How do you like Wiz now?
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- What a cheap shot by Ducks defenseman James Wisniewski on Brent Seabrook in the second period on Wednesday night.
A high-stick/elbow/charge to Seabrook's face, and all he got was a minor penalty for charging. Gutless no-call by referees Paul Devorski and Ian Walsh.
Wisniewski's head shot knocked Seabrook out and he retired to the dressing room. The Hawks later announced that Seabrook wouldn't be returning to the game.
And the NHL is trying to clean up its game? That's a joke.
He's a postgame quote from Wisniewski:
"I think you can see my face. What happened was my face hit his face because my nose got all cut up from my visor and all that stuff. He’s one of my real good buddies. That’s not what at all what I was (doing). I just pinched down from the blue line. I thought he had the puck so I finished my check. (When) something like that happens, you don’t want to see that."
The Hawks do have a lineup of p*ssie$. Skilled hockey players they are, and I love all the guys on this club. But it appears that many of the posters on here for the past few months that I have been here are being proven correct (I am admitting I was wrong). The Hawks are being manhandled right now night in and night out.
Little Kris Versteeg is the guy mixing it up? Last night he was in the middle of 3 or 4 scrums that I can remember?
Someone needed to go lay Wiz out last night, and I mean lay him out.
We have absolutely no one that can do this.
We needed someone to lay out Semin on Sunday?
We have absolutely no one that can do this.
I don't think we need to turn into the brooklyn brawlers, but we are getting our a$$es kicked on a night in and out basis. The NHL is not going to stop this, the referrees (As we've seen all damn season) are not going to stop this. (That cross check on sopel that led to the goal was as blatant as it gets for the blind mice.) The Hawks are guarranteed a playoff spot, and I could care less if they win 5 of the next 13 going in so long as they start getting a lil rough.
Ohh yeah I forgot, we don't have anyone to do this.
The only thing that is keeping me watching these hapless Hawks is the fact that the White Sox looked just as horrible at this same point of their World Series season before they peaked. The thing that is bothering me is that McDonough came from the Cubs who could care less if they win as long as they put fans in the seats. I find it hard to believe that the Hawks will even make the conference finals unless they pull their heads out of their butts. Come on, the tonight show. They should be at the hotel watching video of the games since the Wings beat them. Q is turning into a joke. Stanley is already a joke, only getting the job because of his daddy. I don't know why people are bashing Boynton. At least he showed some guts. Isn't that what the bloggers have been asking for, someone to show some toughness? Yea he got beat but at least he stepped up. I'm not quitting on these guys but it's getting harder to watch this fiasco. Next year, Eager gone, Buff gone, Burish gone, Huet gone and if they don't make it to at least the conference finals, Q gone. Good night and good luck.
This already in from NHL headquarters. Duncan Keith suspended for one game and fined $1000 for instigating a fight with 34.
Is Dunc the first guy to stand up for a teammate? I hope this is a joke.
Link?
What is lost in all of this is the Pathetic display of the Power Play again in this game. They put one or two in and all of this crap stops. Teams know they can get away with a penalty now because the Hawks aren't scoring on their PP's. All of this talent and no results at all. Kane needs to get selfish and go to the net and shoot the puck. Rebounds will be there if guys are crashing the net. What is being done now isn't working. Change it up. Boynton on the PP was bad. Hoss gives him the puck and instead of giving back so Hoss can work on the guy without the stick, he fires it right into the guy in front of him and out it goes. Unacceptable. Too much floating outside and trying for the pretty play. How about work and bang in a rebound or something. Get more quality shots from it and they will go in...too much talent for it to be this terrible.
And Wiz...he's dead to me. You broke my heart Wiz...you broke my heart.
Where were the forwards tonight? Where was the offense? 2 goals?
One way to respond to the cheap hit is to score. The offense has been very quiet the last week. 2 goals will not win many games. These forwards have to start finishing and putting 4 goals on the board like they did early in the year. If they score 4 they win tonight, they beat Philly and Washington and I don't have to hear the crap about adding toughness. If they score 4 one bad play by the goalie won't cost us the game.
