NHL W. Conference Finals: Red Wings defeat Blackhawks 4-1

[Cynosure]

I know it end 4-1, but the Hawks showed the can and will continue to be able to skate with the Wings.

 

Seriously... Hawks had a chance to win EVERY game except for game 4.

[jaydee]

man toews was a complete no show tonight

[17 Seconds]

im not even really upset. detroit is just too good. i was hoping theyd get to end the season at home so the fans could cheer them off, but oh well.

 

realistically, what were the expectations before the season? make the playoffs and make some noise in the first round? they exceeded those expectations by quite a bit

[Hairyducked Idiot]

man toews was a complete no show tonight

 

Won a lot of faceoffs.

[kujay]

im not even really upset. detroit is just too good. i was hoping theyd get to end the season at home so the fans could cheer them off, but oh well.

 

realistically, what were the expectations before the season? make the playoffs and make some noise in the first round? they exceeded those expectations by quite a bit

 

I said a couple times I thought getting deep into the second round was a success.

 

I think this team got invaluable experience through this run, and it will come in handy in the next few years if the Hawks can get decent goaltending.

[17 Seconds]

zetterberg was great in the notebook

[Cynosure]

zetterberg was great in the notebook

 

 

HAHA!

 

Cute little diving Swedes.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

im not even really upset. detroit is just too good. i was hoping theyd get to end the season at home so the fans could cheer them off, but oh well.

 

realistically, what were the expectations before the season? make the playoffs and make some noise in the first round? they exceeded those expectations by quite a bit

 

Absolutely. It would have taken a miracle run to get any further than this. Would have been nice to play Anaheim.

 

I hate the "we'll be back" mentality, as if it's just so easy, but there's no reason this team shouldn't get at least his far again, a lot.

 

It'd be nice to shore up the defense for next season, but the top five are pretty much set. You just have to hope Barker keeps developing (it'd be nice if Seabrook and Keith did too, but they are already so good it's hard to ask for more).

 

My big offseason wish would be a true two-way No. 2 center. Pahlsson was a nice defensive center, but I'd like to get a guy who can do that and score.

[cubswin2009]

man toews was a complete no show tonight

So was our highest paid player

[UMFan83]

Absolutely no reason to hang our heads. Coming into the season, the goal was to make the playoffs, even the players will tell you that. Not only did they make the playoffs, but they proved that they are an elite NHL team and gave a city starving for success plenty of excitement and memories. The core of the team is young and still has the chance to get better. If Tallon can be sharp and manage the cap, we will soon be expecting to get this far every year. So let's not get all caught up on what we need to do to get better than the Wings or worry about if we can keep Havlat and others. For this one night let's celebrate a group of talented individuals who played their hearts out, achieved more than they ever imagined, and revived hockey in Chicago.

 

Let's Go Hawks!

[jaydee]

happy they moved the start date up - big advantage for pitt. it was a good season, i think any fan would have been extremely happy if they were told the hawks would get to the western conf. finals this year.

[manbearcub]

this kinda sucks (less since we all saw it coming), but think back over the whole season it was just absolutely wonderful. Great season Hawks.

[17 Seconds]

also this playoff run had a lot of good moments...which is why you watch the games

[kujay]

99 Hawks games this year. Wow. I think I probably watched a solid 85 of them. Such a fun team to watch. Center Ice was money well spent.

[kujay]

also this playoff run had a lot of good moments...which is why you watch the games

 

I'm not deleting Game 6 against Vancouver off my DVR anytime soon. That Kane goal to go up 7-5 will go down in Hawks history.

[manbearcub]

on the bright side, I can finally get rid of this abomination of a "beard" that I have been working on for a month and a half. Im halfway between Kane and Toews in age, if you want to picture it.

[NewUserName]

Good season for the Blackhawks. Like Cyno said they were in every game except one in this series against a team that no one thought they had a chance against. Good series

 

NewUserName metaphorically skates by and shakes hands with all the Hawks fans.

[UMFan83]

Good season for the Blackhawks. Like Cyno said they were in every game except one in this series against a team that no one thought they had a chance against. Good series

 

NewUserName metaphorically skates by and shakes hands with all the Hawks fans.

 

They were in every game but one, but the Wings outplayed the Hawks in 4 out of the 5 games. Even in the close games, you never got the feeling that the Hawks would pull it out. Good series though...still reminds me of 95.

[bukie]

I'm also glad Huet ended his season on a good game, so there won't necessarily be violent opposition to keeping him on as the #1 next season.

 

The Hawks did better than many expected even coming into the playoffs, and did about as well as expected against Detroit. Stealing another game to force a game 6 probably would have exceeded many expectations for this series, but it just didn't work out. Too many giveaways and odd-man rushes.

[Derwood]

bad outcome, but that was one hell of an entertaining game

[Flames24Rulz]

What do the Hawks do about their goaltending situation next year?

 

Huet and Niemi. Maybe Huet and Crawford. With the cap what it is, they don't have any choice.

 

Re-sign Khabi.

 

No.

 

Huet can be the #1 goalie on this team, and I'm pretty confident saying that. I think Sunday's game was more of a cause of rust than anything else. He was absolutely sensational tonight.

 

Great season, although I have to admit I'm real frustrated that there's no more hockey for us. I'm more concerned about our defensive situation than our goaltending situation and I hope that gets addressed. I'd be willing to let Havlat go if it means we were able to land a stud defenseman.

[gflore34]

Told my wife if they can survive the first 5 minutes or so of OT they'd win. The Wings were pushing hard and would have been spent nevertheless, it's only the beginning for our Hawks.

[NewUserName]

Told my wife if they can survive the first 5 minutes or so of OT they'd win. The Wings were pushing hard and would have been spent nevertheless, it's only the beginning for our Hawks.

 

I agree with you. I think Babcock told the team to give it all for 5 minutes. If they didnt score than they would play another day. He surely didnt want a long OT. He probably would have preferred they lose one early than play 2/3 OTs.

[Soul]

Kudos to Huet for the nice rebound from game 4.

 

No Goony, I still don't think he's all that good :)

 

 

I don't see why we should hang our heads. This was the most fun I've had as a Blackhawk fan since I was a young man. And that's saying something 8-)

 

I can't decide whether I will "root" for the Pens or Wings. I really don't like either team all that much. I guess I'll go Pens -- the Wings are still our mortal enemy.

[kujay]

No doubt, I'm rooting for the Pens. It's good for the league, even if I don't care for Crosby. And it's Detroit. I would never root for them.