hokkeynutt

Tonight the red hot, sizzling Hawks will try for a sixth consecutive victory when they visit the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight at Consol Energy Center, without star defenseman Brent Seabrook. As you know Seabs was on the end of a hit from behind by the Flames Rene Bourque Sunday night. Monday it was announced that Bourque will sit two games for the hit. In my opinion, any hit from behind or head hits, if the player being hit is injured, the NHL should sit the player initiating the hit for the same time period as the player being injured. This is one way the NHL can clean this garbage up. But Back to tonight’s game, the Hawks have the most points (46) in the NHL and of late, scoring first seems really important to their success. When scoring first, the Hawks have the game's best mark in the league with a .929 winning percentage. The Pens have been dealt with substantial injuries lately, especially to Sid the Kid and other players which is beginning to take its toll on Pens, who have lost four of its last six games. Although the Pens are without Crosby tonight, this road game is a good test for the Hawks and some NHL experts are calling tonight’s game a possible Stanley Cup preview. I won’t hold my breath. The Hawks have greatly improved in the last 11 games but their schedule gets a LOT more interesting from here on out. Not that I think this Hawks team is bad. Far from it. I think it's very good. I just have no idea how very good. I'm not sure any of us do. Tonight is one of those nights we may get a clue. As I’ve stated before, in my opinion still have areas of the game to fix (see my prior blog posts) and I also still expect Stan to pull the trigger on another solid blue line defensemen and a possibly a top 6 forward. Looking ahead The beloved Hawks will face the Canadiens, Kings, Red Wings (I mean Scum) and the Flyers. These are legit teams sports fans. It’ll be fun to see how the Hawks stack up. Tonight's expected lineup: Stalberg-Toews-Kane Sharp-Kruger-Hossa Brunette-Bolland-Bickell Smith-Mayers-Frolik D-Men: Leddy-Keith Hjalmarsson-Montador O‘Donnell-Scott Brick Layer: Emery (Confirmed) Odds and Ends: - The Hawks have won five in a row for the first time this season and have yet to lose in regulation this month, compiling a 7-0-1 ledger in December. The Hawks are also 9-1-1 since their three-game losing streak from November 18-23. - The Razor has gone 6-0-1 in December after an unimpressive showing in October and November. - The Hawks, who are 10-6-1 on the road this year, will be on home ice tomorrow to host the Montreal Canadiens. - Car Bomb is out again tonight with a head injury sustained in the Wild game. GO HAWKS! Thanks for reading. Scott

Could this be another trap game for the Hawks or another emotionless game? We'll see. Tonight, I am expecting a physical effort from the Ducks as they are trying to avoid a ten game road losing skid and the beloved Hawks are coming off two big OT victories over conference rivals. Who can ask for a better set up for tonight's game? For the Hawks, as I mentioned in my previous post Car Bomb has been diffused and is out of tonight's game. Coach Q is calling it an upper-body injury, but perhaps it is a bruised ego from taking a good beating from the Wild's Brad Staubitz. The Hawks have once again recalled Ben Smith again and I am not certain yet if he will be taking Car Bomb's roster spot tonight (Q just might move Scott to forward on the 4th line and add O'Donnell as the sixth D-man). Razor also gets the call again in net to face his former teammates. With repect to the Quacker's, they have at least one line that can score, and long-time Hawk nemesis Teemu Selanne, and some talented defensemen to boot. The Hawks maintain discipline and intensity to tonight and also continue to improve upon the penalty killing. Tonight's expected lineup: Stalberg-Toews-Kane Sharp-Kruger-Hossa Brunette-Bolland-Bickell Smith-Mayers-Frolik D-Men: Seabrook-Keith Hjalmarsson-Leddy Montador-Scott Brick Layer: Emery (Confirmed) 　 Odds and Ends: - The last meeting between the Hawks and Ducks was on November 25, which the Hawks won 6-5. Tazer recorded 2 goals and 3 assists and Sharpie recorded a hat-trick. That began the Hawks 7-1-1 surge, and Emery has gone 4-0-1 with a 1.75 GAA in six games (4 starts). - Look for Captain Serious to continue his reign of terror. He simply has been blowing the rest of the league away lately, amassing 15 points in his last 9 games. Dayum! 　 GO HAWKS! Thanks for reading! Scott

