

by Patrick Stankus

I'm so sorry to start the recap on such a sad note. Tonight, was supposed to be a surprise with a recap by @UncleRozsival, but since he bailed like Ryan Kesler when it comes to fighting Jonathan Toews, you are all stuck with a #FatCap tonight. I'm sorry, I tried folks. While our beat writers were tweeting about the Saddledome catwalk, I was working the phone tirelessly trying to get a hold of our favorite diabetic guest.

Tonight saw the Blackhawks open a crucial four game road trip that begins with a tough back to back in Calgary and Sunday in Vancouver. Returning to the Hawks line up for the first time in 2016 was the true #16, but now #22 in your programs, Marcus Kruger. Oh how I have waited for this day to come. Stop kidding yourselves. You damn well know you have to with the way things have gone for the Hawks of late. Should I mention to that Scott Darling was getting the start for the Hawks? Frankly who cares about that. All we care about is, MARCUS KRUGER IS BACK!!!

Once the puck dropped it was clear the Hawks had seen the Central Division standings. The Hawks came out with a sense of urgency, and energy, something they have lacked of late. Early on, both teams traded shots, with few quality chances. That would change in the middle part of the period, as the Hawks dominated play, but Joni Ortio made a couple of terrific saves to keep the Hawks off the board. In the final minutes of the period, the Hawks seemed to take their foot off the gas, and it nearly bit them. Luckily for a change, Scott Darling made the saves he's supposed to make, and a couple of really good saves to keep the game scoreless after 20 minutes.

Early in the second period the Flames would pick up right where they left off in the first period. The Flames had multiple chances, but each time Darling was there to make the save. Just past the five minute mark, Andrew Ladd opened the scoring off a brutal turnover by T.J. Brodie to give the Hawks the lead. The lead didn't last long, as seven minutes later, Dougie Hamilton tied the game at one. The later stages of the period saw the game get a bit chippy with six penalties called in the final ten minutes of the period. In the final minute, Andrew Shaw put the Hawks back on top with a redirect from a Michal Rozsival shot, to give the Hawks a 2-1 lead after two periods.

The third period saw both teams rack up double digit shot totals, despite there only being one power play in the period. The Hawks were the team that had the opportunity on the power play, but nothing came of it. As time wound down, both teams would trade one and done chances, but none that really stood out as a prime scoring chance. In the final minutes, Calgary would pull Joni Ortio for the extra attacker. The Hawks added two empty netters from Ladd, and Teravainen to seal a 4-1 win on the start of the four game road trip. Up next is a stop to @atomicfroster 's land in Vancouver for an Easter match up with the Canucks.


The Good

• As mentioned earlier, Marcus Kruger returned to the Hawks line up. If you had listened to Brian Hedger from the start, you would have never thought you'd see this day this season. Thanks for being 100% wrong Mr. Hedger.
• Scott Darling was solid in net for the Hawks. He made some big saves when the Flames had a lot of momentum towards the end of the first period, and while the Hawks were parading to the penalty box in the second. In the end Darling made 31 saves. Lets see how he does in the back to back if he indeed gets the start in Vancouver.
• 2/3rds of the fourth line, and Andrew Ladd deserve a lot of credit for the go ahead go in the second period. Hard work down low by Shaw, Kruger, and Ladd saw them cycle the puck back to the point, where Rozsival put a shot on net, with traffic in front. The stunning result? The puck was in the back of the net.
• Kruger returns, and the Hawks PK kills off both of the Flames power plays. Lets hope this trend continues.
• The Hawks lost the face off battle 28-26, but based on how bad they've been at the dot of late, I'll take this.
• Andrew Ladd had himself a nice little three point night, with two goals, and an assist. Hey this is the guy the Hawks were supposed to get from Winnipeg right?
• Okay the tons of mentions of Kruger returning is part of the joke, but come on and admit it. The fourth line was outstanding tonight.

The Bad

• Artemi Panarin was caught napping on the Flames lone goal. Panarin completely lost his check in Dougie Hamilton, and allowed Hamilton beat him to the slot and to chip a loose puck past Darling.
• Noted Hawks enforcer Jonathan Toews decided to go after Dougie Hamilton, after Hamilton lit up Seabrook with a hit. I didn't have any problem with the hit. I'm guessing Toews wanted to show former teammate Brandon Bollig how to be an enforcer?
• A #FatCap wouldn't be complete with a bad Andrew Shaw penalty. This time it was an offensive zone slash because he was mad he got knocked down. I'm not going to miss these penalties.
• The feast or famine power play was a famine tonight. They were 0 for 2 in their chances.

The Ugly

• What the fuck is up with Calgary's third jersey? Its a complete disaster. What the hell was wrong with this jersey being your alternate from a few years ago?
  
• Speaking of disasters, when is Calgary going to find a starting goalie? My apologies, but Joni Ortio?? What is this, pick a random ass guy from Finland and see if he's the next Miikka Kiprusoff. Not to mention seeing a goalie in Calgary wearing #37 made me wonder if I was seeing Trevor Kidd in net again. How'd that 1990 draft go for you guys? (Do yourself a favor and look that up if you don't know what I'm referencing)
• What the hell was T.J. Brodie thinking with a cross ice pass while skating backwards?? Christ almighty that was a brutal turnover. Thankfully Ladd made Brodie pay for that mistake.
• Artem Anisimov was 25% at the dot tonight. Let us all say it together, WOOF.

Puckin Hostile ShoutcastEpisode 53

In this 53rd Puckin Hostile Shoutcast, the Manshitter Episode, the 4 Horsemen catch up after a long two week period for both the crew and the Blackhawks.

The group discuss the following:

-#OlsonStrong campaign launched between MIN/CHI
-New iTunes reviews
-A cameo by Gate's son
-The Puckin Hostile Store / Fan Pics
-Our first parody twitter account
-"Puckin Hostile Invades Lumbus" trip looms
-A laundry list of suspensions and injuries
-#SvedGroot extension
-The Garret Ross conundrum
-The #HarmsHole strikes again
-Hawks frustratingly sucking
-Games vs the Blues, Kings, Flyers, Jets Wild and two against the Stars.
-And of course, as always, an abundance of inappropriate references and jokes in incredibly bad taste.

