Perspective: Part 1

So I know it's been a while since my beautiful writing has graced this blog, but I figured I would wait out the Cubs before I came back to Chicago sports. Seeing as though they are picking on the Pirates, I have decided to come back in a way that honors their accomplishments over the past 10 games. Seeing as the rain stepped in yesterday and prevented the bullpen from destroying another quality start, and that the Cubs offense allowed a sigh of relief (no pun intended...seriously our relief pitchers are abysmal) today, I am happy to report that the Cubs are on a winning streak. The thing about being a Cubs fan is that you cannot get so invested in the early part of the season that you lose track of the overall goal.

That brings me to the titular reference, perspective. As we wind down the second month of the season, the Cubs currently stand a game over .500 and are gearing up for a four game series against the Dodgers, the team with the best record in baseball. They have been a little off the past two weeks, mostly having a hard time with their bats. Until Dempster's implosion on Monday, the starting pitching had been giving us a chance, but the bats just couldn't get it going. That may be one of the reasons that Jake Fox, the hottest hitting prospect in the minors just got called up to the majors, and promptly doubled in a run in his only at-bat today (the other notable move was getting Neal Cotts the hell out of the bullpen...the thing is Neal, I too could have walked batter after batter and inspired no faith in my teammates, but then again, I'm not a major league player). But on the other hand, the Cubs have had a slew of injuries and slow starts. We are playing in a tough division, and yet we aren't way behind (although I should add that looking at the standings is pointless until after the All Star Break). The losing streak pitted us against a team that has featured incredible starting pitching (the Cards) and another team playing really hot ball (the Padres). Before I completely give up on this team, I'm going to have a little faith that we can turn around a little losing streak and right the ship.

You can look at it from the vantage point that we are 2-8 in our last 10 games, or that we are on a winning streak and playing fiery ball (see Big Z erupt today). Either way, it's all a matter of perspective.

Game 4 = An abomination

I'm really not even sure where to start with this posting. The Blackhawks have given me angina pectoralis, and I think total heart failure is just around the corner for me (this is a blog by medical students, so don't hate on me for the medical jargon). For the first time in this entire post season, the Blackhawks were exposed in all aspects of their game as the young, unexperienced, undisciplined team that many people have suggested they are. They came out sloppy once again, turning the puck over and hesitating on their shots. This is especially depressing since the Red Wings were missing Kris Draper, Pavel Datsyuk, and Nicklas Lidstrom (easily the Wings best defender and a future Hall of Famer). There were 3 points in the game though that really stood out to me as turning points in the game:

1. Johan Franzen's goal at the end of the 2nd period. The shot was a simple wrist shot from the right circle with no one screening or distracting Cristobal Huet. And yet the shot sailed directly over his right shoulder and into the upper stick side of the goal to put the Wings up 2-0. Huet's goaltending during the first ~24 minutes of the game was unequivovally atrocious. Plain and simple. He looked uncomfortable when the Red Wing rush came past the blue line and seemed to panic at certain instances when he had to go behind his own net. This is really worrisome since he still has 3 years on his newly minted contract and was thought to be our future in front of the net at the beginning of the season. The Blackhawks should only be so lucky that Khabibulin wasn't claimed by another team when he was put on waivers at the beginning of the season, as he has been the workhorse for this club all postseason long.

2. Marion' Hossa's goal in the 2nd period. The Blackhawks finally looked like they were giong to right the ship in this game when Jonathon Toews beat Chris Osgood for a powerplay goal in the opening minutes of the 2nd period. Unfortunately, the momentum and crowd excitement (which seems to be pretty crucial to the Hawks' success) was extremely short lived as Hossa scored only 8 seconds after Toews' goal. This sucked the air out of the United Center so fast that the roof almost caved in. After this, the Blackhawks never were able to regain their composure. All the Blackhawks with the exception of Patrick Kane, Jonathon Toews, and Andrew Ladd (who played somewhat sloppy and really needs to start winning faceoffs (5/18)) looked mentally defeated and seemed to really just go through the motions of the rest of the game while on the ice. There was no passion or desire to chase down the loose puck or really fight for position in front of the Red Wings net.

3. Kris Versteeg's stupidity. This was just one of many silly penalties that the Blackhawks committed that ended up coming back to bite them in the butt. Versteeg and Walker picked up cross checking and interference penalties, respectively, midway through the 2nd period. Of course, in good executive fashion, the Red Wings made us pay on a Henrik Zetterberg goal. After killing off the other penalty, Versteeg comes out of the box and exactly 5 seconds later picks up another penalty for roughing. This just plain can't happen. You are already down 4 goals and can't afford stupid penalties that force you to play shorthanded. These are more mental mistakes that can change the tide in a close game or, in this instance, only made it that much easier for Detroit to continue to control the puck and clock. Oh, and Versteeg's 10 minute misconduct later was just a cherry on top of this already poor play.
Honorary mentions for this stupidity also go out to Ben Eager (10 minute misconduct) and the rest of the Blackhawks team (56 total penalty minutes).