Heres the Rule: Rule 84.4 in the NHL rulebook governs regular season overtime shootouts, and the rules are largely the same as covered in Rule 24, penalty shots. Here are the salient points: "He shall then place the puck on the center face-off spot and the player taking the shot will, on the instruction of the Referee (by blowing his whistle), play the puck from there and shall attempt to score on the goalkeeper. The puck must be kept in motion towards the opponent’s goal line and once it is shot, the play shall be considered complete. No goal can be scored on a rebound of any kind (an exception being the puck off the goal post or crossbar, then the goalkeeper and then directly into the goal), and any time the puck crosses the goal line or comes to a complete stop, the shot shall be considered complete." If some of you are going to complain about Kaner's shot, I'd be interested to see what you think of Marty St. Louis game-winning shootout goal against the Hawks. Some of the statements made in posts above can be made here too. See link below http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjDC_1dEJfg The shootout rules that applied in his St Louis' shot above " The puck must be kept in motion towards the opponent's goal line and once it is shot, the play shall be considered complete. No goal can be scored on a rebound of any kind (an exception being the puck off the goal post or crossbar, then the goalkeeper and then directly into the goal), and any time the puck crosses the goal line or comes to a complete stop, the shot shall be considered complete. The spin-o-rama type move where the player completes a 360° turn as he approaches the goal, shall be permitted as this involves continuous motion." While I as a Hawks fan thought St Louis's shot was B.S., it did comply with the rules. Just face it two great SO goals scored by two great players

Last night it was a battle between two of the top teams in the Western Conference and in case you missed the ending, see Kaner's shootout winner below in which he totally undressed Minnesota Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom below: I mean how sick was that? When it all said and done, Patrick Kane was leading a victorious Blackhawks team off the ice with a 4-3 win over the Conference Leading Minnesota Wild. Below are a few highlights of last night's game. - the first period was thoroughly dominated by the Hawks who outshot the Wild 11-2 - the Hawks scored another PP goal last night as Hossa scored his 13th goal of the season - Remember "Where's Waldo"? Hawks fans have been asking "Where's Frolik"? Well he has been found as #67 scored last night by cleaning up the garbage in front of the Wild net. Let's hope this continues and he gets hot. - I think last night was the best I've seen Duncan Keith play this season. The Hawks were very strong in the defensive zone from the net on out. This was especially nice to see. - Razor was again strong minding the net as his rebound control was outstanding. - On the Wild's first goal, the linesman blew an obvious icing call, which was apparently waived off for some unknown reason. During the third period, VERSUS reported that one of the officials apologized to Coach Q for missing the call. - Car Bomb gets diffused! Ok, I've said this before and I will say it again... I am a Car Bomb fan but last night he got his ass handed to him. With approximately 3 minutes gone in the second period and after some trash talking, Car Bomb challenged Wild RW, Brad Staubitz to a lil rumble at center ice. After a lil dancin and grabbin by both players, Staubitz landed 4 to 5 rights to Car Bomb's noggin, diffusing him as he dropped to the ice. I like the energy that Car Bomb brings but because he lost the fight, the momentum changed back to the Wild. Moral of the story, If you are going to trash talk and challenge another player to a lil rumble, you better kick his ass. Odds and Ends: - Last night was the fifth time in six December games that the Hawks have gone into OT; they have won four of those five contests (the exception being the shootout loss to Phoenix). - The Hawks are now 7-1-1 in their last nine games and have won three straight. Thanks for reading. Scott

