Blackhawks Vs Sharks and the NHL Playoffs
It’s playoff time. Has been for a couple weeks, in fact. One year ago today, I posted on the resurgent Chicago Blackhawks, pledging my support to my hometown team, who of course went on to lose in the conference finals to Detroit. My first loyalty as a hockey fan is to my current local team, the San Jose Sharks, but last year the decision to root for the Hawks was made for me when the Sharks flamed out in the first round.
This year is different. Both the Sharks and the Hawks handily won their first two playoff rounds and will meet in the Western Conference Finals. Does this put my loyalties to the test? Not really. I’m a Sharks fan. I live the Bay Area and have been following this team for years. And they’re a veteran team that’s been on the cusp of greatness for the last couple of years, and they’re just due. It’s a shame Jonathan Cheechoo is no longer around though.
Now having said that, I can’t help but be a little bit nervous about this series as a Sharks fan. The Blackhawks outplayed the Sharks pretty convincingly in the two teams’ four regular season meetings, and have a talented team with tremendous scoring depth. The Sharks actually have the more experienced, skilled top group (the “Gold Medal” line of Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley and Patrick Marleau), but they haven’t really gotten going in the playoffs until the last few games. It should be a good series.
I’m still gonna link to Here Come the Hawks though. You can get the mp3 of the regular version here and the instrumental here.