Rocky Mountain High: Hawks 3, Avalanche 2 (OT)

First off, I completely missed the Thursday match between The Hawks and The Wild.  Between guests and a pain in the ass snowstorm I couldn't get it done.

Alright then, to the matter currently at hand.

The Hawks are finally starting to look like the team I thought they could be.  Not everything was perfectly executed tonight but, refreshingly, there were no catastrophic unforced errors that cost them.  Their puck movement was more swift and crisp than it's been in ages, forwards are getting back more regularly and passes were on the mark for the most part.
After a sterling first period there appeared to be a slight letup in the second frame.  Much of that was due to COL getting it together, especially their forecheck, and The Hawks took awhile to up their intensity accordingly.
Patrick Kane Had a Big Night, figuring on all three CHI goals and just looked good all night.  He's been far more engaged than say, three or four weeks ago, when he was often just going through the motions with no joy, no impetus to excel.  Kaner has often connected well with Gustafsson since Gus was called up late last season and, now, Strome is getting in that action.  More than any other Hawks, perhaps other than Toews, those two get what Kane is up to and can either get the puck to where he's going to be or get themselves where they know Kane will find them.
DeBrincat Cashed Yet Again and had several other good looks, yet I worry that he's putting all of his chips on the one-timer from the left circle.  If and when that gambit fails to work I hope he changes his approach accordingly, lest he fall into the doldrums that befell the previous residents of that patch of ice, Panarin and Sharp.
Collin Delia Was Sublime.  My only issue with Delia's play is rebound control as he often pops those straight out into the slot.  That, apparently, is the last thing that goalies get right, if they ever get it right, and with a mere five NHL starts under his belt he's barely even started his apprenticeship.  That's fair enough.
I Hardly Noticed Seabrook and Dahlstrom tonight and that's just perfect.  Big Carl and Murphy played a lot of hard minutes against MacKinnon & Co. and were even on plus/minus which is a big win.  As for Seabs, his memorable games in recent months have been riddled with giveaways and other calamities and there was none of that tonight.
Special Teams Were Actually Special again, hitting for two PPG out of five tries and killing two of three PK.  The PPG against, scored by Rantanen, was a ridiculously well-placed shot through a screen, so I'm not gonna pin that one on the PK or Delia - some shots are just always going to go in. Puck movement and positioning on the PP started off great but lost momentum as the game progressed, but at least we're getting more zone time, more shots and more goals, generally.
Hilariously, Foley Twice Praised Perlini for not touching the puck and avoiding a too many men penalty, rather than calling him out for jumping the boards way too soon.
John Hayden's Hold on a Roster Spot is precarious right now.  His ice time is dwindling and he's one of the few minus players in the last several games.  At the moment I'm failing see what he does apart from protect the puck pretty well, but then do nothing productive with it.

Next: The Winter Classic vs. Boston on Tuesday.  The Hawks have not fared well in these affairs in recent years but, if they can replicate tonight's first period somewhat they'll be just fine.

John Denver - Rocky Mountain High

The Honeymoon Is Over: Panthers 6, Hawks 3

I hoped it wouldn't happen but I kinda thought it would - The Hawks lost the focus they'd had the last few games.  While they were okay in fits & starts The Panthers were sharper, more alert and better able to pounce on the opportunities that arose.  The Hawks seemed tired....not physically, really, but it often looked as if they were acting on the first impulse that occurred to them and not bothering to take a second look to see if a better avenue was available.
Cam Ward didn't have his best tonight, not especially mindful of his positioning and he made a mess of things on Hawryluk's first goal, letting himself get caught in-between.
Carl Dahlstrom wasn't super sharp either, blowing a tire (maybe with some help, hard to tell for sure) on that first FLA goal and apparently unaware that McCann was heading to the net to score the decisive, momentum-killing goal.
Toews' Line Was Out Of Sorts, skating hard enough, trying stuff, but their timing was all messed up, gacking passes, whiffing on shots...
The Only Plus Players For The Hawks were Murphy and Strome which is exactly how it looked to me in real time.  Granted, Strome's first assist was a right-place-right-time deal but he was there, right, and his pass to Murph was tremendous.  As for Murph, a couple of points and four hits makes for a good day at the office.
Is John Hayden Hurt or did he commit some terrible mischief to be scratched in favour of used-up Chris Kunitz and shoot-first-from-anywhere Brendan Perlini?  I've been generally in agreement with Coach Colliton's deployment but these two, buddied up with Nilsson making his NHL debut tonight, made for a rather weak fourth line, even by fourth line standards.

