However, in addition to that solid start, there is also the fact that 10 of those first 12 games were all on the road. The team has yet to lose a game in regulation this year, with the only two blemishes coming on account of oh-so-lame shootouts.
There is no "told you so" coming from this Hawks fan, of course. I was among those who anticipated a St. Louis team that won the Central last year to benefit from having a strong defense and two solid goaltenders, but instead, Chicago has come out of the gates clicking in just about every facet. The passing is precise instead of being overly showy thus far, the defense is limiting opponents' shots and the special teams have been astoundingly effective. Last night, Corey Crawford broke a shutout dry spell that had exceeded 600 days, and Ray Emery turned in a courageous, unforgettable performance in Calgary that should make every fan feel comfortable turning to him as the back-up plan.
My inner meatball held out hope that starting the season on the road and watching the defending champion Los Angeles Kings raise a championship banner might provide a little bit of a spark, and the following contest against the Phoenix Coyotes club that ousted the Hawks in the playoffs last year could serve as a little more motivation. It seemed silly, but whatever it has been has worked. The Blackhawks have shown up for every game, and I have listened to or watched every game myself. If they keep showing up, I expect I will be doing the same—hopefully all the way into June.
As it currently stands, Chicago owns the best record in the NHL. Of course, nobody in his or her right mind could care less about winning a President's Trophy—and we are just a season removed from a No. 8 seed absolutely owning every team it came across in the playoffs. So as encouraging as this start has been—and make no mistake, it is fucking thrilling—any hockey fan at this point knows the injury is coming. Probably more than one. And Crawford and Emery will have their nights where the beach balls could bounce past them. Still, after securing 22 points when 10 of the first 12 were on the road, it is awfully hard not to be optimistic about where this team will be at the midway point after 10 of the next dozen will be played at the United Center.
If this regular post were still presented as it used to get done with best and worst player, best and worst games, there could be some pretty tough calls. Still, there has not been much of a negative side to anything on this club thus far, and perhaps this video best captures the win I enjoyed the most and the player who has just been positively lethal thus far, Patrick Kane. Oh sure, Hossa scores the goal in this clip, but it's the pass from Kane that's the thing of beauty. He nearly had another spin-o-rama pass near the goal a few games later that just missed, but the bottom line is we are all terribly grateful to be sitting here raving about what talent this guy is showing on the ice rather than expressing concern about Kaner's usual boozing this season. I still haven't deleted the final period of this game off the DVR, and I'm not sure when I ever will because I can continue to watch this highlight over and over and over again without once growing tired of seeing it:
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