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Blackhawks simply amazing

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163279535_slideWhat more can be said about the Blackhawks? Every single game it seems as though they do something else to get a win that just blows your mind. I’m honestly not sure if there are anymore appropriate adjectives that have not been used to describe this team. They are simply amazing.

Tonight’s game against the Avalanche was bound to be a tougher one for the Blackhawks, who played a good team in the Minnesota Wild just a night earlier. However, just before puck drop, tonight’s game got even tougher. Marian Hossa was announced as a last second scratch from the lineup with what the Blackhawks are calling an “upper body injury.” No word on how or what happened to him.

As for the game itself, the Avs gave the Hawks just about all they could possibly handle and threatened to end The Streak at 23 games.

The first period got off to a bit of a slow start, with each team registering 3 shots through about the first 7 minutes or so. Then with 8:43 gone in the period, Cody McLeod was given a two minute minor for roughing, sending the Blackhawks to the powerplay. On that powerplay, Brent Seabrook launched a rocket of a slap shot from just inside the blue line that was redirected past Semyon Varlamov by Andrew Shaw. Hawks were up 1-0.

With just under two minutes left in the first, Colorado tied the game on a nice play that resulted in John Mitchell backhanding a shot over the left pad of Ray Emery. This was a big goal at the time because it gave Colorado all the momentum heading into the first intermission.

In the second period, each team had a few decent scoring chances, but only the Avs were able to put one in the back of the net. At the 13:17 mark in the period, Matt Duchene wristed a shot off the side/back of Ray Emery that ended up crossing the goal line. This was a goal that Emery would no doubt like to have back.

Patrick Sharp had a really good second period as he registered four shots on goal. A couple of them were high quality scoring chances, including a two on one with Viktor Stalberg that Varlamov denied. The period would end with the score 2-1 in favor of the Avalanche.

Early in the third, Michal Rozsival was called for hooking, sending the Blackhawks to the penalty kill. On the ensuing kill, Jonathan Toews scored a beautiful shorthanded goal after taking a pass from Dave Bolland just inside the Colorado zone. Leave it up to the Captain to will his team back into the game.

As the period progressed, each team had their fair share of chances, but both goalies stood tall and made all of the stops. That is until there were just 49 seconds left in the game…

163279294_slideWith just under a minute left to play, Marcus Kruger carried the puck in towards Varlamov and let go of a good wrist shot from the left circle. The puck hit Varlamov and eventually found its way in behind the net. Kruger then won the puck battle and fed a perfect pass in front of the net to a wide open Viktor Stalberg for a one-timer. Varlamov made the save, but gave up a rebound. After multiple hacks at the puck from players of both teams, Daniel Carcillo finally was able to backhand a shot past Varlamov to give the Hawks the lead. A classic on-ice celebration ensued.

The Blackhawks were able to hold off Colorado for the remaining 49 seconds, and The Streak still remains in tact now at 24 games (or 30 going back to last season). This was also the Blackhawks’ 11th straight victory. While we’re on the topic of streaks, with tonight’s win Ray Emery became the first goalie in NHL history to start a season 10-0 (there are too many streaks surrounding this team that it’s getting hard to keep track of them all).

While this was a memorable game for the Hawks and us fans, not all is well concerning this team.

Near the end of the second period, Andrew Shaw took an elbow to the head from Paul Stastny and was clearly shaken up. He struggled to get back to the bench, and never ended up returning to the game.

About a quarter of the way into the third period, Patrick Sharp was checked into the glass by Ryan O’Byrne and was visibly in a lot of pain right away. Holding his left shoulder, he could hardly skate off the ice and immediately went into the Hawks’ dressing room. He would not return to the game either. In the postgame interview with Joel Quenneville, he said that Shaw will be reevaluated tomorrow and that Sharp will likely “miss some time.” Q was asked if Sharp could miss the rest of the season and responded by saying, “I don’t think so.” That’s not exactly the answer us fans wanted to hear.

As for Hossa, he is expected back in the lineup Friday night in Colorado. Brandon Bollig was sent back to Rockford today and Steve Montador (did you forget about him?) was activated and placed on the active NHL roster.