Oh well, we weren't going to win the next 40 games but it is disappointing to see The Hawks backslide so soon, and against some low-hanging fruit like FLA.  I guess they just started their holiday-days-off a day early.

Next: At home vs. Minnesota on Thursday, in an attempt to reclaim their recent mastery over Central Division foes.  Can't wait to see Seabrook sweating gravy.

The Cruel Sea - The Honeymoon Is Over

Double Your Pleasure: Hawks vs. Dallas and Hawks vs. Colorado Wraps

Wow, three in a row, and all against Central Division teams, which is mighty handy.  What's more, the special teams have actually been kinda special, the PP going 2/7 and the PK a perfect 8/8 over these three wins. We're approaching uncharted territory now, folks.  
I'm just catching up after watching each of these games a day late so enjoy this two-fer at no extra cost.

Thursday - Hawks 5, Stars 2

There were a few wee issues, nothing that they didn't get right eventually, and The Hawks benefitted from DAL fighting the puck a lot of the time but, ultimately, they were good enough and I'll take that gladly. 
Cam Ward Was Excellent.  Evidently, Wardo called the team out after the blowout loss to SJS and all respeck to the guy for walking the walk after talking the talk.  He was maybe a little soft on the second Stars goal but hey, if he's the one kicking these guys into action he can have that one.
Breakouts were not as tight as against NSH but the failed attempts did not, at least, result in goals against. Keith again struggled to clear the zone efficiently, notably on the first PK when he gacked two pretty standard clears, making me wonder if he's losing his mind or if he needs glasses.  It's a fair and serious query.
Some Soft Play preceded both DAL goals.  I was gonna call out Dahlstrom, who I think has been a great add BTW, as he was on the ice for both goals against.  On both goals Big Carl failed to contain Radulov but, hey, hardly anyone ever contains that guy.  The greater sins, as it turns out, were Kane failing to cover Seguin on the first and the second goal was a weird one off a squirted-out puck.  Maybe Saad had a chance to check Fedun, maybe not.  Let's just say The Hawks could have been tighter in the net front.
Dylan Strome Wasn't Great, either, due more to poor decision making than lack of trying.  He can and will be better, I think, and I'm sure he's gonna take the shot the next time he's on a two-on-one like the one he squandered in Dallas.
Standouts In This Match: Anisimov was making things happen all night, getting and creating chances.  Sikura played his best game this season, earning an assist on a subtle little play, and I was impressed with his puck patience, never rushing and never giving the puck away.  Finally, I thought Forsling bounced back well after a bit of a wobbler vs. NSH, moving his feet and playing with more determination than usual.
The Power Play is possibly stirring from its long nap.  They haven't all been gems but, in recent games, we've seen more movement, faster, than we've been getting for, oh...three or four years?  Gustafsson, who also played a solid game, on the first unit is going well and the umbrella scheme he, Kane and DeBrincat have been employing has been working.  Sure, they got a PPG on what was essentially a gift five-on-three when a Stars guy broke his stick but they actually managed to exploit that opportunity, a minor victory unto itself.

