BLACKHAWKS AT PENGUINS GDT - 6:30PM AT CONSOL ENERGY ARENA

[EspoForever]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="PSR" data-cid="224721" data-time="1396311471">

Most importantly is there any word on Toews?</p></blockquote>

Yeah, what happened to "we'll update you on Monday." With the sound of crickets...

 

[Shantz My Pants]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Variable" data-cid="224769" data-time="1396368036">


No it doesn't because even with examples he listed, there have been a ton of others where not just 4th line guys get plastered, which shouldn't really matter, but the "skilled" players as well and no one "responds" with anything but they go on to win the games. Sometimes multiple times in the same game, simply because they usually possess the puck a whole lot more than the other team. It's going to happen. To make the leap that because they didn't do anything means they just rolled over and died and that they failed a "punk test" is ridiculous. They must have failed a lot of them then en route to winning the Cup last year. I mean come on, that was a one shot game up until less than 5 minutes to go. They were controlling the pace of the game mostly throughout it. Even without two of the best players in the world.</p></blockquote>


**** it. Variable you don't read what people wrote and you're the one who leaps to conclusions without reading the context.


Pens were in their head the rest of the game, which was evident by the examples I gave (perimeter game, poor passing due to quick decisions). The Pens owned that game outside of the last 5 minutes. To say the Hawks were pushing the pace is asinine. You don't let your best player get destroyed like that and act like it's okay. The Hawks acted as if they didn't care. There in lies the problem. You love to bring other sports into this convo, so in Basketball when some scrub makes a hard foul on the teams best player, someone typically gets in his face saying that it's not okay. They don't fight, but they stand up for each other. Hawks didn't do that and let that play basically sum up the game.


You would make a terrible hockey teammate...

 

[puckjim]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="EspoForever" data-cid="224771" data-time="1396368531">
<div>


Yeah, what happened to "we'll update you on Monday." With the sound of crickets...</p>
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</blockquote>


I don't believe the Blackhawks practiced yesterday so it's no surprise there was no update.</p>


 </p>


The playoffs start two weeks from tomorrow.</p>


 </p>


For the sake of playoff ticket resell value, I hope Toews is in the lineup.</p>

 

[Variable]

Yeah Trev we watched different games then lol. Good lord.

 

[MassHavoc]

</p>

 

[PatrickSharpRules]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Trev" data-cid="224737" data-time="1396321948">
<div>


Here's a link to a great article written by someone in the know (Bourne's dad is a SC winner back in the Islanders dynasty, his father in law is Clark Gillies, and he himself played NCAA and had time in the AHL/ECHL.

http://blogs.thescore.com/nhl/2012/03/16/once-teams-realized-they-had-to-pass-the-bruins-punk-test-the-bs-were-in-for-a-long-season/</p>
</div>
</blockquote>


 </p>


That article is great. My dad has repeated himself about 50 times with this statement, but he has been saying ever since we left Game 1 of the Finals last year, and revised it too "I knew the Hawks were going to win that series when Shaw came down and hit Chara right away in front of the net"</p>


 </p>


I have been taking that statement to heart, although lightly as I know you cannot base a series win off of one moment, but if a 5'8'' guy coming down and hitting your 7 foot Norris trophy Dman isn't passing the punk test I don't know what is. </p>


 </p>


http://www.suntimes.com/sports/20662181-419/hawks-andrew-shaw-faces-tall-order-against-bruins-zdeno-chara.html</p>

 

[Variable]

Nothing is going to stop the Bruins from being the Bruins, the Kings from being the Kings, the Leafs from being the Leafs,etc,etc. They're going to play their style of hockey  no matter what the other team does, they're going to do it anyway. Why anyone thinks they would lay off if the other team  responds in kind is beyond me at this point, especially with the Penguins. They have the most talented player in the world to lose, if the other team "passes the test" and were to target him, but yet they have/had players in which that hasn't stopped them whatsoever from playing dirty/borderline dirty. Orpik, Neal, Cooke,Kunitz. Even when they had lost Crosby for long stretches of time and when he was especially vulnerable when he came back, it didn't matter. They play that way regardless.</p>


 </p>


There's revenge fantasy and then there's playing physically and sticking to your game. Those are two completely different things. That thing with Shaw and Chara, completely unrelated to wanting revenge on a clean or dirty hit.</p>

 

[PatrickSharpRules]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Variable" data-cid="224836" data-time="1396397698">
<div>


Nothing is going to stop the Bruins from being the Bruins, the Kings from being the Kings, the Leafs from being the Leafs,etc,etc. They're going to play their style of hockey  no matter what the other team does, they're going to do it anyway. Why anyone thinks they would lay off if the other team  responds in kind is beyond me at this point, especially with the Penguins. They have the most talented player in the world to lose, if the other team "passes the test" and were to target him, but yet they have/had players in which that hasn't stopped them whatsoever from playing dirty/borderline dirty. Orpik, Neal, Cooke,Kunitz. Even when they had lost Crosby for long stretches of time and when he was especially vulnerable when he came back, it didn't matter. They play that way regardless.</p>


 </p>


There's revenge fantasy and then there's playing physically and sticking to your game. Those are two completely different things. That thing with Shaw and Chara, completely unrelated to wanting revenge on a clean or dirty hit.</p>
</div>
</blockquote>


 </p>


And completely related to setting a tone for how your team is going to play, setting limits (even if subconscious) for how far your opponent will go in the physical aspect of the game. </p>

 

[Shantz My Pants]

It's more psychological than anything. The Pens saw that and just put the pedal down and were flying. They knew that they could blast any player, especially the top player, and get away with it. That fuels a team mentally and weakens the other. As much as some people want to soften the game, it's all part of the machoism involved. The bully came back and was dominate for most of the rest of the game.



