Blackhawks vs New York Islanders2-1 SO Win Recap

"You don't have to call me Darling, Darling"


by Gatekeeper
Yell at Gatekeeper

Friday was officially "the rest of your life" for the Blackhawks. No more trade rumors. No more speculation. This was the team the Blackhawks were "going to battle" with. That said, they were also nursing several injuries:

• Niklas Hjalmarsson was having a bit of a back issue (which might have something to do with carrying his teammates on it for the previous five months)
• Artem Anisimov left the Pens game early in the second period and missed practice Thursday with an undisclosed injury.
• Artemi Panarin missed the Thursday practice with an upper body injury
• New old Blackhawk Johnny Oduya was still nursing an ankle issue.
• Nick Schmaltz missed two days of practices with an undisclosed illness.
• Goalie Jeff "glove of" Glass was recalled before the game because Scott Darling injured himself in the morning skate. Word is that it's a hand/finger injury and Quenneville said he'll be out about 3 weeks.

So, the mood was not all "flowers and butterflies" even though the Blackhawks were the hottest team in the entire NHL for the last month, winning 10 of their last 11 (The only loss coming in the return after the stupid 5 day bye week). They had also just come off a pretty convincing and impressive slaying of the eastern conference powerhouse Pittsburgh Penguins. Not much to complain about in Blackhawks land, these days.

The Islanders, on the other hand, were just "OK" in their last 10 games, going 6-4-0. The Isles were also coming off a 5-4 win in Dallas after THEIR stupid bye week. Much maligned rookie Josh Ho-Sang (god forbid you wear the fucking number 66) made his NHL debut, but didn't record a point.

With all the injuries and the wonky lineup, the first period was a little bit of an adventure. Fans were treated to a partial breakaway for, and a shorthanded breakaway against, but neither resulted in a goal. Even a powerplay each way could not boost the shots any higher than 13 total. That was really all there was to report in the opening twenty minutes.


The second period wasn't much better for the Blackhawks. Kind of made you feel bad for the fans that dished out top dollar for a Friday night at the United Center for the slop they saw. The only good thing about sloppy hockey is the inevitable penalties. Unfortunately, though, the penalties turned into shorthanded chances against for the home team. There were quite a few more shots on net but it was the Islanders that led 12-7 in shots and scored the only goal. Thirteen shots in 40 minutes of play isn't exactly the way to win a hockey game.

As the third period opened, the Hawks had several really good chances in the Isles end but, again, none tied the game. The Isles regrouped briefly on the back end of the period, which settled the action for the middle portion of the period. With the goalie pulled very late, the Blackhawks unleashed a flurry of action on the Islanders net. Their pressure paid off as they tied the game with just over a minute remaining, sending this game to overtime and eventually a shootout.

Even though I'm not a huge fan of 3-on-3 overtime, it was really entertaining as hell. I would much rather see them just play seven or ten minutes of 3-on-3 than ever go to a shootout, if the NHL really must have a winner. Somehow neither team scored in the overtime, to the shock of all watching, which meant we were going to see the first Blackhawks shootout since November. Two of the three Blackhawks shooters scored in the shootout and the Blackhawks netminder held the Isles scoreless for a big come from behind win.

The Good

• With under two minutes, Coach Wizzo pulled his netminder and used his timeout to gather the troops. Jonathan Toews won the ensuing faceoff which eventually resulted in Duncan Keith feeding Artemi Panarin for one of his patented one timers. Finally, the United Center had something to truly cheer for, and the Blackhawks were able to guarantee at least one point.
• Corey Crawford saved the Blackhawks asses by saving a few breakaways and kept the Islanders off the board in the overtime and shootout. This will be huge with Scott Darling injured down the stretch.
• It sure seemed like Tomas Jurco was out on the ice for more than the official 11:04.
• Toews, Kane and Panarin logged heavy ice time. All three played over 22 minutes.

The Bad

• Marcus Kruger blocked a first period powerplay shot with his hand was was in some extreme discomfort on the bench into the first intermission. He returned and toughed out the rest of the game.
• The teams were a combined 0-5 on the powerplay with one, basically, shorthanded goal. Patrick Kane played an amazing 3:23 of the Blackhawks 4:00 of powerplay time.

The Ugly

• The first legit chance of the game was by Jordin Tootoo, who got a partial breakaway and shot it right into Greiss' armpit.
• During the first Blackhawks powerplay, Artemi Panarin tried to force a bad pass at the Isles blue line and it turned into a John Tavares shorthanded breakaway. Corey Crawford bailed them out but it'll surely be overlooked by the idiot meatballs.
• Late in the second period, as a Blackhawks powerplay was about to expire, the Isles jumped all over a bad Brian Campbell pinch which resulted in a shorthanded 2-on-1 against the Hawks netminder. This time Corey Crawford wasn't able to bail out his defense, and the score was 1-0.
• Brent Seabrook had a brutal turnover late in the second period, which left Andrew Ladd all alone in on Corey Crawford. Crawford made the initial save and then flashed the glove on the second.
• I love Marian Hossa, but his turnover in overtime was just awful. The Blackhawks were about to have a 3-on-2 and Hossa ran into the defenseman and the puck was sent back for a breakaway. Once again, Corey Crawford was the hero.

The #Fatrick Stankus Fatsy Stats

• The faceoffs were shaded slightly in favor of the Islanders, but the Blackhawks won the one that counted before the game winner.
• According to the official scorer, the Blackhawks had SEVEN giveaways.
• Not only did the big 3 forwards all play huge minutes, but their possession numbers were all over 15.
• Michal Kempny had a good possession night as well, with a +15 Corsi.

The Shootout

• Jonathan Toews took his time and beat Greiss
• Corey Crawford stops the rookie Ho-Sang
• Patrick Kane kicked away by Greiss
• Kulemin beat Crawford but hit the post
• Artemi Panarin beat the Isles for the win

The Lineblender
Left Wing - Center - Right Wing
Hartman - Toews - Panik
Panarin - Kero - Kane
Jurco - Kruger - Hossa
Desjardins - Rasmussen - Tootoo

Keith - Seabrook
Campbell - TVR
Kempny - Rozsival

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Blackhawks vs. Islanders5-4 Win Recap

"Ambush"

by Patrick Norton

@pdnorton

Pregame

The Blackhawks enter play with the highest point total in the Western Conference, and the Islanders have the lowest total points in the Eastern Conference. This one has the scent of “trap game” from mile away. With Scott Darling playing exceptional hockey in the absence of starting goaltender Corey Crawford, the question was, would the Hawks offense be able to match the level of play of their goaltender. With the team finally getting back to full strength and coming off of a win against the New York Rangers on Tuesday night, this would be the perfect opportunity for the offense to pick up some confidence.