Tonight the beloved Hawks take on the Western Conference leading Minnesota Wild in St. Paul. The Hawks come into tonight's game with a record of 4-0-1 in their last five games and are 6-1-1 in their last eight. The Wild, a team that has greatly exceeded all expectations to date, has gone 7-3-0 in their last ten games losing Tuesday night after winning seven straight contests. Tonight's game is a critical game for the Hawks as the West is ending up being an extremely tough conference. As I have said before, every point counts and this is especially true tonight against a team that the Hawks may be in competition with for a playoff berth or maybe even competing for "home ice advantage". Hawks its time to make a statement and send a clear message to the Wild that you just don't mess with the men wearing the Indian Crest. Razor gets another start in net tonight and it just may be a bit premature to say Razor has won the #1 job from the Crow. Hawks Expected Lineup: Stalberg-Toews-Kane Sharp-Kruger-Hossa Bickell-Bolland-Brunette Frolik-Mayers-Carcillo D-Men: Seabrook-Keith Hjalmarsson-Leddy Montador-Lepisto Brick Layer: Razor (confirmed) Odds and Ends: - Four of the Hawks last five games have gone past regulation. Can you remember the last time this happened? I can't. - The Wild have lost six of the last eight games against the Hawks. - Patrick Sharp had quite the emotional weekend. Scoring two GWG's and bringing his newborn baby girl, Madelyn Grace home. Congrats Sharpie! - Bick's is back in the line up after being a healthy scratch the last five games. This a result of the Hawks sending Ben Smith back to Rockford. Let's hope Bicks got the message and is prepared to start playing better. Thanks for reading. GO HAWKS! Scott

I asked the yesterday, "Which Hawks teams show up tonight?" and the question was answered as I hoped. The Hawks had solid effort last night against the Islanders from the Razor last night and Hossa and Sharpie provided the offense in a Hawks 3-2 victory. It was nice to see the Hawks score first and play well except for a few minor spots during the game that I will touch on later. First, congrats to Hossa for scoring his 400th career goal, it was a lucky one. Two of the goals last night came from the new second line of Sharpie, Kruger, and Hossa. So, kudos go out to the second line. Also kudos go out to the PK last night as the Hawks killed off all six their penalties against the hawt Islander PP unit and are now 27th in the league in the PK. Just think, a lil over a week ago they were at the bottom of the league in 30th. Now for some of the negatives from last night... Car Bomb took a very dumb roughing penalty with a lil of three minutes to play in the game. As I watched the game, it was quite apparent that the Islander players were "egging" him on and he took the bait. Now as I said before I am a Car Bomb fan, I like what he brings to the Hawks, but he needs to be aware of the game situation at critical times, like late in a tie game. Also the forward defense in the defensive zone had two very bad breakdowns that led to both Islander goals. The Islander point men furthest away from the puck were being left wide open allowing for target practice on Razor. For the Hawks sake, most of these shot went wide but two did go in. On the second Islander goal, the Hawks had four players on the far boards all within 10 feet of each other. These are system issues that Coach Q must work out as this is a consistent weakness. 　 Odds and Ends: - Emery is 5-1-2 this season as a backup to Corey Crawford - Did you know that in league scoring Captain Serious is 4th, Kaner is 7th, Sharpie is 9th and Hossa is 13th. Pretty impressive, aye! - Captain Serious is 2nd in the league in faceoff percentage (among regular players) Thanks for reading! Scott