Now, back to the game itself tonight.

The Avalanche did as good of a job as any team the Hawks have played this year at not allowing them any “open ice.” A huge part of the Blackhawks’ strategy is to use their speed up and down the ice and to play an uptempo game. The Avs did a very good job of not allowing the Hawks to do this. They forced the Blackhawks to play a “chip and chase” type game instead. While the Hawks ended up getting the win, a lot of teams are going to look at the tape of this game and try to replicate what the Avs were able to do defensively.

163279531_slide (1)Having said all of that, this team never gives up and once again found another way to win despite being majorly shorthanded in terms of forwards. Of all players on this roster, who would have expected to see Dan Carcillo out on the ice in the last minute of a tie game, and who would have predicted that he’d score the game winning goal with just 49 seconds left? The Blackhawks have 21 wins this year, and after tonight’s game, 13 different players on the team have recorded a game-winning goal. That is incredible. You won’t find another team in the NHL who can say that.

Ray Emery. Just like the team he plays for, what more can you say about this guy? He set the all-time NHL record tonight for most consecutive wins by a goalie to start a season (10). Now to be completely honest with you, I was surprised to learn that no goalie had ever gone 10-0 before. But nonetheless, that is pretty impressive for him to have set that record while being the team’s number two goalie.

The Blackhawks head to Colorado for a rematch with the Avs on Friday night. Could the thin air in the Mile High City be the factor that ends the Hawks’ streak? We shall wait and see. While I would love to see this team go 48 games without a regulation loss (they won’t), a few losses will actually help the Hawks come playoff time. They need to know what it’s like to battle back and win games after losing one or two. I bet if you ask Joel Quenneville, he would agree.

That’s all for now. Thanks for reading.

Blackhawks beat Wings in a shootout

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163018073_slideToday’s game between the Blackhawks and Red Wings was as close to a playoff game as you will find during the regular season. Quick-paced and physical play, incredible goaltending, and low scoring. That is the best way to describe the playoffs, and that is exactly how today’s game was played.

If the Detroit-Chicago rivalry wasn’t a good enough reason for the Red Wings to want to win this game, then the fact that the Hawks hadn’t lost in regulation yet this season should have done the trick. Based on the way the Wings played, you could tell they wanted this one badly.

The fist period was pretty much dominated by the Blackhawks. Much of the period was spent in the Detroit end as the Hawks peppered Jimmy Howard with 9 shots on goal. Howard stopped all 9 and seemed to set the tone for the rest of the game. Detroit was able to get off just 3 shots through the first 20 minutes of action, and like Howard, Corey Crawford had an answer for all 3.

163012908_slideThe second period was a much more intense period than its predecessor. Both teams were putting a ton of pressure on each other at both ends of the ice and generated multiple Grade-A scoring chances. Jimmy Howard and Corey Crawford, however, played like brick walls and came up with huge save after huge save. It almost seemed as though they had a personal battle going between one another to see who could come up with the biggest, best saves. After two periods, the game remained scoreless, but the shot totals grew to 21-18 in favor of the Hawks.

The third period was filled with just as much intensity as the second. Just 2:43 into the third, Tomas Tatar beat Crawford with a one-timer that was setup beautifully by Joakim Andersson from behind the net. It was at this time that it appeared as though the Hawks’ streak may be coming to an end.

As the third period moved along, both sides continued to get decent scoring chances, but both goalies kept on making the big saves. There must have been more highlight-reel saves in this game than every game from Saturday night (9 games) combined.

Then with 2:25 remaining in the third, Jonathan Ericsson was given a 2-minute delay of game penalty for shooting the puck over the glass from inside the Wings’ defensive zone. On the ensuing Blackhawks’ powerplay, after Patrick Sharp’s slap shot from the point was blocked in front of the net, the puck dropped to the ice and Viktor Stalberg was able to backhand a pass to Patrick Kane. Kane, all in one motion, caught the pass and let go of a wicked wrister that beat Jimmy Howard over his left shoulder to tie the game. Stalberg’s pass was a thing of beauty and couldn’t have been more perfectly placed. After Kane’s goal, there was just 2:02 remaining on the clock.