You can find the episode on iTunes by following this link: iTunes

Puckin Hostile Shoutcast - Episode 53 MP3 Direct Download
You can listen below on the Talkshoe player:


Get the Shoutcast on Soundcloud here:



Also, Please check out and share the Puckin Hostile Stanley Cup Highlight video:

Music by "The Bloodline"


For all your custom jersey needs visit Black and Tan Sports at: http://www.facebook.com/BlackAndTanSports

Blackhawks vs Stars6-2 Loss Recap

"LOSING GROUND"

by Gatekeeper

After almost a two week hiatus from recapping the big dog was back in the house for this latest March "embarrassing losses don't count" game. The Blackhawks were coming in after losing a lacklustre game, in a shootout to the Wild, Sunday. Many people among the intarwebz want to brush off this late season struggle, but it should be concerning that they have not yet found their chemistry with 10 games remaining. Sure, panic is not the answer, but being thoroughly concerned is not over reacting, by any means. The Hawks opened up with the forward line the way most of us would prefer, so there wasn't much to complain about there. I, myself, would have rather seen more Christian Ehrhoff, but it has become evident that Quenneville doesn't like Ehrhoff as much as most of us do. He didn't like Vermette last year, either, but look how that ended up. Moving on to the dog days of...

spring???

The first period was a god damn pitiful abortion. There is simply no other way to put it. They played the first half of the period pretty well, but the second half of the period was barely squirt worthy. The Stars scored 4 goals in about 7 minutes, to chase the Blackhawks goaltender to the bench. The Blackhawks were no only out scored by a large margin, but they were out shot 15-9. The worst part of this was going to be the fact that I had 40 more minutes of uninspired hockey to endure.

The second period was certainly better than the first, but it's not like it could have been any worse, though, right? I honestly lost interest in this piss poor effort. The shots were actually tied at 10-10 and both teams scores goals. This effort still wasn't going to earn back any favor from this guy. A dark cornfield in Oklahoma City sounded more exciting at this point.

Everyone was just waiting this one out, in the third period, including the Blackhawks coach. He gave the Stars a free empty net goal, which should have told everyone that he had given up. Or we can all just stick out heads in the sand wearing our #3CUPZ tinfoil hats. The Blackhawks actually out shot the Stars 13-8 and had a goal, themselves. Didn't really matter at this point.

Shoutcast tomorrow...

The Good

• With just over 3 minutes remaining in the second period, the Blackhawks finally did something worth commending. Andrew Shaw won a faceoff deep in the stars zone and then was able to bunt a fat, belly high Andrew Desjardins deflection into the net for the one bright spot.
• Richard Panik scored the second Blackhawks goal of the game about midway through the third period. He found himself on the Stars back door and was able to hang on long enough to stuff the puck past Lehtonen's right foot like #Fatrick through a turnstyle.
• Nothing. Nothing more. They should be embarrassed.

The Bad

• The first really good Blackhawks chance was at the four minute mark of the second period, where Lehtonen made rapid fire saves on Marian Hossa, Andrew Shaw and finally Andrew Desjardins. They followed that up with a very disciplined Too Many Men penalty. Aces.
• Radek Faksa scored the Stars 5th goal of the game late in the second, over Michael Leighton's shoulder. LUKE, I AM YOUR FAKSA!
  
• When Richard Panik and Andrew Shaw are your best players for two consecutive games, you're fucked.
• To my friend, and big Stars fan, Selina:
  

The Ugly

• The Stars took a 1-0 on a terrible fucking goal. The Teravainen line lost a deep faceoff on the Hawks zone and the Van Rozsival duo couldn't control the puck behind the net. Colton Sceviour picked up the puck and tried to, badly, wrap the puck around. Luckily for him the puck banked it off the shaft of Darling's stick into the net. Terrible, and it doesn't get better from there.
• The very next shift, Sceviour also got himself an assist from behind the net. The Blackhawks were running around like a bunch of mental patients on speed in their own zone and Erik Gustafsson completely lost Vernon Fiddler in the Hawks left corner. Sceviour found the puck on his stick, saw Fiddler straddling the goal line and hit him with a pass. Fiddler had the whole net to shoot at, with Darling looking over his right shoulder and the puck on the left side. 2-0 Stars.
• Next it was the 24th ranked PK's turn to suck. A Jonathan Toews penalty turned into a Patrick Eaves powerplay goal, as they left Eaves wide open in the slot to one time a laser over Darling's right shoulder. The Blackhawks...
  
  eh you get the idea.
• Just to make sure we all vomited up our Hot Pockets, the Blackhawks completed the total fucking meltdown by giving up their 4th first period goal, for good measure. This time it was of the shorthanded variety. It must be pointed out that Patrick Kane's effort after mishandling the pass a the Stars blue line was atrocious. It was literally not possible to give any less fucks than he did on that play. Following the first period, Scott Darling was sent to spend the rest of the game on the bench in favor of Michael Leighton.
• Quenneville pulled the goalie with six and a half minutes left in the third. Would you like to guess what happened? Yeah, empty netter. CUT THAT STUPID SHIT OUT! Patrick Roy should be immediately impeached from the Hall-Of-Fame for starting this asinine trend. The Blackhawks powerplay has been RANCID DOGSHIT the last several games. What makes you think they could suddenly pull it off with another body out there in the way? Roy and Q, I have a couple of these for you:
  
• I'm sick and fucking tired of all this, "They'll just flip the switch like they always do". There are no less than NINE different players on this team. This is NOT the same team as the 2010, 2013 OR 2015 team. Expecting them to suddenly recapture the glory that half of them never had is naive. They are not playing well at all, and they have shown little chemistry. When they DO show chemistry, Quenneville splits them up. Not only that, but the efforts are getting worse. As the great DITKA once said, "Those who live in the past are cowards and losers". It's time we start living in the present and being concerned.

The #Fatrick Stankus Fatsy Stats

• When fancy stats go bad. The Blackhawks overall corsi was actually obnoxiously good at 61%. Every player but Duncan Keith and Tomas Fleischmann was + Corsi
• If this entire game wasn't bad enough, the idiots at CSN Chicago broadcast that meatball asshole Montana Brenan all over my TV. The ultimate "fuck you" to all Hawks fans.
  

The Lineblender
Ladd - Toews - Hossa
Panarin - Anisimov - Kane
Weise - Teravainen - Fleischmann
Desjardins - Shaw - Panik

Keith - Hjalmarsson
Gustafsson - Seabrook
Rozsival - van Riemsdyk

Blackhawks vs. Wild3-2 Shootout Loss Recap

" #OlsonStrong "

by Patrick Stankus

On Sunday night, the Blackhawks returned home to The UC after their one game road trip, to take on the Minnesota Wild. Before the game started, the Hawks and Wild announced they were teaming up to help support injured Chicago Cougars player Matt Olson with an auction to raise some money for Matt's medical bills. Things like this just show how tight the hockey community is, and I speak for all of us at Puckin' Hostile when I say, we're pulling for you Matt.