Friday - Hawks 2, Avalanche 1

Not as close as it looks at a glance, The Hawks had the stars align for them somewhat to pull this one off.  Outshot by eight but, what's this, The Hawks blocked a mammoth twenty two COL tries.  Two goals that each had a whiff of opportunism, Collin Delia playing out of his head in his season debut,  on the second night of a back-to-back, and against the high scoring Avalanche... I'll take a road win in those circumstances anytime.
Collin Delia doesn't always make it look easy but the kid appears to know what he's doing.  Too soon to tell if he's the saviour Hawks fans need right now but I like what I've seen.
Murphy and Dahlstrom played a lot of hard minutes against The Avs ridiculously good top line and did a fine job.  Their Corsi stats in this one are not pretty but they mostly kept COL shooters on the margins and gobbled up what few rebounds Delia allowed.  These two are the pure-defense pairing we've needed for ages and, under the new regime, are actually getting a chance to take on some high-responsibility tasks.  
Dominik Kahun is just a stupidly good passer.  
Only Two Minor Beefs in this game which, as I suggested, was a great team result.  First, if Brendan Perlini cannot be arsed to pick up a man, any man, fucking ever....he needs to go.  I'm also growing weary of his chucking.  Has he made a pass on a rush since arriving in CHI?
Second, and this is nothing new, Seabrook took all the momentum out of the Power Play after the first unit did a great job keeping the puck and their bodies in constant motion.  Once ol' Seabs arrives, though, it's like watching Pong™ as he plays slow catch with the right wing and other d-man.  Zzzzz.

Next: Back home on Sunday for FLA.  Luke Johnson is back in Rockford in exchange for Jacob Nilsson, a guy who played for Coach Colliton in Sweden so I expect we'll see him at 4C.  Whatever and whoever, The Hawks just need to keep on doing what they've been doing, keep that pedal down....

A Double Pleasure is Waiting For You....

Keep Hanging On - Hawks 2, Predators 1

Not perfect but good enough.
More than anything, after the news that Corey Crawford has suffered another concussion and will be out indefinitely The Hawks turned in a gritty performance, front to back, signalling that they're not prepared to just pack it in and mail in a repeat of last season.

Cam Ward was faultless.  Only divine intervention would have prevented Fiala's shot from going in, so I'm very impressed with Wardo bearing down and taking control tonight.  I don't believe Ward has it in him to carry The Hawks too far but if the old warhorse was going to toss in a blinder of a game he could not have timed it more perfectly.
The Hawks' D was better than usual.  Not perfect, as Keith was again defaulting to just flinging the puck up the boards to no one or, worse, to a Predator and Forsling had a particularly nerve wracking shift in the third in which he gave the puck away twice.  Generally, though, the D were pretty good with Murphy and Dahlstrom being especially mindful of net front activity and clearing rebounds aside. Dahlstrom logged a team high 22 minutes and it was he and Murph that got the call for that last frantic shift, so all respeck to Coach Colliton for going with the horses that got you there tonight rather than the ones that have great resumés but haven't done much lately.
Lack Of Finish Was a Little Frustrating as Kahun, who skated and battled well all night, somehow biffed all of his scoring chances, as well as Hayden and Ansimov not getting good wood (or whatever) on the puck when they most needed to.  
In The End we get two points, a shot of confidence and some satisfaction from having defeated one of the top teams in The West, and there's nothing wrong with that.

Next: Thursday in Dallas, likely with Collin Delia making his season debut so as to save Ward for Friday in Denver. Colliton says Kruger has a concussion after his unfortunate collision with our old pal Ryan Hartman, so we can expect Strome to move back to center and Anisimov to draw in at 3C against The Stars.

The Supremes - You Keep Me Hanging On

Beige: Sharks 96, Hawks 3

Hey, it could have been worse and, depending on what's going on with Corey Crawford, it might well be a lot worse.  No news on that front yet, so here are just a few notes on this unremarkable "effort".