In the dying moments of the game, Johan Franzen backhanded a shot that beat Corey Crawford and hit off the post. That would have been an incredible turnaround in the game had that puck gone in. Then with 1:23 left in the game, Niklas Kronwall was hit with a delay of game penalty for also shooting the puck out of play from his own defensive zone.

The Wings would keep the Hawks from scoring in regulation and the game headed to overtime.

In overtime, Detroit killed off the rest of Kronwall’s penalty to put both teams at even strength. As was the case throughout all of regulation, each goalie (Crawford especially) came up with some big time saves to keep their teams alive. No goals would be scored and a shootout was on the way.

After Datsyuk, Toews, and Brunner were all denied on their shootout attempts (three of the best players in the NHL at shootouts), Patrick Kane pulled out another incredible move from his bag of tricks to beat Howard and put the Hawks in front.

Henrik Zetterberg was Detroit’s last hope to extend the shootout, and Corey Crawford denied his attempt to win the game for the Blackhawks.

This was by far one of the best regular season games I have seen in recent years. A couple of the Hawks’ other top regular season games that I can remember off hand both involved the Red Wings and Joe Louis Arena (all three were ironically on NBC and day games).

If there was ever a game that the Hawks were going to lose to end their incredible points streak, this was it. Detroit gave them all they could handle. Corey Crawford played possibly his best game ever today and personally won them the game. Yes, Kane came up with the big 2 goals, but Crawford made a countless number of major saves on great scoring chances from Detroit.

The Blackhawks are playing with a never-die attitude this year. Regardless of any adversity that they have faced, the Hawks have overcome it and found a way to get at least one point. Today was a perfect example of this. They found themselves trailing late in the game in a hostile environment and could have easily crawled up into a ball and let the Wings walk all over them. But they didn’t. They shook off Tatar’s goal and never gave up.

I said in my last blog that if the Hawks were to lose any of their upcoming games, this one would have been it. Now that they have avoided doing just that, I give up on trying to predict when they’ll lose. If they take a night off and don’t give everything they’ve got, that is when they will lose. Every team they play is going to bring their best effort to try and end this streak, so the Hawks need to be on their toes night in and night out.

My three stars of today’s game for the Blackhawks would have to be 1) Corey Crawford 2) Patrick Kane 3) Brandon Saad. Saad had 5 shots on goal.

Side notes: This was Marian Hossa’s 1,000th career game……….The Blackhawks’ streak of not losing in regulation is now up to  28 games dating back to last season.

 

The Streak is still alive

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162944136_slideWe are almost half way through the NHL season as the Blackhawks have played 21 games, and they still have yet to lose a game in regulation. The previous record of 16 straight games to open a season with a point held by the ’06-’07 Ducks is long gone, and the Blackhawks are showing no signs of slowing down.

There really isn’t a lot left to say about this team that hasn’t already been said during this incredible streak. To make it short and sweet, the Blackhawks are the best team in hockey right now, and the hottest team in professional sports. They are winning the games that they should win, they are winning the close games, and now they are winning the games that they really shouldn’t be winning.

Last night’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the worst team in the NHL, was one of the worst game the Hawks have played this year. Sure you can blame it on the fact that the Hawks played the night before in St. Louis, but the fact of the matter is that the lowly Blue Jackets almost ended the Hawks streak at 20 games. Yet, the Blackhawks still prevailed in overtime and have now gone 21 straight games to start the season without a regulation loss. In fact, if you go back to last season the Hawks have now gone 26 straight regular season games with at least a point. That’s good for third all time.

In order to win a lot of games in a season, you need your top players to produce. In order to go on a streak like the Blackhawks are on and in order to win a Stanley Cup, you need production from top to bottom in your lineup. The Blackhawks are getting both. Their top players such as Toews, Kane, Hossa, and Sharp are all producing offensively, but so are their third and fourth line guys. Over the past 2-3 games, the Blackhawks best line has arguably been their third line of Bryan Bickell, Andrew Shaw, and Viktor Stalberg. All three players are creating chances and sustaining pressure on the opposition, and all three are scoring goals. Last night both Stalberg and Bickell recorded goals, Thursday night Shaw had a goal, and last Sunday night it was Shaw who had the lone goal in the Hawks’ 1-0 victory over the Blue Jackets. It’s not just the top two lines of this team that are beating their opponents, and that is what makes the Blackhawks so hard to play against.