Getting the nod in goal for the third straight game for the Hawks was none other than #LemontNativeScottDarling. Tonight also marked the first time the two teams have played each other since Minnesota destroyed the Hawks in the Stadium Series game one month ago.

The first period got underway with the Hawks having a huge opportunity to put the Wild down early. The Hawks received a four minute power play, but nothing came of it and the game remained scoreless. Throughout the period, both teams traded one and done shots that resulted in somewhat of a boring opening period. As the teams headed off after 20 minutes, the game remained scoreless.

In the second period, the Wild wasted little time in getting on the scoreboard. Erik Haula opened the scoring 50 seconds in to give the Wild a 1-0 lead. The Wild added to that lead about six minutes later to give themselves a 2-0 lead. The Hawks wouldn't go quietly though. Andrew Shaw and #DickPanik scored less than five minutes apart to tie the game at two. When the period came to an end both teams would end the period with ten shots each and the score tied at two.

When the puck dropped on the third period, the ice was tilted in favor of the Wild. They simply dominated play, but Scott Daring was there to bail the Hawks out. The Wild ended the period with 16 shots, six of which that came on their one power play chance. Early in the period, the Hawks and their fans were given a scare when Matt Dumba lit up Patrick Kane with a huge hit. Kane left the game briefly, but ultimately did return. In the end 60 minute of hockey wasn't enough, and the game headed to overtime.

The overtime was completely boring. The Wild received a power play after Artem Anisimov ran over Devan Dubnyk with a little help from Zach Parise. The Hawks penalty kill answered the bell, and the kept the Wild from scoring and the game headed to a shootout. In the shootout, Charlie Coyle scored the lone goal, and the Wild went on to win by the final of 3-2.



The Good

• Despite the loss, Scott Darling was solid in net. He made a few big stops, and was peppered with 34 shots, 16 of which came in the third period.
• Another Hawk that stood out tonight was Andrew Shaw. Shaw was all over the place tonight, making his presence felt. He also opened the scoring for the Hawks, and turned the momentum in their favor.
• #DickPanik showed once again why he should be playing instead of The Manshitter. Hopefully for everyone's sake, Q was paying attention. Panik had a great wraparound goal, after some hard work by Desjardins and Shaw on the shift.
• The PK seems to be turning it around, tonight they killed all three Minnesota power plays. Oh, and they'll be getting some help, since Kruger will be joining the Hawks on their Western Canada road trip later in the week, regardless of what Brian Hedger says.
• Stick taps to the Wild and Blackhawks for coming together and raising money for Matt Olson.

The Bad

• The Hawks had a chance to put the Wild in an early hole, after Zach Parise put his team shorthanded for four minutes. The Hawks did nothing with the opportunity, nor generated anything that was noteworthy.
• The Hawks continued to struggle at the dot. Tonight the Wild won the battle 40-33, and Teravainen was a team worst 20%.
• That 3 on 3 overtime was beyond boring. I think its time the honeymoon ends with that gimmick.

The Ugly

• Patrick Kane got destroyed by Matt Dumba in the 3rd period and briefly left the game. I'm sorry, but I'm aware Dumba made contact with Kane's head, but Kane has to do a better job of A) not skating with his head down, and B) putting himself in a vulnerable position like that. You can't expect Dumba to pull up at the last second just because a player has their head down. Luckily for the Hawks, Kane did return, and didn't look like he missed a step.
• Speaking of the hit on Kane, Panarin decided to go after Dumba following the hit. I wouldn't have a problem with this if it had been a dirty hit, but since Kane had his head down, its a different story. Not to mention the Hawk yielded six shots to the Wild on that power play.
• The goalie interference calls are getting out of hand. In overtime, Anisimov was tagged for it, as he ran over Dubnyk, after he was checked by Parise. When a former goalie calling the game (Brian Boucher) questions the call, the NHL should listen.
• Brent Seabrook's struggles continued tonight. In the first period he coughed up a puck at the blueline that lead to a breakaway for Jason Zucker. Thankfully for the Hawks, Zucker rushed the shot, probably because he felt the ghost of Rozsival behind him, and Darling was able to bail Seabrook out. Or is it "Slow-brook" as @UncleRozsival said?
• While everyone will blame their usual scapegoats of TVR and Rozsival for Haula's goal, I think you should look at the replay, and pay attention to Artem Anisimov. Anisimov did a fly by and left Haula wide open in the slot. That falls on 15, not 32 or 57. But hey, its easier to just blame TVR and Rozsival when you look at a stat sheet instead of watching the game.
• I'm still trying to figure out what Keith and Hjalmarsson were doing on the Wild's second goal.
• The 7:30pm, or 7:45pm tv start didn't bother me, but NBCSN has to start allotting the time of a hockey game to 3 hours again, like ESPN did in the day. Because of this, they missed the start of the game. Bravo.

Blackhawks at Jets4-0 Shutout Win Recap

"Get Me Outta Here"

by Patrick Stankus

The Blackhawks traveled north of the border on Friday to take on Andrew Ladd's former team, the Winnipeg Jets. With the Hawks struggling through some tough times of late, a trip to Winnipeg could be just what the doctor ordered. Missing from the Hawks on the quick one game trip was goalie Corey Crawford, who was out with an upper body injury. That meant #LemontNativeScottDarling would get the call tonight, who throughout the entire season has dealt with his own struggles in net.

The game got underway with both teams trading chances back and forth, but nothing really stood out as a highlight. Actually the entire first period would turn out to be quite a bore, despite both teams racking up double digit shot totals. The Jets received the game's first power play, midway through the frame, but couldn't solve Darling. As for the Hawks, they'd end the first 20 minutes with 13 shots, but nothing to show for it when the horn sounded.

As the second period got underway, the Hawks had a chance to build momentum with an early power play. Unfortunately for them, they couldn't capitalize on the opportunity and the game remained scoreless. Midway through the period, the Hawks got a little sloppy with their play, and took two penalties. Luckily for the Hawks, the penalty kill game through and kept the Jets off the board. In the final five minutes of the period, the Hawks offense came to life. Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa scored goals 26 seconds apart to give the Hawks a 2-0 lead after two periods.