After a dissapointing loss to the Yotes Tuesday (Yotes 4 Toews 3), thats a big question. Think about it for a moment... The beloved Hawks are not as good as their record. Let me repeat that, the beloved Hawks are not as good as their record. I know, I know some of you may be upset at this realization but unfortunately its true. (Move to "Tonight's Game" below if you are afraid to read the next paragraph and face reality). If you are one of those that believes that this is a Stanley Cup team, you need to spend a lil time watching teams like Pittsburgh, Boston and San Jose. The Hawks continue to consistently start games unfocused and unprepared, this coming from a team with a lot of talent (even going back to last season). How many times have we heard at the end of a game, "we did not play a full 60 minutes...". Well why not? Defensively, the Hawks d-men consistently fail to engage anyone physically except for Seabs. Why Coach Q? I am waiting for an answer... Last year the Hawks were terrible on the penalty kill and guess what... again this season it sucks. Hawks' fans you probably would of thought that the PK would have been corrected by now. Hey Q, do we miss Soepel that much? If so tell Stan to get off his azz and bring him back for $500k. Also have you noticed that night after night, it's Toews, Hoss, Sharpie, Kaner or maybe Seabs, who bail the team out (when successful). This is a dangerous way to play hockey over an 82 game schedule. I've said it before and I will say it again... the Hawks need to acquire a stable, veteran (preferably physical) defenseman, NOW! Hey Stan, the longer you wait, the chance that the D-man the Hawks need will be snatched up by another team and hopefully not a conference rival. They also need a true 6th forward. Get busy Stan, you have the cap space! Tonight's Game: Ok, time to catch my breath. Tonight the Hawks take on the Islanders at Long Island. These two teams met less than a week ago and just to remind you, the Hawks escaped with a 5-4 SO win. It was Captain Serious who stepped up (sound familiar) and scored the game winner in the shoot out. The Islanders come into tonight's game having won two straight since losing to the Hawks in a SO with wins over Dallas and the Bolts. Tonight’s Lineup: Stalberg-Toews-Kane Sharp-Kruger-Hossa Frolik-Bolland-Smith Carcillo-Mayers-Brunette D-Fence! Seabrook-Keith Hjalmarsson-Leddy Montador-O’Donnell Netminder: Razor Odds and Ends: - Razor is 4-1-2 with a 2.93 GAA and .890 save percentage (the numbers took a major hit during the Hawks' 9-2 loss to the Oilers). He also has only surrendered two goals in his last three games for a 1.02 GAA. - Bolland is still nursing is right foot that was injured in the game against the Blues on October 6th - With 1/3 of the season completed, without a doubt Toews is the MVP of the league. - The Hawks PP has improved so much that it is now 10th in the league - The Hawks are 5-4-1 over their last ten games. Thanks for reading! GO HAWKS! Scott 　

Less then a week ago the Yotes came into town and gave the Hawks who were returning home for the first time after a two week road trip a 4-1 a$$ whoopin. After chewing up and spitting out the Hawks, the Yotes went up to Winnipeg and lost 1-0 then went home and lost to the Flyers 4-2. Hmm. makes you wonder doesn't it? Look for Corey Crawford to start tonight but he must realize that the leash is getting shorter especially after the performance that Razor had on Saturday against the Blues. I also expect that Car Bomb will hold onto the 1st line LW spot with Viktor Stalberg moving to the 4th line and Ben Smith keeps Bryan Bickell in the press box. Tonight's game is a big one for the Hawks to prove that they now have some real momentum and the proper attitude coming off a huge road won in St. Louis on Saturday. This against a good and well-coached team. Tonight’s Expected lineup: Car Bomb-Toews-Kane Sharpie-Kruger-Hossa Frolik-Bolland-Smith Stalberg-Mayers-Brunette D-Fence! Seabs-Keith Hjalmarsson-Leddy Montador-O’Donnell Netminder: The Crow Odds and Ends - The Hawks are 3rd in the league in goals for - Given that vast improvement on the PP, the PP is now 11th in the league. Just a thought but when is the PK going to improve (29th) - Hossa gets his second chance to get career goal number 400 tonight. - Sharpie has eight goals and six assists in the last 11 games. - My apologies for the lack of analysis on the game with the Blues as I missed that game and did not record it. (My bad) Thanks for reading. GO HAWKS! Scott

