All's Welles That Ends Welles for the Blackhawks

After last night's exciting, then deflating, then exhilarating Chicago Blackhawks victory over the Los Angeles Kings to earn a Stanley Cup berth against the Boston Bruins, thanks to a hat trick and game-winning goal by Patrick Kane, I was inspired to make this:

Patrick Kane photo by Brian Cassella, Chicago Tribune. Design by Seth Arkin.

My Cup Runneth Overtime

It's been five whole days since the Chicago Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup, so I probably should have written something about it by now. But seeing how it's been 49 years in the making, I don't feel all that delinquent.

On the night they won, Wednesday, June 9, 2010, I was very happy, although like most fans and the Hawks themselves, the uncertainty of Kane's clinching goal stifled the spontaneity of my celebration. And this after the Flyers late tying goal already deflated my impending euphoria.

But though not quite as rapturous as my Pavlovian response system may have liked, the ending was certainly better than a loss that would have brought about Game 7. And for the first time in my lifetime, the Blackhawks are Stanley Cup Champions.

A friend asked me how the Hawks' winning ranks among my sports memories, primarily comprised of now having seen (not in person, except for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals) the Bears, Bulls, White Sox and Hawks win the ultimate prize in their respective sports. I'm still waiting on the Cubs, but then so is everyone not around in 1908.

I couldn't readily answer, and really there is no need for comparison. Watching (almost) all the Chicago teams win--and I am a fan of both the Cubs and Sox--has brought tremendous joy and a wonderful diversion from real life. Though the Sox winning their division in 1983 and the Cubs in 1984 were big deals due to their long playoff droughts, the Bears were the first Chicago team I saw win it all, and coupled with the dominance and personality of the 1985 Bears, made for an experience I'll never forget.

I was a huge Bulls fan ever since they drafted Michael Jordan, so was ecstatic when they won their first championship in 1991, but I was living in Los Angeles at the time and thus the celebration felt a bit distant. The subsequent championships were all fantastic, but obviously lost their unique aspect.

Though I honestly like the Cubs and Sox, the Cubs are ingrained a bit deeper. So while I was thrilled when the Sox won the World Series in 2005, I couldn't clearly claim them to be my team. Their win came just after I was released from a job for the first time, so it was an especially nice excuse to celebrate.

As for the Blackhawks, they've always been the only NHL team I cared about, but for a long time, I wasn't really a hockey fan. I never went to a Hawks game in the old Chicago Stadium and though I've gone to a game or two a season for most of the last 15 years, each was usually the only game(s) I saw in a given season.

So no, I have not been a die-hard season ticket holder since 1977, nor someone who ever played hockey (I still don't clearly understand some of the rules).

But what makes the Blackhawks victory so pleasing to me is my admiration for the rapidity of their rise.

Before the season before this one, the Hawks had missed the playoffs--in a league where 16 of 30 teams get in--9 of the previous 10 seasons. They were seemingly the worst franchise not only in hockey, but all of sports.

In the first half of the last decade, I remember regularly bemoaning the idiocy of their business plan to a Hawk-loving colleague. Year after year, they seemed to not try to sign any good free agents, when it seemed to me that the expense would've been easily offset by selling more tickets to each game, making the playoffs (and thus having tons more ticket and broadcast revenue) and having popular players with jerseys to merchandise.

It just didn't make sense to me that they would stay mired in mediocrity.

But then the owner, Bill Wirtz, died in September 2007. His son, Rocky, took over, hired John McDonagh away from the Cubs to serve as President, had some fortunate draft picks (most notably Kane and Toews), signed big name free agents like Brian Campbell and Marian Hossa, and less than three years later are the best team in hockey.

Everything I imagined came true.

Not only did the Hawks win the crown, they sold every seat during the 2009-10 season and tons of jerseys and merchandise. At the victory parade and rally, which I didn't attend, it was a sea of red.

So while the Hawks' winning wasn't the most emotionally rich championship for me, likely more than any other, it meshed with my sense of logic. Do things right and good things will happen. At least once in a lifetime.

Perhaps Not Life Changing, But Still A Net Gain

I've been to a lot of cool events in my life, but until Saturday night, never to a final round game in any sport.

Playoff games, yes. Cubs, Bulls, Bears and Blackhawks. Even the 2003 MLB All-Star Game. But never a World Series, NBA Championship, Super Bowl or Stanley Cup.

So I was pretty psyched when I was able to purchase a ticket to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals through Ticketmaster back when the Blackhawks were still in the second round of the playoffs. And even more psyched when the Hawks actually made it to the Finals.

Although I had a party planned for Saturday night (unrelated to the Hawks), I switched it to Sunday night, and geared up (in my Kane 88 jersey) for a nice, low-scoring Stanley Cup Final game.

And wound up attending a game that was tied 5-5 after two periods, had the Hawks go ahead 6-5 on a Tomas Kopecky goal 8:25 into the 3rd Period and then hold on for the victory.

Certainly it was pretty exciting, but I really can't say "the electricity in the air" before and throughout the game was any more palpable than during a sold-out regular season game. I'm not sure what I was expecting, and any Hawks game is a pretty raucous affair, so I'm not saying that there was an energy shortage in the United Center.

But somehow it just seemed like a great game to be at, but not necessarily all that transcendent. 

As with all Hawks games, there was a pre-game video montage that runs much, much too long. It's about 10 minutes or so. Long enough to get you to the edge of your seat, and back down, edge of your seat again, and back down again. Not ideal for sustaining a true fervor. 

And while the National Anthem with the fans roaring throughout was quite loud, and gave me goose chills, it didn't seem any louder than for less pivotal games. And perhaps it was because the Hawks kept giving up goals, even after scoring to take the lead at various points, that the crowd boisterousness didn't fully sustain itself until after Kopecky's goal and through the end.

Don't get me wrong. I'm very glad I went and had a great time. And I'm thrilled the Hawks won and hope they can take the Cup. But it definitely wasn't like what a Cubs World Series game feels like in my imagination. And I'm not buying a seat on Stub Hub for today's game, or even wishing I could. TV will be just fine.


Here's a video I shot of the National Anthem:



Some photos from the night:

Michael Jordan statue with a Jonathan Toews jersey and ice skakes

Stan Mikita signing autographs before the game; I was too late to get one.

The Opening Face-Off

Savard, Esposito, Mikita and Hull in the house (and on the scoreboard)

Near the end of the 2nd Period

Video of the Celebration of Kopecky's goal, which proved to be the game winner (featuring Chelsea Dagger by The Fratellis)



The Final Score

The Hawks Leave the Ice, Victorious