. As a Hawks fan, that bothers me in the sense of, where were they for their fallen teammate, and captain no less. It's just something you don't let pass bye. You see it on every other team because it's part of the hockey culture. You don't have to like it nor agree with it, but it is what it is and always has been and will be.

 

[Shantz My Pants]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="PSR" data-cid="224838" data-time="1396400861">


And completely related to setting a tone for how your team is going to play, setting limits (even if subconscious) for how far your opponent will go in the physical aspect of the game.</p></blockquote>


Exactly. The tone the Hawks set was, we are going to retreat and not get involved. It was obvious the rest of the game.

 

[Variable]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="PSR" data-cid="224838" data-time="1396400861">
<div>


And completely related to setting a tone for how your team is going to play, setting limits (even if subconscious) for how far your opponent will go in the physical aspect of the game. </p>
</div>
</blockquote>


 </p>


Why would it stop them? Why? It hasn't and it won't. It just becomes this continuous cycle of retaliatory bullshit.I don't see any letting up. Orpik was taken off the ice on a stretcher a few months ago, nothing a player can do is going to stop him from playing the way he does, otherwise he's out of the league. </p>

 

[Pez68]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Trev" data-cid="224839" data-time="1396402700">
<div>


It's more psychological than anything. The Pens saw that and just put the pedal down and were flying. They knew that they could blast any player, especially the top player, and get away with it. That fuels a team mentally and weakens the other. As much as some people want to soften the game, it's all part of the machoism involved. The bully came back and was dominate for most of the rest of the game.



. As a Hawks fan, that bothers me in the sense of, where were they for their fallen teammate, and captain no less. It's just something you don't let pass bye. You see it on every other team because it's part of the hockey culture. You don't have to like it nor agree with it, but it is what it is and always has been and will be.</p>
</div>
</blockquote>


 </p>


Bingo. Variable will never understand it.</p>

 

[Variable]

Nothing is there to stop it Pez. Nothing. They have Crosby as the biggest potential target in the league and Neal is out there crosschecking guys in the face and kneeing them in the head. Orpik can have his entire career flash before his eyes from a sucker punch and then go back out on the ice and do the same borderline shit again and again. They're going to play that way no matter what. Getting up in someone's face isn't going to stop it. Bollig isn't going to stop it. Trying to fight Orpik isn't going to stop it.  Delivering borderline cheap shots will only further escalate it. The only response is to just play your game.</p>

 

[Forklift]

You also can't equate what we'd do if it were one of our buddies to what a member of the Blackhawks should do.</p>


 </p>


If I'm out there and some jagoff is running around the ice cheap shotting guys, I guarantee you the ref will give me two for roughing, and won't report the fight to the league. In the NHL, with 40000 eyes in the building plus TV cameras, anyone looking to extract justice will get 17 minutes if they're lucky, a game misconduct if they're not. Plus, since Orpik would just turtle anyway, you'd probably look at a suspension too. So not only would you leave your team two men down for the duration of the game, your suspension + time lost by Kane and Toews would certainly hamstring them.</p>


 </p>


If it were a dirty hit, they'd take care of it down the road, like Mayers did with Raffi Torres.</p>


 </p>


I'm sure Quenneville told these guys on the bench this wasn't the time for revenge.</p>

 

[MassHavoc]

</p>


Cindy requesting a discipline hearing from the front office.</p>


 </p>


 </p>


Hahaha what does he think is going to happen here, a powerplay from the refs?</p>

 

[Spunky Porkstacker]

Looks like a clean hit. If anything, this was a classic case of embellishment from one of the best in the biz.

 

[MassHavoc]

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Spunky Porkstacker" data-cid="224874" data-time="1396453637">
<div>


Looks like a clean hit. If anything, this was a classic case of embellishment from one of the best in the biz.</p>
</div>
</blockquote>


I'd like to see the full video though, the end of the gif looks like he stayed down like this was a concussion rattling hit. When really it was a ***** slap like he's used to.</p>

 

[Chief Walking Stick]

Wow........................ that is actually the funniest Crosby embellishment I have ever seen.  And that's saying something because there are certainly plenty of situations to choose from.</p>

 

[Shantz My Pants]

I still would of went after him.... Doesn't matter if it's in front of 12 people or 20,000. You don't let your captain and best player get blown up like that with no response. Essentially they Hawks gave a, "we couldn't careless about each other" type attitude. In an 82+ game season, you need that sense of comradely as it's not a sprint, but a marathon. There's a reason every hockey commentator with pro hockey experience, and even those who played at a high level have been saying someone should of done something. It's part of the culture of the sport.

 

[Variable]

Except we know better, we know that it's not that they don't care.</p>