Game Time

Whoops. Here come all the Stan Bowman haters for letting Andrew Ladd go. Just 2:14 into the first period, Ladd scored just his fourth goal of the season. The Islanders then grabbed the Hawks by the pucks with Casey Cizikas also picked up his fourth goal of the year. Down two, the Hawks went to work. After Ryan Hartman duped Cizikas into taking a roughing penalty, the Blackhawks got on the board with an Artemi Panarin one-timer. It didn’t take long for the Blackhawks and even it up. On another powerplay, some tic-tac-toe passing led to an Anisimov equalizer. Then, an incredible pass from Ryan Hartman gave Marian Hossa an empty net. Up 3-2, the Islanders felt the pressure and responded. Ryan Strome snuck one past Darling and tied it up towards the end of period number one. At the end of one, it was all knotted up at three...THREE!

That didn’t take long. Just twenty-two seconds into the second period, Anders Lee redirected an Islanders shot to give New York a one goal lead. After that? Both teams took a nap. After an eventful first period, the Islanders couldn’t pull away, but the Blackhawks couldn’t tie it up. A very lackluster period to follow up an energized first period. BUT WAIT A SECOND. Another PPG! With 18.7 seconds left in the second, Artemi Panarin scored off a nifty pass from Brent Seabrook. Maybe some momentum heading into the third?

Sure, there have been four goals for each team through two periods, but this game has been kind of bland. Hopefully the third would prove to be a little bit different. The first fourteen minutes of the third were very similarly to the second. Richard Panik was finally able to break the ice and give the Hawks the lead, their first since the first period. That’s all they would need, too. Somehow, the Blackhawks steal this one, 5-4.

The Good

• The offense is alive and well. Three first period goals, including two on the powerplay finally gave fans something to cheer for on offense. Totalling five tallies including adding another on the powerplay gave them THREE PPGs.
• The penalty kill was pretty solid. They didn’t give away many opportunities and were able to keep the Islanders from scoring on the advantage.
• Marian Hossa is absolutely tearing it up. He scored his sixteenth goal of the season. Oh yeah, but he’s old, so it doesn’t count.
• The powerplay was better than great. It helps that the Islanders penalty kill was trash, but the PP was marvelous, nonetheless.
• Hjalmarsson is a stud. Blocking shots left and right. I can’t imagine the bruises he wakes up with in the morning.
• Defensively, the first 20:22 were awful, but the remaining 39:38 showed a tightened up core, but also saw some new pairing. We saw a lot less Kempny and a Keith and Seabrook pairing.
• Special teams was a solid tonight, which is always good to see when that’s been a big struggle for the team.
• Talk about a team win. Needed a win that relied on something other than spectacular goaltending. Now, put it all together and put the best possible product on the ice. So, uhhh, not Jordin Tootoo.
• Seabrook improved throughout the night and finished with two helpers, along with Keith.
• Bread Man finished with a two goals and an assist. Last time I checked, he still does not have a contract extension.

The Bad

• Sure, it was nice to score three goals in the first, but the start to the game was soooo sloooow. I don’t get how a league leading team can be so consistently bad at jumping out of the gun.
• The Hinostroza line dressed. I think.
• Konroyd and Boyle continue to find themselves in this section of the recap. When talking about potential #1 stars of the game, the seemed confused about Ryan Hartman and forgot about his behind-the-back pass to Hossa. C’mon. It was a sweet dish, but their only positive was a darn open ice check in the first period.
• Ryan Hartman won over the hearts of a lot of fans tonight. He baited a penalty and had a sweet assist .Another good-near-great game for the kid.

The Ugly

• Sorry Gate, but Kempny sucked. Seabrook wasn’t much better in the first period. Remember how the score was 3-3 at the end of one? Both defenseman were -3 at that point, too. Coincidence? I think not!
• The start to the second was all Islanders. Surprisingly, they were only able to scratch one across the goal line in the entire period.
• Puck possession for the Hawks was pretty crappy. Besides the powerplay, the Hawks had trouble getting sustained opportunities. The second and third period was full of sloppy passes and weak shots.
• Scott Darling didn’t have the best defense being played in front of him, but he looked like a combination of Gate and Brian Elliott out there. He’s been worked a lot, but it looks like Crawford is close to a return, so Darling just has to get through a couple more.
• This game was ugly for me. I’ve never had such difficulty critiquing a team. Sure, the first period was treacherous, but once the Islanders scored a fourth goal, the Blackhawks got their heads out of their respective asses. You can’t throw away an entire period of horrible defense, but the Hawks regrouped very well.
• I’m still not positive if Jordin Tootoo actually skated once.
• Thomas Greiss has a miserable night in net. Sorry pal, but you can’t let your team score four goals on a scorching goalie and still lose the damn game. That’s like rule number one in goalie school.

The Lineblender

Left Wing - Center - Right Wing

Hartman - Toews - Hossa

Panarin - Anisimov - Kane

Rasmussen - Kruger - Panik

Desjardins - Hinostroza - Tootoo

*I’d put the defensive pairing here, too, but they changed every thirty seconds*

#Fatrick Stankus Fatsy Stats

• The PAK line had Corsi’s through the roof, but Brian Campbell shocked me when I saw he finished +16.
• Michal Kempny finished with a team low -4. Not horrible, but still, not great.
• The Blackhawks took just 23/53 at the dot. But they also took two points, so who gives a rats ass.