When the Hawks returned to the ice for the third period, the offense picked up right where it left off. Andrew Ladd opened the scoring just over three minutes into the period to make it a 3-0 game. Just under two minutes later, Tomas Fleischmann wanted in on the scoring and increased the Hawks lead to 4-0. Scott Darling and the penalty kill took over for the rest of the period, and preserved the lead, that eventually turned into a 4-0 win for the Hawks.

The Good

• Credit where credit is due. Scott Darling was awesome tonight. He made 28 saves, and none better than his second period diving save on Drew Stafford. Hopefully this shutout can give Darling some confidence going forward, something he's been lacking big time this year.
• Andrew Ladd received a video tribute and a standing ovation from the Winnipeg crowd. A nice gesture by the fans and the Jets. Of course Ladd decided to rub it in that he'll be playing in the playoffs by scoring in the third period.
• THE PENALTY KILL HAD A PERFECT NIGHT!! They killed off all four power plays of the Jets. PRAISE THE LORD. One game at a time though. Its baby steps in the right direction.
• The Hawks won the face off battle 31-25. For a team that's been getting creamed at the dot of late, I'll take it.
• Granted the Jets are a bad team, it still says something that the Hawks defense was able to clamp down and hold the Jets to under 30 shots.
• Patrick Kane was the only Hawk to have a multi point night with a goal and an assist. 88 continues his path to a Hart Trophy finalist.
• Brandon Mashinter did not play. - not a typo

The Bad

• The Hawks tried to piss the game away by handing the Jets four power plays.
• This is just for Gate, since he's a miserable human being. The Jets outhit the Hawks 21-15.

The Ugly

• If you want to start a goalie controversy after one win, get the hell away and pick another team to root for. I'm having none of that bat shit fucking crazy talk.

Blackhawks vs Flyers3-2 Loss Guest Recap

"SHAYNE! COME BACK SHAYNE!"

by guest recapper @ChiSox_History


Our men of the Indian Head dress came into Wednesday night’s contest against the Philadelphia Flyers losing their last three. An unofficial poll of a small number(1) of Blackhawks fans (me), was excited about the Chicago debut of Flyers rookie sensation, and rising Calder candidate Shayne Gostisbehere. The Union college alum and NCAA champion has been the talk of the NHL since his arrival in Philly.

After a long afternoon of looking for the Flyers hotel, your writer decided to head over to the United Center and cheer on the Ghost Bear, er I mean Black Hawks. The United Center was abuzz with the looming Calder Trophy showdown between Gostisbehre and our very own Breadman, Artemi Panarin.

Despite several (unsuccessful) attempts to enter the Flyers dressing room prior to puck drop, I decided to take my seat and enjoy the game. Early in the game, Jonathan Toews hooked the Ghost Bear and put the Hawks on the PK early in the game. As luck would have it, Hossa scored on a short handed goal after taking advantage of Gostisbehre’s broken stick and had a break away to put the Hawks up 1-0. Anisimov and Hjalmarsson tallied assists on the goal. Clearly a bittersweet moment for those of us (me), rooting for Ghost.

The lead was short lived, however, when Ryan White scored on the power play after the Breadman climbed on Brandon Manning’s back and got called for interference. Overall, the Hawks sloppy play in the First lead to 2 penalties and several missed scoring opportunities after taking a 1-0 lead. The Hawks went into the locker room tied at one, although they were not without their chances. Toews had a wide open net with Neuvirth diving across the net but hit the post.

The second saw the Flyers out shoot the Hawks 17-10. Both teams tallied a goal. The Captain scored at the 4:58 mark when he found the puck at the doorstep and roofed it over Neuvirth’s glove. Kane got the assist to put him at 90 points, and almost a sure lock for the Art Ross trophy. Again, the hawks could not extend the lead and let the Flyers sneak back into this one when Wayne Simmons took advantage of a hawks turnover in the Philly end, and eventually found Giroux for a rush into the Hawks zone where he fed a trailing Brayden Schenn who then beat our very own Lemont Native.
Sadly enough, this game ended as a result of a bad bounce. Caveman Radko Dudas took a shot from the right point which redirected after hitting defenseman Christian Ehrhoff’s stick and bouncing over Darling’s glove and giving the Flyers the eventual game winning goal.

The Flyers were able to survive a late period rush from hawks when they pulled Darling for the 6th attacker. After passing up several prime opportunities, Neuvirth fought offer a handful of shots to close the door and give the Flyers the victory. In the end, Gostisbehere finished with 20:25 minutes of ice team, 3 shots and a minus 1, for this broken stick fiasco in the 1st. With his rookie campaign almost over, great things are ahead for the speedy and lanky defenseman from Florida.

The Hawks dropped yet another game in March. According to the interwebs, these games don’t count so there’s nothing to worry about. The contrary view is that the Hawks 5v5 play this year has not been as good as years past, and the only thing keeping them alive is stellar goalie play and an above average powerplay. Without a massively outperforming defenseman, there is concern about an early playoff exit. This core is battle tested, close knit, and at times, well coached. It’s not over until its over, if you allow me to mix sports metaphors.

The Lineblender
Fleischmann - Toews - Kane
Panarin - Anisimov - Hossa
Ladd - Teravainen - Shaw
Mashinter - Desjardins - Weise

Keith - Hjalmarsson
Ehrhoff - Seabrook
van Riemsdyk - Rozsival

Blackhawks vs. Kings 5-0Shutout Loss Recap

"The Blob Returns"


by Patrick Stankus

The Blackhawks returned home on Monday night following a brief two game "mom's road trip" to take on the team they alternate Stanley Cups with, the Los Angeles Kings. Tonight's game also marked the return of former Blackhawk heroes #BlobSuckderi and Kris Versteeg. I for one cannot wait for the tribute videos during the first tv timeout. With a national audience watching, one has to wonder if this is a preview of what the national audience will be watching again in late May when its Western Conference Final time.

Once the puck dropped, it looked like the Hawks might have some good fortune on their side. A minute into the game, they were rewarded with a power play, which actually looked good, but couldn't manage to get the game's opening goal. After that it was all downhill in the first period. The Kings managed to score two goals in 18 seconds to take a 2-0 lead, less than four minutes into the game. As the period wound down, the Hawks would get a couple of decent chances, but couldn't beat Jonathan Quick, and found themselves down two after 20 minutes.

