NEWSLETTER
Survival Log: Day 3.
The sun has come up for the third time since there last was a Chicago Blackhawks hockey game. I’m not sure how long the food supply will last.
The days are long. The nights are cold. I haven’t seen anyone in what feels like a year. I find myself aimlessly wandering about my shelter, sometimes muttering to myself about how the upcoming schedule is going to be one of the toughest months for the Blackhawks. I remember fondly of days past, when Patrick Kane scored his 400th career goal. I should have cherished it more in the moment. Those days long behind me. Ahead of me, a cold, vast wasteland of nothingness. I miss the sights, the sounds, telling people about how the rebuilding process has been accelerated this season because of the rookie breakouts. Sometimes I pretend Brandon Hagel just missed on a breakaway to see if I still feel hope in my heart. It’s there, but it’s fading. I hope to one day, see the Blackhawks play another hockey game. Until then, I’ll fight to see another morning.
• Oh, hi. Didn’t see you there. The Blackhawks play tomorrow for the first of three games in four days against the Central Division leading Tampa Bay Lightning. It begins a stretch in March where the Blackhawks will play 1o games against teams that are ahead of them in the Division. Not to mention, the Lightning are on a G-D tear! They’re 7-3-0 in their last ten games, winners of five-straight, and leading the NHL with a +36 goal differential.
• Much of their recent success can be attributed to Vezina front-runner Andrei Vasilevskiy.
https://twitter.com/DimFilipovic/status/1366963608773480451?s=20
• Over the five-game winning streak, Vasilevskiy has won all four of his starts, with a .986 save percentage and three shutouts. In a row.
https://twitter.com/NHL/status/1366963275146084352?s=20
• The Blackhawks have their hands full and need to get as many points as they can out of the ten possible against the Lightning in the month of March.
Colliton: "Everyone knows the schedule. There's been a lot of discussion about that… These next 3 are like a playoff series. We shouldn't look past that. We'll worry about the rest of the schedule when it comes."
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) March 2, 2021
• Chicago holds a firm grip on fourth-place in the Central Division heading into the month. Their .609 points percentage is a healthy .130 above fifth-place Columbus and they have a five-point cushion above the Blue Jackets.
• Yes, get used to it, I’m scoreboard watching already.
• In case you missed it yesterday, Patrick Kane was named the Central Division Star of the Month for February. As part of the Stars of the Month, the NHL honors frontline workers who are combating the COVID-19 pandemic. Kane honored February’s Star, Qudus Rabiu, who is a registered nurse at Chicago’s Rush University Medical Center, where he helped convert the orthopedic floor into a COVID-19 response unit.
For the true #1 star. Thank you Qudus and all frontline workers for everything you've done to help keep our community safe and healthy. https://t.co/hDv9hfIx3k pic.twitter.com/rF4NRAYJHU
— Patrick Kane (@88PKane) March 3, 2021
• File that under: Things you love to see.
• Mentioning COVID, the NHL is at its lowest number of players on the COVID Protocol list since the season began. Also things you love to see. Hoping for a speedy and full recovery and return for all players listed here.
NHL COVID-19 Protocol List – March 2nd#Preds
Ryan Johansen#LetsGoPens
Sidney Crosby#SJSharks
Tomas Hertl pic.twitter.com/rU5nqMdckS— Complete Hockey News (@CompleteHkyNews) March 3, 2021
• Part of Patrick Kane’s monster month in February was scoring his 400th career goal. If you wanted a commemorative puck for your Blackhawks trinkets, you can now have one.
Celebrate Patrick Kane's 400th career goal with this commemorative puck!
Limited quantities available: https://t.co/CB1jm4wH1T pic.twitter.com/NnPFYcjGVV
— Blackhawks Store (@BlackhawksStore) March 3, 2021
• Another “in case you missed it” from yesterday, Blackhawks head coach Jeremy Colliton was asked about injury updates for a number of players and had none, including on defenseman Brent Seabrook. He hasn’t played a game in over a year, and since his last game, has had shoulder surgery, double-hip surgery, and is nursing a back injury. At what point does the scale tip from Seabrook coming back to being done?
• Keeping with the dark theme, the Blackhawks will be wearing their Black and White 2019 Winter Classic sweaters three times this season. They also have two more games coming up where they will wear their Reverse Retro sweaters.
• Two bits of former Blackhawks news to end today. First, a Happy Birthday to Blackhawks legend Al Secord!
Happy 63rd Birthday to Al Secord! #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/GJmyS3qkdR
— Bleacher Nation Blackhawks (@BN_Blackhawks) March 3, 2021
• And second, former Blackhawks goalie coach from 2005-13 Stephane Waite was fired by the Montreal Canadiens last night…during their game against the Ottawa Senators.
Bergevin said there was no "fight or argument" between Price and Waite that led to the change. Just thought it was the right change to make
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) March 3, 2021
• Cold. Stephane Waite was a part of the Blackhawks coaching staff during the 2010 and 2013 Stanley Cup championships, helping mold players like Antti Niemi and Corey Crawford along the way. Stephane is the brother of current Blackhawks goalie coach Jimmy Waite. I’m sure it won’t take long for him to find work.