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Blackhawks vs. Islanders4-1 Win Recap

Soup and a Sandwich
by Patrick Stankus

Less than 24 hours after Friday night's game ended on Long Island, I mean, Brooklyn, the Blackhawks and Islanders were back on the ice. This time however the game took place in Chicago. I know this kind of a home and home this early in the season makes no sense. Schedule making is hard for some in the NHL. Anyway, game 3 of the season went on as scheduled, featuring a marquee AHL goaltending matchup between Scott Darling and Jean-Francois Berube. If that kind of a matchup doesn't get you excited, than nothing will.

Once the puck dropped, the Islanders seemed to control the possession early on, despite the Hawks getting a few opportunities and Berube looking a bit shaky. As the period went on, the Hawks would gain their legs, and get on the scoreboard first. Trevor van Riemsdyk would open the scoring with his first career NHL goal, after a nice read of the Islanders defense napping. TVR found open ice in the slot, drove to the net uncontested and roofed a backhander in. I guarantee that's exactly how he drew up his first goal as a defenseman. As the horn sounded, ending the 1st period, TVR's goal would prove to be the difference on the scoreboard.

As the second period got underway, the Islanders looked to have the same jump to their step they had in the first period. They caught the Hawks in a bad change early in the period, but Scott Darling was able to stop Nikolay Kulemin on a breakaway to keep the Hawks in the lead. Whatever momentum the Isles had was done after the AK-72 line took over. Panarin would increase the Hawks lead by two on a twisted wrister wide open from the slot, following a slick pass from Kane behind the net. Later in the period the AK-72 line would completely clown the Islanders for two minutes before finally Kane ended the silliness and redirected a TVR shot to give the Hawks a 3-0 lead after two periods.

The third period turned out to be a different story than the first two frames. The Islanders seemed to pack it in and the frustration would boil over. John Tavares would receive an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty as well as a game misconduct with just over 5 minutes remaining. The Hawks would cash in on the power play late in the game as Brent Seabrook added another to increase the Hawks lead to four. Unfortunately for Scott Darling he wasn't able to hang onto the shutout as Cal Clutterbuck would score shorthanded with just over a minute remaining. That would prove to be the final as the Hawks defeated the Islanders 4-1.

The Good

• I'm dubbing them the AK-72 line, go ahead make fun of it, but that line of Anisimov, Kane, and Panarin is lights out right now. They absolutely dominated play in the second period with Panarin and Kane both registering goals, and would end the night with 3 points each.
• Scott Darling was rock solid in his first start of the net. Although he would be a minute short of getting the shutout, his save on a Kulemin breakaway early in the second period seemed to start the dagger into the Isles momentum.
• TVR had a very nice night. His read on the Islanders defense that led to his goal was perfect. Not one Islanders defender put a stick near him. Bravo kid, hopefully Quenneville doesn't piss on your parade in the next couple of days. Everyone else knows you played good tonight.
• On the second night of a back to back, Quenneville finally had some sense knocked into him when comes to ice and a game that's in hand. Everyone's ice time was spread out, which is a nice change from the past.
• A night after their balls were chopped off at the dot, the Hawks held down the fort and were an even 26-26 against the Isles tonight.

The Bad

• Show of hands if anyone had Ryan Garbutt skating on the first line in the third game of the season. Put your hands down, you're lying. In all seriousness someone break Q's finger so he can't press the line blender.
• The power play. While it looked good at times, it ended the game 1 for 7. That is pathetic.

The Ugly

• I have nothing more to bitch and moan about when it comes to the Hawks. So lets go with the Rockford IceHogs. Way to show up in Stockton tonight. The Hogs lost by a touchdown.

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Blackhawks at Islanders3-2 Overtime Win Recap

"Brooklyn 8-8"

by Patrick Stankus

On Friday night the Blackhawks opened up their road portion of their season in Brooklyn, New York, the new home of the New York Islanders. In addition to the opening of a new era of Islanders hockey, it was also the first game of a back to back with the Islanders. (You'll hear more about that later) The night also featured a couple of lineup changes which saw a pair of Viktors inserted into the lineup while Kyle Baun and David Rundblad enjoyed the press box.

The opening period featured great chances for both teams, which resulted in 12 shots for each team. Who says 5 on 5 is boring and doesn't result in scoring chances? Just prior to the midway point of the period, the Hawks would get a chance on the power play, but would fail to convert. Later in the period the Hawks would get penalized for too many men on the ice. Instead of yielding a power play goal, the Hawks would actually net a shorty courtesy of the much coveted Artem Anisimov to give the Hawks a 1-0 lead after one.

The uptempo pace of the game would carryover into the second period. Early on, the Hawks would have another opportunity on a power play, but just as was the case in the 1st period, they would be unable to score. Building momentum off the penalty kill, the Isles would answer right after the kill as John Tavares would net his 1st of the season. With just under 5 minutes remaining in the second period, Patrick Kane would put the Hawks ahead with a goal line wrist shot following a sweet from Jonathan Toews behind the net. The Hawks would hang onto that 2-1 lead after two periods.

As the third period got underway, the Hawks lead would prove to be short lived. Just over a minute in, a Marek Zidlicky point shot would beat a screened Corey Crawford to tie the game at two. Midway through the period, Jonathan Toews would put the Hawks shorthanded after taking an interference penalty. The PK would come through for the Hawks and keep the game tied at two. Corey Crawford and the Hawks would survive a furious attack by the Islanders in the final minutes of the third to force overtime.

There would be no shortage of the slobbering lovefest talk over the idea of 3 on 3 overtime. Thankfully, the only gimmick worse than the shootout didn't last too long. After an extremely soft slashing call on Nick Leddy, Patrick Kane would cash in and score the game winning, giving the Hawks a 3-2 win.


The Good

• I'll throw these three guys who stuck out the most into one here. Kane, Keith, and Hossa all had strong games. Kane had 2 goals, while Keith had 2 assists, and Hossa had an assist and drew the penalty that led to the game winning power play goal.
• Corey Crawford had a strong game in goal, making 34 saves. On both of the Islanders goals, Crawford didn't have a chance. Hjalmarsson was in bad position on Tavares' goal, and on Zidlicky's he was battling a screen. But again, by all means blame Crawford.
• New Blackhawk center Artem Anisimov netted his first goal in his Blackhawks career. Hopefully this is a sign to come for the long term solution to the 2nd line center issue for the Hawks.
• Because everyone hates shot blocks, I'll point out the Hawks had 20 tonight.
• Special teams came into effect for the good tonight. The Hawks scored both shorthanded and on the power play.