I want to see mental toughness, and some more goals.
The offense has been quiet longer than a week, and hasn't seemed to fire on all cylinders since well before the Olympics. All cylinders.
This last 2 weeks is gonna be brutal. You wont see guys risking suspension once the playoffs start, and Chicago's rep for letting it's young stars get their bell rung is no secret. The boys in the Indian Head sweaters need to keep their heads up and circle the wagons. Just get healthy and start playing their brand of hockey again for the post season.
Was Devorski wearing a Ducks uniform under his stripes? Easily the most ticked off I've been at the refs this year.
That whole sequence played out exactly how it was supposed to. Seabrook has a questionable hit on Perry and Wiz sticks up for his teammate and goes right after No. 7. Exactly how it should be. Just think about all of the blatant, not even questionable, hits on the Hawks and what ultimately was done about them. Seabrook may be out for a couple of weeks and Bowman will send some footage to the league office. Hopefully Bowman can puff his chest out when he receives the form letter of apology from the League Office. Justice served.
He may have played it right but the Hawks didn't. Someone should have went after Wiz besides Keith and if the Hawk skilled players have bullseyes on their backs then the Hawks run their star players like Selane or Niedermayer for example.
It's Sean Connery said in the Untouchables
"You don't bring knives to a gun fight. If you want to win they put one of yours in the hospital you put one of theirs in the mourgue. That's the Chicago way" Well maybe not to the mourgue but you get the idea.
Because the rest of your post is utter nonsense. Funny that a former NHL coach and goalie both called it like it was on NHL On The Fly. Wiz is a piece of garbage and I expect a nice suspension is coming his way. The Seabrook hit on Perry was not a hit at all but a real and true push UNLIKE Ovechkin's on Soup. What Wiz did was straight up bushleague and his version of the story is the most chicken shyte response I have ever heard from an adult. He sounded like a kid standing over a broken lamp with a baseball bat in his hand, trying to tell his mom that it was the bat's fault. Worse than Ovechkin's nonsense! Worse than Boudreau's!!!!
Yeah, wild sequence. Seabrook's hit had a bit of malice but was mostly clean. Then the puck moves, Keith tosses it over, it hits Seabrook's skates and events were set in motion. You could see it coming. And there's no doubt Wiz crossed the line. He could have plastered Seabrook but he went right to the head, which sets up the next interesting sequence: nhl justice (or lack thereof)
a 5 minute major for charging. And the Ducks announcers, namely former NHL sieve Brian Hayward, accused Seabs of embellishing the hit. Hayward later apologized but he should have his freaking eyes examined. Seabs is a rock and to see him have his eyes practically roll back in his head was frightening. Wiz is hard nosed but that hit warrants a suspension.
I second all of Grinders points and Rozner picks up on the mess the NHL has created.
>>>>No other sport tolerates the clear "intent to injure" and "cheap shots" in its play and penalizes these ruthless plays so little during the game they happen in as the NHL -- the hit on Seabs is a minimum 5 minutes and game misconduct<<<
When I talk hockey with non fans....this is the first thing bring up. They are turned off by all the BS and muggings that go on.
>>>No other sport has so many gutless, unqualified officials as the NHL -- when the league went to two referees they did not "double" the number of good refs -- there are now boatloads of awful refs calling NHL games<<<<
I've been drawing attention to Q's mistakes lately and tonight was another big one. How do you pull the goalie when the other team has clear possession with no pressure arriving?
>Pretty sure they were on the points during the Crawford blunder & Ducks shorty -- both have ZERO speed -- at least Hendry and the Hammer are not snail-like
>Also agree that the Hawks drawing a total of three penalties for the entire game was a total joke -- Toews gets tackled in prime scoring areas a minimum of six times a game
>Also wonder why the Hawks are having so much trouble defending the area between the hash-marks in the slot (Ducks first & third goals, Caps third goal and many more lately)
you raise a good point late in your post....it seems like we like to have 3 men deep in the d zone (our center and two d), so the slot becomes wide open. Dave Bolland was the man out to lunch on the 1-0 goal that you alluded to.
