UMFan83

Illinois road to MSG could include getting past Kent State/Tulsa, Dayton/Illinois State, and/or Cincinnat/Weber State.

I agree that Illinois is one of the bigger snubs, but with a 79 RPI it's hard to say that they are definitively the best resume of any team not in the tourney.

Some stats comparing the first 44 games and the last 24 games. 5+ goals scored games First 44 games: 9 Last 24 games: 4 (this one isn't too bad) 4+ goals allowed games First 44 games: 6 Last 24 games: 9 3+ goal wins First 44 games: 15 Last 24 games: 3 2+ goal losses First 44 games: 4 Last 24 games: 5 Goal differential First 44 games: +55 Last 24 games: 0 Yuck.

I think Seabrook and Keith have taken a big step back. Keith not as big, but his turnovers in our zone are very visible mistakes. Seabrook has looked pretty bad as the year has gone on. Honestly with their regressions, Campbells injury and the presence of Sopel in general, I'm wondering if defensemen, not goaltending, is the biggest weakness on this team.

As an outsider, I am starting to wonder myself. The big argument against him is that his best teams in his tenure weren't his guys. I've been hearing about all the awesome recruiting classes Illinois was getting and I have yet to see the results. I know next year you are supposed to be getting a good class coming in so I'd probably reserve judgement for at least a season or two.

Whatever, I'd live with Millar making the team as long as he earned the spot, and he's not taking the spot from anyone more deserving. He's been awful for awhile, but it's possible that the combo of moving to the NL + the magician Rudy Jaramilo might give him one last decent season. I doubt it but it's not out of the realm of possibility. So long as he earns it in spring, and so far he has, and as long as Lou doesn't stick with him way longer than necessary if we go north and he stops hitting. Basically I'll be ok with it if the decision to keep him is solely based on merit and not because of his magical chemistry or his status as a savy veteran.

expletive Say what you want about Campbell but this D gets a lot worse if he's not out there. no, not really. Really? You'd rather see Sopel eat up minutes over Campbell? Sopel is awful.

RPI is terrible if only 2 of Long Beach St., Northeastern, Utah, New Mexico St. TWICE, and Louisiana Tech are at 100+. They beat BYU, and lost to St. Mary's. Those were their only games against teams with a chance at an at large. Their resume doesn't touch Illinois with all their quality wins. Hey now, his team had Robbie Humell on it. That makes him a basketball expert. He also roots for a team that is among the top 2 historically best teams in the Big Ten's history.

I love this article and how it says things like, Pujols would really help the Phillies out because their lineup is really left handed right now. Or it would help them out because he's easily the best hitter in baseball and makes Chase Utley look like Neifi Perez. I mean does that mean that the Phillies wouldn't do that deal if Howard was actually right handed instead of lefty?

From CSN's Hawks beat guy: Man, these quotes can easily be taken out of context but this seems like a fragile team emotionally. On the ice when the Hawks start blowing a lead they looked shell shocked. All season they've been unable to regroup when something like this happens. I mean hell the last time the Hawks were really playing dominant was just before that 3rd period collapse against Minnesota. Even since that game the Hawks haven't looked the same. It's like that singular game turned the season and the Hawks have been unable to completely regroup. I'm probably way overreacting though. Actually I know I am. But it's interesting to point out anyways.

expletive Sorry, it ended up apparently being just rampant twitter speculation. Q said he had a day to day injury. However, Q said Campbell might be out for awhile and won't make the upcoming roadtrip. Say what you want about Campbell but this D gets a lot worse if he's not out there.

I don't know doesn't the NIT start on Tuesday? Shouldnt you, as a Michigan fan, have that date circled and remembered on your calendar? Hell doesnt Mich run the tourney? :D Michigan has a basketball team? I thought we stopped playing basketball the year after the Fab 5. What is the "Fab 5"? /NCAA record book

There are rumors on 300 level that Hossa is out for the year with a shoulder injury, but at this point there are no links, just posters claiming they've heard from reliable sources.

I don't know doesn't the NIT start on Tuesday? Shouldnt you, as a Michigan fan, have that date circled and remembered on your calendar? Hell doesnt Mich run the tourney? :D Zing!

Oh man, you guys are hilarious when things go bad for awhile. Also, no team in the history of sports has ever recovered from a slump, so this team will pretty much be awful forever. Guaranteed. See my post after yesterday's game. You should probably know by now that most people don't post rationally when they are [expletive] pissed off after a devastating loss. Instead of saying "boy the defense has looked bad lately. They are much better than this" it comes out as "In the last 2 months our defense has probably been in the bottom 10 in the league". Regardless, my point is that its been long enough that I cannot consider this a slump anymore. The defense is becoming a legit weakness on this team.

This game just pisses me off so much. So the Hawks have a 3-0 lead and have to kill a double minor. With :05 left in the first penalty, the Hawks commit a second penalty, and the Caps score. So that kills a whole 5 seconds off the penalty and gives the Caps a 5 on 3 for 2 minutes. But even still, the Hawks do a great job on the 5 on 3 kill, until 5 seconds left in the penalty where the Caps [expletive] score again. I mean seriously what crap luck. Instead of stealing the momentum back from Washington and holding a 3-1 lead, its 3-2 with Washington holding all the momentum. So it was no shock at all when the Caps tied it up 2 seconds later. Just in the past week we've given up 5 goals in a period blowing a 2-0 lead to Detroit, given up 3 goals in the 3rd period and blowing a 1 goal lead with 2 minutes left and losing with 2 seconds left, 2 seconds from getting a point, and then blew a 3-0 lead in the span of 3 minutes. Just an awful and pathetic week for the Blackhawks. This team went from looking like they had very few holes in December to looking like they have way too many holes to count in March. And Sulley what a week for me. I watched DePaul finish off a 8-23 season where they've won 1 out of their last 35 conference games. I watched Michigan hoops start the season ranked 16th, and playing horrible basketball all year and having both of their rivals MSU and OSU steal wins away from Michigan with buzzer beaters, making Michigan miss the NCAA Tournament for the 12th time in the last 13 years. I watched Michigan football start out 4-0 and 5-2, needed only to win 1 of their last 5 games to make a bowl game, with games against Illinois and Purdue still on the schedule, and they lost them all including losses to MSU and OSU for the second year in a row. And then just this week alone, I've watched the Hawks go 1-2-1, and having what WGN radio postgame is calling 2 "foundation shaking losses" in the last 2 days, as well as watch the Bulls go from 3 games up on a playoff spot to 2 games behind with a nice little 7 game losing streak in which our best 3 players have been hurt, and 2 players that we traded to other teams are thriving and leading their teams ahead of us for playoff spots. Sports suck right now.

I don't know doesn't the NIT start on Tuesday?

If I wasn't lazy, I would go back in this thread and count all the times we've praised the D for being awesome earlier in the year. We once thought that Keith and Seabrook was the best young defensive line in the league. In the last 2 months our defense has probably been in the bottom 10 in the league.

I have horrible luck. I started watching the game today right after the Hawks scored the 3rd goal. So I watched the Caps score 4 goals on us. Yay. We blow.

0-1-1 weekend We blew a 1 goal lead with 2 minutes left and lost yesterday. We blew a 3 goal lead with 11 minutes left and lost today. This team is in disarray.

Maybe if we get into a shootout.

Yay we got a point!

How many times do you have to think stuff like this and get burned? Apparently at least a few more times.

I've decided that I really just want 1 point out of this. If we go 0-4 this weekend it would be horrible. Just hold them off the last 4:30

I know it's been all the way since Wednesday since we've won.