The second period saw the Hawks come out with a little more energy to open the middle frame. Much like the first period though, that energy would wane and it was back to the "lacklustre" hockey we've seen all too much of late. With just under five minutes remaining it the period, Vincent Lecavalier put the Kings on top 3-0, capitalizing on a wide open net. The Hawks had a chance late in the period to gain some momentum by way of a power play, but they couldn't do anything with it. After 40 minutes the Hawks trailed the Kings 3-0.

With little motivation, the Hawks came out for the third period and basically played similar to the to third period in Dallas. Hurry up, and get the fucking game over. The Hawks would receive two power plays in the period, but never mounted anything that resembled a threat. The Kings on the other hand took advantage of the pathetic effort put forth by the Hawks, and added two more goals in the third to hand the Hawks an embarrassing 5-0 defeat on home ice.


The Good

• Tonight's game was a local blackout on NBCSN, which meant we were spared having to hear Pierre McGuire twice in three days. Praise the Lord!!!
• Sadly the highlight of the second period for the Hawks was a Michal Rozsival hit on Kyle Clifford. Seriously, that's how bad it was.

The Bad

• Kris Versteeg had a goal and an assist in his return to Chicago. Of course he would.
• The Hawks weren't manhandled at the faceoff dot, but the Kings did have the advantage 38-30. Unfortunately lost faceoffs would prove to be costly.
• Corey Crawford had an off night. Not all the goals were on him, but his positioning was off all night, and was a factor in at least two of the Kings goals.
• I'm all ears to hear why Q believes Mashinter should be playing ahead of Rasmussen. Or even #DickPanik for that matter.
• Andrew Ladd lead the Hawks in the +/- department tonight with a glaring -3. WOOF.

The Ugly

• We beat home the importance of winning defensive zone draws, and that was on full display on the Kings first goal. Teravainen lost the draw the Kings held possession, then a clusterfuck in front the net ensued, and of course it would be Kris Versteeg who would hammer home the loose puck.
• I'm still trying to figure out what the hell Brent Seabrook was doing on Lucic's goal. Seabrook got caught wandering into the middle of the ice and allowed Lucic all the time and space he wanted to fire a shot past Crawford. Crawford didn't help matters by being deep in his crease, but I'll give Lucic credit for a perfectly placed shot.
• Enough with these goalie interference challenges. Tonight the Hawks challenged the Kings third goal, after Tanner Pearson, or TVR's stick barely, if at all made contact with Corey Crawford. Rightfully so, it took the officials 15 seconds to determine this was one of the worst challenges in the history of hockey, and the Kings goal stood.
• The Hawks had 32 shots on net. If you can find one where you actually thought they had a legit chance at scoring, I'd love to hear it. This had to be Jonathan Quick's easiest 30+ save shutout.
• Anytime you have nine, (in Edzo voice) "count'em nine" turnovers, its pretty clear you have no control of the puck whatsoever.
• Do yourself a favor and watch Duncan Keith's not so fancy footwork on Dustin Brown's goal. Sorry Duncan, but you're not line dancing.
• TVR and struggle. That's a gross combo of late.
• I've saved the best for last (about the Hawks.) That once mighty power play was 0 for 6 tonight. That is not a typo. Much like the shots, name one power play that had sustained pressure. Exactly. None of them did.
• The only logical reason for this Hawks slump is @atomicfroster and I being at the helm of recent recaps. Raise your hands if you want Gate to return.

Blackhawks at Stars5-2 Loss Recap

"We Are The Champions...Of The Regular Season"

by Patrick Stankus

The Blackhawks continued their "Mom's Trip" on Friday night with a trip to Dallas to take on the Stars. For the Hawks, tonight marked the return of Marian Hossa to the lineup for the first time since being injured on February 13. In addition to Hossa's return, I also returned to the recapping world for the first time in the month of March. Oh and did I mention it was our own, "Goalie-saurus Rex's" (Gatekeeper if you've been living under a paper plate) 1,042 birthday? Lets see, Gate's birthday plus a trip to Dallas, what the hell could possibly go wrong?

Once the puck dropped, it was quite clear the Hawks weren't ready to play. Their now trademarked "slow start" was on full display. The Hawks benefited from receiving two power plays, to mask some of the bad start. However, Shaw would take a bad penalty during the second power play, and it was all downhill from there. Jason Spezza scored on the ensuing power play from the blueline to give the Stars a 1-0 lead. The Hawks sloppy play would continue as they would hand the Stars two more power plays in the first. Thankfully for the Hawks sake, they would kill both of them off, and find themselves only down one after the first period.

The second period wasn't much better for the Hawks. The Stars would add to their lead just over a minute in, and the rout was on. Following the Stars goal, the Hawks would get another power play chance, and much like in the first period, nothing would come of it. Dallas would add two more goals before the 11 minute mark of the period to increase their lead to 4-0. That would also spell the end of the night for Corey Crawford, as Scott Darling came in. The Hawks would show a little life, as Teuvo would score after a nifty pass from Fleischmann to cut the Stars lead to 4-1. At the end of the sammich stanza, the Hawks would trail the Stars 4-1.

The final 20 minutes would simply be played in the "hurry up and lets get the hell out of here" mode. The Hawks could only muster six goddamn shots, which would end up giving them a total of 23 for the game. With just over eight minutes remaining Q decided to be an asshole and pull Scott Darling for the extra attacker, and shockingly, it wouldn't work. The Stars added an empty netter to increase their lead to 5-1. Late in the game, Fleischmann would add just about as meaningless of a goal as possible, draw the Hawks within three. For the love of God, the horn finally sounded, and the Stars defeated the Hawks 5-2.

The Good

• If there was a bright spot for the Hawks, it was the "WTF Line" of Weise-Teravainen-Fleischmann, as they had both of the Hawks tallies. All wasn't great though with this line. (See later points)
• You're kidding if you think there's anymore good.

The Bad

• The Hawks had two power plays in the first ten minutes tonight, and got nothing to show for it. Oh and did I mention Andrew Shaw negated the final 22 seconds of the second power play by taking a lazy tripping penalty. To top off that stellar open to the game, Jason Spezza scored on a 50 footer from the blueline on the power play.
• The parade to the box continued after Shaw's penalty. Fleischmann and Weise marched their way to the box in the first period as well.
• Corey Crawford was the only reason the Stars didn't ring up 7 or 8 goals. The Hawks simply hung their goaltender out to dry tonight.
• The Hawks ended the game with an embarrassing shot total of 23. What makes it embarrassing is, they could only find the net six times in both the first and third periods. Great way to start and close out a game.
• Dallas managed to block 26 shots tonight. Way to skate to find open shooting lanes by the Hawks tonight.

