A sports blog by and for Midwest Sports Fans
It took longer than fans and players had hoped, but the Chicago Blackhawks won their first game of the series Tuesday night with a 7-2 blowout. It was very reminiscent of the 7-1 victory over Vancouver all the way back on November 20th and of the offensivee strength of last season.
But is it too early to talk about or consider a comeback?
The Chicago Blackhawks did not start the last week of the NHL season off right, losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-0. Adding to the problem were win by Dallas and Calgary, moving wach to just points away from grabbing the eighth seed from the ‘Hawks.
Plagued by mediocre defense and lack of depth in the regular season, repeating has looked like an almost impossible task for the defending Stanley Cup champions.
While there may be some forces working against the ‘Hawks, there are some that still are in their favor.
Here are five reasons the ‘Hawks have a chance to repeat their 2010 playoff run in 2011.
With Jack Skille traded to the Florida Panthers, the Chicago Blackhawks made a statement saying they are in the business of negotiating.
Something needs to happen, and that’s becoming more and more apparent as the weeks go by. Inconsistency has plagued this team, and it could cost them a playoff spot.
The Blackhawks currently sit at the 11th spot in the Western Conference, three points behind the eighth seed. Making a trade, maybe even dealing a top player, might be sensible. It could be the one way shake things up and get some consistency into the team.
Here we will look at five possible players that could be dealt before the deadline.
One player we didn’t see much of last season, but who I am positive we’ll see a lot from this upcoming season is Dave Bolland.
He did start the season, but was out for the majority of the middle of the season after undergoing back surgery. He came back in the later part of the year, but had a really hard time readjusting after being off the ice for so long.
Last season Bolland played 39 games. He scored 6 goals and had 10 assists, small numbers for a guy who, his rookie season, scored 19 goals and had 28 assists for a total of 47 points, and in his first postseason racked up 16 points in just 22 games.
That’s why I believe Bolland is in a perfect situation to have a “breakout” season.
It’s that time of year again for the Chicago Blackhawks.
If you are a Hawks fan you know exactly what I mean. This is the time of the year when the Circus comes into Chicago, forcing both the Bulls and Blackhawks to go on a 2-week road trip.
The Hawks go into their 2-week road trip confident after winning four straight games. They sit at the 3rd spot in their conference and 1st in their division.