For the Hawks, I hope they are not singing the blues as the Hawks head to St. Louis to take on the Blues. But first, a quick look at last night’s game against the Islanders. The Hawks escaped with a 5-4 SO win. Let me repeat the word “escaped.” Captain Serious continues to be a leader on this team and stepped up and scored the game winner in the shoot out as the Islander’s, Matt Moulson, (the final Islanders shooter), shot off the post secured the Hawk’s victory. The Hawks struggled last night against the a team dead last in the Eastern Conference. To put things in perspective, the Isles have exactly 1 more point than the Columbus Blue Jackets. They suck badly or so the Hawks thought. What sucked was: - the Hawks penalty kill, which allowed the Islanders to go 2/4 on the power play. - Hawks being out shot 23 to 7 in the 3rd period. (This after Coach Q emphasized the “team defense” in Thursday’s practice.) - The Crow’s lack of consistency in the net The positives in last night’s game: - Toews - 4th line of Carcillo, Mayers and Brunette - the Hawks power play continues to produce - The Hawks owned the 2nd period - Seeing Ben Smith in the lineup; seeing John Scott and Bicks out of the lineup While last night’s game was an ugly win, a “W” is a “W”. Hmm, didn’t White Sox win ugly a while back? Just saying? This team does need improvement and Q and Stan know it. Let’s just give it a bit more time before we panic. Now to tonight’s game… The Blues are playing strong hockey now although they had their four-game winning streak snapped last night with a 3-2 shootout loss at Colorado. Since Ken Hitchcock took over the reigns the Blues are 8-1-3 and have a very similar home record of 8-2-1. Tonight’s game will prove a big test for our beloved Hawks who previously lost to the Blues 3-0 earlier in the season. If the Hawks play like they did in the 3rd period last night, the Blues will have a cake walk. I hope the Hawks were “just looking past” the Islanders to tonight’s game and are ready to bring their “A” game. We’ll wait and see. Tonight’s Expected lineup: Stalberg-Toews-Kane Sharp-Kruger-Hossa Frolik-Bolland-Smith Carcillo-Mayers-Brunette D-Fence! Seabrook-Keith Hjalmarsson-Leddy Montador-O’Donnell Netminder: Emery Odds and Ends - The Hawks and Islanders play again on Thursday in New York. (The teams haven't met twice in a season since 2002-03.) - The Hawks have allowed 29 goals in their last seven games… This must stop and soon! - The Hawks have issued an A.P.B… has anyone seen Michael Frolik lately? - The Blues lead the league in G.A.A. at 2.00 Thanks for reading. GO HAWKS! Scott

The Kaner experience worked well in the beginning of the season but now is faceoff % is down to around 40. So moving him to wing is ok with me. The Hawks still need another top 6 forward, especially a #2 center.

Tonight the Hawks take on the New York Islanders at the Madhouse. A repeat performance of Tuesday night loss to the Yotes and we’ll all be drinking Long Islands. After a long road trip the Hawks came home and played another emotionless game and the final score reflected it. Just think, it wasn’t that long ago the Hawks had a dominating lead in the Central Division and led the Western Conference. That is no longer the case. Their lead has all but disappeared and a review of their part of the schedule would demonstrate that the Hawks played an easier schedule in the first quarter of the season. The Hawks are now tied with Detroit and hold an insignificant one-point lead in a very tight division over the Blues. Its time to get serious Hawks has this season is quickly becoming a roller coaster ride that everyone would like to get off. Back to Tuesday’s game for a second, didn’t it appear that parts of the Circus Trip (Alberta Swing) resurfaced again. Defensive breakdowns, poor decisions with puck, and line changes being made at the wrong time. But enough of that lets talk tonight. The Islanders come to town and there are a number of things the Hawks need to fix now… 1) Kaner, I am sure in Mite hockey they taught you that when your winger is breaking down the ice with the puck and takes a shot on goal, it would be nice to see you (who is coming into the play from the other wing) stop in FRONT of the net and pick up the damn rebound. STOP skating behind the net. What is there a pretty blonde in the stands behind the net that you are trying to impress? 2) Hawks, when you have the puck, shoot on net. Too many times you are trying to make the pretty play and make another pass or you shoot a high hard wind or over the net. 3) DEFENSE! Need I say more? 4) Crawford, the Crow is in a slump now. He is breaking down and at times scrambling and sliding out to wide or to far in front of the net. Hey Crow, stick with fundamentals, stay square in the paint, get into the butterfly and stop the dang puck. It’s so difficult to figure out this Hawks team. Mostly because this team is going to look drastically different once the important part of the season kicks in. As I mentioned previously, the Hawks are far too dependent on their top two lines, aren’t getting nearly enough contribution from the bottom two lines, have three top-notch defensemen (Keith, Leddy, Seabrook) and three bottom pairing defensemen (Montador, Hjalmarsson, and you pick Scott or O’Donnell). With the above said, the Islanders just might be the team the Hawks need right now to once again start another winning streak and to start playing with some piss and vinegar. A Hawk’s loss to the Islander team would be like eating another bite of a $hit sandwich. 　 Tonight’s Expected lineup: Stalberg-Toews-Kane Sharp-Kruger-Hossa Frolik-Bolland-Bickell Carcillo-Mayers-Brunette D-Fence! Seabrook-Keith Hjalmarsson-Leddy Montador-O’Donnell Netminder: Crawford Odds and Ends: - Take note of the lineup as Q is juggling the lines again. Of note is Krueger centering the 2nd line. Kaner is back on right wing and Car Bomb is down on the 4th line where he belongs. -The Islanders have won their last two games on the road. - The Hawks received a conditional seventh round draft pick from the Senators in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft in exchange for 25-year-old forward Rob Klinkhammer. In his 18 games this season with the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs. Thanks for reading! GO HAWKS! Scott

