The Blackhawks' Third Quarter: It's not going to get any easier

Ever since I've started doing the graphics for these Four Bs quarterly updates, I have never had to employ that shade of purple for a team's record and standing. That's only one spot above the cellar, one shade away from the dreaded red.

Of course, as bad as that might sound, it should be noted that the record for this Hawks team is only one point better than that amount the team had after 62 games last year—and was still in second place in the division. That certainly speaks to the quality of the Central this year, even if the Hawks themselves are essentially going to once again need a strong finish to have any hope in the NHL postseason.

This past quarter saw a brutal nine-game losing streak which led to just about every type of call to action you could imagine. There was the speculation that Coach Q could or should lose his job (stupid), Patrick Kane should be traded (double stupid) and the many, many calls for Stan Bowman to trade for a goaltender (OK, maybe a little justified). And, of course, there were still those who wonder why the team let go of it's Cup-winning cast (some people will never understand, I guess).  As long as were talking about the season the team won the Cup, let us not forget there was a prolonged losing streak involved during that season too (only eight games, I believe).

I don't really know what significant changes any fan should be expecting at this point in the year. What you see is pretty much what you have (and keep your fingers crossed that little fender bender Captain Serious got in to doesn't have a lingering, oh, concussion-like effect on his play), and while that's not bad, it's certainly bound to get tested pretty severely from here on out.

So just to reflect, the Blackhawks went 9-9-3 in the past quarter. For the sake of comparison: Detroit went 16-4-2 (including setting an NHL record for most consecutive home victories); St. Louis was 14-5-2; and Nashville has been 13-4-3. The Hawks are in a division with three of the top five teams in the league. So at this point, I don't know what you realistically hope for. If Chicago finishes fourth or fifth in the conference, they'll still likely get an opening round matchup with either the Blues or the Predators, either or which would be likely to go six games. Worse yet, assuming none of the top three seeds chokes, the reward for advancing would be a date with Detroit.

Of course, assuming the Hawks cannot catch either St. Louis or Nashville, then the playoffs could very well begin in San Jose Phoenix (I did not realize the Yotes had snuck in to the third spot). A little slipping and sliding could lead to another opening round series with the Canucks. The Hawks could very well likely be underdogs against either one of those clubs, but a lot could change with a strong finish.

Let me put it this way: The Hawks are a full dozen points behind Detroit for the top spot in the division, but are only five points ahead of the team currently occupying the ninth seed in the conference standings. There's six teams separated by six points for that final spot, and as those clubs compete with one another for the playoffs, it will be critical for the Blackhawks to play winning hockey over these final 20 games if for not other reason other than just to eliminate having to endure another final day-of-the-season waiting game like last year.