Rite of Spring '15: exhume our idols! bury our friends!

[Still MIGHTY]

As a victim of the Blackhawks that was up 1-0, 2-1, 3-2 and saw more than a couple leads disappear against them, will you all shut the hell up?

The Blackhawks aren't dead until they are dead and not one second before then.

[-kj]

I’ve never heard a Blackhawks fan proclaim that their team plays hockey the right way

Don't you follow sodboy on twitter?

[Unocal]

Anyone watching this Derek Sanderson documentary?

[Morgan33]

To win the cup in their red jerseys, they need 3 damn wins in a row! Either win in your beautiful red jerseys or get the F outta here!

[Coast2CoastAM2006]

The series isn't over for Chicago. Wait until the series is over before proclaiming gloom and doom. Until then, enjoy the ride.

[Alex Houston]

I'm really enjoying the disconnect between having a team that has probably been the most clutch any hockey team has been over a six year period and the fans of the franchise, who paradoxically are complaining about possibly losing a chance for a third title in six years.

I assure you I'm bursting at the seems with sympathy.

[TheOldRoman]

I'm really enjoying the disconnect between having a team that has probably been the most clutch any hockey team has been over a six year period and the fans of the franchise, who paradoxically are complaining about possibly losing a chance for a third title in six years.

I assure you I'm bursting at the seems with sympathy.

Hey, cool story, bro. Why should Hawks fans get agitated at the team playing like listless crap and blowing chances to win, just like they did last year when they half-assed it through the Kings series and lost game 7 at home? Oh, because they did it last year. And Captain Clutch wasn't clutch then. Just because they won in 2013 doesn't mean they shouldn't have been working on a three-peat now. No Hawks fan is asking for sympathy or anything, but yes, when your team has been successful, that doesn't mean you will calmly sit on your hands and say "alright, we'll sit the next decade out and let other teams' fans have a chance." Winning a championship just makes you want to win more championships.

[The_Admiral]

I'm really enjoying the disconnect between having a team that has probably been the most clutch any hockey team has been over a six year period and the fans of the franchise, who paradoxically are complaining about possibly losing a chance for a third title in six years.

I assure you I'm bursting at the seems with sympathy.

You cast your lot against the crappy mid-2000s home team and still came out behind.

Let's hope the Hawks can get out of their February form they've been in the last three games. The Ducks were better than the Lightning and the Hawks played them harder. I don't know what the hell this crap is, getting owned by crappy Ryan Callahan, the Yankee Shane Doan.

[OnWis97]

Piss-poor effort from the Hawks. Series is probably over.

...

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH NOOOOOOOO I CAN'T TAKE THIS CRAP ANYMORE

NOW YOU LISTEN HERE AND LISTEN WELL CS85. I KNOW WE'VE ALL ASSUMED THIS SORT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL HANDICAPPING WHEREIN WE SET OURSELVES UP FOR FAILURE SO THAT FAILURE MEETS EXPECTATIONS AND SUCCESS EXCEEDS THEM BUT JESUS CHRIST ENOUGH ALREADY THIS HAS GOTTEN CATEGORICALLY ABSURD AND IT'S WHY I DON'T READ THIS THREAD DURING GAMES ANYMORE I JUST SIT AND WATCH TELEVISION OFF THE GRID PARTYING LIKE IT'S 1993 AND IT'S SO MUCH BETTER THIS WAY

NO GOD DAMN IT NO EVERY TIME THE HAWKS GIVE UP A GOAL THEY ARE NOT DONE, THEY ARE NOT FRAUDS, THEY ARE JUST PLAYING A REALLY GOOD TEAM WHILE ALSO BEING A REALLY GOOD TEAM THEMSELVES BECAUSE HOLY CRAP IT'S ACTUALLY A STANLEY CUP FINAL WHERE BOTH TEAMS ARE ELITE AND RIGHTFULLY PLACED AND NOT JUST GOOD TEAM VERSUS HOT GOALIE AND THE HOT BUTTERED CRAPWAGON. YOU MAY REMEMBER THAT THE HAWKS DESTROYED EVERYONE IN THE LEAGUE EXCEPT BALDY AND THE QUACKERS SO HEY HAVE SOME :censored:ING FAITH. ALSO, THE BRUINS WERE IN THE TOP OF THE EAST ALBEIT QUIETLY BECAUSE EVERYONE WAS ON PITTSBURGH'S DICKS BUT STILL THEY WERE REALLY REALLY GOOD. SO RECALIBRATE YOUR EXPECTATIONS OR STOP GODDAMN WATCHING.