Finally, the Roughing call on Matt Walker to end the 1st period was ridiculous as he barely made contact with Darren Helm. I'm not one to usually jump on the referees, but this was a silly call in a sport that promotes violent hits and fighting. It turned out not to matter in the end since the Blackhawks were outplayed and lost by 5 anyway, but this seemed to be a little bit on the ticky tacky side of penalty calling.

All in all, it was a pretty lousy day to be a Blackhawks fan. They now head back to Detroit for game 5. The series isn't over, but with a commanding 3-1 lead and Lindstrom and Datsyuk probably back for game 5, the Red Wings look in control of this series.

Game 3 Ruminations

Wow. What a game. This series is really shaping up to be a good one. After some conversation with the Witch Doctor, we came to the realization that this series feels just like those between the Pistons-Bulls in the late 80s and early 90s. The Bulls were young and Detriot was the established powerhouse. The Bulls pushed the Pistons and eventually got the better of them after a few years. Now, that's not to say that I've given up on this season for the Blackhawks (I actually think that we've proved we can definitely play with them and beat them), I just think that IF we don't beat the Red Wings, it shouldnt be viewed as such a shortcoming.

Anyway, here are some other thoughts/reactions about Game 3:
- Joe Quenneville has a great mustache
- Niklas Kronwall is a punk and deserved the 5 minute major he drew for his hit on Martin Havlat. Though, I'm not so sure that the ejection was the correct call.
- On that note, I truly hope that Havlat is okay and can play in Game 4. He led our team in points during the regular season (77) and is important to our offense.
- The Hawks played great during the first period and first 4-5 minutes of the second period. They played with a lot of energy, got good shots, and played good defense. Plain and simple, good hockey.
- The last 10 minutes of the second quarter looked like a totally different team was playing. The Hawks got complacent to just dump the puck in the Wings zone and skate back on defense. We were lucky then they only scored 3 goals that period.
- Still not sure what happened to Nikolai Khabibulin and am sort of sick of hearing this "lower-body injury" b.s. I hope that he is okay, but I felt that at least 1 of the goals scored on him should have been stopped. I really didn't mind the switch to Cristobal Huet. I think that he is just as capable and should seriously be considered to start Game 4.
- Patrick Sharp's OT goal was all solid fundamentals. He did a great job of positioning himself, corralling the puck, and executing on the shot. Nice.
- West End is a great place to watch a Hawks game. Everyone there is intense and watching the game and it gets rowdy when someone scores a goal.

Overall, could have done without those last 10 minutes of the 2nd period but thank goodness they ended up with the W anyway. Can't wait for Game 4...

Hawks Game 2 Analysis

Ok. So, basically, the Blackhawks did a lot right last night in game 2. They were much faster to the puck than the Red Wings, played more physically than in game 1, and kept the puck in the Red Wing zone for extended periods. And yet, they still come out with a big loss which now puts them in the dreaded 2-0 hole. How did it turn out this way?

1) Defensemen need to step up their game. I know that Brian Campbell will be made the scapegoat for last nights loss, after giving up the puck at the blue line and allowing the Red Wings to have a 3-1 which ended the game (and was an absolutely picture perfect demonstration on what a 3-1 should look like). But, I can't stick all the blame on him or this one incident. In game 1, Duncan Keith and Cambell both had turnovers that lead to goals. This just cannot happen. These guys need to stop trying to get so creative with the puck and just make the safe pass or dump it into the zone behind the net. Either way, they are seriously going to have to elevate their playing for game 3.

2) Take the shot. Too often I see Keith and Brent Seabrook get a puck up by the blue line from down low and hesitate to shoot. Yes, I would like to acknowledge that Detriot has done a very good job defensively getting hands, arms, skates, sticks, etc. into our passing lanes. I don't have the number of blocks on hand but I can only imagine, it's a lot. But, these guys are professionals and there are ways to stick handle or set up the offense to get around this. When they get the puck, they need to put a shot on net since we have demonstrated our resourcefulness and ability to score off rebounds and little put back right in front of the net (especially when you have someone the size of Byfuglien in front and always fighting).

3) Stop turning the puck over. This one is pretty self explanatory. It just can't happen against good teams or they will make you pay for it.

4) Convert your chances. When an opportunity presents itself, the Hawks NEED to capitalize and put the puck in the back of the net. Perfect example is the good steal (and just plain bad turnover for the Wings) at the Wings' blue line by Dave Bolland who had an open breakaway. I give Chris Osgood credit for a great save, but if the Hawks want to stick around in the playoffs this year and be true contenders in years to come, they are going to have to capitalize on these chances.