The Bad

• Bryan Bickell must be loving the fact the Hawks signed Viktor Tikhonov. These guys will battle it out for most frustrating Blackhawk to watch this season. Both were meh tonight.
• Viktor Svedberg had an up and down night. At times he looked a bit overwhelmed, but as the game wore on, it seemed he gained a little more confidence. That will last until Q decides to healthy scratch him next game and send him back to Rockford in two days, only to seem him traded in 3 weeks.
• The Hawks were dominated at the dot 27-40.

The Ugly

• A big two thumbs down to this move to Brooklyn for the Islanders. The whole night I felt I was watching the World Championships with that damn car on display behind the boards in one of the corners. Not to mention seeing how some of the fans had to turn to watch the action at one end was vomit inducing. Smart money is this move to Brooklyn only lasts 3 years until a new arena on the heart of Long Island is built. Oh and did you hear what the players are dealing with when it comes to home games??? WOOF as Gate would say.
• Of course my first game recap would go to overtime. Deciding games 3 on 3 is an insult to hockey. Its not more exciting, its a complete joke. Go back to ties, and change the points system to 3-2-1-0.
• Finally, nice job NHL schedule makers. 3 games into the season and the Hawks will be done playing the Islanders. I know I'd rather seeing a Bruins/Flyers "game of the week" on a Sunday afternoon in February on NBC, than a Blackhawks/Islanders.

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Blackhawks vs Islanders4-1 Win Recap

"A Broken Spell"

by Gatekeeper

Nick Leddy's New York Islanders visited Chicago, for a St. Patrick's day game, Tuesday night. Unfortunately for the Islanders, Leddy was out with an injury, but the rest of a young, up and coming, Isles team was out in full force.

The Blackhawks came out like we normally expect them to spending a god majority of the opening period in the Isles end of the ice. They out shot the Islanders 16-10, and out scored them 2-0 in the first, and it really could have been 4-0, based on the pressure the Hawks had.

The Blackhawks had a bit of a rough second period, partly due to an incredibly stupid major penalty that they had to kill. They weathered that storm and some Isles pressure from some unlikely sources to out score the Isles 1-0 but get out shot 15-5. That isn't a typo, they were out shot 15-5 and won the period 1-0.

The third period was much more tame after both teams scored to open the the third. The Isles out shot the Blackhawks once again 14-9 and 39-30 for the game, but the final tally was 4-1.

The Good

• About seven minutes into the game, and the Isles surrendered an awful first goal to El Capitan. Toews chased a loose puck into the Isles corner and he threw it to the front of the net, looking for an open teammate. Instead, the puck hit a defenseman, then Neuvirth and into the net. Neuvirth was still out of position though.
• Just an example of what we have in Marian Hossa. For a majority of the first period, he toyed with one of the best players in the entire world, in John Tavares. At his age to be playing top line level like this, and dominating, is astounding. He's pulling some Jagr stuff.
• Late in the first period, Nik Hjalmarsson set up Jonathan Toews for another gift of a goal. Hjalmarsson looked like he was going to pass the puck near the red line but, instead, took it up the boards past some shocked Islanders. After getting to the blue line, he dumped the puck off to Toews, who was in on a 2-on-1. Toews went to his backhand and threw a shot at the net, which should have been a pretty easy bad angle save. Somehow the puck hit Neuvirth in the shoulder and went into the net. This was some long overdue luck on St. Patrick's day.
• Shortly after killing Shaw's dumb penalty, Toews caught the Isles changing and got in behind their defense. He stuck with the puck and and was able to feed Hossa for a really pretty one timer and a 3-0 Blackhawks lead.
• Fifty seven seconds into the third period, and the two hottest Blackhawks connected once again to take a 4-0 lead. Toews tried to hit Hossa but it deflected off Hossa's skate and into the net. It was abundantly clear that there was no kicking motion, so the goal stood.
• Crawford once again held his team in the game. When all was said and done, he had 38 saves. The goal was a pretty fat rebound, but we can let him slide. (Ed. Note - Goal was not a fat rebound. Keith redirected at the point of attempt. Not much Crawford could do. Thanks @xxCARBONxx)
• The Hawks won at the dots, again, winning 56% of their draws. Toews won 13 of 17.

The Bad

• Pat's favorite play is when Crawford, or any goalie, plays the puck and brutally turns it over. He got his wish about halfway though the first period. I could hear him saying, "stay in the fucking net". Crawford recovered but it was ugly. Luckily for Shaw, the Blackhawks killed his dumb 5 minute major off masterfully, but that doesn't mean it wasn't colossally stupid.
• I can honestly say that I didn't notice the third line on the ice until there were 3 minutes gone in the third period.
• The Isles broke the shutout early in the third period, on a pretty innocent play. Crawford kicked the rebound out into the slot and Kulemin was able to deposit the puck into the open net between Saad and, you guessed it, Rozsival.
• Versteeg played a team low 11:53. That hand injury might be the end of the good Versteeg this year.

The Ugly

• Not 2 minutes into the game and this so called "bigger body" wearing number 11 got rocked by Calvin de Haan. MOAR.....cap space, I guess.
• This Teravainen/Timonen Dad/Hockey Dad shit needs to end. We got it the first 40 fucking times.
• About 5 minutes into the second period, Andrew Shaw got a 5 minute major for head butting. What a fucking asshole. How he hasn't been in Q's doghouse exclusively, for his stupid penalties, is beyond me. It is pretty clear that Gorilla Salad is completely redundant on this team now, as they have Shaw to now do the colossally stupid shit.
• John Tavares and Josh Bailey both -4. Ouchie.

The Lineblender
Sharp-Toews-Hossa
Saad-Richards-Teravainen
Versteeg-Richards-Bickell
Desjardins-Kruger-Shaw

Keith-Rozsival
Timonen-Seabrook
Oduya-Hjalmarsson

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Blackhawks at NY Islanders3-2 Loss Recap

"Public Display Of Dismemberment"


The Blackhawks were in Uniondale New York Saturday night to face the young surprising Islanders, in what should be the last Blackhawks game in Nassau Coliseum. Good news for the Blackhawks was that Jonathan Toews was good to go for this one after an ugly play Thursday night.