If The Hawks Think They "let this one get away" they're kidding themselves, 'cos Martin Jones made them look good.  Three goals on four shots flatters to deceive, especially given that The Hawks recorded only one shot on net in the last six minutes of the first period.  
Not One Hawk Was Particularly Bad (okay, maybe Martinsen and possibly Seabrook, but stick with me) but only a few Hawks cobbled together more than a handful of shifts in which they played really well.  Strome was noticeable and Saad had some looks that were brushed aside but, aside from isolated incidents, The Hawks were just....meh.  Beige.
Special Teams Were Garbage.  The Sharks move the puck so quickly on the powerplay that The Hawks' PK units were just running around most of the time.  Meanwhile, our PP was rotten and I'm going to pin that mainly on Seabrook - he's simply too ponderous and too sloppy to get that job done, missing passes and taking forever to decide whether to shoot, pass or count the stickers on his SubWay Club Card.  He makes it dead easy to defend 'cos the bad guys know pretty much what he's going to do and, if I'm honest, he fucks it up half the time, anyway.
To be fair, I guess, that's on Colliton, too - he keeps trotting that goof out there.
Piss-Poor Defensive Coverage.  If not for The Hawks' D failing so badly they might have been able to stand on those three opportunistic goals but, after two games in which The Hawks' D had tightened things up considerably, they reverted back to mid-November form tonight. Keith was soft on Sorenson's goal, Murphy and Dahlstrom thereabouts but not covering anyone, really, on E. Kane's tally, Seabrook choosing to help screen Cam Ward instead of clearing Goodrow the hell out of there and Gustafsson standing idly by while Couture tips one in unopposed.  That's four of the seven goals against right there.

Anyway, it was a crap attempt at hockey tonight and the worst may yet be coming as we await word on Crow's condition.

Pistol Annies - Beige

Not Good Enough: Jets 4, Hawks 3 (OT)

So close....
The truth is, though, The Hawks needn't have been on the wrong side of this one.  Shots were close, chances were closer, but The Hawks made too many bobbles to seal the deal.
Too Much Meh.  Only a few Hawks had truly bad nights (Strome, Martinsen, DeBrincat, maybe) but even fewer had a great night (maybe only Toews and Crawford).  There were just a lot of seemingly insignificant things that did or didn't happen that added up to an overall weak effort.  Saad was flying all night, made a brilliant pass to Toews to put The Hawks up 2-1, but was awkward around the net.  DeBrincat was stepping on the puck and lazy on the backcheck.  Murphy wasn't terrible but had his weakest game of his short season.  Strome couldn't hit water if he fell out of a fuckin' boat.  Perlini took a lot of shots, all indiscriminate without a thought to where his linemates were.  None of these shortcomings sunk The Hawks on their own but they added up to enough weak, failed or thoughtless plays that led to goals against or opportunities missed. The small plays matter, and The Hawks blew a lot of these details.
Signs Of Life: I thought we exited our zone and moved north as well we've done all year.  They're persisting with that silly push-'em-back stuff but at least they were brisk on on-target tonight, actually hitting Kane with a pass when he was already at speed, allowing him a greater chance of barging into The Jets' zone.
Carl Dahlstrom might be alright.  
Could We Try Someone Other Than Keith to start OT?  I know Gustafsson has his defensive issues but, good lord, so does Keith these days. We're 4-and-5 in OT games and Duncs has been on the ice in only one of those wins but in 4 of the 5 losses.  Change it up.

Next: Sunday at home vs. The Sharks.  With a little fine-tuning we'll be alright.

Blood Orange - You're Not Good Enough

That's The Way I Like It: Hawks 6, Penguins 3

For a few hours all was right in the world.
It wasn't an especially pretty win and, if I'm honest, it was maybe a bit fortunate 'cos how often do we get two goals from the fourth line, but it's two points, The Hawks showed some commitment and maybe it's something they can build on.  Let's go.
The Hawks Went Wildly Off Script by not sucking in the first period.  In fact, they were very good, breaking out with precision and moving the puck briskly in the offensive zone.  The defense were shockingly responsible up until late in the frame when they started running around a bit.
Order Was Restored however, in the second period when, all of a sudden, The Hawks couldn't clear their zone for love nor money.  Apart from DeBrincat's goal-scorer's-goal the second period was a complete mess.
The Third Period was better.  Still not great, as The Hawks gave up a lot of chances, but Crawford was outstanding when he needed to be at his best.  They've been in this situation a few times lately, up a goal late in the game, and the fact that they didn't collapse or commit the unfortunately common fatal error should be a big confidence builder.
Fourth Line Represents.  While the Kruger - Hayden - Martinsen trio didn't blow the doors off during all of their shifts they had a handful of crazy-dominant turns, cashing in one goal that was, while a little lucky, made possible by a relentless effort by Kruger in which he kept a play alive by kicking the puck to Hank Jokiharju, hit the crossbar and only then made the pass to Dahlstrom, whose shot would deflect in off Martinsen.  And later, a perfect pass by Marty to Kruger cashed in the game winner.  
The Defence Were A Mixed Bag, the strongest games coming from unlikely sources.  Dahlstrom was very good, keeping things simple and, holy shit, THAT's what it looks like when a d-man pays attention to opposing forwards in front of The Hawks' net.  Murphy and Manning played it quiet and steady,  not giving up much.  Keith and Jokiharju were so-so, with Duncs too often choosing to just launch the puck up the boards without any apparent thought and Hank was yippy a lot of the time.  Seabrook, despite scoring a goal, was garbage, too often out of position and serving up yet another unforced giveaway that ended up in The Hawks' net.