Q f'd up huge with that move. No sooner was Craw on the bench, than they scored the 4-2 goal. Poor coaching move.
I sure don't like what I am seeing right now as the Hawks look bad. Goaltending sucks as usual and the injuries on defence will expose our lack of depth. Sopel and Boynton are washed up, Buff is the biggest pussy in the league considering his size. Keith and Johnsson are going to have to really step up because I am sure Seabrooke is concussed and will miss some time. I really believe Coach Q has ordered his players not to retalitate because I can't believe the lack of support by some of the tougher players. If Coach Q is behind the lack of retalitation he has to go. If I was coaching this team after the Wiz head shot this would have been all out war and if I didn't have the warriors I would sure as hell get them in the offseason. For example Bruce Boudreau of the caps would declare war and go nuts on the bench and rile up his players and believe me if his players do not respond he will get ones that will. The team toughness is gone at this point and we will keep getting hurt as other teams have no fear, I guarantee a first round exit unless this teams starts acting like one.
Everyone played really hard. And I'm positive that Eager is the first to go in the offseason.
To add insult to injury. Instead of being thrown out of the game, 34 had the key assist on the empty netter to clinch it. I've said it before, Perry is a punk. I thought u couldn't hit someone who doesn't have the puck. There's the game winner. Should have been a penalty shot for Hossa. Toews got propellered by Neidermayer. Can't remember us getting the officiating shaft this badly...and I'm not one to complain about these things.
Anaheim's broadcast duo. Unbelievable what the other side sees.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yy7vacK6Dzg
Who's gonna step up? Eager can't take any more shots to the head, Burish can't actually hurt anyone....Buff does what Buff wants to do when Buff wants to do it, which is a shame because if anyone on the 'Hawks could quiet this noise down it would be Buff's body with Burish's heart.
Any chance there will be some "I told you so's" around here tomorrow? Who wouldn't trade a roster spot for an enforcer now if it meant keeping Seabs/Soupy healthy?
This team's lack of toughness is about to become it's downfall. Mentally & physically.
>With the way the NHL is run today, why not have career minor league thugs on your fourth line who do nothing but take out the other teams' top players
>If Wisniewski is not suspended for the rest of year, the NHL as a league will have furthered it's reputation as a second-tier, neanderthal sport in the United States
>No other sport tolerates the clear "intent to injure" and "cheap shots" in its play and penalizes these ruthless plays so little during the game they happen in as the NHL -- the hit on Seabs is a minimum 5 minutes and game misconduct
>No other sport has so many gutless, unqualified officials as the NHL -- when the league went to two referees they did not "double" the number of good refs -- there are now boatloads of awful refs calling NHL games
>Why didn't the zebras get the first and second assists on the Ducks third goal -- it's a disgrace to the game and fair play that the goal was allowed and no penalty to Perry was called
>"Hello, Gary. Rocky Wirtz here. I have a list of things I need to discuss with you. No, not later. Right freakin' now!"
He plays the game with an edge, and he happened to cross the line with the hit on Seabs tonight. Imagine what Wiz could have done to everyone's favorite whipping boy lately if Wiz didn't have that "trick knee?"
Naturally anyone who follows this team is confused by a concept as arcane to our style of play as "playing with an edge."
Seabs will be fine--maybe he'll get the rest he so clearly needs--and Wiz will be suspended, and rightly so.
Props to Keith for standing up for a teammate. Dunc? Please never, EVER, do it again.
If the Hawks were a plane we'd all be hearing "PULL UP. TERRAIN. PULL UP TERRAIN."
But I still think the Hawks will pull out of it. They're too good to play this poorly.
Who wanted to play the Wings in the first round anyway?
Sorry but that hit is more than playing with "an edge". And playing with "an edge" does not include hammering away at a guy (Keith) who you know you should not be fighting...So another guy "happened to cross the line" and now Seabrook will probably be out 2 weeks...but hey, he did get a 2 minute penalty so no problem.