The first period ended up scoreless but there were plenty of chances. The Goalies stood tall at each end, with the Blackhawks out shooting the Isles 10-8. Could have easily been 1-1 with the breakaways each way.

The Blackhawks came out in the second period and were out shot 10-0 to open the period. It really didn't get much better after that, with the Blackhawks getting out shot 17-7 for the entire 20 minutes. Some how; some way; The Blackhawks managed to take a lead, which they promptly gave up.

The Third period seemed to start out well for the Blackhawks and they pulled the same thing they did in the second period. They took a 2-1 lead and proceeded to give of two goals in 51 seconds to, eventually, lose the game and their winning streak came to an end.

The Good

• The game started off with several good chances from Blackhawks big men Bickell and Saad.
• The Blackhawks finally scored on a bizarre bounce. Gorilla Salad took a long snap shot on Halak, and it shot straight up in the air. When the puck came back down, it hit Halak in the top of the mask and dribbled into the net.
• About four minutes into the third period, Patrick Kane worked some of his magic and grabbed a 2-1 lead for the Blackhawks. He was actually played very well, defensively. Given the chance, you would want him on his backhand, but like so many times before, Kaner snapped a backhand from an impossible angle over the goalie's shoulder. Magic, I tell you.
• Scott Darling is most of the reason the Blackhawks didn't lose 5-2. I'm sure this will result in him being rewarded with a bumpy bus trip to Rockford when Crawford is back...CUZ BOWMAN GENIUS.
• The Blackhawks were 59% at the faceoff dots, so they have that going for them.

The Bad

• It took a third period powerplay and a flurry of action in front of Darling for the Isles to tie the game back up. It was really just a matter of time.
  
  Oh yeah, it was assisted on by the castoff; Nick Leddy. He sure sucks, doesn't he Quenneville?
• Just a 51 seconds after the game was tied, Visnovsky took advantage of the third pair out on the ice, skating around first Dahlbeck and then, well, net even needing to avoid the slow and useless Roszival. That quick, the Blackhawks were down.
• The Blackhawks were out shot 41-25 and only lost 3-2. Could have been much worse.

The Ugly

• The powerplay has dropped back down into the bottom 1/3rd of the league again.
• Michal Roszival was just blown the hell up by Matt Martin in the second period. He just stood 5 feet from his own net, with plenty of time and waited for Martin to fright train him. Of course Q kept trotting him out there. If that was any of the young guys, they would be sitting in the cheap seats for 3 games.
• SIX SECONDS after Gorilla Salad goal, Duncan Keith got extremely flippant with the puck and basically gave the puck to Cal Clusterfuck, who was able 4 feet from Darling. Darling was as surprised as we all were, and had no time to react to a play that should have never happened. The moral of the story was that the the Blackhawks held the lead for all of 6 seconds. Keith owes Darling a fucking steak dinner.

The Lineblender
Saad-Toews-Hossa
Kane-Richards-Versteeg
Sharp-Shaw-Bickell
Carcillo-Kruger-Smith

Keith-Seabrook
Oduya-Hjalmarsson
Dahlbeck-Roszival

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Blackhawks Week That Was - 1/3

12/28 - Blackhawks at St. Louis
6-5 Shootout Loss

• The Hawks had two chances to put the Blues away, with a 3-1 lead and a 5-3 lead. They gave both up. They have no one to blame but themselves.
  
• At least half of the Blackhawks goals were pretty terrible. While Raanta wasn't stellar, Halak and Elliott were brutal. The Kane and Seabrook goals should have been elementry stops. The Saad goal wasn't much to shout about, either.
  
• How about that Patrick Sharp kid? Looks like the Hawks might have a player there, eh? Maybe he has a future in this league.
  
• The Berglund goal, to tie the game late in the third, was unacceptable. Seabrook looked gassed, and couldn't keep up with Berglund. Keith went for the pass block instead of trying to poke the puck off Berglund's blade. Raanta, well, I'm not too sure just what happened. He got handcuffed deep in his net. The play end up being a 1 on 3 plus Raanta. You don't score with those odds.
  
• The Hawks were back to winning the faceoff battle, beating the Blues 57% to 43%. El Capitan had a rare off night, but the rest of the center picked up the slack. Berglund won a whopping 3 of 12 faceoffs for St. Louis.
  
• Any game that Barrett Jackman and David Backes are a combined minus 2 with zero points, is fine with me.
  
• Sharp and Toews are a combined plus 10 in the past two games. #Clutch
  
• Shootouts suck. Every single one.
  

Here are the video highlights: 12/30 - Blackhawks vs Kings 1-0 Shutout Win

• There wasn't much as far as goals go, especially since the only goal was in the first period, but that didn't mean there wasn't action. There was Dustin Brown's unsuccessful penalty shot, break-a-ways, hits, and big saves. This game might have been one of the more exciting 1-0 games you're going to see.
  
• I truly thought that Antti Raanta is that goalie that will always give up that one goal to always elude the shutout. Just a few games ago he gave up 2 goals on 12 shots. Not a stellar night. Good for him though. The duo of Crawford and Raanta give the Hawks a serious team, better than even last year. I like Emery, but he's awkward and injury prone. Give me the 25 year old finnish guy with non plastic hips.
  
• As far as the penalty shots go the officials were very inconsistent. If Dustin Brown's chance was a penalty shot then the chance Jonny Toews had in the third period was as well, and vice versa. Neither was a clean breakaway chance, but both were similar. Since they made the statement and gave Brown the shot, El Capitan deserved one also. If they didn't give Brown that shot, I wouldn't have disagreed, and I wouldn't have been upset that Toews didn't get one either.
  
• The Hawks had a powerplay goal waved off in the third period and it was the right call. Andrew Shaw redirected a high Sharp slapshot down and into the net, but the redirection was a clear high stick. This one, the officials got right.
  
• Late in the third, the Hawks, specifically Duncan Keith, got caught napping and let Kyle Clifford get in on a break-a-way. Keith didn't pout and coast back, he turned in the burners and not only caught Clifford, but reached around and knocked the puck away without any hint of an infraction. This was as big of a play as the Sharp steal against Colorado.
  