Next: Winnipeg again, in a game that may well be decided in the first ten minutes. If The Hawks come out like they did vs. PIT, like they've promised they'd do for weeks, they could be in it.

KC And The Sunshine Band - That's The Way I Like It

No Expectations: Jets 6, Hawks 3

I can't even get angry anymore.  I expect little and The Hawks deliver exactly that.  At this point I think I'm just hoping to be surprised.

The Same Old Same-Same.  Another slow start, possibly the worst first period The Hawks have played this season.  The Jets had three goals on fourteen shots before The Hawks recorded their first shot on net.  This is after a lot of chat after Monday's practice about coming out of the gates hard, matching The Jets' intensity.  Just shut up, guys.  Do something, then talk about it.
The Middle 30 Minutes looked pretty good on The Hawks, although it was about 50% CHI bearing down and 50% WPG not giving a damn until The Hawks scored a few.  Once Perreault put WPG up 5-3 The Hawks kept skating but began missing passes, making poor decisions....all the stuff they do in the third period when they're still within a goal or two.
And that's it.  Nothing we haven't already seen over a dozen times this season.

The Rockford Shuffle has begun, with Alex Fortin going north while Dylan Sikura and Carl Dahlstrom will be the next young ones to have spirits crushed in the 312.  Not sorry to see Fortin's tail lights as he remains far from ready for The NHL.  Dahlstrom replaces Forsling, who was placed on IR a day or two ago, while Sikura The Younger fills Arthur The Large's roster spot as he is sidelined with "concussion protocol" (which is seriously how they articulate this now).
Can We Call Time on Chris Kunitz Now?  He's accomplishing nothing except embarrassing himself.  Just end it, now.

Next: Penguins, I think.  Does it matter?  Right now, what I look forward to the most where The Hawks are concerned is Trade Deadline Day, our last best hope to unload Seabrook and/or Keith, providing a contending team or two need a second-pairing guy and have some money to spend AND either of those guys are willing to leave.  That's a lot of Ifs but, hey, I'm an optimist...

Johnny Cash - No Expectations

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly Vol. VII: Habs 3, Hawks 2

Straight to it, then.

The Good
Patrick Kane scored twice, his first goals since Nov. 24th and just his second and third in the last month.  I don't think it's hyperbolic to suggest that as Kane goes so go the Hawks, so this is kind of a big deal.  Kaner also cracked a smile for the first time in ten days.
Connor Murphy played his first game this season after back surgery in September and was arguably The Hawks' best D-man tonight.
The Hawks outshot MTL handily and the shot attempts were even more lopsided.  HOWEVER....

The Bad
...The Hawks "enjoyed" a whopping 15 minutes of Power Play time which is when they managed to run up the shot clock.  At evens The Habs were outshot by a mere 23-21 and Corsi was dead even.  This signals two issues: first, when your opponent plays shorthanded for almost an entire period and that massive advantage nets you only one goal something is terribly, terribly wrong.  By the time MTL took their 5th or 6th penalty The Hawks, one would think, should have had those guys on the ropes, exhausted and easy to exploit.  Nope, didn't happen.
Second, had Les Canadiens not been short for so long one can only imagine what would have occurred.  
Anisimov left the game after being given a rough ride by Habs captain Shea Weber early in the third period.  I expect we'll have to wait until at least tomorrow to learn the extent of his aches & pains.  His early exit coincided unfortunately with Strome's trip to The Room to be stitched up after being sliced open by Jordie Benn, leaving Toews and Kampf as the only available centers for the ensuing four minute PP.

