by: Jay Zawaski

I said after Sunday’s post game that I was embarrassed to be a Hawks fan.  Tonight, I couldn’t be more proud.  The Hawks fell short in OT after Darren Helm’s OT winner, but the Hawks competed hard, never quit, and were, once again, a shot away from beating the best team in hockey.  So many players showed up tonight.  Colin Fraser was outstanding, Patrick Kane was electric, and Cristobal Huet?  Wow.  Simply stellar.  I would never have guessed the game to go this way.  I thought it would be a shootout.  It was one of the most entertaining games of the playoffs, and I’ll remember it for a long time.

When the smoke cleared, the better team won, but Hawks fans can feel good about this playoff run.  The Hawks are truly “ahead of schedule”.  The team will look different next year…younger if you can believe that, but don’t underrate the impact this playoff run will have on the development of this team.  Guys like Kane and Byfuglien learned you have to compete hard every game, every shift to be great.  Keith and Seabrook showed they can play with the best of them on the largest of stages.  Bolland, Ladd, Eager, Burish and other role players shined for the Hawks.  It’s a season that many will look back on when the Hawks ARE competing in the Stanley Cup Finals as pivotal in Blackhawks history.  I hope the Hawks took a good, long look at the Wings celebrating tonight.  It will be them in the years to come.  The played the best, but to be the best, you have to beat the best (Woo!).  The Hawks time is coming.
The Good:

The Effort: I promised a different Hawks team after Game 4.  The showed up, and played with the effort and hustle to win.

Colin Fraser: #46 was everywhere tonight.  Credit the fresh legs, or credit the work ethic.  He should have had two goals.

Cristobal Huet: If this is the Huet we get next season, then there is no goalie problem.

The Bad:

Banged Up Wings: Even without their two best players, Datsyuk and Lidstrom, the Wings were too much.

The Ugly:

Patrick Kane’s Beard: The one thing I truly won’t miss about the playoffs.

MVP:

Cristobal Huet: He kept the overmatched Hawks in the game, and bounced back huge when he could have just as easily quit.  Ballsy display from “The Man from France” tonight.