$3 Baby We’re A Dreamer, Found Our Horse And Carriage $3 The Committed Indian The REal Fan’s Program secondcityhockey.com March 15th, 2009 [email protected] LET’S GO OVER THE MINUTES... So what was that team meeting The Islanders) with silly-string. Silly-string with a 15-year about, lads? That players-only meeting, So to this afternoon, and the en- contract, that is. where you said you went over getting your counter with the clown car that is the New That’s not to say there aren’t some game together? Possibly discussing playing a York Islanders. Not only are they the NHL’s players worth watching out for. Mark Streit full 60 minutes every night? No? Not ringing worst team, but they’re also perhaps the has been a stud (more on him inside), and any bells? Maybe we should transcribe them league’s leading example of an unstable fran- there’s budding star Kyle Okposo as well. from now on. chise. Owner Charles Wang has been whor- One player the Isle are truly excited about Let’s be clear here: Columbus re- ing himself out to Kansas City and Hamilton is their latest 1st-round pick, center Josh quires you to play a full game. They are no and any other city with more than a mule in Bailey. He’s been thrown into the fire due longer a pushover, and a more solid team in a fashion that would make your neighbor- to all the Isle’s wounded, but has acquitted their own end you are unlikely to find. You hood cougar blush. The long-standing Long himself quite well. The numbers might not have to be willing to work in the will-vomit- Island Lighthouse Project, which would include look all that impressive, but this kid makes from-effort range, and the Hawks were only a Nassau Coliseum renovation, has been things happen and is already showing quite willing to do that for spurts. That leaves no jammed up in council politics for an eternity, the hockey sense and work along the boards. room for error, and so even after battling and a solution doesn’t appear anywhere in Okposo and Bailey will be pissing off Rangers back to 2-2, the Hawks were undone by a bad sight. fans for years to come. bounce (Vermette’s 2nd goal) and a silly turn- However, the Islanders have been Now Don’t Suck over and defensive play (both Keith’s for Tor- pretty spunky of late. They’ve taken seven of We’ve never hesitated to say that the res’ killer). This is the fire you play with when the last 10 points on offer, and that includes Hawks can play with anyone. But that goes you come out flat against a good team. The wins over New Jersey and Montreal, as well both ways. They can kick the Sharks’ ass in Hawks reported to the Burn Unit on Friday. as a spirited effort in a 2-1 loss in Boston their own building, and yet get stinkfisted by The Hawks have had problems put- yesterday. For long stretches of that game the the Avs at home. The Hawks on far too many ting 60 minutes together all season, but they Islanders were the better team, and probably occasions have thought their mere presence won’t get away with it these days. Hopefully, deserved more than they got. would result in two points, and they had bet- it’s lesson learned. But we’ve been saying The Islanders have been ravaged ter guard against that today. It’s all set up for that all year, and it’s still a regular trait of this by injuries, which seems akin to kicking an them to; a team with barely half of their points team. orphan in the balls as there wasn’t much tal- total, who played yesterday, and the Hawks It’s Ain’t Cris, Babe ent to begin with. Trent Hunter, Doug Weight, are at home. But the Isles will skate hard, and All that being said, it says here that Mike Sillinger, Andy Sutton, and others have if they’re taken lightly, could easily jump up this recent slump won’t have all that dam- missed or are missing significant time. Worst and bite. However, anything resembling the aging of an effect. The Hawks are still the of all, the supposed centerpiece of the orga- Hawks’ best effort ends this quickly. overwhelming favorite to finish 4th, and will nization, goalie Rick Dipietro, is put together -RZA be getting some important pieces back very All The King’s Horses And All The King’s Men Couldn’t Put Dipietro soon in Sharp, Khabby, and Pahlsson. They’ll be better for that. Together Again What we have learned over this stretch is that when the puck drops for Game 1, it will almost certainly be Khabibu- lin between the pipes -- unless he coughs up a lung, literally or figuratively, during the remainder of the season. Huet hasn’t been bad, as some claim, just merely solid. But he lets in a bad goal here