Oh Captain, My Captain: Hawks 5, Wild 3

Before I get into it, I have to say that Scott Gomez may be the worst of the between-periods suits I've endured.  Yes, possibly worse than Jughead Jones and the perpetually clueless Mike Milbury.  He offers little in terms of observation, choosing instead to insert dull personal experience anecdotes. When a guy has the biggest ego in the room AND he's sitting next to J.R....well, that's special.

Back to it. The first period was a fast-paced and exciting frame, but it wasn't so much end-to-end hockey as it was a series of three or four minute spells in which each team pressed hard and created chances over several shifts.  In one such sequence The Hawks rolled four lines without Minnesota getting the puck into The Hawks zone.  No goals, though, so on to the second.
And that frame, apart from an irritating miscue by Duncan Keith, was all Hawks, getting goals by Toews off a rebound and Panik, courtesy of a sharp feed from Toews.  Once The Hawks went up 2-1 they weren't really troubled...until the third.
And even that looks flattering on paper for The Wild.  A missed assignment by TVR plus a legit PPG got Minnesota close but, in response, Nick Schmaltz and Jonathan Toews put together their best period all season.
First, it was Schmaltz, scoring on a floater from the left circle for the third time this year ("floater" is a relative term when we're discussing NHL players, BTW) and, midway through the period he hit Toews with a diabolical pass from behind the net that The Captain expertly backhanded past Devan Dubnyk.  An empty-netter to complete Toews' hat trick rounded out the scoring.  

Before I fall asleep, some Bits:
- While The Wild did enjoy some periods of sustained pressure The Hawks outshot and outskated them comprehensively.  The Wild had two opportunistic goals, which still count of course, and may serve as vivid reminders for The Hawks to continue to apply themselves at all times, even when everything appears to be going as planned.  Chicago was only one more error or cheap penalty away from the game being tied, after all.
- Corey Crawford had a good outing, giving up nothing truly soft.  At the other end Dubnyk was actually very good, as well, so all credit to The Hawks for touching him up for four goals against, something that's only occurred four other times this season.
- Keith had a night worth forgetting, having gift-wrapped The Wild's first goal as well as committing a number of bobbles and poor passes.
- Three of The Hawks' four lines had several excellent shifts, the Kruger line being less of a factor tonight.  Kane & Co. put together some typical shifts in which MN struggled to touch the puck but, on the flip, found themselves pinned in their own end a few times, also.  The fourth line were exciting and effective, especially in the first half of the game, only undone by their lack of polish.
Which then brings us to

Toews, Panik and Schmaltz had themselves a time.  Schmaltz played with more confidence than I've ever seen, hanging onto the puck a little longer than usual, working the half wall effectively and keeping his feet moving when he didn't have the puck.  Panik brought his usual chaotic tenacity, which doesn't always amount to anything but was just fine tonight.  Toews, however, was a demon, particularly behind the net, flashing those crazy eyes throughout the game and notching a career best five points to boot.

So, another two points and Minnesota denied two in the bargain. I don't know if these two victories over The Wild will have enabled The Hawks to truly get inside their collective head, as The Wild were in this thing until the end, but it can't have hurt.  I expect their final regular season tilt to be a doozy.