Well I cant be more pissed off and negative right now so what better place to come than below Tom Sassone's blog. I am sick to my stomach after watching that game and 34 from Anaheim (I refuse to utter that pigs freaking name) proved to be as classless as they come tonight. That hit was malicious, had intent to injure, went right at Seabrook's head and all done while leaving his feet. It was dirty as can be and he showed what a classless piece of crap he is when he also started pounding away at Keith...Real tough guy 34...And then, to make matters worse, we have to endure 2 of the most horrible non calls ever (one resulting in the game wining goal) and watch some BEATEN DOWN BUM get his ass kicked by the guy we all sat and waited for revenge on the entire night. I dont care what any of you say, someone else needed to step in and go at 34 way before the end of the game and it needed to be someone other than a guy whose Blackhawk career consists of a Tonight Show appearance and a bus ride to the arena. yeah, great revenge standing there getting his head pounded in...Thanks Nick, appreciate it. 34 Anaheim deserves 10 games for that ridiculous cheap ass shot and anything else is a joke which is what Colin Campbell is quickly turning into. Should be loads of fun tomorrow night against avery good team and short 3 of our top 4 defensemen...I just puked in my mouth, I am DISGUSTED at the refs, DISGUSTED at that PIG from Anaheim and DISGUSTED that nobody that mattered did something about it other than Duncan Keith for god sake. Props to Nick Boynton my ass, that bum is just looking to stay out of Rockford for another week.
Puked in your mouth? I almost punched a hole in my tv. Watching what happened to Seabs and the lack of a real aftermath made me scream so loud, I woke my kid, my dog and probably the neighbors.
As much as I really like this team, it reminds me of the Alpo 'Blackhawks Ballet' era. It disgusts me to no end. Maybe its because I grew up watching an era of Hawks hockey that included Stu 'the Grim Reaper' Grimson, Mike Peluso, Steve Smith and I'll even throw in Cam Russell, aka guys with a sack. These Hawks don't have a nut to stand up to any of those guys. Yes, hockey has changed and is more of a skills game now, but physicality will never die. Instead of the previously mentioned folk, we've got Troy 'Clown in Tights' Brower, Dustin 'The StayBuff Marshmallow Man', Ben 'Where Am I' Eager and Adam 'Patsie in a Tutu with a Megaphone' Burish.
Now, I'm not saying we need a Boogyman, although I wouldn't say no, but we need some real pugilistic players, someone with 'jam', someone who isn't a freckin' pretty boy, someone who actually has a set and ultimately, someone who will actually defend their team/players. I believe in an 'eye for an eye' when it comes to something like this, Colin Crapbell be damned. Take out Seabs, we take out Niedermayer. Take out Campbell, we take out Green. Take out Towes, we take out one or both of the Sedin sisters. I'm just so sick of this crap I'd settle for Jim Cummins.
Why the flying F**K is Keith going after Wiz? Who the F**K cares that Boynton went after Wiz and got his A*$ handed to him? Why is Versteeg, the second smallest guy on the team, the ONLY one who shows ANY sort of guts? I'll hang up and wait for another top play on our team to get taken out....
This adversity should make the hawks better. Seabs may get a bit of a rest here though you obviously hope the concussion isn't serious and he can bounce back. Johnsson shouldn't have tired legs.
I just don't know what other bodies the hawks have left on D. Buff played D pretty well - all things considered.
Someone mentioned Eager and replacing him with Bickell. Got me thinking - can the Hawks do something like the Wings did with Helm last year - when he was in the minors until the playoffs? How about Bickell and Dowell on the 4th line in place of Eager, Fraser and maybe even Burish. For as much as Burish talks, he was hardly noticeable tonight.
Props to Versteeg for at least showing some fire.
Call me doom and gloom but looking at the schedule no one cal honestly say this scenario isn't out of the question:
13 games left to close out the season only 5 at home
- 3 upcoming losses against LA and back to back against Phoenix
- Split a home and home against Columbus (2 points)
- Split back to back road games against St Louis and Minnesota (2 points)
- Road loss against NJ
- Home win against Calgary (2 points)
- Road loss against Dalls
- Home win against St. Louis (2 points)
- Road loss against Colorado
- The normal ass kicking by the Wing to close out the season
I see the Hawks going 4-9 with maybe a few OTL points in a few of those games. Detroit and Nashville are both playing at .700 win percentage clips right now with most of their games at home. Do the Hawks replace the 1969 Cubs as biggest collapse in Chicago history?