I did not provide a recap on the Circus Trip so here a quick one...As I previously wrote, I had set the goal for the Hawks to take 7 of 12 points and they came home with 6 points. I can live with that. The Circus Trip started great with an a$$ whooping of the Canuckleheads. Next came the "Alberta Swing" where the Hawks looked like they’d never played hockey before. The final leg of the trip in Wine Country and Highway 1, the Hawks should have won the last three games as they played well enough to win all three but only won in Anaheim and LA. Many improvements still need to be made for the Hawks to seriously contend for the Cup: 1. Duncan Keith must play better: I not sure if he is being pressured to do to much. 2. Where's the Physical play? Free agents, Carcillo (the Car Bomb) and Jamal Mayers have been pretty invisible so far. The Hawks brought them in this offseason to make the team tougher, and they did, for a while. What happened ? 3. Scoring Depth: is becoming a problem for this year’s team. Of the 17 goals they scored on the trip, 11 came from the Hawks’ big guns (Toews, Kane, Hossa and Sharp). The players that the Hawks need to step up and contribute more offensively (mainly Stalberg, Bickell and Frolik) aren’t doing so. While not much can be expected offensively from the fourth line, they haven’t been contributing at all lately. This spells trouble, because if the Hawks’ top four falls into a slump, no one will be there to pick up the slack. 4. Improve the defense: The Hawks have given up 74 goals in total, third worst in the Western Conference. 5. Special Teams must become more consistent. The PP has improved considerably and must continue to produce but the PK SUCKS (see Odds and Ends) 6. I expect the Hawks to trade for a stud Blue Line defensemen and also make a trade for a "true" #6 forward. Regarding tonight's game against the Yotes... The Hawks are glad to be back at the Madhouse on Madison where they have a 7-1-2 record and will face a team on a roll of late, the Coyotes. The Yotes come in with a 6-3-1 record in their last 10 games and also own the 3rd best road record in the West at 6-3-1. The last meeting between the two teams was in Phoenix and the Hawks won handily 5-2. Tonight's Expected Lineup: Brunette-Toews-Hossa Carcillo-Kane-Sharp Frolik-Bolland-Bickell Stalberg-Kruger-Mayers D-Fence! Seabs-Keith Leddy-Hjalmarsson Montador-O'Donnell Netminder: Razor Odds and Ends: - "Turn around Bright Eyes" - Through the Hawks first 15 games, the pp unit scored just five goals. Over the past nine games, the group has scored 11. - Captain Serious is a legitimate contender for the Hart Trophy (He had 10 points (four goals, six assists) in the six games on the trip and is in a tie with James Neal and Claude Giroux for third in scoring in the NHL, just three behind Phil Kessel for the league lead) - SUCK! On the trip the penalty killing was just awful. After not taking a penalty in the first game of the trip in Vancouver, Chicago allowed six power play goals in 18 opportunities, a below-mediocre 67 percent kill rate. - "Madhouse on Madison" - The Hawks play the next 19 of 26 games at home.