The Ugly
Well, The Hawks lost.  In a game that, at a glance, looks like they dominated but, in reality, was practically handed to them they managed to find a way to lose anyway.  One could argue they were goalie'd by Carey Price but, with the opportunities given to them, The Hawks should have closed the deal.  Weber's goal was legit but Domi's and Tatar's were made possible by GUESS WHAT - shite defensive coverage, Kruger giving up on Domi for the first goal against and Keith failing to bother Tatar on the third GA.  He was right there, too, but was content to just kinda hang out behind Tatar.  Maybe Tatar tips that one in regardless of any pressure Keith applies but ol' Duncs didn't make life hard for the guy whatsoever.
The Power Play Failed Again.  One PPG out of eight tries, while actually an improvement, is still rubbish.  The main problem tonight, in my view, was that Seabrook was absolute garbage, generating little, letting pucks slip by him at the point and taking too long to tee up shots that either sailed wide or were easily blocked.  With Seabs at the point there's no movement, the entire effort is entirely predictable and any goals The Hawks glean with that unit are going to be despite him rather than because of him.  Seabrook soaked up 10 minutes of power play ice time too and, even with that massive advantage, still rocked 26% Corsi!  Could someone please point out to Coach Colliton that Henri Jokiharju was not only available for this detail but that he gets his shot away far quicker than Seabrook, hits the net more frequently and has excellent mobility, as opposed to Seabs' two settings, "Dead Slow" and "Stopped".  It pisses me off that a better option is right there, sitting on the bench, but Colliton doesn't seem convinced that Jokiharju is up to the task.

Next: Another well-deserved beat-down by Winnipeg, Tuesday night.  Count on it.

The Danish Symphony Orchestra - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

The Big Come Down: Six Losses And Counting

At this point I have no real idea of what's going on or what to say about it all.
In three of these six abject failures The Hawks were in the thing, had a chance to win or at least get to the coin-toss round, but managed to find a way to screw it all up.
And after each loss we see this:

Lookit that face, that defeated, bewildered expression.  He has no more idea why The Hawks are failing so hard than I do.  There's not a lot of pride or will left in this group.  They only show urgency in brief spasms of realization that they can and should be winning some hockey games.  Then one of them makes an ungodly, unforced error, promptly ending any thoughts that can actually compete.

Sick of seeing & hearing this guy, too.

Keith's assessments of goings-on are even worse, maybe because it's more frequently him making the back-breaking gaffe.  Who does he think he's kidding, jawing about "a full 60-minute effort"?  Any team is allowed to have lulls and it's only sometimes been these lulls that have done them in. The greater sin has been crap like Seabrook sending a pass straight onto an opposing player's stick right in the goddamn Danger Zone™, or Rutta not putting any snot on his outlet passes.  Or forwards drifting lazily into The Hawks' zone, oblivious to opposing players sneaking in behind them.  Or Gus, or Manning or Forsling, standing idly around The Hawks' net, often with their back to the guy who's about to score.
And with every mistake that results in a goal against you can sense the energy leaving these guys, any momentum gained just cast aside.
Kane is losing his desire.  Despite playing almost 28 minutes in Vegas he was only occasionally a factor, just kind of going through the motions a lot of the time.  Even with his soul half-sucked out of him he's been good enough to notch some helpies but has netted only one goal in the last month.  Yeah, he's not "feeling it" as the kids say these days.
Crawford has been so-so.  He's made some incredible saves in recent games but he's also allowed one or more goals in each of those games that he simply whiffed on.  His reaction to the Engelland goal on Thursday was encouraging, at least.  He hasn't given up, yet.
And even leaving out his spectacular giveaway vs. VGK, Seabrook has been garbage in his own end, struggling to even get the puck up the boards reliably.  Yeah, five more years of this horror show.

