It Ends Tonight

Source: http://lcehockey.tumblr.com

Tonight is the climax of the NHL season. Though this season was short due to the lock-out, it was my first to ever follow beginning through end. Lucky for me it has been possibly the most riveting season to ever be a Blackhawks fan. I was able to witness the beautiful, history making 24 game streak without a regulation loss. I watched hours of overtime and I clogged up the dashboards of all of my followers on Twitter with anxious commentary. The Blackhawks have played one hell of a season. The chemistry and devotion visible on the ice has inspired me in so many ways. Anytime I feel tired or lazy, thinking of how many times those players have stood up after an injury or continued to play valiantly into triple OT, I force myself to reevaluate my dedication and inner strength. Tonight is the night that the Hawks have awaited, prayed for, and played for all year. Tonight they have the opportunity to hoist the cup and be inscribed once again into hockey history. I look forward to an intense and passionate game #6 and hope the Blackhawks continue to give it all they got.

According to NHLtonight’s tumblr account:

Patrice Bergeron has been listed as day-to-day.

The Blackhawks are optimistic that Jonathan Toews will play in game 6.

A recap of Boychucks blow to Toews, cause of his Upper Body Injury. Double click for GIF.

GIF via Twitter/@YahooPuckDaddy
Read more at: http://nesn.com/2013/06/johnny-boychuk-levels-jonathan-toews-as-blackhawks-center-attempts-shot-gif/

Brad Marchand “The Little Ball of Hate” Vs. Andrew Shaw

Throughout this Playoffs series Bruins left wing Brad Marchand has been referred to as the “Little ball of hate” and it has been hinted that Andrew Shaw is his Blackhawk equivalent.  There is no doubt that both of these players have quite the tempers, Marchand broke his stick in frustration in Game #4 of this season and Shaw is not shy about getting in the middle of a fight, but I wanted to learn more about each and test their common comparison

http://www.csnchicago.com/blackhawks-talk/gif-marchands-unhappy-stick-break

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DOUBLE CLICK TO VIEW GIF

Shaw is newer to the NHL. Shaw got in a fight in the first NHL game he ever played against the Philadelphia Flyers in 2012. For being so fresh to the professional league ice he has certainly made his name known. He totaled 41 goals and  66 assists this regular season and has been playing a very smart offensive game for the Hawks. Marchand played his first HNL game in 2009 and since then has been proving himself as an impressive offensive player. He helped lead the Bruins to the cup in 2011. In the regular season Marchand has scored 67 goals and 66 assists. In the 2013 Playoffs Marchand has scored 21 points and Shaw, 20. Both have spent impressive time in the box during regular season, Marchand has 183 minutes in penalty and Shaw, 361! These two hot heads sure do clash on the ice, as seen through their multiple fist fights particularly toward the end of game #3.

http://galleries.apps.chicagotribune.com/chi-photos-blackhawksbruins-game-3-20130617/

Pictures by the Chicago Tribune

As a loyal follower of Andrew Shaw on twitter I have been able to get a glimpse into the man behind the aggressive exterior. I have to say… I’d rather have Shaw on my side in a brawl any day.

Some Shaw tweets that are gold…

I followed up on my interest a bit

I followed up on my interest a bit my sophomore year as I started to familiarize myself with the game. Needless to say I wasn’t alone in this newfound interest in hockey and a new generation of hockey fans seemed to rise from the dead in Chicago after the huge win for the hawks. Granted many people called me out as a “fair-weather fan” which is understandable. To suddenly call oneself a fan when you can’t name more than a handful of players on the team seams to a seasoned die hard fan like treason. Still my newfound interest and zest for the sport were genuine. My good friend Michael invited me to a game that year and it is then when my love truly took flight. I still wasn’t totally sports oriented (I spent more time eating hot dogs that game than I did keeping score)  and while I enjoyed the game I hadn’t become invested in the sport. That was until I somehow convinced myself that I made eye contact with the attractive defenseman wearing a Blackhawks jersey with the number 2 and the letter A embroidered on his shoulder in white. I was told by my more knowledgable friend Michael that the player I was eyeing was starring defenseman Duncan Keith. Once my crush set sail my full fledged fan-ship began to develop. I became totally  possessed with a love for Duncan and set out to learn everything about him. I soon realized he was not the only attractive player in the NHL. As I began to learn more about Duncan, I learned much more about hockey and the other players. I began to watch games on T.V, a huge step for a girl who once begged her father to change channels from NBCSportsNetwork to MTV every game. Soon I recognized signature moves of certain players. My interest finally felt real. I felt like I had finally written a sentence in a language that was foreign to me not long ago, as if I was finally piecing something together. Last winter I had the unbelievable opportunity to meet the dreamy toothless hockey hunk I had pined over for so long. I watched interview after interview and couldn’t wait to finally hear his Canadian accent in person! After an amazing game, which they happened to lose after a shootout, I went down to the hallway between the Blackhawks locker room and their post game work out room. Planted in the hall was a wooden table with a makeshift burrito bar for the exhausted players to munch on. My father and a few friends of mine waited to meet the man of my dreams when Patrick Sharp came out to build himself a post game burrito. I was young, naive, immature (granted this was a little over a year ago) and… I didn’t recognize him 😦 , my friends must have but they didn’t speak up. He happened to be the nicest guy ever. He came up to US to ask us who we were waiting to meet and we told him. He smiled warmly and introduced himself humbly as Patrick asking us if we liked the game. We told him we did and commended his amazing efforts. Did I mention he was incredibly handsome? Soon after I finally met my hero and super crush Duncan Keith. He too was a great humble guy. I somehow hadn’t figured out at that point, despite my intensive stalking that he was married. As is Patrick Sharp. Though I was devastated at first this was good for me. I moved past my teeny bopper crushes and began to really delve into getting to know them and the team as athletes rather than potential love interests. My attention to the games grew sharper (see what I did there) and there on out it was hockey or bust.

The game that sparked it all

#2 and I

Patrick Sharp poses with my friends & I