162777149_slideThe biggest question mark coming into this season was their goaltending. Now, that might be the most consistent part of this team. Night in and night out, whether it is Crawford or Emery in the net, the goaltending has been great. Both players are tied for the third most wins this year (9), Crawford is first in goals-against average, and both are in the top 10 for save percentage (Crawford ranks second). What more could you possibly ask for from your goalies? Even when Ray Emery was supposed to have the night off against St. Louis on Thursday, he came into the game in relief of an injured Crawford and shut out the Blues for the final 2 periods (the two goalies combined for a shutout that night).

Going along the lines of great goaltending is this team’s great defense. The Hawks are first in fewest goals-against per game, and rank second on the penalty kill. This is thanks in large part to the improved play of Keith, Hjalmarsson, Oduya, and Leddy. If you look back at the recent Stanley Cup winners, every one of them has been near the top of the league in goals-against per game. Last year, the Kings ranked second, in ’10-’11 the Bruins ranked second, and in ’09-’10 the Blackhawks were sixth. It’s not always about how much you score, but how rarely you get scored on, and the L.A. Kings of last year are the perfect example of that. They ranked 17th in goals scored per game during the regular season.

A lot of people, myself included, thought that the Blackhawks’ streak was going to end this past Thursday in St. Louis. Jonathan Toews and the rest of that first line put an end to that prediction just 12 seconds into the game. Looking forward, their toughest upcoming game has to be tomorrow afternoon in Detroit. The Wings and Hawks always play close games against each other, and I would expect nothing different tomorrow. If the Hawks win that one, then I really have no idea how long this streak could last. It’s kind of scary to think about (in a good way).

Updated Oduya Stat: The Blackhawks are now 30-2-7 with Johnny Oduya in the lineup since getting him at last year’s trade deadline. 

History has been made!

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With tonight’s 2-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks, the Blackhawks set the all time NHL record for most consecutive games to start a
season while earning at least one point. The Hawks (14-0-3) have now played 17 games this year without a regulation loss. I will have more on this sometime tomorrow.

Jannik Hansen gets 1-game suspension

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After a hearing with the NHL’s disciplinary office this afternoon, Canucks forward Jannik Hansen and head coach Alain Vigneault both seemed optimistic about the hearing. Vigneault even stated, “I don’t know why we had that conference.”

Well, apparently Brendan Shanahan saw things differently and as a result handed Hansen a 1-game suspension for his elbow to Marian Hossa’s head. Shanahan pointed out that once Hansen realized Hossa had the inside position on the play, Hansen clenched his fist and “carelessly” extended his forearm to the back of Hossa’s head with no intention of playing the puck. The fact the Hossa was injured and did not return to the game, along with Hansen’s clean history in the league, led to the 1-game ban. Had Hansen been previously penalized by the league, he may have been looking at a 2-3 game suspension.

I said it earlier this week in my blog that it wouldn’t take much of a spark to re-ignite the rivalry and hatred between the Hawks and Canucks. After what happened in Tuesday night’s game, it is safe to say that the rivalry and hatred between the two sides is back in full swing.

Blackhawks tie record; Canucks and their fans never change

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162159760_slideThe Blackhawks’ win on Tuesday night over their rival Vancouver Canucks marked their 16th straight game to start the season with at least one point. That ties the all time NHL record set by the Anaheim Ducks in the ’06-’07 season. While most people would assume that the Blackhawks would be celebrating this accomplishment, the general attitude of the Hawks and their fans following last night’s game was pretty subdued. This was due to the fact that not only did the Hawks blow a 2-goal lead in the last 4 minutes of regulation, but Marian Hossa had to be helped off the ice after a blow to the back of his head.

