Blackhawks '18-'19

#201      

ChiefIllini

C
ChiefIllini
I never see a point in winning any games if you have zero shot at the cup. The Hawks have zero shot at the cup this year.

That being said, I will 100% root for them to win during each game, and I'm not going to be upset if they win. The benefit of hoping a team tanks is also not being upset if they lose.
 
#202      

Alfonz24

A
Alfonz24
ChiefIllini said:
I never see a point in winning any games if you have zero shot at the cup. The Hawks have zero shot at the cup this year.

That being said, I will 100% root for them to win during each game, and I'm not going to be upset if they win. The benefit of hoping a team tanks is also not being upset if they lose.
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Agree with rooting for the wins. And they seem much more exciting to watch right now and knowing we have defensive help on the way. A healthy Murphy and Dahlstrom is helping the defense. It will be interesting what moves we make at the trade deadline.

I also looked back at the 2007 - 2008 season when it all started to click. We were 23-25-5 and finished the season at 40-34-8. Going 17-9-3 to finish the season just missing the playoffs.
 
#203      

Joel Goodson

Joel Goodson
respect my decision™
Joel Goodson
4.5% chance to make the POs. Needless to say, unlikely. But so much more fun to watch them play as of late. The PP is torrid. A few months ago it was beyond bad. Yeah, lots of defensive flaws, but the team is competitive and getting better.
 
#204      

Illiniaaron

I
Geneseo, IL
Illiniaaron
I agree with all of you, wanting your team to tank is just no fun. Much more interesting to watch wins on TV. Witness the pile of garbage that is the Bulls. Tanking for a high draft pick seems to be the only strategy they are pursuing for the past two years.
 
#205      

Joel Goodson

Joel Goodson
respect my decision™
Joel Goodson
Good road win last night. 5 game win streak. If they beat Vancouver, this just may be a thing. 7 of the next 11 are home games. Schedule is markedly easier than what they just went through.
 
#206      

Joel Goodson

Joel Goodson
respect my decision™
Joel Goodson
Biggest game of the season tonight. Edler is out, so that helps. Looking forward to seeing The Alien. Hope we can neutralize him.
 
#208      

Joel Goodson

Joel Goodson
respect my decision™
Joel Goodson
Should have won in regulation. Perlini, ugh. What a play by Toews. And how bout that pass from Strome to Cat? Our PP is verging on sublime, so fun to watch.

6 straight. Red Wings next (Sunday), at home and they play on Saturday.
 
#211      

Joel Goodson

Joel Goodson
respect my decision™
Joel Goodson
Beat the Bruins tomorrow night, and we have a chance at a monumental streak. Run the table in February? So much more fun than tank commander mode.
 
#212      

bdutts

bdutts
Houston, Texas
bdutts
Joel Goodson said:
Should have won in regulation. Perlini, ugh. What a play by Toews. And how bout that pass from Strome to Cat? Our PP is verging on sublime, so fun to watch.

6 straight. Red Wings next (Sunday), at home and they play on Saturday.
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It's surprising how bad the PP was with Q over the past 3 or 4 years with essentially the same personnel. It's so good right now, you think they will score on every one. I can't imagine that Eric Gustafsson is the reason they are doing so well.
 
#214      

JIllini

J
JIllini
The game at Boston feels huge tomorrow for momentum. Would be a great win going into a stretch of very winnable games.
 
#217      

Ramrod2010

R
Ramrod2010
We're having a FIRE sale, everything must go!

tenor.gif
 
#218      

Illiniaaron

I
Geneseo, IL
Illiniaaron
Geez, last night was like a mid-eighties game against the Oilers except Ottawa is one of the worst teams in the league instead of the best. Goaltending was garbage. Hawks only a point out of the playoffs. Weird.
 
#219      

Alfonz24

A
Alfonz24
Illiniaaron said:
Geez, last night was like a mid-eighties game against the Oilers except Ottawa is one of the worst teams in the league instead of the best. Goaltending was garbage. Hawks only a point out of the playoffs. Weird.
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Wind was blowing out last night.
 
#220      

Joel Goodson

Joel Goodson
respect my decision™
Joel Goodson
Illiniaaron said:
Geez, last night was like a mid-eighties game against the Oilers except Ottawa is one of the worst teams in the league instead of the best. Goaltending was garbage. Hawks only a point out of the playoffs. Weird.
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Complete stuff show. Offense is definitely not the problem. While it was refreshing that Seabs was out, Dahlstrom is regressing, big time. Now that we're back in the PO hunt, I'd seriously consider bringing Jokiharju back up. Really like the way Kahun is playing. Think Crow could help?
 
#221      

bdutts

bdutts
Houston, Texas
bdutts
Joel Goodson said:
Think Crow could help?
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Not enough...defensive is way too porous right now. He may end up with a save percentage of 93% but for 40 shots, that's still letting 3 in. Won't be able to win playoff games that way.
 
#222      

bdutts

bdutts
Houston, Texas
bdutts
Illiniaaron said:
Geez, last night was like a mid-eighties game against the Oilers except Ottawa is one of the worst teams in the league instead of the best. Goaltending was garbage. Hawks only a point out of the playoffs. Weird.
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Anders Nillson was Hawks property as part of the Nick Leddy trade. He didn't look very good yesterday, although his D didn't help. Delia was just plain bad. 2 of the three he allowed were soft.
 
#223      

Joel Goodson

Joel Goodson
respect my decision™
Joel Goodson
bdutts said:
Anders Nillson was Hawks property as part of the Nick Leddy trade. He didn't look very good yesterday, although his D didn't help. Delia was just plain bad. 2 of the three he allowed were soft.
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More softies yesterday than DQ.
 
#224      

Illiniaaron

I
Geneseo, IL
Illiniaaron
Joel Goodson said:
Complete stuff show. Offense is definitely not the problem. While it was refreshing that Seabs was out, Dahlstrom is regressing, big time. Now that we're back in the PO hunt, I'd seriously consider bringing Jokiharju back up. Really like the way Kahun is playing. Think Crow could help?
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Even if the Hawks could somehow make the playoffs I don't think they're going anywhere. I would just let Crawford sit the rest of the year. Then he can come back hopefully fresh next year if he wants to keep playing. With his recent concussions I'm assuming retirement might be an option at this point.
 
#225      

Joel Goodson

Joel Goodson
respect my decision™
Joel Goodson
Illiniaaron said:
Even if the Hawks could somehow make the playoffs I don't think they're going anywhere. I would just let Crawford sit the rest of the year. Then he can come back hopefully fresh next year if he wants to keep playing. With his recent concussions I'm assuming retirement might be an option at this point.
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Crow won't retire, he'd be leaving $6M on the table. If he can't play, he'll go on LTIR (like Hossa).

Very doubtful they'll go anywhere in the playoffs. That said, it's something they can build on going forward. Considering where they were, making the playoffs would be a pretty darn good feat.