Disappointing End to a Good Season

NASHVILLE, TN -- It's taken me a while to figure out how to write this post.

I'm heartbroken, to say the least. I can't even really talk about the game, because frankly, there's not much to say except that I'm glad Jonathan Toews scored.

So, where do we go from here?

Honestly, I don't think this team sucks, or is a bad team. Inconsistent is probably a better word, and Patrick Kane sadly said it best last night: "Maybe we won a couple close games [in the regular season] that might have made us feel like we were better than we really were."

I think the Hawks did go into the playoffs a) complacent and b) overconfident. And those two together create disastrous results. But, I don't think they're a bad team. They just got overconfident.

Well, what do we have to look forward to this summer?

First, Kane has already said he's going to Worlds to play for the United States, which isn't a surprise. I'd bet Artemi Panarin will go for Russia, and a few other players will likely play for their countries as well. Especially since the NHL hates fun and nixed the Olympics as an option next season.

The Vegas draft is in mid-June, and they'll announce their roster at the NHL Awards at the end of June. Which, speaking of the NHL Awards, I do think Coach Q should be nominated for the Adams award. I really do. But, that's beside the point and not up to me.

(But, as soon as all of the nominations are out, I do plan on making a post here about my picks--I already have a few in mind with the ones that have been released thus far.)

I think the Hawks will benefit from another long summer, especially after such a bitter ending in Nashville. They certainly have a lot to think about in the coming months, and I for one cannot wait to see them back in action in October.

As for me, I'm going to continue to write posts over the summer, and I already have a few in mind, including my take on the Vegas draft (who I think the Hawks might lose), the NHL draft (who the Hawks might draft), my NHL Awards picks, any trades/signings the Hawks make over the summer, and preseason stuff once it gets closer.

So, we're in for a long summer. Let's do this.

EDIT: It's looking more like Patrick Kane will not attend Worlds this year, but Marcus Kruger and Artemi Panarin are likely. Niklas Hjalmarsson and Jonathan Toews both said they will not attend.

Comments

Checking In - Breaking Down the Blackhawks' Play Over a Month

CHICAGO, IL — I’m going to be absolutely real with you—I had no idea what to write about for the blog this week. I’ve written about the Blackhawks being good, bad, and everything in between, I’ve written about Patrick Kane a couple times now (#Kane4Hart), and I’ve even written about the best goal celebrations from the Hawks this season. The idea tank is running dry, my friends. So, I thought we could throw it back to a post I made a while back about what the Hawks really needed to do to make the playoffs, and grade them on how well they're meeting all three of those items a couple of weeks later. Let's just get right on into it, shall we? 1) With 27 games left, you have to go 18-9 to get to the 88-90-point range that would potentially get them into the playoffs. So, the Hawks currently sit at 71 points through 70 games, and since the date of this article (February 8th), the Hawks have gone 9-6, which is not terrible, but also only gives them a b...

Another Hat Trick for Patrick Kane Sends Hawks Into Fifth Straight Win

CHICAGO, IL -- The Hawks are certainly on a hot streak. In the past week and a half, they've beaten some of the top teams in the league--and have made it look way too easy. Tonight was no different. I was a bit worried about this game, only because the Pittsburgh Penguins are a team to reckon with. But, with guys like Kris Letang, Bryan Rust and Conor Sheary out due to injury, and the fact that they're coming off a loss to the Dallas Stars last night... The Hawks did have the upper hand to begin with, I think. But, the Penguins came out strong and tough, as usual, and the Hawks certainly rose to the challenge. The first period was basically a bust. I thought the Hawks had some great shots on goal, but Marc-Andre Fleury played incredibly well that first period and prevented anything from going through--even back-to-back Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook wristers. I was a little frustrated with the refs blatantly ignoring calls on both sides. The Hawks did manage to draw...

Break-Up Day - Blackhawks End of Season Locker Room Clean Out

CHICAGO, IL — After a nice finish on the season with wins over the St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars (and a loss to the Nashville Predators that we're going to ignore), the Blackhawks are officially in the off-season. The team held their annual locker room clean out, and I thought there were a lot of great takeaways from the clean out day. Obviously, the Hawks didn’t finish where they wanted to, but I think that was made up for when they moved from the 12th overall pick to the 3rd pick in the 2019 NHL Draft Lottery that took place on Tuesday. I’ll probably do a quick piece on who the Hawks should be looking at and what their options are for the draft in the coming weeks, so keep an eye out for that. But, in the meantime, lets go over some of the topics that came up in the clean out presser. IIHF World Championship The past couple of years, a handful of Blackhawks players have participated in the IIHF World Championship, which takes place in early May. A coup...

Sports with Megs

Search This Blog