I'M USUALLY PESSIMISTIC BUT NOOOOOOOOO I AM DOING SOMERSAULTS OF JOY BECAUSE I THINK THE HAWKS CAN WIN

AND IF THERE'S A PARADE IN CHICAGO, DON'T COME UP. YOU'RE NOT INVITED. I WILL SCOUR THE ENTIRETY OF THE LOOP TO MAKE SURE YOU'RE NOT THERE, AND IF YOU ARE, I'LL KICK YOU IN THE NUTS, GRAB YOU BY THE ANKLES, AND IF I DON'T JUST THROW YOU IN THE LAKE LIKE THAT METEOROLOGY STUDENT WHO JUST DIED, I'LL DRAG YOU TO UNION STATION AND STUFF YOU IN AN AMTRAK FOR NOT NECESSARILY DOWNSTATE BUT ANYWHERE BUT HERE BECAUSE IF YOU'RE NOT ON BOARD WITH THIS THEN JUST GO AWAY FOREVER AND DON'T LIKE HOCKEY. DON'T LIKE BASEBALL. DON'T EVEN LIKE TENNIS. JUST LIKE GOLF. THAT MUST BE YOUR FATE. ONLY LIKING GOLF.

GO HAWKS

Here on the grid we are partying, or drinking, like it's 1992.

[Alex Houston]

Hey, cool story, bro. Why should Hawks fans get agitated at the team playing like listless crap and blowing chances to win, just like they did last year when they half-assed it through the Kings series and lost game 7 at home? Oh, because they did it last year. And Captain Clutch wasn't clutch then. Just because they won in 2013 doesn't mean they shouldn't have been working on a three-peat now. No Hawks fan is asking for sympathy or anything, but yes, when your team has been successful, that doesn't mean you will calmly sit on your hands and say "alright, we'll sit the next decade out and let other teams' fans have a chance." Winning a championship just makes you want to win more championships.

I like you Roman. I believe your a smart, well rounded guy from what I can tell. But you can't expect me, or any other fan to read the text in bold and not think that doesn't come off as arrogant. I mean, you and I are White Sox fans and even though they won recently, if we had a Tigers or Twins group on here complaining in a similar fashion, I'd suspect you'd be slinging something similar to me. But hey, we've had this argument last year. Those who win just want to win more and those who haven't want to see those people fall. It's human nature. Not much we can do about that.

You cast your lot against the crappy mid-2000s home team and still came out behind.

Let's hope the Hawks can get out of their February form they've been in the last three games. The Ducks were better than the Lightning and the Hawks played them harder. I don't know what the hell this crap is, getting owned by crappy Ryan Callahan, the Yankee Shane Doan.

I'm a bit tired from a long day at work yesterday, but I'm pretty sure there's an ad hoc in there somewhere.

But hey, Kramerica showed even the mighty Admiral goes crazy for time to time. Or was that the Japanese thread? Regardless, you'll all feel pretty silly when you're at the parade next week. You doubt it, but you'll see. Just give it time.

[Kramerica Industries]

Well, what I was actually showing was how weird it strikes me that Ad would say one thing with the 'Hawks down 2-1 in the SCF one year, and says something completely different with them down 2-1 in the SCF this year. It's virtually the same team, too, from 2013 to 2015. If the 2013 team could erase a 2-1 deficit, then it's not like the 2015 team can't do the same. It's not like their opposition this time around is head-and-shoulders better than the 2013 Bruins were, and that year, they had to start climbing out the hole with Game 4 on the road. This year, they're a 7-2 home team in the playoffs facing a team with a 6-6 home record. It doesn't take much. If I were a neutral, I'd probably still be betting on the Blackhawks on track record alone. The Lightning may win this series, they may have future playoff successes a la Chicago since 2009, but that's still an unknown; the 'Hawks are the known quantity and deserve the benefit of the doubt until they are defeated for a fourth time in seven games or less.

[TheOldRoman]

I like you Roman. I believe your a smart, well rounded guy from what I can tell. But you can't expect me, or any other fan to read the text in bold and not think that doesn't come off as arrogant. I mean, you and I are White Sox fans and even though they won recently, if we had a Tigers or Twins group on here complaining in a similar fashion, I'd suspect you'd be slinging something similar to me. But hey, we've had this argument last year. Those who win just want to win more and those who haven't want to see those people fall. It's human nature. Not much we can do about that.

I'd agree with the Tigers fans' sentiment if they said the same thing. The Tigers have won the division the last four years, and other than one World Series sweep, they've got nothing to show for it. If I were a Tigers fan, I'd be pretty upset that their window is rapidly closing (the window to win a WS, they'll be in the division picture for some time). I know it can seem whiney to fans whose team is in a drought. Of my teams, the White Sox are in between, the Bears have burned it to the ground, the Bulls should burn it to the ground, and Illinois basketball has been one disaster after another the past ten years. I get it.