What else?
Connor Murphy is poised to return which will require another D-man make way.  It's a three-way tie for last, there, as Forsling, Rutta and Manning should all be in the conversation regarding who is demoted, waived, traded or placed on an ice floe.  I like Forsling's offensive side but, going back to a preseason post in which I asserted that there isn't room for Goose AND Gustafsson on the roster, Gus is clearly the one to keep of these two.  The decision makers seem to like Manning despite his general lack of any ability, so his long con will likely continue.  Henri Jokiharju has not, it seems, endeared himself to coach Colliton, so maybe HE ends up in Rockford, fer gawd's sake.....
Dylan Strome might be a real thing but Brendan Perlini definitely is not.

NEXT: Back to The UC on Sunday against not-terrible Montréal.  Someday I hope to refer to The Hawks as "not terrible" but today is not that day.

Nine Inch Nails - The Big Come Down

No Good: Predators Plenty, Hawks Who Cares?

Plenty of times in the last month+ one could easily say "take away that first period and we'd have been okay."  How about even the first five minutes, like tonight?  Without that stupefying five minutes maybe The Hawks do win this one 2-1.  Okay, maybe not but, holy shit, how long is this going to last, this giving the game away in the first period? 

And give it away they did with, guess what - a complete lack of defensive awareness, letting Predators forwards come and go as they pleased in the danger zone™ in front of The Hawks' net.  Other teams must look forward to playing The Hawks these days, like some naughty kids who are left in the care of their deaf granny.  We get to do ANYTHING we want!

And if the lack of defensive give-a-shit doesn't do them in it's the unforced errors and straight-up giveaways, like Seabrook flinging the puck right onto Johansen's stick, or any number of weak and/or dumbass pass attempts by Forsling and Gustafsson.  Hell, Toews didn't make a pass stick until late in the third period.

They're not paying attention to anything.

Not to what the other team is doing.

Not to what their teammates are doing.

Not to what they themselves are doing.  Or trying to do.

And because of this The Hawks suck.  They're a bad hockey team.

I wonder how much of this has to do with the culture within the team.  They sure talk a good talk about correcting what was wrong after a loss (so, obviously, there's been quite a lot of this kind of chatter) but nothing changes. They trot out for the next game and do exactly the same shit that lost them the last game and the one before that, and the one before that.....

No one's feet have been put to the fire for this, not seriously, anyway.  Scratch Chris Kunitz or Jan Rutta all you like but what's that?  Nothing.  Let's try sitting Toews or Keith or Seabrook - they've been as bad as anyone but apparently immune to any consequences.  Even Kane, who has single-handedly won a few games for The Hawks this year, has just seemed listless the last few games. I don't know that I'd have the stones to scratch Kaner but something has to happen to shake these guys out of their vegetable torpor.  

Before I wrap this up I want to mention Keith.  Sure, he got a rough ride and a response was not unreasonable.  However, the extent to which he responded was a bit ridiculous, though I expect there was a lot of pent up frustration that came out there.  Whatever, the game was over for The Hawks by then anyway and, wouldn't you know it, they actually played better without Keith, for awhile, anyway.  Chew on that bit of truth.  Keith has been dogshit since mid-October.

There have to be consequences for this shit show that The Hawks have been putting on.  Sit the fuckers that keep coughing up the puck, that fail to backcheck and that take zero care in passing.  Get a shuttle bus running to and from Rockford if that's what it takes, 'cos they're clearly not understanding why they keep losing.  I have no idea what Jeremy Colliton's coaching style entails, really, but he'd best get into a skull cracking frame of mind or the whole thing is just going to spiral downward even further.  Otherwise, what are we going to do....just wait until some of these long term no-movement contracts expire and hope for better things after that?  I sure hope not, 'cos Seabrook, for example, is practically worthless right now and we're stuck with him for another FIVE years.

Linda Ronstadt - You're No Good