Playoff Game Day for Rockford, Sidney Crosby Hurt, and Other Blackhawks Bullets

It’s game day for the Rockford IceHogs! They’ll be in Rosemont tonight for Game One of their Calder Cup Playoff series against the Chicago Wolves tonight. If you’re interested in how some future Blackhawks perform in the postseason, keep an eye on this series. We’ve got your series preview here.

????? ??The biggest NHL news on Wednesday night was the drama at Madison Square Garden. The Penguins sprinted to a two-goal lead and then the game went off the rails. Jacob Trouba caught Sidney Crosby with what appeared to be a high elbow that knocked Crosby out of the game; he did not return.

????? ??After Crosby left the ice, the Rangers scored three goals in under three minutes to grab the lead. Pittsburgh quickly tied the game at three, but the Rangers scored the only two goals in the third period to pick up the win. The Pens still lead the series 3-2 but Crosby has been arguably the best player in the entire playoffs. If he misses any games, the dynamics of this entire postseason are different. And his coach wasn’t happy about it after the game.

????? ??The Professional Hockey Writers Association announced the finalists for the Hart Trophy are Toronto forward Auston Matthews, Oilers forward Connor McDavid and Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin. If Shesterkin wins, it would mark only the third time since 2000 that a netminder was named the league’s most valuable player — and the other two were both Montreal Canadiens (Jose Theodore in 2001-02 and Carey Price in 2014-15).

????? ??I joined the guys on the Bar Down podcast on Wednesday to chat about the past, present and future of the Blackhawks. The interview is the first 43 minutes (roughly) of this video.

????? ??Are you ready to #BearDown?

written by

Tab Bamford has been writing about the Chicago Blackhawks for almost two decades. He joined Bleacher Nation as the lead Blackhawks writer in May 2022. Tab is a member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association and is the author of three books about the Blackhawks: "The Future: Connor Bedard and the Chicago Blackhawks' New Era,"(Triumph Books),"100 Things Blackhawks Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die" (Triumph Books) and "Chicago Blackhawks: An Illustrated Timeline" (Reedy Press, 2021). Find him on Twitter/X/Instagram/Threads at @The1Tab

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