The Blackhawks' Fourth Quarter: Backing in is better than backing out

It was a rather peculiar finish to the season, what with having been in the middle of an eight-game winning streak during the last update and still having the possibility of postseason life not be determined until the very last game of the year—a couple hours after it, actually. But as crazy as yesterday was for the Blackhawks, the team's going back to the playoffs and they'll have to defend the Cup the hard way: being the eight-seeded team in the Western Conference and conceding home ice advantage in any series they play (unless one of those three teams in the Eastern Conference that didn't earn 100+ points this year somehow makes it to the Finals).

I look back on how yesterday unfolded and see the Vancouver Canucks on the schedule next now, thinking that how else would I really want things to have ended up? Would having moved up to a fifth seed and getting Anaheim in the first round really have been preferable? I realize that just as the many bandwagon evacuees have reminded me, the Blackhawks got rid of many of those lovable role players that played their pivotal roles to perfection last postseason. And without those guys, how in the world are you going to mess with the collective heads of the Canucks again this year?

But I'm getting ahead of myself here. For the moment, let me reflect on the last 20 games and then finally get these fucking taxes filed:

RECORD FOR THE QUARTER: 11-6-3 (44-29-9 OVERALL) — That's only a win short of the mark they had for the last quarter, and while it began with more than enough optimism in the midst of that aforementioned winning streak, it's some tough losses that jump out. When you consider how big just a couple points are, it's tough not to think of how many critical points the Hawks let get away. Still, the bottom line is they're in the playoffs and now everybody starts over.

BEST WIN: March 14 (Blackhawks 6, Sharks 3) — After dropping the first three against the same San Jose team that swiped last season's Stanley Cup-winning goaltender, the Hawks bounced back from a tough overtime loss in Washington the night before by posting five (!!!) goals in the second period and chased Antti Niemi from the contest in front of the United Center crowd. Things got off to a rough start with a pair of penalties in the first couple minutes leading to the Sharks tallying the first score of the game with the two-man advantage. But all of Patrick Sharp's career-high four assists came during the middle frame outburst, including two primary helpers on Marian Hossa's power play goals less than three minutes apart. The first one tied the game and the second put the Blackhawks ahead for good, giving Hossa nine goals over 11 games at that point. In addition to No. 81, Captain Serious, Kaner and Tomas Kopecky had a pair of points—and even Viktor Stalberg scored a goal. The win was also the fifth straight home victory at that point for Chicago and had moved them into the fourth spot in the Western Conference standings. That seemed to have most fans feeling pretty good with less than month remaining in the season ...

WORST LOSS: April 10 (Red Wings 4, Blackhawks 3) — And there were a number of terribly deflating and painful losses this past quarter (oh, that Montreal overtime call was such bullshit ...), but let me put it this way: I didn't see the game I've appointed to this section. I didn't need to, either. From what I understand, there's no shame in losing to a Detroit team that simply played very well. However, the terms were made pretty clear: Win and you're in. Lose, and a different team controls your fate. And so beyond the actual hockey, I should point out that at my place of employment, the channel was changed on our televisions from this possibly final game to the season of the defending Stanley Cup Champions to the relatively meaningless Chicago Bulls game against the Orlando Magic (while home court for the entire playoffs was still up for grabs with San Antonio, the Bulls had already clinched the top spot in their Eastern Conference—and Dwight Howard wasn't even playing). And nobody other than myself seemed to notice. So when I found out after work that the Blackhawks had lost this one without even securing that one measly point they needed just by getting the game to go to overtime, it was the lowest I felt after any loss this season. At the time, it seemed as though it was an appropriate ending to the year—but the fact that the shorthanded Wild stunned the Dallas Stars in the regular season finale was made more profound when I remembered that even though Minnesota wasn't playoff bound, the fans still probably had a little something invested emotionally by denying their city's former hockey franchise any postseason life as well.

