Not Giving You No Lines And Keeping Our Hands To Ourselves The REAL Fan’s Program Only December 2nd, $3 2011 SecondCityHockey.com NBCChicago.com/MadhouseEnforcer [email protected] Rick Geerling: Can You Help Corey Find Take Me Out With Frans This Isn’t What I Ordered His Game? Nielsen - page 12 - - page 8 - - page 10 - OK, BUT THIS TIME WITH FEELING There you go. No better way to sum up Tuesday’s deep just to make a road trip merely respectable. Think “effort,” than that. Congratulations, you huddled masses about how hard the Hawks had to fight in California of Hawks writers. You’re free to use the word “flat” and just to save any kind of face after the Trail of Tears in actually have it fit. While the lack of energy doesn’t Alberta. Once that was accomplished, an emotional explain everything that led to Tuesday’s loss, it certainly letdown wasn’t too far away. Not that it’s acceptable, but was a part. Throw out the thesauruses, you can use it’s explainable. your favorite adjective. While we don’t usually lower So a middling November is in the books, and the ourselves to grabbing whatever convenient excuse can Hawks enter the main course of the season after be picked off the discount shelves, this one might not be autumn’s appetizers. The loss to the Coyotes does il- totally dismissible. The Hawks have rarely had to dig so lustrate some problems the Hawks haven’t quite figured out answers for. That Part In The Movie Where They Shoot The Crow Our fearless editor engaged in yet another brain- numbing Twitter fight with the beaters before the game, the subject being the possible interest the Hawks might have in acquiring the then-shopped Bobby Ryan of Anaheim (and then Carlyle got fired and the whole point is moot, but fuck it). It devolved into a discussion about the Hawks’ need for a defensemen or two. That very well may be true, but was anyone talking about getting another blue-liner when Corey Crawford was playing well? Because that’s a major issue right now, and it reared its ugly head again when the Desert Dogs were urinating all over the United Center fire hydrant. While all the goals were tied to some pretty comedic defensive mistakes, the first goal was definitive. In a game where the Hawks had heavy legs, falling behind was always going to be killer -- especially when you consider just how hard the Coyotes are to come back against. The first goal did spring from a bad line change and there were some pretty nifty passes between Ray Whitney and Shane Doan to Daymond Langkow. But Langkow’s “So would you say you guys were flat on Tuesday?” “finish” was barely more than a suggestion of a shot, continued on page 14 - page 2 - FROM THE EDITOR Sometimes I forget that all of the 21,000 in the train even earlier than they normally might. VOL. IV, Issue #12 United Center are not season ticket holders. Tuesday The tickets would have been more expensive, was a perfect example. you’d have seen tons of fresh new jerseys everywhere Obviously, it was a dogshit game. There’s no way with the tags on them. The Score and ESPN 1000 The Committed Indian around that. But as the fandom got more and more would have been loaded with calls wondering why Established Oct. 31st, 2008 cantankerous, I was sort of curious why. I knew the the Hawks got rid of that By-foog-lien guy. A lot of us Hawks were liable to throw in a clunker after having would have been miserable. to scramble desperately just to avoid a disaster of a We like hockey partly because it comes without www.secondcityhockey.com Circus Trip. I knew they made the stupid decision to fly a lot of that. And we like the air of superiority in liking www.twitter.com/2ndcityhockey back right after the Kings game, leading to a Sunday something that not a lot of people like. Some of us where they probably didn’t get out of bed. I knew the don’t flaunt it like others and keep it hidden. But we Coyotes can be a particularly spikey opponent who don’t want to lose that. Publisher & Editor-In-Chief make things very difficult. So when things went off the Sure, it would have been good for my business. Sam “Puffy” Fels rails, I and my brother sort of shrugged and chalked it And maybe the only reason I’d want hockey to have up to one of those nights that the Hawks just lose. a broader appeal is maybe those that don’t like it Others around me were not so polite. There was wouldn’t be so quick to criticize why I watch it. It’s Columnists booing, calls for trades or heads or trades of heads or been slowly happening with another passion of mine, Chris Block whatever else. People left early. Some declared this soccer. The only people these days who call me a team “the suck.” At first, I was confused. queer for watching the real football (face it, it is) gener- The Fifth Feather But after all, I’m here for all 41 ally are old and fat. Pretty soon (aside from the occasional game they won’t even be around. against Scum where I feel my That’s really why I can do SecondCityHockey.com bloodlust is best kept away from without is the rancor that some- Matt McClure Scum fans). It’s just another game times exists between hockey and Matthew Killion for me. I know before the season basketball fans. I guess when two Adam Hacker that I’m going to watch a few sports inhabit the same building, putrid efforts. I accepted that long that sort of back-and-forth is a ago. I’ve paid for the season-long natural thing. Bulls fans will always Contributors journey. deride us as the racist minority, and Rich Lindbloom But I forgot that there were we’ll always call them sweater-vest far more for whom this was “their wearing ball-washers. It’s just how Jeff Bartl game.” They got their friends’ Sam Fels things go, I guess. Whatever, we Jake Berlin tickets, or nabbed them when they know they’ll be back when the Bulls went on sale, or however else. flame out to the Heat again once They planned a whole week around getting to one of Lebron starts guarding Rose one more time. Ombudsman the few Hawks games they’ll make it to. They probably But I’m glad to have basketball back. Not having Adam Fels looked forward to it all weekend. it around was throwing me off my rhythm. It’s what And then they got that. I guess I’d be pissed too. you grew up with, how things work. Sometimes I don’t Sometimes I miss the “game as event” feeling that want to watch hockey, just to take a night off. It’s just ChicagoNativeSon I had when I wasn’t a precious season reservation pleasant to have a good Bulls team around to be a John Schultz holder. I don’t always get the charge of heading down distraction if nothing else. to the UC and walking into the gates. But I suppose Oh, and my father is a huge basketball fan. A the emotional stability that I now I have is worth the winter without it very well may have killed him. So Content Editor trade off. there’s that. Nadyja Von Ebers -A lot of people have been asking me what I -I know a lot of you are heading down to St. Louis think of the NBA lockout ending. I’m happy about it, tomorrow, if you’re not already there. When you go one reason being that the beer vendors and security to the game, make sure you pick up our blog blood Rights & Permissions guys here at the United Center (that I wrote about rival’s unofficial program. St. Louis Gametime. I know, All material printed herein is previously this season) now have the normal amount most of you have seen it when I’ve sent it out to my of work they’re accustomed to. They’re the ones who subscribers when the Hawks are down there and copyrighted and protected. Do actually get hurt by this sort of thing. don’t think it’s good. I mean, how could it be? There’s not reprint without expressed, As far as basketball returning, I know a lot of no way a bunch of toothless Missouri illiterates could written permission from hockey fans wanted to see what would happen to the write something as brilliant as this. That much is clear. Hawks’ and NHL’s popularity with no basketball inter- However, there are only a few people completely Committed Indian Publishing. ference. What kind of a world would it be if Sportcenter bonkers enough to do this: yours truly and the team of actually had to show hockey highlights in February unwashed llamas that produces Gametime. And you and March? I guess I was sort of curious too. should support them. Because they work just as hard Logos & Photos But let’s be honest here, none of us really wanted as I do, and they provide a lot of stuff that I steal and Team logos and pictures used that. Or at least most people who said they did didn’t.