10. Flames First Round Failures
Picture the Buffalo Bills teams in the 90's that made it the Super Bowl four straight years and walked away losers four straight times.
The Flames recent trend of disappointments in the postseason may not be as extreme as the Bills', but you better believe losing in the first round in four consecutive years is in the back of their minds.
9. Depth
Youth is the attribute most refer to while speaking about the Hawks.
But what they should be paying attention to is the depth that has propelled the Hawks to their 46-24-12 record in 2008.
They'll lean heavily upon that depth in this series to combat the savvy know-how of the Flames veterans late in games.
8. Hawks are due
The Hawks playoff drought has been one of the more forgettable periods in the team's history. But now that they'll be making their first postseason appearance since 2002, all bets are off.
I'm a big believer in the law of averages and according to that twisted logic, the Hawks are due in a big way for a series win against the Flames.
7. Fearless
On one side of the coin you could look at this Hawks team and say that their lack of experience in the postseason will hurt them.
But then again, lack of experience could also translate into a sense of fearlessness for the young stars of the Hawks.
They'll be too focused on the task at hand as opposed to being too focused on the grandeur of the moment.
6. The return of Patrick Sharp
While Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews get most of the love from the national media, it's time for Patrick Sharp to make his mark upon the NHL landscape.
Sharp missed the final five games of the regular season with a knee injury, but should be ready to lace 'em up tomorrow night. He'll need to be at full speed for the Hawks to take control of the series in its earliest stages.
5. Hawks were 4-0 against Calgary in 2008
Walking into the playoffs with a perfect regular season record against the Flames should give the Hawks a huge confidence boost. They know the tendencies, style and players of the Flames already and more importantly, they know how to beat them.
4. Miikka Kiprusoff
It's never enjoyable to witness a once great athlete descend into the twilight of his career.
Kiprusoff's had a tough go in the net this season, finishing up 32nd in the league in save percentage and 34th in goals against percentage. Things have gotten so bad for the veteran goalie that Flames head coach Mike Keenan yanked him out of their game against the Oilers last Friday and sat him on Saturday.
The Hawks have to be licking their chops.
3. Injuries to the Flames
The Flames have been devastated by injuries this season and could be without the services of Cory Sarich, Robyn Regehr, Mark Giordano and Curtis Glencross.
But don't expect the Hawks to shed any tears of sympathy for their first round opponents.
2. Home Ice
The Hawks were one of a handful of teams to sell out every home game this season and that streak will most certainly continue throughout their playoff run.
Hawks fans are among the most rabid in the league and come 7:30 PM tonight, the madhouse on Madison part deux will be ready to explode.
1. Nikolai Khabibulin
Come playoff time, having a hot goalie is the greatest commodity a team could possess.
Khabibulin ended the season on a good note, but his lifetime record against the Flames, 25-5-2, is what really jumps out at you.
It's not often a goalie has such a dominant record against any single franchise, but Khabibulin straight up owns the Flames. Throw in a top notch backup in Cristobal Huet and the Hawks have all the help they need in between the posts.
1 comment:
And the Blackhaks Ice Crew girls. Especially that Jenna. Her smoking hot body and that gorgeous face should be enough to win the Cup alone.
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