The Ugly

• Pat Foley certainly gave the Hawks power play the kiss of death. Before the first Hawks power play, Foley mentioned the Hawks had power play goals in five straight games, and were "sizzling." The Hawks followed up this statement by going 0-5 on the power play. DRINK.
• Speaking of special teams, the penalty kill continued to suck up the joint of late. The Hawks took six penalties, and yielded two goals to the Stars tonight. Suddenly that Marcus Kruger contract doesn't look so bad after all.
• The TVR-Gus pairing is about as good as a goalie tandem of me and Gate. That's not a compliment.
• The Hawks introduced a new sponsor tonight called turnovers. I lost track at how many there were. Absolutely pathetic.
• Of course Q gave Gate the ultimate birthday present, and pulled Scott Darling for the extra attacker with eight minutes remaining. On the count of three say it with me. One. Two. Three. WHAT AN ASSHOLE!!! I'm so tired of this idiotic move.
• Could you pick two worse cities to take the Hawks' moms on? Seriously? St. Louis, "the puke on the sidewalk capital of the USA" and Dallas the "strip club capital of the hockey world." Nothing says thank you mom like a trip to those two cities.
• Lastly, one last happy birthday to Gate. Apparently he celebrated at Mullet's in Homer Glen. That's ironic since mullet and Gate haven't gone hand in hand since 1989. Otherwise known as the year he went bald. I hope they served you your cake on a cheap, flimsy paper plate.

Blackhawks at St. Louis - 3-2 SO Loss"Wakey Wakey, Eggs and #ROARBACON"

Wednesday is rivalry night and unlike most, this game actually is. The Blackhawks (and their moms) travelled to St. Louis for their first game since Sunday's defeat of the Redwings. I personally think all road games should be a 'moms trip' because who really wants to disappoint their mother?! Wakey wakey Backes it's game time!

The first period wouldn't see much action in the first half other than a failed Hawks' power play after Captain Crunch David Backes trips Toews. A minute and half after the PP lapses the Blues are at it again slashing new Hawk Dale Weise; Stastny to the sin-bin for a timeout. Unfortunately, once again the Blackhawks fail to cash in. The following events were highly debated and most likely will continue to be in the coming days. Christian Ehrhoff went to play the puck behind Crawford and at the last moment decides to let it go as he sees a flaming dumpster flying down the ice. Ryan Reaves lights up Ehrhoff with a questionable hit. It was deemed a five minute major for charging and a game misconduct; you could call it many things: charging, interference, roughing. Either way it probably wasn't a major but still, it's not the type of play we want if we are trying to protect our players. The Blues escape the period without a Hawk goal but still have over two and half minutes to kill when they get back on the ice.
Shots: Blackhawks 15 - Blues 5

With the Hawks starting the second on the power play they would break the stalemate, 1:14 into the period Teravainen takes a slapper from the top of the circle and Ladd redirects it past Allan. "And the moms go crazy!" This period would see a few nasty chippy plays the worst being more of an accident than anything else, Toews goes to carry the puck up the boards and is leaned on by Schwartz which would have been a innocent play if not for an open bench door; Toews slams into the door jam and labours back to bench and then the dressing room. Luckily he would return to finish the frame. The period ends with Seabrook laying out Lehtera showing Reaves how to lay a clean hit.  What did you think of that hit Seabs?
Shots: Blackhawks 7 - Blues 15

The third would be mostly controlled by the Blues, and the Hawks would only help them by taking three consecutive minors within seven minutes. TVR for hooking, the bench for too many men, and Ehrhoff for holding. The Blues would cash in on two out of three of the chances. Backes and ex-Hawk Brouwer would be credited with the tallies. While the Blues continue to press the Hawks manage to get some pressure by pulling Crow with a respectable amount of time left in the game as to not upset Stankus. The strategy pays off, with 1:17 left the Breadman, Panarin evens the score after a sweet dish by Toews setting him up right in front of the net. The period ends leading to Stankus' next favourite, 3v3 overtime. 

Shots: Blackhawks 11- Blues 8

Overtime would prove to be the shit show we know it can be. Both teams get some solid chances and even a review of a no goal call where Ladd knocks the puck in the net but not before pushing Allan in as well. This game's going to a shootout. 

Shots: Blackhawks 2 - Blues 2

Total shots: Blackhawks 35 - Blues 30

The shootout would go 6 rounds before a winner was decided, Hawks goals by Panarin and Anisimov but a goal post by Teravainen would end the Hawks chances at the second point. I'm a Crawford fan but another save or two would have gone a huge way towards a W. The Blues win 3-2 via shootout. 

THE GOOD

• With all the dangerous play going on all Hawks finished the game. 
• Getting one point when being down with less than two minutes in the game.
• Ehrhoff made more smart plays tonight than Scuderi did in his entire, albeit short, Blackhawks career. (Except for the penalty in the third, but it might have saved a goal (But the Blues scored on the PP anyway))  

THE BAD

• 3 Penalties in the third when only leading by one is a recipe for disaster.
• I think icebags will be in hot demand in the Hawks locker room as they where out hit 12 to 34, I know, I know #MOARHITS.
• You will most likely need more than two goals to beat teams not from Canada. 

THE UGLY

• The hit by Reaves looked horrible in real time, luckily after a little time in the quiet room Ehrhoff came back. 
• Toews smashing into the boards is evidence enough for me that the doors should not be opened during play, the players can easily hop the boards and get in and out of the bench. Sure use them during stoppages but not while the play is live. 
• The Loonie continues to plummet as @atomicfroster is now 0-2-2. Well it was good knowing you folks, but I foresee many games riding the bench as we go down the stretch. Hey maybe front office will throw me a softball like Calgary or Vancouver. 

THE LINE BLENDER

Ladd - Toews - Shaw

Panarin - Anisimov - Kane

Desjardins - Teravainen - Fleischmann

Manshinter - Rasmussen - Weise 

Keith - Hjalmarsson 

TVR - Seabrook

Ehrhoff - Rozsival

 

Puckin Hostile ShoutcastEpisode 52

In this 52nd Puckin Hostile Shoutcast, the Erik Gustafsson Episode, the 4 Horsemen talk about the games following a short week in Great White North fashion.

The group discuss the following:

-The Puckin Hostile Store
-Idiot twitter stalkers and hypocritical bullies
-Corey Hirsch betraying goalers
-World Cup of Hockey talk
-Marcus Kruger "Zoom Zooms" his way to a new deal.
-Edzo goes cuckoo over some soft serve ice cream
-Drunken Harms Hole
-Games vs the #PERDS, Capitals, Bruins, and a sweet of the Redwings.
-And of course, as always, an abundance of inappropriate references and jokes in incredibly bad taste.