The game started off with a very fast pace. Within the first 10 minutes of play, a total of 5 breakaways had already taken place; 3 for the Hawks and 2 for the Canucks. Incredibly, no goals were scored. Then with just over 13 minutes gone in the first, Daniel Sedin lit the lamp with a soft backhander that somehow found its way through Ray Emery’s legs, giving Vancouver a 1-0 lead. The score would stay that way heading into the second period.

Again, the second period started off with a fast pace just like the first, but with no breakaways for either side. After generating a few good scoring chances, the Hawks finally beat Corey Schneider to tie the game. Patrick Sharp scored his 4th goal of the season after a nice feed by Kane left Sharp open to Schneider’s right for a wide open slap shot. The puck found its way right through the five-hole and into the back of the net.

About 7 minutes later and on the powerplay, Marian Hossa scored on another slapshot from the opposite side of the zone to give the Hawks a 2-1 lead.

Then, only about 4 minutes after Hossa scored, he scored again for his second of the game. In typical Marian Hossa fashion, he won the puck battle along the boards in the corner to Schneider’s right, fought his way to the front of the net, and somehow was able to sneak the puck into the net between Schenider and the post. He literally had maybe only 3-4 inches between Schneider and the post, but he was able to get the goal. This increased the Hawks’ lead to 3-1. It would stay that score until late in the third.

With a little under 3 minutes remaining in regulation and the Canucks on the powerplay, Alex Edler beat Ray Emery with a slap shot from just inside the blue line to bring Vancouver within 1 goal. Then, a little over a minute and a half later and with Canucks’ net empty, Kevin Bieksa’s slap shot beat Emery again to tie the game and send it to overtime.

No one was able to score in OT, even though the Hawks outshot the Canucks 5-1.

In the shootout, Patrick Kane and Andrew Shaw (yes, Andrew Shaw) both scored for the Hawks, and only Chris Higgins scored for the Canucks giving the Blackhawks the W.

However, aside from the Blackhawks record-tying start to the season, the biggest story from last night’s victory was Jannik Hansen’s hit on Marian Hossa. With only 1:10 gone in the third period, the puck was deflected high into the air around center ice, and both Marian Hossa and Jannik Hansen went to try and “grab” it.

620-hossa-blog-thumb-620xauto-275678Hossa, with his head looking up at the puck and his hand ready to catch it, was elbowed in the back of the head by Hansen and fell face first to the ice. He would remain on his stomach for a good 2-3 minutes before getting helped to the dressing room. He would not return. After seeing the replay, it is clear that Hansen was not going for the puck and that he intentionally hit Hossa in the back of the head (he has a hearing with the NHL at 2:30 CT today). Whether or not he actually tried to injure him, we’ll never know. But it is clear that Hansen was not going for the puck. I happened to be at the game last night, and when the replay of this was shown on the scoreboard, there was not a fan in that stadium who didn’t want to personally “greet” Hansen after the game.

Following the game, Joel Quenneville stated that Hossa seemed “okay,” and that they’ll know more today on his condition. Coach Q also declined to comment in any detail about Hansen’s elbow to Hossa’s head.

As for the Vancouver side, their head coach, Alain Vigneault, tried to argue that the play did not deserve a penalty (Hansen was assessed a 2-minute minor for roughing) and that only when Toews went out to talk to the refs did they call the penalty. When asked if he thought Hansen would receive any discipline from the NHL, Vigneault answered “No chance.” Hansen told reporters after the game that “it was a hockey play,” and that he didn’t even realize he hit Hossa until the refs told him. He also said that he was “just going for the puck.” Yeah right…

Over the past 4 years, I along with every Hawks fan, has grown to hate the Canucks for their non-stop, cheap-hitting, dirty play. Whether it is Burrows pulling Keith’s hair, Daniel Sedin elbowing Duncan Keith in the head, Torres launching himself at Seabrook’s head, or now Hansen elbowing Hossa in the head, it is always something else with those low-lifes. Their head coach might be the biggest reason for it, too.

