Juskay, I'll be watching the season finale of Survivor tonight with my family. I'm thrilled that Hawks had the early game.

Juskay thats why you need 4 tv's buddy..i told the family that the 50" HD was strictly for sports ..or psp3 ..its all good..right now im about to dispose of the AV's if Seabrook wouldnt keep giving the puck away! but i wouldnt mind watching a little miss USA..but its hard to get that beer to stay on the wife's back without falling off..lol

I'm on the damn nightshift all week so I missed the games today. Anybody gets in trouble, I'm going to let them drown out of spite.

Well, well, well....look who just tied an NHL record with their 7th straight road win. Seems we're just a bit better than our detractors think we are. Can we get some credit from the haters?

When is the Pavelski line gonna show up? Oh yeah....the Toews line is eating their lunch for them. Jumbo Joke and Co.....yeah, right. Our D is shutting them down for the most part. Let's not forget about Niemi....fantastic!!

SJ simply can't stay with us. Speed kills, and it's been deadly against the Sharks. Friday night is gonna be rocking at the UC. SJ had best do something to rectify their game, because it aint working against us.

Ok so it seems there are alot of questions for me to answer...

1. I've been on vacation and didn't have access to a computer which is why I haven't been posting.

2. Jonathan Toews originally wore #9 everywhere he played, but with it being retired (Bobby Hull) he took 19 instead. Funny story about this is that they asked him what number he would wear right after he was drafted and without thinking he said "9 afcorse". Everyone got a good laugh about that including Hull.

3. I live in Montreal so I may make quite a few posts relating to the team simply because we get a ridiculous amount of coverage on the Canadiens here, but in terms of a favorite team, I am always and ONLY a Blackhawks fan. In case anyone is wondering how that happened, the first game my dad took me to was Habs vs. Hawks at the ol' Forum. He prefaced the game by telling me how dominant the Habs were. Where they lost 5-2 that night and the rest as they say, is history.

That just about covers it. Now, on to the series...

Game 1 was one of the most entertaining 2-1 games I've ever watched. It seemed as though the two teams traded chances all game and went end to end from the first to the last minute. The difference was clearly Niemi who made several huge saves in tight including a sprawling "save of the playoffs" candidate.

Game 2 was a little different. It seemed that when the Hawks picked up the pace of the game the Sharks simply couldn't keep up. Dave Bolland was fantastic in this game shutting down "Big" Joe and frustrating him to no end. San Jose seemed to have no answer for the Hawks speed and transition game in this one and that, paired with a questionable opening goal on Nabokov gave the Hawks a relatively easy win.

All that being said, I've been impressed so far in these two games with how the Hawks seem to never stop coming. They look relentless on their forecheck and cycle and at times have really controlled the offensive zone.

Ahhhhh....It feels good to be back, lol.

I really thought SJ was faster than they are. I guess not. We're owning them in that regard. It was also nice to see the refs call a square game. Jumbo Joke crying about that slash in the faceoff circle was priceless.

Beware of Torrey Mitchell...He's got serious wheels and the way he played in the 3rd, I would expect him to get a primetime chance in game 3.

They can have 10 Tori Mitchells....it won't matter.

I'm very nervous about tomorrow night's game. They're down, and we cannot let them back up.

Apparently the team will be staying at a hotel to simulate being on the road. They need to keep it simple, bring the same intensity as they did in game 2 and they should be fine. Isn't about time for Marian Hossa to get on the board here? He's been solid defensively and has created some turnovers in the offensive zone, but it just doesn't seem to wanna go in for him. Still, he's doing all the little things right a team needs in order to advance.

Woo-HOOOOOO!!! What a great win on a night we had to come out strong at home. Both teams really played well, and the goalies were stellar. Nabokov kinda fell asleep before the puck got centered and Buff buried it. Before that, he and Niemi were both playing at a level that wins Stanley Cups.

The 4th win is the toughest, and Sunday will be tougher than most. SJ will likely raise their game even more as they're in 100% desperation mode. They'll have nothing to lose and everything to gain. The Hawks need to respond in kind.

Toews is easily the best young money player in the NHL. He raised his game in the Olympics and is doing it again here in the playoffs, leading the league in scoring. Add in his tremendous two-way play and you can have anyone else in the leaue under 24 years old....I'll take Johnny.

Quote: Originally posted by banned_muddy on 5/21/2010Toews is easily the best young money player in the NHL. He raised his game in the Olympics and is doing it again here in the playoffs, leading the league in scoring. Add in his tremendous two-way play and you can have anyone else in the leaue under 24 years old....I'll take Johnny.

I would go as far as to say that 1, he is the best skater in the playoffs so far this season by a mile, 2, he has definitely entered the discussion of best all-around player in the NHL today, and he may even get a few votes, and 3, he has absolutely shown this year (Olympics and Playoffs) that he is the best player in the NHL right now at elevating in big games.

The scary part? He still has alot of growing to do as a player and will only get better.

On a side note, a friend brought up an interesting question today as the Hawks inch closer to the finals. Considering the record amount of wins this season, and the great depth of the team in a "perfect storm" of a salary cap situation if you will, if this team goes on to win it all, should they be considered the best Blackhawks team of all time? It's quite a statement if you think about it, but IF they win, I don't think it would be that far-fetched. What do you guys think?

And by the way, I do mean the best "single-season" team, just to clarify.

I think they'd better win at least one more game, or they'll go down as the biggest Blackhawk failures of all time.

Quote: Originally posted by toddcommish on 5/23/2010I think they'd better win at least one more game, or they'll go down as the biggest Blackhawk failures of all time.

No disrespect was meant todd. It was just a hypothetical question. Believe me I'm always the one trying to keep things in perspective. I know the Sharks are more than capable of winning 4 in a row, especially with Big Joe playing like he did in game 3. While we're on the subject, are you hearing anything about a possible Dany Heatley injury? I think he's definitely playing hurt.