You can find the episode on iTunes by following this link: iTunes

Puckin Hostile Shoutcast - Episode 52 MP3 Direct Download
You can listen below on the Talkshoe player:


Get the Shoutcast on Soundcloud here:


Also, Please check out and share the Puckin Hostile Stanley Cup Highlight video:
Music by "The Bloodline"

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http://www.facebook.com/BlackAndTanSports

Blackhawks vs Redwings4-1 Win Recap

"The Red and the Black"

by Gatekeeper

The Blackhawks made a rare "FOUR O'CLOCK START" Sunday against the Redwings at the United Center. Even Lady Gaga and her hunky boyfriend, Chicago Fire's Kelly Severide, were in attendance. Luckily for the Blackhawks, Pavel Datsyuk was NOT in attendance, though. The Hawks still had to deal with those young Detroit speedsters, which could prove to be a task in and of itself.

Looks like the Blackhawks were much more ready for this tilt than they were for the Bruins on Thursday. The Hawks were up 1-0 before the crowd was able to sit back in their seats for the anthem, and were up 2-0 before the game was ten minutes old. They managed those 2 goals on 11 shots, with the Wings finding the back of the net once on 8 shots. Not a bad start, but it wouldn't continue.

The Redwings completely dominated the second period, at one point out shooting the Blackhawks 12-1. It really didn't get much better, with the period totals ending up 13-3. Luckily for the Hawks, their goaltender held the Redwings to a scoreless period. That is the only good news for the middle frame as far as the Blackhawks were concerned.

Apparently they just took the middle period off because they came out and started up where they left off following the first period. They gave up 13 shots, but had 12 of their own and had 2 goals. This was plenty to walk away with a season sweep of the Wings. Oh how sweet it is.

The Good

• It took the Blackhawks exactly one shift and twenty one seconds to take a 1-0 lead. Patrick Kane led a 2-on-1 after picking up the puck at the red line. Kane skated up the wing and snapped a wrist shot through Mrazek. Just that quick Kan had his career high in points and the lone assist went to Rozsival. His 300th of his career.
• With about 5 minutes gone in the first period, after the penalty against Toews, Duncan Keith made the game 2-0 with a long shot from the point. Eddie then went on a jaunt about how even though Mrazek was screened by two of his teammates, he shouldn't have stared them down after because they are good players. Fuck that! It's hard enough getting screened by opponents. Either block the shot or be prepared to be held accountable when you completely stick it directly in your goalie's ass. No excuses. Especially when your dopey teammates earn you a spot on the bench opening the door, like this instance.
• Just past the halfway point of the third period, the Blackhawks went to the powerplay and wasted no time. Artem Anisimov deflected a long Artemi Panarin slapshot up and over Jimmy Howard's shoulder.
• Sixty eight seconds after the Anisimov goal, Jonathan Toews had an Andrew Desjardins shot go off the inside of his knee and into the net to expand the Blackhawks lead to 4-1.
• The Blackhawks were 2-for-3 on the powerplay. Nothing to complain about there.
• Crawford made 33 saves and held the Blackhawks together when they were getting absolutely smoked, in the second period.
• I have to give Michal Rozsival credit. When I noticed him, he was making smart, safe plays. Might be the best game I've seem him play this year.

The Bad

• A couple of minutes after the Keith goal the Wings took advantage of a borderline offsides play, and caught Trevor van Riemsdyk without his stick. Gustav Nyquist ended up with the puck on his stick and snapped a roofer over Crawford.
• Trevor van Riemsdyk has been an adventure lately. He got caught playing grab ass leading to him losing his stick and, eventually, standing thee watching the Nyquist goal right in front of his face.

The Ugly

• Jonathan Toews beat Brendan Smith after Seabrook and Fleichmann put in some nice work to clear the zone on an early 4-on-4. Toews went down and hit the boards awkwardly and came up favoring his left arm. That's all the Hawks need at this point.
• Just a minute after the Nyquist one of my favorite Wings players, Andreas Athanasiou split Seabrook and Gustafsson but was too close to get a shot off so he dropped the puck to Teemu Pulkkinen while Seabrook completely took Crawford out. Pulkkinen then proceeded to ignore the gaping net and hit Seabrook right square in the dookie.

The #Fatrick Stankus Fatsy Stats

• The third line had a rough night scraping the bottom of the corsi sheet.
• Thanks to that strong second period the Wings had a pretty healthy overall team corsi advantage.

The Lineblender
Ladd - Toews - Shaw
Panarin - Anisimov - Kane
Desjardins - Teravainen - Fleischmann
Panik - Rasmussen - Weise

Keith - Hjalmarsson
Gustafsson - Seabrook
van Riemsdyk - Rozsival

Blackhawks at Boston4-2 Loss RecapGoldieHawks and the 3 Bears

by AtomicFroster

Gather 'round children while I tell you a tale. The story of GoldieHawks and the 3 Bears.

Our story begins with Goldiehawks after a victorious battle in the badlands know as "Detroit" arriving late in the night, 3 a.m. I am told, in a land that has not seen magic since June 24 2013; Boston, home of the bears. For the purposes of our story we will call GoldieHawks the Hawks and the antagonists (the bears) Bruins.

Patrice Bergeron and the Bruins take advantage of the tired Hawks early, 1:18 into the first period Bergeron scores, set up by 'the nose' Brad Marchand.  This goal should have never happened as Bergeron was on all fours behind the net and still somehow managed to gain possession of the puck and carry it out front before wristing it short-side. Just over 6 minutes into the period the Blackhawks are put on the PP courtesy of a hooking call against the Bruins Acciari. It only took the Blackhawks 35 seconds to capitalize. Ehrhoff blasts one from the top of the zone that bounces off of Rask's pads to Ladd in front who bats it over to an open Toews who buries it.  The Bruins take their lead back with 21 seconds left in the period, when Marchand beats Darling with a  shot from the left circle. Bruins lead 2-1.

Shots:
Chicago 5; Boston 12.

The second period starts much like the first with misfortune for the Hawks. A high-sticking call against Ladd sends the Bruins to an early power play. The Bruins, not to be outdone on the PP, score only 6 seconds in. Bergeron won the offensive zone face-off resulting in a slapshot goal by Spooner. Boston would score it's third unanswered goal 15:24 into the period with a redirection by Eriksson. The Blackhawks would score a late period goal of their own; Tomas Fleischmann is set up with a sweet dish by Teravainen. Unfortunately this would be the last goal the Hawks would score. Bruins lead 4-2.