and there, has a bad game when played too many times in a row, and doesn’t appear capable of stealing you a win. He hasn’t done that since the OT win in St. Louis. He’s kept the Hawks in games, to his credit, but those big saves have generally followed a softie he let in. You can’t have the bad goals, inconsistency from night to night, and the smaller possibility of a lights-out performance come mid-April. Khabby has not been significantly better than Huet this year, only slightly. But we’re sure Q’s going to give him a stretch of games to prove that he’ll be the playoff back- stop, and soon. Nobody Leaves The Island (Except “Good thing he’s here for another 13 years, then.” FROM THE EDITOR genuinely do like him, fine. But a big fucking bird with a drum? I Right, so there’s an issue we have to get to right at the top only want to experience that after spending $5-$10 on a gel-tab, and here. I don’t know who does the market research for the Hawks only when I have a good 8 hours to kill. Gameday Production. I don’t know if they’ve ever left the house, or talked to another living human being, or have to wear a helmet -I don’t know if any of you listen to Boers and Bernstein on The when walking up stairs. But it’s clearly the work of a true giblet Score. As I’ve said before, I’m a fan, mostly because we share the who decided to use a stoppage in play to flash on the Jumbotron, same sense of humor and view of the sports world. Much like ev- “The Chicago Blackhawks welcome Nickelback.” eryone else, I do not like it when they talk about I don’t know who listens to Nickelback. hockey, because they only do it to mock hockey I’m serious, I have never met one person who fans and the sport. However, we all must realize professed to like them. Next time Canadians that their exact purpose is to piss us off enough give you shit about America, I would say Nickel- to call and engage them. For some reason, that back would be Exhibit A that Canadians haven’t show has decided its best radio is when they are exactly become a renaissance culture either. If jousting with an angry caller. They’re trying to people reading this are Nickelback fans, I’m stir us up. We shouldn’t take the bait. Let them sorry, but you’re a fucking asshat. It was all I make fun of us, or call us stupid; that’s fine. I’ve could do to profess to some Blue Jackets fans said before, I don’t want Boers and Bernstein as sitting in front of me that Hawks fans do not like hockey fans, or most of the general populace. Nickelback. They can think whatever they want Sam Fels We’re better off without them. I get angry, too. about Hawks fans, but I wanted to make sure But I have my fun, and they have theirs, and I they took that with them. don’t feel a need for our paths to cross. If I can Thankfully, the shot of the lead singer in his fucking box stop one person from calling that show and trying to go toe-to-toe drew mostly boos from Hawks fans, and I will put that as one of my with Bernstein about some hockey subject, I’ll consider it a success. prouder moments as a supporter of The Men of Four Feathers. But what do I know? I’m a hockey fan, which means I’m just a rac- -Here’s a question: Who gave Tommy Hawk a fucking drum? Who ist, according to Bernstein. thought that was a good idea? I really don’t know how kids feel about Tommy Hawk. I don’t object to him, as others do. If kids NHL STANDINGS *late game not included Eastern Conference Western Conference W L OTL PTS GF GA HOME AWAY W L OTL PTS GF GA HOME AWAY 1 Boston 45 16 9 99 233 161 24-6-5 21-10-4 1 Toilet 45 15 9 99 257 207 25-5-4 20-10-5 2 New Jersey 45 20 3 93 213 167 24-10-1 21-10-2 2 San Jose* 43 13 10 96 216 166 26-3-4 17-10-6 3 Washington 43 21 6 92 228 205 26-9-2 17-12-4 3 Calgary 40 23 6 86 229 214 22-8-4 18-15-2 4 Philadelphia 37 20 10 84 217 192 21-10-4 16-10-6 4 HAWKS 37 20 9 83 218 174 18-7-6 19-13-3 5 Montreal 36 25 8 80 205 206 21-7-5 15-18-3 5 Vancouver 35 23 9 79 202 187 19-11-4 16-12-5 6 Pittsburgh 36 26 8 80 216 212 18-12-3 18-14-5 6 Columbus 36 27 6 78 194 192 22-10-2 14-17-4 7 Carolina 36 28 7 79 200 203 19-13-1 17-15-6 7 Dallas 33 28 8 74 199 211 19-13-4 14-15-4 8 NY Rangers 35 26 8 78 173 189 20-10-4 15-16-4 8 Edmonton* 32 27 8 72 190 207 15-12-5 17-15-3 9 Florida 34 25 10 78 194 196 18-9-6 16-16-4 9 Minnesota 32 28 8 72 174 167 18-11-6 14-17-2 10 Buffalo 34 27 8 76 203 193 20-12-3 14-15-5 10 Nashville* 33 30 5 71 173 189 21-12-3 12-18-2 11 Toronto 28 29 13 69 209 249 13-13-9 15-16-4 11 Anaheim 32 30 6 70 190 200 16-15-3 16-15-3 12 Ottawa 28 30 10 66 177 198 17-12-6 11-18-4 12 St.