• While the Hawks were out hit, as per usual, Andrew Shaw was credited with NINE hits. Merry Christmas Shawzer.
  
• The Hawks continued their dot dominance, winning the battle against the Kings, 60% to 40%. The only center under 50% was old man Zeus, with was at 45%. El Capitan and Dream Warrior won 25 of 36 faceoffs between them.
  
• Johnny Oduya didn't have his best night, being credited with 4 giveaways.
  

Here are the video highlights: 1/2 - Blackhawks at New York Islanders 3-2 Overtime Loss

• The Hawks came out with a nice pace, but their defense left something to be desired. The Cizikas breakaway goal was due to a lazy change and Bickell being fed a live grenade. The pass was not a great one, even though Bickell was not exactly hauling ass, but I believe it was either Seabrook or Hjalmarsson that pulled the pin and lobbed that live grenade off to Bickell. Bickell just looked like a fucking sloth after it was turned over, because Cizikas just whizzed right past him. The Vanek goal was just sloppy coverage in the Hawks end. A rebound popped out to Vanek, who had an open net. And Finally, the game willing goal was terrible over pursuit by Sharp, Keith and Hjalmarsson. They all flocked to Tavares like his hair was on fire, and left Okposo wide open to pick up the fat rebound.
  
• None of the goals could be plopped squarely on Crawford's shoulders, and he looked just fine. In fact he was less rusty than I had expected. I'm glad to see him back. Haters can eat a rather large bag of fecal matter.
  
• Ben Smith was probably the most noticeable Blackhawks player on the ice. He was rewarded for his hard work with game tying goal. Poetic justice.
  
• Seabrook's powerplay goal was a howitzer from the left circle on a nice feed from Versteeg. Nabokov had suck a slim chance of getting that puck, yet still just missed it.
  
• I have to give credit where it's due, and Evgeni Nabokov player an excellent game. He made 37 saves and neither of the goals were his fault. For a guy that is just short of 159 years old, he was on his game.
  
• Brandon Saad didn't show up on the score sheet, but he had a burst of speed that began as a 1 on 2, and almost ended up a breakaway, in the third period. This kid is so special. He would be a top 6 forward anywhere else in the league, and possibly, top 3. I love this kid's game.
  
• Deuce and Hammer didn't have their best games. They were each minus 2.
  
• The Hawks were credited with THREE hits. THREE! That stat category is utterly worthless. Matt Martin had 3 hits just stepping onto the ice.
  
• The Hawks were 1 for 1 on the powerplay, and didn't give up and powerplay goals. That is something to slide over to the "plus" category.
  

Here are the video highlights: 1/3 - Blackhawks at New Jersey Devils
5-3 Win

• Sharpie with yet another Hat Trick. He's playing on another level.
  
• Keith, Toews, and Sharp were all plus 4 on the night.
  
• The game was fairly tame until the third period came around and both teams came out and combined for 6 third period goals.
  
• Only 10 shifts in the entire game for Bickell. Welcome to Chateau Bow Wow.
  
• Henrique, Ryder and Clowe were all minus 4. WOOF!
  
• Ben Smith and Kruger were terrible at the dots, winning only 5 of 16.
  
• Raanta wasn't at his best, but he did enough to keep the Hawks into the game until they blew it open.
  

Here are the video highlights:

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Blackhawks at New York IslandersOT Win Recap

"400 Ways To Die"



Thursday night the Hawks visited Long Island for the "Hawks Vs Isles Part Deux", in a weeks time no less. Aren't WE the lucky ones? Last game, the Hawks Made it much harder on themselves than they needed to, taking the Isles to OT, and finally a shootout all while giving up 40-something shots. It took a Herculean effort from Captain Serious, to bring them back, and he was the only one to score in the shootout. This time around, they didn't have the benefit of the home fans, after the comeback against the Coyotes the other night, that disappointingly fell just short. The Isles, on the other hand, put up 10 goals in the two wins following their loss to the Hawks.

The Hawks looked like the better team, for a majority of the first period, but the shots were even at 10-10. The Hawks were the recipient of some luck, and were able to go up and into the intermission 1-0 on their powerplay goal. The Hawks weren't as successful in the second period but were able to tie the period 1-1, putting the Hawks up 2-1 for the game. The Isles were able to tie up the game in the third period, and send the game into overtime, also outshooting the Hawks 8-7. Lucky for everyone wearing white, the Hawks were able to make quick work of the Isles in OT, and bring home the 2 points.

The Good

• The Hawks were able to open the scoring on the powerplay, in the first. Hoss scored his 400th career goal by taking the puck behind the net, and banking it off Montoya and into the net. Terrible goal for Montoya, but congrats to Marian Hossa. 1-0 Hawks
  
• Hoss continued his red hot play a couple of minutes into the second period, feeding Shooter for a rocket of a one timer. Montoya couldn't get across the crease fast enough to catch up to Sharpie's laser of a shot. 2-0 Second Line.
• Hossa capped a historic night by picking up a loose puck in the Hawks end and leading the rush up the ice, in OT. He took a shot Montoya, who ended up on his dupa, and the rebound conveniently came right out to Shooter, who put it in for his second goal of the night, and the game winner. And a mighty handsome goal it was. Huge night for the second line, and nice win for the Hawks.
• For the first time in recent memory, Hammer actually hammered someone. He laid a big hit on Michael Grabner, who had his head down the entire way, in the Isles end of the ice. I had to do a double take of the number.
• The Hawks powerplay looked excellent all game long. The defining moment, of course, was the Islanders 5-on-3 at the end of the second/beginning of the third. It was SO good that the Hawks didn't even give up a shot.
• Despite a rare gaffe, Seabrook was a beast on the back end all night long, whether it was a strong pass, shot block, or a big hit he was on his game. Even though he was out there for the tying goal, that one really wasn't on him. He also led all Hawks in shorthanded TOI. That says a lot about Quenneville's confidence in Lucky Number Sleven.
• Razor was 31 of 33, and he made several big saves that kept the Hawks up, and in the game. As slow and tender as he looked in the preseason, and early on; he's looked that much better as of late. At least one of them is looking tight. This is more evidence to support the idea of Razor getting more time, to take the pressure off Crawford. Again, this is no controversy, YET.
• Three points for both Shooter and Hoss. More please!