It’s only one game but tonight's game against the Sharks is a measuring stick of the Hawks heart and desire. The Circus trip continues tonight in San Jose and it will be interesting to see how the Hawks present themselves after being b*tch slapped the last two games being outscored 14-4. There was no one individual to blame for the bad losses to Calgary and Edmonton but its late November and tonights game will provide a test to determine how well the Blackhawks stack up against a key Western Conference rival. The Blackhawks may be catching the Sharks (12-5-1) at the wrong time. San Jose has scored 13 goals during a three-game winning streak and 20 over a 5-1-0 stretch. If Q decides to change the lineup and would like to seek my advise, I would suggest that Brunette would look pretty good with Toews and Hossa on the #1 line. Next move Stalberg to the 2nd line and Car Bomb to the 4th line. Car Bomb and the 4th line could manage against the Sharks #1 line of Couture, Thornton and Pavelski. Heck its just a thought. Tonight's Expected Hawks Lineup: Offense Stalberg-Toews-Hossa Carcillo-Kane-Sharp Smith-Bolland-Bickell Brunette-Kruger-Mayers D-Men: Seabrook-Keith Leddy-Hjalmarsson Montador-O’Donnell Netminder: Crawford Odds and Ends: - The Mighty Blackhawks are 10-3-1 in the past 14 games against the Sharks - Seabrook and Frolik practiced yesterday, look to return soon to the lineup. I expect Seabs to play tonight.

The Flames torched the Hawks last night and ended the Hawks four game winning streak last night so what does this mean? The Hawks get a chance to start a new one tonight in Edmonton against an Oilers team that has lost four straight. Games like last night's seems to be demonstrate the need for more heart, energy, piss and vinegar on the roster than that which was added in the offseason. Hey Q, please sit John Scott! In my opinion the entire Hawks team looked bad last night especially Crawford giving up two bad goals. This is the part of the game were I hope Coach Q does not burn him out to soon in the season. The Razor has proven to be a viable backup, use him Q, as I expect you to, tonight. The Hawks look to duplicate their effort from last Sunday's victory over the Oilers. The Oilers PK ranked 6th in the league has been pretty solid and the Hawks will need to find a way to keep their powerplay improving going (at least one pp goal in each of the last five games). The success while on the man advantage was a big reason for all of those comfortable 3+ goal wins over the last week or so. Speaking of offense, Sharp and Kane need to have a game; think about it, Hossa, Toews, and Stalberg can't score every night, right? Lets step it up 2nd line. Tonight's Expected Lineup: Stalberg-Toews-Hossa Carcillo-Kane-Sharp Smith-Bolland-Bickell Brunette-Kruger-Mayers D-Fence! Montador-Keith Leddy-Hjalmarsson Lepisto-Scott Netminder: Razor Odds and Ends: - The Hawks are 1-3-1 on Fridays so far this year. - Money to spend; Bowman has $6 million to $7 million at his disposal to improve his team, if needed.

There was a little shuffling of the deck in the Blackhawks lineup these last few days. Everyone saw this coming a mile away, but overpaid and under-talented winger Rostislav Olesz and his $3 million salary was placed on waivers, and then sent to Rockford. Ben Smith joined the team on Thursday and is expected to play on Friday, mainly because… Frolik is injured. Seabs missed the morning skate and is out of the line-up too. Now to the Flames game, With the clowns and elephants occupying the Madhouse on Madison, the Hawks started their annual "Circus Trip" with a bit of payback with a 5-1 ass-whipping of the Canuckleheads. Tonight I expect the Hawks to follow that performance by dousing the Flames in Calgary. The Hawks must continue to play disciplined hockey which they displayed on Wednesday night and stay out of the sin bin. This could be a trap game for the Hawks who must not have a let down after the big win in Couver. I expect Captain Marvel to have the boys in the Indian Crest ready. Expected Hawks Line-up Put-it-in-the-Net=Gang: Stalberg-Toews-Hossa Carcillo-Kane-Sharp Smith-Bolland-Bickell Brunette-Kruger-Mayers D-Men Montador-Keith Leddy-Hjalmarsson Lepisto-Scott Brick Layer: Crawford Odds and Ends -The Hawks power play continues to improve moving from 30th in the league to 19th scoring pp goals in their last four games. - The Mighty Blackhawks have outscored opponents 22-12 in the third period this year. - The Flames have given the Hawks headaches at home. Last season the Flames outscored the Hawks 10-3 in beating the Hawks in their two games in Calgary.