With all this in mind, coming home to the United Center should be a relief for the Hawks who can set their minds straight and refocus for Friday's game. Now let's get a W!

Brett Favre- political enemy number 1

I can't stand it anymore. Everytime I turn on sportscenter there is a brett favre discussion.

News flash...no one cares. Not even a little.

It was ok the first time he thought about doing this. It was barely tolerable the second time. Now it's unfair to the sports fan who doesn't care about a washed-up quarterback.

Ok, you're old and kind of good. But I had a concussion during the last 5 games during last season. What happened?

Oh yeah, my amnesia is over...You were awful. Rex Grossman awful. Nay. Ryan Leaf awful. You lost the playoffs for the Jets and certain unnamed teammates...Thomas Jones cough cough said you should have been benched.

Oh and 2 years ago when Green Bay made the playoffs, how did that playoff game against the Seahawks go? Good or bad? He put up Moses Moreno like numbers.

Oh yeah and the years before that you weren't all that good either.

With this being said, please go quietly into the night and play pick up football in your Wrangler jeans where you still can't make a good pass. You know what I'm talking about when at the end he throws a horrendous ball to the WR who has to dive for it in the mud. You're Brett Favre. I'm pretty sure you can hit a middle-aged man on the run during a pick up game with no pads and no pass rush.

Just face it. You're not that good anymore and the more you pull these shenanigans, you more people will remember you as the bitch in There's Something About Mary.

Selena Roberts- how i despise thee

I know this is a chicago blog but this current A-rod thing is thoroughly upsetting me.

I know i'm in the minority, but I love Alex Rodriguez. He's been one of my favorite baseball players since I've been 10. Consequently, these current attacks cut me deep.

Personally, I'm one to not really care if you took steroids. There are plenty of baseball players around the globe who took steroids and still didn't make it anywhere. Just look at all those D3 baseball locker rooms with tubs of N.O. explode and creatine. While those are legal, we all know someone who were taking illegal substances.

It still remains all skill to hit a baseball. Last time I checked, steroids don't make you better at picking up a curveball.

But I digress.

Why is Selena Roberts personal vendetta to destroy Alex Rodriguez. She has basically asked everyone in the majors to say something bad about A-Rod and then she wrote a book. Her big story is that A-Rod took HGH in high school. Not only has Doug Mientkiewicz (yeah I spell that right) said he didn't, but it wasn't outlawed by MLB yet.

Also, who cares if he had a clubhouse boy put toothpaste on his toothbrush. I don't.

Did Alex take Selena out to a nice seafood dinner and never call her again?

I think A-Rod should find out that Selena took Ritalin in high school and college to finish her assignments even though she didn't have ADD. I know it's not illegal, but it'd be a nice f you that you took stuff to make you perform better, and now you're screwing with me.

Karma would be a bitch.

Why care about the Derby?

Now, I know that this is a Chicago Sports Blog, but I felt compelled to write about our friends 300 miles south of here in Louisville, KY. Every year, these fine folks gather some of the best race horses in all the land for our gambling entertainment at Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby. In recent years though, I have felt that many of the classic American sporting events, like horse racing and boxing, are being shoved aside newer, more violent sports like UFC and the X games. While I am not trashing on these newer events, I feel that we should not forget our sporting roots (The Derby has been around since 1875) and still try to uphold the elegant tradition of these steeds by watching the races. Thus, I give you my top 3 Derby traditions/reasons for watching the Kentucky Derby this year.

1. Mint Juleps- For those of you who don't know, a mint julep is bourbon, sugar, water, and mint. It is also incredibly delicious. This drink has long standing roots in the United States (it has been in Kentucky since just after the American Revolution when Senator Henry Clay made it popular) and has been the official drink of the Kentucky Derby since 1938. What other sporting event has an official drink that isn't beer?

2. Large Hats- Like good southern folk, the people who attend Churchill Downs on this day don the largest, most ornamental hats you've ever seen. The women wear gigantic floppy hats in almost every color and material imaginable. And of course, the more prestigious you want to look, the bigger and more colorful your hat is. Men, on the other hand, tend to wear construction helmets on which they have created a diorama of the horses racing, the Churchill Downs Clubhouse, or some other part of event. It is quite a spectacle.

3. The Blanket of Roses- Last, but not least, is the Blanket of Roses that is laid over the winner of the race. This has to be the coolest way to honor the winner. No, it's not climbing up a ladder to cut down a net or driving doughnuts in the infield at Talladega or giving someone a Gatorade shower. This is better than all of that. This about as close to truly crowning the horse and jockey with an actual crown as it gets.

Get ready for the most exciting 2 minutes in sports.