The Bad

• Travis Hamonic put the Isles on the board with under 2 minutes left in the second period. The Hawks weren't able to get the puck out of the zone and it was fed across to Hamonic, who Ben Smith had somehow lost track of. Hamonic used the screen of Smith and Hammer to blow a long slapshot past Razor. 2-1 Hawks.
• The Isles tied up the game, in the third, when Steve Staios' shot went off Michael Grabner and past Razor just over halfway through the frame. The Hawks actually looked to have the play covered pretty well, but the deflection snuck by Emery.
• Patrick Sharp started Razor's night off by turning the puck over at the Isles blue line and then letting his guy skate right past him. Unfortunately, that guy was John Tavares, but Razor was up to the task. Thanks, Shooter!
• Whenever Hammer tries to build up some speed, it looks like his feet are moving extremely fast, but he's not going anywhere.
• The third line had another rough night, going minus 3 total, and collecting 4 minutes in penalties. I'd honestly like to see the Hawks give Bolland some down time to rehab that foot, while they have some time to play with. If this is still an issue down the stretch run, it's going to become a major one.
• The Hawks weren't terrible at the dot, but Bolland was smacked around most of the night, most notably by Tavares. 37% for the shutdown center isn't a pretty stat.

The Ugly

• Queue up the Mr. Hyde/CarBomb. With just under 4 minutes left in the third period of a 2-2 game, he took exception to Kyle Okposo jumping into a post whistle fracas, and jabbed Okposo right in the yap, drawing a penalty. The Isles didn't score on the PP but that kind of crap isn't going to make Quenneville happy, especially if they give up a goal.

Here are your video highlights:

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Blackhawks vs. Islanders - SO Win Recap

"Islands In The Stream"



Just when all seems to be in a state of disarray, the lowly Islanders come to town. The Islanders have fallen on hard times...since 1985. As of late, they have had a bit of a goaltending "issue". They've been through 4 goaltenders in 22 games, and this is not from poor play as much as poor genetics. The Isles have a few young weapons in Tavares, Moulson, Grabner, and Blackhawk prospect for a second, P.A. Paretneau, but have not been able to get themselves on the winning side of anything for about 2 decades. In net, the Isles went with Chicago native Al Montoya. Easy game, right?

This game opened like so many others before, with the Hawks giving up an early lead, and then giving up another one after they had tied it up. They outshot the Isles 14-13, but that was far too many shots to be giving up to a bottom dwelling team, like the Isles. The Blackhawks must have felt the same way, because they came out in the second and out shot the Isles 15-2, and outscored them 2-0 to go into the third up 3-2. The progress they made in the second period all disappeared when the Isles scored an early PPG and another one later in the period. The Hawks were outshot 23-5 in he frame, and the game was headed to overtime. After a few chances in the OT, the Hawks won the game in a shootout. Good thing this was easy, eh?

The Good

• Of all the people to open up the scoring, the fourth line were the ones to dent the net, about half way through the first. Bruno took a nice pass from Lurch, who had taken a nice pass from Car Bomb. Bruno ended up with a wide open cage. 1-1 tie.
• Agent Smith tied up the game in the second, and I heard Jesse Rogers scream like a teenage girl who just scored Justin Bieber tickets. Smith took a fancy pants pass from Kaner and put it in the net on his second try. We might as well just nominate Smith for the Hall Of Fame right now, because the Ben Smith parade probably planned for Sunday. In all seriousness, he IS a much better option than Bickell. A mediocre Smith still has more pure talent and grit, which doesn't take much. 2-2 tie.
• El Capitan singlehandedly put the Blackhawks up after stealing the puck from Jurcina, shorthanded and beat Montoya before either player knew that happened. What more has to be said? Toews is a fucking beast. Shorthanded, 1-on-2, and managed to own them all. 4-3 Hawks.
• The Hawks second period was insanely good. The not only outshot the Isles 15-2, and outscored them 2-0, but they missed almost half a dozen open nets and serous scoring chances. Honestly, they could have scored 4 that period.
• Shooter used his lucky tape, and put the Hawks back up AGAIN, 4-3 with five minutes gone in the third, on the powerplay. 4-3 Hawks.
• All of the Hawks centers were either right at 50% or better than 60%. That works!

The Bad

• The Isles opened up the scoring on the powerplay with a goal by Kyle Okposo. It was a fairly simple play in which the rebound of a point shot came right out to Okposo who was left wide open by Hjalmarsson, and he had a gaping net. Hammer couldn't looked any less interested, or motivated. 1-0 Isles
• The Hawks responded to the first Isles goal with another failed PP, that made the Isles PP look like world beaters. To top it all off Bolland took a great one timer chance, stopped it, tried to put it on a platter, and proceeded to let the Isles defender block it.
• Goal number two for the Isles was yet another simply WEAK goal. Moulson snapped a wrist shot right past Crawford fairly easily after finding a soft shot between the Hawks defenders. 2-1 Isles.
• The PK took their second hit of the night when P.A. Parenteau picked up a bouncing puck in the slot and ripped it past Crawford to tie the game. Too many Hawks players just standing around watching the puck. 3-3 Tie.
• The Hawks weren't the only ones with shorthanded chances. The Isles had at least 2 really solid 1-on-1 chances while shorthanded.
• Just as the Hawks killed off their 2nd of 4 powerplays against, Nino Niederreiter took a turnover in the Hawks neutral zone and was able to get a step on Deuce and Seabrook, finally ripping a shot past Crawford to tie up the game AGAIN. 4-4 tie.
• Car Bomb had 07:29 of playing time and I can't remember much more than :30 of it. That doghouse sure is cold and lonely.

The Ugly

• Getting outplayed the way they did in the first and third periods, to a team that's just not that good, was unacceptable.
• Just when the Hawks had all the momentum going into the third, the PK let them down again and took away all momentum. Not tight at all.