Can you please unplug your computer, take it outside, and smash it with a hammer until there is literally nothing left? Then nobody would ever have to be subjected to a email like the one above...Please, think about it...You would be doing a wonderful thing for other people
Check back in a month.
just when it all looks doom and gloom, they will go up and put up 5 or 6 and break this streak.
Odds are they aren't going lower than the 3rd seed. So all this is doing is building some character and forcing them to fight through adversity. Better to do that now then on April 14th or in May, etc.
I agree - there is a lot to be concerned with right now - but you have to think there is enough talent and character on this team to right the ship.
Sharks are struggling too. Pens looked terrible tonight. A couple years back the Wings went on a terrible clip in Feb/Mar...and they later won the cup.
just going through a really tough spot right now - but I'm betting against a collapse.
If we had a shut down goalie I could see this team overcoming this bump in the road but the only reason this team was winning earlier in the year was because our D allowed a league low shots per game. You play without 3 of your top 4 D and those shots will come up as we saw tonight.
We have some nice players up front but certainly not Oilers from the 80s who can just turn it on and outscore the other team at will.
talk about backs to the wall. short handed D tomorrow night. 2nd of back to back.
Time for Niemi to steal a game.
Is there anyone left worth calling up from Rockford at D?
I just don't understand how some of these guys don't go out and take care of business with the Wizzer. You see benders with the Chicago Force Junior C team at West Meadows sticking up for their teammates better than these guys. Very disappointing.
If Eager doesn't want to hit and bang and drop 'em on occasion, say goodbye to him. What about Brouwer? The guy's built like a tank. Time to use it. Big Puff? Fahgettaboutit. Will Ladder fight anyone besides Ryan Kesler? What about Burish with the whole tongue hanging out thing? I thought he was our sandpaper.
They have two forwards in the press box. If one of our forwards gets a suspension, so be it. I'm off to a sleepless night . . .
Eager is f'n useless. He never even challenged a Duck player all game. After Wiz's hit, how bout letting the Ducks know there will be payback. Nothing from Eager. At least Bickell will challenge someone and has good offensive skills compared to Eager's zero skills. Hopefully someone is stupid enough to pick him up on waivers. Bum = Eager.
Q may blow that stache off his face after what went on out there tonight. That was awful.
Hawks battled hard threw forty at the net and again a stud goalie stops them. That Anaheim team must really suck to be 10 points out with that type of goaltending.
Crawford played well despite the misplay
So now we are missing 3 of our 4 top D-men.
A crosscheck to the back while the puck is in the air and two refs miss the call...back of the net.
I will say this the hawks are do for some breaks...one of those nights that everything goes in.
The only one that does anything to Wisniewski is a guy playing his first game with the Hawks. Eager? Burish? Byfuglien? Brouwer? They should be ashamed of themselves.
As frustrating a game to watch as I can ever remember, made even worse by the lack of heart shown by the Hawks after as cheap a hit as you'll ever see.
Do you think these guys are being told by Q not to retaliate? If Q wanted to retaliate wouldn't he have sent the Burish line out when Wiz was on the ice. I can't think of another reason why. This sort of thing is happening way to often. The only one who did anything was Boynton who has been on the team all of one day.
Are you out of your mind? Did you not watch the game? With 3 of their top 5 d-men out of the lineup they dominated the Ducks in the 3rd period and the only reason Anaheim scored was because of another brutal non-call by the officials after Sopel was tackled by Urlacher wannabe Perry. That's a lack of heart? Please. A lack of heart would have resulted in them being dominated after the Seabrook hit, particularly the first 7 minutes when they only had one good d-man (Hammer) at their disposal. The dick measurers on this board need to give their heads a shake.
If anything this game was reminiscent of the Calgary and Vancouver series last year where the harder those teams came at the Hawks, the better the Hawks played - THAT is heart.