Shots:
Chicago 11; Boston 11.

While Chicago ends up outshooting Boston 11-2 in the third, Rask and the Bruins prove to be too much for the tuckered Hawks. Quenneville pulls Darling with over 3.5 minutes left to play, but the Hawks can't deliver. Time runs out and the score is unchanged - Bruins win 4-2.

Shots:
Chicago 11; Boston 2.

Total Shots:
Chicago 27; Boston 25.

The Good:

• Dale Weise made it over the wall to play almost 13 minutes;
• Sitting out tonight's game, Crawford gets 3 days off; and
• ...That's all I've got -- there isn't anything else in this lacklustre performance.

The Bad:

• The Blackhawks prove that getting your 8 hours is a must;
• Scott Darling's lack of starts shows; and
• You'll never win a game with Patrick Kane being a -3.

The Ugly:

• Scott Darling was handing out rebounds like they were ten for a Loonie;
• Almost 4 minutes with an extra attacker and no real solid scoring chances; and
• Atomic Froster now being 0-2-1 on recap nights.

The Lineblender

Ladd - Toews - Shaw

Planarian - Anisimov - Kane

Desjardins - Teravainen - Fleischmann

Mashinter - Rasmussen - Weise

Keith - Hjarlmarsson

Gustafsson - Seabrook 

van  Riemsdyk - Ehrhoff

Blackhawks at Detroit5-2 Win Recap

"Rise Up"

by Gatekeeper

After it was announced that no less than 9 Blackhawks players would be playing in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, the actual Hawks wee set to pair off with their once biggest rival, Detroit. Nowadays there isn't quite the 3 hours of nausea that we all once held so dear in the days gone by. These days they are a team full of aging "has beens", a few players like Nyquist, Tatar and Jurco and a crop of brand new shiny pups. Names like Dylan Larkin and Andreas Athanasiou should frighten the hell out of the Eastern conference, because they are going to torch the hell out of defenders for many years to come. This night, though, the Hawks get to face them as green rookies. Thank god.

The first period was like a day at the dog races. For the first 10 minutes there were barely any stoppages in play as both team raced up and down the ice. This kind of play bodes well for the Blackhawks so it was really exciting for all of us watching. It was a surprise that the stats only had the shots at 9-8 in favor of the Blackhawks, but the most important stat was the 1-0 score.

The second period was more excitement, but this period was even more in the Blackhawks favor. They weathered some early penalties to cash in on a couple of powerplays of their own, while their goalie stood on his head, once again. The Hawks were actually out shot 16-13,thanks to those penalties, but the Blackhawks pair of powerplay goals were all the scoring.

The Wings showed a little life in the third period, but the Blackhawks had already done the damage they needed to. The Blackhawks scored 2 goals on 11 shots while the Wings finally broke the shutout, scoring 2 on 9 of their own shots. Tomorrow its @AtomicFroster as the Hawks meet the Bruins.

The Good

• With less than 2:30 away in the game, the Blackhawks caught the Wings with a lazy back check and Erik Gustafsson fed the late coming Brent Seabrook who beat Petr Mrazek cleanly from the top of the circle for a 1-0 Blackhawks lead.
• Thanks to the help of a penalty drawn by Andrew Ladd the Blackhawks cashed in on a 5-on-3, as Kane hit Panarin on the back door for a dunk. Just like they drew it up.
• With the second penalty still on the board, Brent Seabrook absorbed a hit from Riley Sheahan, who was out of position looking for the kill shot, but not before dishing the puck off to Duncan Keith. Keith barely held onto it long enough to get the puck to Kane. Kane 1-on-1 with the goalie is just fucking unfair, and Kane gave Petr Mrazek a good ol fashioned "rodgering".
• One of my favorite players, Andrew Ladd, scored what looked to be the knife in the heart for the Blackhawks. Just a dirty, in close rebound goal. This is some exciting shit.
• Thirty five seconds after the Ladd goal, Patrick Kane and Artemi Panarin lit the #AK72 alert once again. Kane drove the zone and sent a perfect pass cross ice that Panarin one timed for a Blackhawks 5-1 lead.
• Dale Weise was finally able to climb the Canadian wall and make it to Joe Louis arena, but not in time to play. Baby steps right? Looks like he'll make his debut in Boston tomorrow.
• Corey Crawford was outstanding, once again. It's getting repetitive, but it needs to be pointed out for all those times the meatballs came at him. This win was career high 34th.

The Bad

• Andrew Desjardins took a borderline hit from Jonathan Ericsson, and went face first into the boards. He jumped up and took exception, which did nothing but earned him a double minor becasue Ericsson wasn't fighting anyone. Desjardins was taken to the quiet room, but came back a little later. Funny how that never happens at home, putting the Hawks down an extra guy (so someone can serve the time while player is being evaluated).
• The Wings scored another goal with 2 minutes left, but Wings fans didn't care at that point, because three quarters of the fans were gone already. Good job Hockeytown USA.

The Ugly

• Christian Ehrhoff had a great chance in his 6th shift of the game, having Mrazek dead to rights but pulling a "noonan" and chipping the bouncing puck wide of the net. Not really his fault, but still an A+ chance missed.
• Erik Gustafsson got fucking owned but Pavel Datsyuk early in the second period, and it left him spinning like a top.
• Halfway through the third period, Patrick Kane took a stupid penalty, which ultimately turned into a Brad Richards powerplay goal. Too many fucking penalties!

The #Fatrick Stankus Fatsy Stats

• Once again the Hawks opponent led in total (56-52) and 5v5 (45-43) Corsi.
• Trevor van Riemsdyk and Christian Ehrhoff led the Blackhawks in overall Corsi, but a lot of that had to do with the sheltered zone starts.
• If you want to know hot much Joel Quenneville likes Tomas Fleischmann, he was a regular on the penalty and led the Blackhawks with 12 defensive zone starts.

The Lineblender
Ladd - Toews - Shaw
Panarin - Anisimov - Kane
Desjardins - Teravainen - Fleischmann
Mashinter - Rasmussen - Panik

Keith - Hjalmarsson
Gustafsson - Seabrook
Ehrhoff - van Riemsdyk



...and finally, Just a reminder that the Hawks players kicked Mrazek's ass in the AHL too.