The Shootout

• Nielsen met Crawford's glove.
• Tazer beat Montoya. All business.
• Niederreiter was stopped, finally, by Crawford.
• Hossa shot it over the net.
• Moulson hit the post

Here are your video highlights:

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Deserted Island

They are just milking the hell out of this Stanley Cup ordeal. I'm as happy as the next guy about last year, and I realize it was technically for the 50th anniversary of the '61 team, but these memorial celebrations are getting slightly out of hand. On the other hand, I suppose you have to have some kind of big ordeal to get people out to watch the Islanders. On to the game...

The Hawks absolutely owned the first period. They didn't exactly light up the scoreboard, but they had a serious advantage in shots, and puck possession time, but led after the first twenty 1-0. The Hawks came out fast in the second and took a quick 3-0 lead and finished the second up 5-0. The Third period was pretty much a snoozefest as the Hawks clearly took their foot off the gas, and almost ruined Corey Crawford's shutout, but he stood tall and held things in check.

The Good

• It's only took a few minutes and 2 powerplays for Shooter to take a pass in his favorite place, the back door, and deposit it just over the Islander goal line. At that point the Hawks were absolutely making the Isles look like a bad AHL team.
  
• "Give-n-a-go, Go-n-a-Give" Pat Foley, you're awesome.
  
• Fourth Line, Energy Line, I don't care what you call them, but I love everything about them, except the amount of playing time they get.
  
• Boss 81 was left wide open in the slot for the Hawks second goal, and Kopecky hit him. The Islanders are just awful. They kept handing it over to the Hawks, and what did they expect would happen? Boss was a +3 on the night, now lets see a little more of that against an NHL team.
  
• Aaaaaaand the Hawks made the Isles pay again on a Kaner one timer goal, off a great feed from Captain Serious. Again, this was like watching the Hawks play a bad AHL team.
  
• Invisi-Bolly even made an appearance last night, and looked like a professional, with a nice top cheese roofer, from Boss 81.
  
• I feel like this is just the Hawks picking on the retarded kid, with Hammer's goal in the final minute of the second. It closed out the scoring, and seriously, it was painful to watch the Isles play.
  
• CrawDaddy finally got his well deserved shutout, and he really DOES deserve it.
  

The Bad

• Nick Leddy finally had his first major goof as he let Michael Grabner by him and in on Crawford. Luckily CrawDaddy was up to the job and made a great save. Welcome to the show, Kiddo. Grabner had another shorthanded breakaway in the second and couldn't even get a flipping shot off. Horrible.
  
• The Hawks really tried to hand the Islanders a goal on their third period powerplay, but, again, they really sucked.
  
• Leddy and Hendry AGAIN had a major gaffe leaving Bailey wide open in front of the net. CrawDaddy bailed them out again. I realize you're up 5-0 and everything, but shit guys, show some effort for your goalie. Speaking for CrawDaddy, you're welcome gentlemen...
  
  
• Zenon Konopka is a complete ballbag. Real tough when you just got shutout 5-0 aren't you?
  

The Ugly

• The only thing Ugly in this game was the Islanders. They had their chances, but they are really a bad team.
  

Here are the video highlights for your viewing pleasure:

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Broad Street Bullies?

It's not often that I throw my two cents in about other teams in the league, but I came across some interesting developments from Saturday nights game between the Flyers and the Islanders, and had to weigh in. The Flyers opened up a whole barrel of whoop-ass on the Isles and things turned ugly fast. First, I give you the part that is actually entertaining, especially for all you people that just watch hockey for the fights. Isles tough guy Zenon Konopka (you have to be a tough guy with a name like that, someone call Johnny Cash), and noted Flyer asshelmet Dan Carcillo square off early in the third period with the Flyers up 4-0. In typical Carcillo fashion the festivities have to start off by giving the opponent a stick to the face. Always classy that Dan Carcillo is. That idiocy aside, you have to admire these two going at it, for this period of time. Imagine, if you will, two MMA fighters having to square off, on ice with skates on. How long do you think that would last? One punch, if they even made it out of their corners. Enjoy...



So, with one minute to go in the game, the Flyers were winning 6-1 and the Islanders were set to kill a 5-3. Flyer Waterbug Dan Briere decided it was time for him to throw in a major cheap shot on a defenseless player. Briere took exception to some yapping before the faceoff by Islander Frans Nielsen, and crosschecks him in the side of the face as Nielsen attempts to engage in the faceoff. At the same time, Carc-asshole punches Nielsen in the back, to complete the tagteam beatdown. This combination of events quickly sends Nielsen to the ice (luckily he doesn't seem hurt), but already killing a 5-3, I'm sure he was looking to draw an infraction. After this, the jackass three ring circus begins. Fragile Islander goalie Rick DiPietro tries to go after Briere, Carc-asshole jumps in, and the laundry gets thrown everywhere. There are quite a few observations I found amusing in this fracas, and feel free to see them for yourself in the video below:



-Rick DiPietro, while I understand his concern for his teammate, needs to keep his ass in the crease (those who know me will smirk at this). The guy is an NHL goalie that can't fall out of bed without getting some major season ending injury (and I'm a marginal Mens League goalie NOT making $4.5 million a year until 2021). Seriously Rick, GM Garth Snow is slitting his wrists watching you chase one of the leagues top douches around the ice. Carcillo wouldn't think twice about laying you out with some complete scumbag move.

-Watching DiPietro not be able to get his PINK blocker off to try and fight makes one giggle. Tough guy, with the glass jaw, in the pink pads can't get his mittens off?

-While I hate Chris Pronger, I had to laugh as he playfully grabs DiPietro and laughs in his face when Dipietro says something to him. I assume DiPietro asked Pronger to let him go after Carcillo, because, eventually, Pronger lets him go with a "go ahead" reaction. The whole time you can tell Pronger is finding this as completely hilarious as I do.

-Somewhere, Dan Carc-asshole just kicked a puppy, spit on an elderly person, and took Halloween candy from a small child.

-If you look at the laundry list of penalties below, from the game, something caught my eye. "New York Islanders - Goalie Leaving the Crease 2 mins - R.DiPietro served by D.Roloson". So, if I read this correctly and I must not be, DiPietro gets his deserved penalty, and it is served by the Isles backup goaltender? Really? I'm quite sure it has to be served by a player ON THE ICE, unless, in fact, there are no remaining players on the ice or on the bench. Interesting, and curious.

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