Alain Vigneault doesn’t seem to think that anything his players do warrants a penalty or any discipline. Whether it was Torres’ hit on Seabrook, Sedin’s elbow to Keith, or Hansen’s elbow to Hossa, every time he says that his players did nothing wrong. There is a theory in the sports world that states “a team plays the way they are coached.” That might not be anymore evident than in the case of the Canucks.

It is extremely hard for me to not let my emotions fly on here when talking about the Canucks. I absolutely despise everything about that team and their coach, and I feel that I am being polite when saying that. Even their fans are some of the worst in sports.

1297188843628_ORIGINALRemember when the Bruins won the Cup 2 years ago, in Game 7, in Vanvouver, and the Canucks’ fans lit the city on fire? Remember when Zdeno Chara was handed the Stanley Cup by Gary Bettman and Canucks’ fans proceeded to throw cups of beer in Chara’s direction? After Hansen’s hit on Hossa last night, the Vancouver fans used Twitter to express their pleasure with the hit, calling Hossa a “wimp,” an “actor,” and saying that they were “glad” Hossa got hurt on the play. It’s a good thing those people live 2,000 miles away from Chicago and in a different country, because I don’t think I could handle it if they lived any closer, and I would be embarrassed to call myself an American along with them.

I could go on for hours about the Canucks and their fans, but I won’t.

All in all, the Blackhawks again blew a late lead and ended up in overtime. They have got to  step up their late-game play and win these games in regulation. At the same time, I won’t complain about their historic start.

Let’s all cross our fingers and hope that Hossa is okay. Here’s the replay of Hansen’s hit:

On the Brink of History

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161923285_slideWith Sunday’s 3-2 win over the defending Stanley Cup champion L.A. Kings, the Blackhawks made it 15 straight games to start the season without a regulation loss. The 2006-2007 Anaheim Ducks set the all-time record for consecutive games to start a season without a regulation loss at 16 games. If the Blackhawks can avoid losing to the Canucks in regulation tomorrow night, they will tie that record.

The only 2 teams in NHL history to make it at least 15 games without a regulation loss (1984-1985 Oilers and the Ducks) both won the Stanley Cup. While that is an interesting statistic and one that bodes well for the Hawks, it really means nothing. There is a lot of season left and then the playoffs, so a lot can still happen.

Right now, the Blackhawks are 3 games into their 7-game homestand and are 2-0-1 in those 3 games. In their first home game of this 7-game stretch, last Tuesday against the Ducks, the Hawks lost 3-2 in a shootout. They had a 2-1 lead heading into the third, but then allowed the Ducks to score with only a few minutes left in regulation, which sent the game to OT.

Friday night against San Jose, the Blackhawks dominated from start to finish and won 4-1. Even though the Sharks were, and still are in the midst of a free fall, that was a good win for the Hawks against a Sharks team that started the season 7-0. Jonathan Toews really helped to set the tone in that game by fighting a much bigger and much tougher Joe Thornton.

Yesterday, the Hawks continued their winning ways by defeating the Kings 3-2. The Blackhawks looked great through the first 40 minutes of the game, but then let their guard down in the third period and allowed L.A. 2 powerplay goals.

If there has been a weakness of the Blackhawks this season, it has been their recent trend of letting teams back into the game in the third period. Last Tuesday against the Ducks, the Blackhawks really controlled much of the first 2 periods. Then came the third period, and the Hawks seemed to resort to strictly playing defense and clearing the puck out of their own zone. It looked as though they had no interest in burying the Ducks with a huge third goal, and instead were intent on defending their own net for the last 20 minutes. As a result, the Ducks tied the game and won in a shootout. Yesterday was the same story.

After absolutely dominating the defending champs through the first 2 periods and leading by a score of 3-0, the Hawks backed off again in the third, took a couple bad penalties, and before you knew it were only up by 1 goal. If it wasn’t for the clock running out at the end of the game, I am sure that L.A. would have tied it had they had another 2 minutes to play. The Hawks were lucky to get out of there with a win, and only because the Kings ran out of time at the end of the game.

Moving forward, the Blackhawks are going to need to develop and consistently display that “killer” instinct of putting away their opponents when they have a late lead. They cannot continue to let other teams gain momentum in the third period and steal games from them that the Hawks should have won.