MVP: Corey Crawford — Let there be no denial of how valuable he's been this season. Those still bemoaning the departure of Niemi can't complain all that much about Crawford's 2.30 goals against average (which is better than Niemi's, for the record) or his respectable .917 save percentage (which is an even better .957 in shorthanded situations—as is Marty Turco's percentage in the same situation). While the skills contest portion of the regular season will no longer be a factor in deciding games, Crawford also denied all eight shootout shots he saw at home this year. Basically though, when you think back to the many doubts the supposed hockey purists had with Niemi going into last year's playoffs—and now having seen how that worked out, well, who's to say another rookie can't do it again?

Honorable mention also needs to be made for Patrick Kane, who has played flat-out, balls-out great recently.

LVP: Troy Brouwer — Get well soon and all, but that's a real shame if the guy's season has to end like that. Brouwer amassed a total of two points in all of March and got one in Montreal last week before suffering that "upper body injury" (READ: right shoulder). He had a couple games where he finished at a minus-2, but generally Brouwer didn't make many appearances on the scoresheet. He got a two-game stint on the top line toward the end of March, but even if you want to pin the blame on fourth line appearances, Brouwer finished the year with no goals over his last 22 games and decidedly lacking a physical presence on the forecheck. We're in the middle of talking about going into the third straight year of playing Roberto Luongo and Vancouver in the postseason, so without Dustin Byfuglien to cause the traffic in front of the net and drive the 'Nucks goalie crazy, the need for another strong forward is critical—not to mention Brouwer's among this year's Hawks that gets to talk about a contract during this coming off-season.

THREE THINGS I'VE LIKED SO FAR:

1. THERE'S STILL HOCKEY TO BE PLAYED — The NHL playoffs have become my first sign of summer, and the feeling's indelibly reminiscent of the way it feels when fall's beginning with the baseball postseason. Bottom line is that the one thing that most definitely enhances my enjoyment of playoff hockey is when the Blackhawks are involved.
2. HOW CAN YOU HOLD 97 POINTS AGAINST THEM? — Even in this shootout era of scoring, that's still a good amount of scoring from wins and narrow losses to accumulate. This Blackhawks team is not exactly the equivalent of, say, the 7-9 division-winning Seattle Seahawks of this past year in the NFL.
3. DID I MENTION THEY'RE GOING TO THE PLAYOFFS?!?! — While the No. 8 seeds are rarely granted any possible life beyond the first round in the NBA playoffs, it was just last year that an eighth-seeded Montreal franchise stunned that season's President's Trophy winner. And not more than five years ago, Edmonton defied the odds all the way to a seventh game for the Stanley Cup. Point is: No. 8 knocking off No. 1 isn't unheard of.

THINGS I HAVEN'T:

1. DID HOCKEY LEAVE CHICAGO AGAIN? — I'm almost certain to mention it again over the next couple months, but the rooting dynamic here in the Chicago area has flipped almost as inversely as the respective hockey and basketball teams' seeds. Whereas the Bulls entered last year's NBA playoffs as an eighth-ranked club and were essentially forgotten as the second-seeded Blackhawks marched to a championship, the United Center's other team has been the talk of the town this calendar year and my experience has been that I rarely encounter a person who seems even remotely interested in what the Blackhawks have done or will do with the remainder of their season.
2. THE STATUS OF DAVE BOLLAND — Oh, damn you, concussions. Basically, I don't know who else on the Blackhawks roster is more capable of rattling the otherwise unflappable Sedin twins than Bolland. If he's unable to return for this series with Vancouver, then it could very well be the only series the entire team gets to play.
3. WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT POWER PLAY? — It had been such an obvious strength for so long that perhaps it was inevitable that there would be a lull when on the man advantage. As mathematically sensible as it might seem to see some regression, the 2-for-21 on the power play over the team's final seven games does not exactly help restore confidence when evaluating strengths for what is hopefully a run in the coming postseason.

25 WORDS OR LESS:

"You're still alive," she said
Oh, and do I deserve to be?
Is that the question?
And if so ... if so ... who answers ... who answers?