Teams have finite windows in which to win. Ten years from now, the Blackhawks might be among the worst teams in hockey. The Illini had one of the best teams of all time, but they lost in the championship game. The Bears' window saw them with two chances, the first had them get destroyed by two mediocre RB while Manning had little to do, and the second had them get Mike Martz'd in the conference title game followed by their arch rival winning it all. The Bulls window closed greatly with Rose's tear in 2011, and pretty much slammed shut this year. The White Sox had plenty of bumbling, bad coaching and personnel mistakes in their window, but they were luckily able to close the deal in 2005 (after having the '90s window close without a title). But that doesn't mean I wasn't furious at the time, and still angry in retrospect, about the 2006 team falling apart in the second half. The Blackhawks are still in their window, and have already blown one year in which they realistically should have won the cup. I just want as many Cup wins as possible while the team is still loaded, because it's not always going to be loaded.

[HedleyLamarr]

Reaching the ol' boiling point with this crap. The team practically had to sell their souls to lucifer himself to score a 2nd goal against a broken up goalie, then promptly soil themselves and some bullcrap slop tumbles past Crawford.

But hey, I guess I can't complain. I should just be happy they made it this far, right?

I mean, yeah kind of. You wanna trade?

No kidding.

I'd kill for any one of my teams to be going for a third title in six seasons.

Hell, I'd kill for all my teams combined to go for three total championships in a six-year period.

Furthermore, I'd kill just to see any of my teams win just the second championship in my nearly 32 years of being alive.

So yeah, Blackhawks fan, you wanna trade your current lot for one of a Blue Jackets fan, or a Thrashers fan? One's had two titles and close to a third one in six seasons.....one's seen a grand total of two playoff game victories in 15 years....and one's seen their team be gone for four years now.

[Viper]

Meanwhile, an NBC Sports exec has apparently decided that the middle of the NHL's showcase event was a good time to stir up a huge hornet's nest.

“The players won't like this, but I wish they all would stop growing beards in the postseason,” Lazarus said, via the Chicago Tribune. “Let's get their faces out there. Let's talk about how young and attractive they are. What model citizens they are. (Hockey players) truly are one of a kind among professional athletes.

“I know it's a tradition and superstition, but I think (the beards do) hurt recognition. They have a great opportunity with more endorsements. Or simply more recognition with fans saying, 'That guy looks like the kid next door,' which many of these guys do. I think that would be a nice thing."

[The_Admiral]

Putting your league's championship on Gentrified Versus hurts recognition too, you dumb dick.

[CubsFanBudMan]

Heard this stat on Chicago radio and just found it from the Canadian Press via The Times Colonist, a paper I am not familiar with:

Since Joel Quenneville took over as coach, the Blackhawks are 30-30 in Games 1-3 but are an incredible 40-14 in Games 4-7.

So... they have the Lightning right where they want them?

http://www.timescolonist.com/blackhawks-history-in-games-4-7-has-them-confident-against-lightning-1.1963324#sthash.HEoP8q1q.dpuf

[Crabcake]

Sitting here watching these Hawks fans complain like

http://giphy.com/gifs/laughing-seinfeld-cigar-e2QYPpUe8WmpG

[-kj]

Putting your league's championship on Gentrified Versus hurts recognition too, you dumb dick.

Yeah, why take the money from NBCSN when you could not be on at all?

[infrared41]

Well, what I was actually showing was how weird it strikes me that Ad would say one thing with the 'Hawks down 2-1 in the SCF one year, and says something completely different with them down 2-1 in the SCF this year. It's virtually the same team, too, from 2013 to 2015. If the 2013 team could erase a 2-1 deficit, then it's not like the 2015 team can't do the same. It's not like their opposition this time around is head-and-shoulders better than the 2013 Bruins were, and that year, they had to start climbing out the hole with Game 4 on the road. This year, they're a 7-2 home team in the playoffs facing a team with a 6-6 home record. It doesn't take much. If I were a neutral, I'd probably still be betting on the Blackhawks on track record alone. The Lightning may win this series, they may have future playoff successes a la Chicago since 2009, but that's still an unknown; the 'Hawks are the known quantity and deserve the benefit of the doubt until they are defeated for a fourth time in seven games or less.

"Ad?" What's next, "Addy" or "Adder?" Other than that, you make some great points.

[rams80]

Meanwhile, an NBC Sports exec has apparently decided that the middle of the NHL's showcase event was a good time to stir up a huge hornet's nest.

“The players won't like this, but I wish they all would stop growing beards in the postseason,” Lazarus said, via the Chicago Tribune. “Let's get their faces out there. Let's talk about how young and attractive they are. What model citizens they are. (Hockey players) truly are one of a kind among professional athletes.

“I know it's a tradition and superstition, but I think (the beards do) hurt recognition. They have a great opportunity with more endorsements. Or simply more recognition with fans saying, 'That guy looks like the kid next door,' which many of these guys do. I think that would be a nice thing."

/Has Ivy League MBA

//Wants them to show skateboarders during intermission to appeal to "the youth".