Having said all of that, the Blackhawks are still 12-0-3 and lead the NHL with 27 points. They have beaten many good teams already this year and are showing no signs of slowing down. Their powerplay has picked up a couple of goals now over the last few games, which is encouraging, but their penalty kill gave up 2 third period goals yesterday to the Kings. I guess you can’t always be perfect.

keslerTomorrow night will be another big game for the Hawks as they welcome Vancouver to town for the first time this season. The Canucks have played pretty well lately and just got Ryan Kesler back from injury. On top of that, their whole goalie “controversy” seems to have evaporated as both Luongo and Schneider are playing very good as of late. Although the last meeting between these two teams wasn’t as physical as most fans would have expected, all it takes is one little spark to set off the always-present hatred between the two sides.

Interesting stat: Since acquiring Johnny Oduya at last year’s trade deadline, the Blackhawks’ record is 24-2-7 with him in the lineup.

MLB Hall of Fame Voting

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roids_bondsTomorrow, the Baseball Writer’s Association of America (BBWAA) will announce this year’s inductees to the MLB Hall of Fame. Some notable names on the ballot for the first time this year include Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa, and Craig Biggio, among others. Some guys on the ballot like Mark McGwire, Jeff Bagwell, and Rafael Palmeiro are hoping to get elected after having already been on the ballot in years past. As you may have noticed, every player I just named except for Craig Biggio has been linked to steroid use at one time or another, and that is what makes this year’s HOF ballot so interesting.

sammy_sosa_before_afterHad they never been accused of using steroids, Bonds, Clemens, Sosa, McGwire, and Palmeiro would all be first-ballot hall of famers (Bagwell is a bit more questionable, and we will soon find out about Biggio). Bonds has the all-time home run record, Clemens has over 300 wins and is third all-time in strikeouts, Sosa has over 600 home runs, McGwire topped the 500 home run plateau, and Palmeiro has over 500 home runs and more than 3000 hits. For those who are unaware, 300 wins, 500 home runs, and/or 3000 hits used to be 3 of the unofficial requirements to get into the Hall of Fame. However, those players who have been linked to steroids and who have achieved those requirements are by no means assured of getting into the Hall of Fame, as evidenced by McGwire’s and Palmeiro’s history on the ballot.

mcgwire-before-afterToday I was listening to Tim Kurkjian talk about this year’s ballot. Kurkjian is a veteran baseball writer and gets to vote on who is elected to the HOF. He said today that he voted for Bonds and Clemens to get into the Hall of Fame, along with a handful of other guys that I have not mentioned. Needless to say, I was shocked. How could a baseball writer of his caliber and his and knowledge vote for guys who have been linked to steroid use? Also, how can he vote for Bonds and Clemens without voting for Sosa, McGwire, or Palmeiro? Like I said before, they all have Hall of Fame-worthy statistics, so why should only Bonds and Clemens get in? If you’re going to vote for 2 who “deserve” it, then you have to vote for all who have qualifying statistics. His reasoning for voting steroid-users into the HOF was that most players were using steroids during the ’90s and that these guys were the best among those players. He said that you have to look at the circumstances and judge a player based off of those. I couldn’t disagree more.

Cheating is cheating, period. No one should be allowed into the Hall of Fame who cheated in the game of baseball by using steroids or other PED’s. I don’t know how to make it anymore clear-cut than that. Regardless of their statistics, if they cheated, they don’t deserve the Hall of Fame. I realize that of the names I mentioned only Palmeiro and McGwire have been proven to use steroids, but I think most of us know that the others are guilty as well, which is something that no professional sports writers will ever publicly state.

Screen-shot-2012-09-10-at-8.53.34-PMOne last thing, and this if for Major League Baseball. How can these steroid guys be placed on the HOF ballot and the all-time hits leader, Pete Rose, can’t be? (In fact, Rose is banned from baseball for the rest of his life for supposedly betting on games while he was still playing and managing.) Rose never cheated while playing. He never did anything to make himself better besides hard work. Yet he is ineligible to be placed in the Hall of Fame, and these cheaters are not. Just think about that one for a while.

