Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr

And so, the last game between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Columbus Blue Jackets as Central Division rivals ended the way it started this season — with a one-goal win by the Blackhawks.

(Except this one was via the shootout, which shouldn’t even be a thing, but whatever.)

» Continue reading “Ciao, Lumbus!: Chicago Blackhawks 2, Columbus Blue Jackets 1 (SO)”

Only goal scored. Only goal needed. (Photo: Mel Boysen/flickr)

One of these days, sooner rather than later, the Columbus Blue Jackets will learn how to score. Hell, they had a few good chances against the Chicago Blackhawks tonight, with only a couple of bad bounces off of the post keeping them off of the score sheet.

» Continue reading “Boring But Effective: Chicago Blackhawks 1, Columbus Blue Jackets 0″

Yes, officer, I saw this man running away with two points. (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

On a night where the Blackhawks deserved to get exactly zero points out of this game, they somehow came away with two, and it was all thanks to Ray Emery.

Emery saw a career-high 47 shots and stopped 45 of them before blanking the Calgary Flames in the shootout. Remember, this is a guy who was last in net two weeks ago against the Phoenix Coyotes. Guess his hip is good and oiled now.

» Continue reading “I’d Like To Report A Robbery: Blackhawks 3, Flames 2 (SO)”

Yes, let’s focus on this guy today. (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

• The Chicago Blackhawks take on the Vancouver Canucks tonight at 9pm CT. The game will be aired on Comcast Sportsnet in Chicago.
• Previews: NHL, Chicago Tribune, Second City Hockey, The Committed Indian
• Corey Crawford will be in net for the Blackhawks, because Ray Emery‘s hip still needs oiling. (@ChrisKuc) Roberto Luongo will backstop the Canucks. It’s best if we don’t get into what’s going on in net for Vancouver. It’s not pretty. (@VanCanucks)

» Continue reading “Warmups: Who Are The Blackhawks Playing Again? …Oh, Right.”

The game saver and the game winner. (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

The last time the Chicago Blackhawks went 4-0 to start the season, it was in 1972. (By the way, after that hot start, the Black Hawks won one more game before they went into a seven-game slump. Let’s hope history doesn’t repeat itself there, huh?) It wasn’t easy, but after Kari Lehtonen stoned them early in the game, the team found a way to solve him and get the two points.

Let’s break down what happened after the jump!

» Continue reading “4-0: Blackhawks 3, Stars 2 (OT)”

More hugs like this in front of the Stars’ crowd tonight, please. (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

• The Chicago Blackhawks take on the Dallas Stars tonight at 7:30pm. The game will air on Comcast Sportsnet in Chicago.
• Previews: NHL, Chicago Tribune, The Hockey Writers, The Committed Indian, Second City Hockey
• Corey Crawford will be in net for the Blackhawks. (@ChrisKuc) Kari Lehtonen will backstop the Stars. (@StarsInsideEdge) Please pretend to be surprised by either of these announcements.

» Continue reading “Warmups: I Got The Moves Like A Year-Old Joke”

Dumbass! I’ve almost kind of missed you, sorta, but not really! (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

It’s been a while since we’ve actually talked about Blackhawks hockey stuff on here, so there are some things you might have forgotten about. Let’s get everybody caught up!

• Daniel Carcillo is our dumbass for two more years.
• Ray Emery is here for another year.
• Jamal Mayers re-signed for another year, as well.
• Johnny Oduya re-signed for three years.
• Mike Haviland was fired from the Blackhawks. The Blackhawks hired Jamie Kompon, former assistant coach of the Los Angeles Kings, to replace him.
• The Blackhawks signed two free agents over the offseason, Sheldon Brookbank and Michal Rozsival.
• Sami Lepisto is gone, but other than that, last year’s team is intact. Whether this is a good or bad thing remains to be seen.

And that’s what you forgot — or tried to forget — over this extended offseason!

Toews leads the team during practice. (Via @adamjahns/Twitter)

The NHL might be locked out, but that doesn’t stop the Blackhawks from getting a skate in.

Most of the team that has already made their way to Chicago — including Jonathan Toews, Jamal Mayers (who worked the whistle), Patrick Sharp, Dave Bolland, Steve Montador, Johnny Oduya, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Marcus Kruger, and Sheldon Brookbank — skated in an informal practice today at Johnny’s Ice House West. Ben Smith, Brandon Pirri, Adam Clendening, and Jeremy Morin also joined the group, along with ex-Blackhawks Brian Campbell, Ben Eager, and Troy Brouwer. (Chicago Sun-Times)

Funny thing about this lockout — the Blackhawks can go to Johnny’s Ice House West to practice, can wear their own practice sweaters — but they can’t use their locker room. (@TimSassone)

» Continue reading “Fresh Brew: Blackhawks Continue To Practice”

Three more years. (Photo: the_mel/flickr)

Along with formally announcing the signings of Jamal Mayers, Mac Carruth, Joakim Nordstrom, Klas Dahlbeck, and Kent Simpson that occurred over the holiday weekend,  the Blackhawks also announced the re-signing of defenseman Johnny Oduya for three years at $3.375 million/year, according to CSN Chicago. This is slightly less than his last contract, which had a cap hit of $3.5 million/year.

According to Stan Bowman, the signing was all about Oduya’s “fit” within the Blackhawks:

“We brought Johnny in to solidify things down the stretch, and I think he played a big role in the turnaround of our team. It was pretty evident that his style of hockey complemented our style, and it made our players better,” Bowman said. “I had a good meeting with Johnny at the end of the year and he made it clear that he wanted to be in Chicago. He could have gone anywhere; the fact that he wanted to be back and he helped us made it a simple decision for us.”

I know a lot of people are bothered by the price. The Blackhawks certainly overpaid… a little. But, honestly, when you look at other defensemen in the league that are in the same skill set at Oduya, they’re all making about the same amount (which means, yes, a lot of teams are overpaying for defense).

And please don’t give me the whole “Oduya cost us the Coyotes series,” because I went over that when the Blackhawks were bounced. By that line of logic, the Blackhawks should get rid of half the team. (If you really think the Blackhawks should get rid of half the team — wow, thanks for stumbling across my site, Steve Rosenbloom.)

And so, the Blackhawks begin their summer vacation early again this year.

But not before facing the media.

(The links will lead to videos on the Blackhawks website.)

Joel Quenneville on…

Assessing all areas: “The one thing is you got a nice core here — you got a nice group of guys here, and that gives you a chance every year — a chance to win a championship.”
Competitive playoffs: “Everyone wants to find a way to get done.”
Complementing the core: “I think team chemistry is something, going forward, should be a concern.”
Goaltending: “In Corey’s case, we expect him to get on that track where’s he’s going to get better.”
Need for size and toughness: “Our D — they move the puck well.”
Areas of need (such as a second-line center): “Strength in the middle is important.”
The power play: “This year from the outset, it struggled all year.”

» Continue reading “It’s Blackhawks Locker Clean-out Day”