Either you get it or you don't. Dick measurers? Yeah, you're right, it's a macho, neanderthal reaction. Of course the only reaction should be play harder. You have your definition of heart, me and the other "dick measurers" can't possibly have a clue.
Reminds me of a conversation I had with someone who really understands the game:
Me: "I had an interesting exchange with someone on a blog the other day."
Him: "Wait, you actually post on those things? You do know who you're arguing with on there, right? Who's dumber, them, or you actually responding to some of those geniuses?"
He's dead on right. I just wasted two minutes of my life even typing this.
Yes, you are a neanderthal to tar the entire team the way you did. Toews has no heart? Kane? Hammer? Hossa? Did they all disappear last night? How about the Madden line?
If you understood the game half as much as you think you do, you wouldn't throw that accusation around like you're some latter day Orval Tessier.
Look, I wish somebody took Wiz's head off last night but the fact it didn't happen doesn't mean the team has no heart particularly since they dominated so much of the game after it happened. Teams lacking heart don't react that way.
My comment of lack of heart was only directed at the non-response to the cheap shot, not how hard they played after the hit. I have no problem with the effort shown by this team. They play hard, and that's why they're fun to watch. But when it comes to responding to all the cheap garbage that's happening, it bothers me the lack of response. Players get a lot more courageous when they know they won't be held accountable. Wisniewski's a hero in Anaheim now because he stood up for Perry. I'm not advocating doing what Wisniewski did (I can't remember being madder about something that happened in a game when I saw that hit), but standing up for your teammates goes a long way in the locker room.
"Players get a lot more courageous when they know they won't be held accountable".
Kudos. You captured the Hawks #1 problem, and weakness, this season in one sentence.
The culprit is Hawks management, who apparently thought you can count on the league or the referees to protect the enormous investment that they have in this small, fast and timid team.
Wonder if they'll smarten up and address this over the summer. Attention Hawks Marketing Department: You can't do the Leno show if all of your star players are in the hospital.
That is so true about your conversation and wasting time/energy.
A F*** PROPS TO NICK BOYNTON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If Seabroook is out for any period of time this team goes back 10 years and the 2001 Hawks return from the grave. Brent Sopel playing 20 minutes a game is a recipe for a 10 game losing streak to close out the season. I counted at least 5 turnovers in the first two periods and the game winning goal by Anaheim was flat out comical. Steve Poabst would be an upgrade.
After tonight's loss, another goose egg against LA tomorrow and back to back games against the best team in the West they will be well on their way to a complete melt down. Nashville and Detroit get hot they might end up blowing home ice in the first round.
Ignore the complete melt down on the ice by this franchise. The road trip was a success thanks to the Jay Leno appearance on national TV last night.
Everyone can cry about a pentaly, but Sopel shouldn't be jumping. he gets a little nudge, goes flying, and all hell breaks loose. Hawks completely lose track in their own zone, and how many goals are we going to see scored by guys WIDE open in between the hash marks? That isn't a fluke. That's a major breakdown in coverage. Anaheim's first goal was scored in the exact same spot.
Sopel can't play 20 minutes. He can't even play more then 30 seconds, as he looks worse then an old man in a mens league who has had multiple knee surgeries.
Look, I am happy that 4 guys won medals. Great. That was 2 weeks ago, ENOUGH of the damn promotion. I don't care. I don't need to see those medals ever again. I don't need to the Hawks on Leno, or Sportscenter, or at the Playboy mansion.
The arrogance around this team is getting out of control. Front office thinking they can just stand pat, players choosing when to play and turn it on during games, guys riding around shirtless in limos, guys getting hammered and falling over the Black Eyed Peas in bars in New York, coaches giving away points by not putting the best product on the ice, and so on.....Meanwhile, the most important thing.....the outcomes of games and the play of the team, has been crap.
But hey, the demand is there, and people are dancing around to Chelsea Dagger at the UC.
Anyone else see the shot of Bowman who looked dumb-founded sitting there? Maybe he needs to get on the bat phone tonight and call his old man...........
BRAVO BRAVO