I am really anxious to see what percentage of votes these guys are going to get tomorrow. It takes 75% to be put in the HOF, and I will bet that no one I mentioned (besides Biggio) will get more than 50%. I hope I’m right.

We Have a Season!

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580465_491885590858202_1121775306_nThe NHL and NHLPA came to a tentative agreement this morning to end the NHL lockout. This came after an apparent 16-hour meeting between the two sides. It sounds like the NHL would like to play a 50-game season, but 48 games may be more likely. I had said in my blog yesterday that a 40-game season would be played if the lockout ended, but it appears more games will be played.

Coaches are going to be in full scramble-mode now to try and get their players into good enough shape for a season. Injuries could be a huge factor early in the season after not much of a training camp or preseason. Since this season will be significantly shorter than usual, it will be the teams that start off hot, avoid injuries and losing streaks, and put together winning streaks that end up making the playoffs. Teams that normally don’t make the playoffs will end up making the playoffs this year. Like I already said, it is going to come down to who starts off on the right foot, who has a hot goaltender, and who can avoid injuries.

The regular season this year will be as intense as ever with each game having a more significant impact on who makes the playoffs. It is going to be a sprint to the finish, and a good one at that. I am pumped and can’t wait for the first puck-drop. Finally, we can say there will be hockey.

An NHL Season?

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940-bettman-fehr-8colReports are beginning to surface from different NHL analysts that the NHL and NHLPA are starting to gain some “traction” and that a deal could be agreed upon within the next 24 hours. While I do not want to jump the gun in any way here, this is some encouraging news and has gotten me thinking about a possible NHL season.

I heard the other day on ESPN that if a deal is made and agreed upon within the next week that a 40-game NHL season would begin on January 19. If a deal is made sometime in the next 24 hours like some sources are reporting, that would give players and coaching staffs about 13 days to prepare and get ready for the season. Keep in mind that a number of players are currently playing in Europe, and there are still some free agents on the market who did not sign on with a team prior to the lockout. Nonetheless, it is safe to assume that all teams will be a bit rusty if a season does being on the 19th.

Heading into the lockout, the Blackhawks had not made any significant moves in the off-season to upgrade their roster. They needed/need to be stronger on defense, they need a more reliable goaltender, and they absolutely need an actual number two center. Before the lockout, they signed defensemen Sheldon Brookbank and Michal Rosival in an attempt to add depth on their blue line. However, those were the only moves that they made. If the season were to begin on January 19th, we would be looking at mostly the same roster from last season.

The Hawks finished the 2011-2012 season with 101 points and 6th in the Western Conference. They were eliminated from the playoffs in the first round by a more physical Coyotes team who also had a dominant goalie. While 101 points is by no means bad, this is a Blackhawks team who underachieved for most of last season and in the playoffs. They have the offensive firepower to contend in the West, but their physicality and goaltending are what will hurt them this year just as was the case in last year’s playoffs. Shane Doan, the most notable free agent who did not sign with anyone before the lockout, is the exact player that the Blackawks need. I talked about him a couple of times over the summer, but I will say it again. He is a big physical presence on the ice and is a great leader in the locker room. Last year, he recorded more hits than anyone on the Blackahwks, and he did this as a forward. He has also been the captain of the Phoenix Coyotes for a number of years now. Both of those attributes would provide a huge boost the the Hawks’ roster. Unfortunately, it sounded like he was leaning toward either resigning in Phoenix, or signing in Vancouver before this lockout began. If and when the lockout ends, I don’t anticipate any change in heart by Doan to sign elsewhere.

From the sounds of it, this may be the closest that the NHL and NHLPA have come to agreeing on a new CBA. If a deal is done and done soon, look for a number of teams to make quick transactions in an attempt to bolster their rosters. At the same time, it is entirely possible for some free agents to stay on the market for a week or two into the season before they get signed. Either way, if a season is played (whenever that may be), it will be extremely interesting to see how each team approaches the quick transition from off-season to season. For now, however, all we can do is hope that a deal is made soon.