The primary reason the Hawks traded for Olesz was to dump Soupy's $7MM salary on the Panthers. The team needed cap space to sign Barnett, Carcillo, Mantador, Crawford, etc. Bowman knew at the time of taking on Olesz's contract that the chance of him staying on the roster was slim to none. Is he overpaid? Yes, but the Hawks have benefited by removing themselves from Soupy's $7MM salary for the next 4 seasons. And Olesz's contract isup at the end of the season.

Call it revenge, call it payback beyotch, I don't care, you pick. The Hawks were able to avenge their 6-2 loss to the Canucklheads ten days ago, as they came into Vancouver and beat the em last night 5-1. The Hawks played a very disciplined game, got timely scoring and strong goaltending to skate to victory over the Canucks in front of a stunned, towel waving, early leaving Rogers Center crowd. I never understood leaving a game early regardless of score, true Hockey fans stay until the end... regardless. This was not a perfect game by the Hawks as they played a bit chippy and sloppy in the beginning of the first and second periods but a "W" is a "W". Last night the power play scored two more goals and since Coach Q's changes, both units appear to be clicking. The Hawks have now scored power play goals in the last four games. Last night's victory was provided a great start to the Circus trip, let's keep it going boys by putting out the Flames Friday night! Odds and Ends: - Michael Frolik never returned after sliding awkwardly into the boards late in the third period. - Remember when the power play sucked? - As previously noted, Hawks placed winger Rostislav Olesz on waivers Wednesday freeing up approximately $3MM in cap space. Rumor has it that Ben Smith, who was among the last cuts of training camp, would be joining the Hawks.

Car Bomb has been doing well in the forechecking role.

Hello Blackhawks fans... Tonight the Hawks officially kickoff the Circus trip and the Hawks hope to continue their recent success on the November trip, having gone 4-2-0 last season and 4-1-1 during the 2009-10 season. The boys in the Indian Crest kick off a six-game trip with revenge on their minds because the Canuckleheads manhandled the Hawks in their last meeting, scoring five power-play goals. Tonight, I expect a different storyline. The Hawks are improving but still have weaknesses primarily on the power play and the penalty kill. These two areas of the game must continue to improve. It is also important for the Hawks to score first (they are now 8-0-1 when scoring first) and silence the Schmuck fans. Lastly, look for the Hawks not to take the stupid, selfish penalties that they did in the first meeting between the two teams. Keys to the game: - The 25th ranked Hawks Penalty kill must shut down the Canucnkleheads 2nd ranked Power Play. - The Bolland line matching up with the Sedins - Crawford controlling the rebounds Odds and Ends: - Duncan Keith missed the first game against the Canucks two weeks ago because of injury, I expect him to bring some killer intensity to the game. - Dave Bolland practiced yesterday and is expected back in the line up. - Unlucky #7, Seabs, will not play due to a lower body injury. - Canuckleheads starting goaltender, Baby Luongo is sidelined with an upper-body injury and will sit out tonight's game. Expected Hawks Line-Up: Offensive: Stalberg-Toews-Hossa Carcillo-Kane-Sharp Frolik-Bolland-Bickell Brunette-Kruger-Mayers The D-men: Montador-Keith Leddy-Hjalmarsson Lepisto-Scott Netminder: Crawford Hawks lets start his trip with a bang! GO HAWKS!!!

The Hawks placed Rostislav Olesz on waivers today. NHL teams have 24 hours to claim Olesz and if he isn't picked up by another team could be headed to Rockford of the AHL. Olesz was aquired when the Hawks traded Campbell and his $7 million-plus salary per season to Florida. If Olesz heads to Rockford, the Hawks would still be on the hook for his salary of $3.4 million, but would gain $3,125,000 of cap room. This is important as I expect Bowman is looking for another D-Man to secure the blue line or another scorer (center) to help the power play. With Olesz waived, I expect Brandon Saad to join the team and fill the 23rd roster spot.