With the Blackhawks Celebration going on today, I thought I’d take a quick look back at all the hockey related posts these last two months showing the grueling path it takes for a team to win one of the oldest trophies in professional sports.
The Beginning
The beginning of the playoffs is actually just the end of a long 82 game season, which was extended this year for some players because of the Olympics in Vancouver back in February. Sure, the MLB is a 162 game season, but does that really compare? I don’t think so.
Post 1: It’s Playoff Time Again – April 15th
Next up was the advancement to the second round of the playoffs after beating the Nashville Predators over about a 2 week span.
Post 2: Round 2 Picks – May 4th
After a great series against Vancouver in Round 2 and eliminating them for the 2nd straight year (nice!), we were back in the conference finals to face the fish.
Post 3: Here Fishy, Fishy, Fishy – May 17th
While the first two rounds were a little more prolonged, the sweep against the Sharks was a thing of beauty. And before we knew it, our hometown team was back in the final for the first time since the early 90′s.
Post 4: To The FInals – May 23rd
Three days later, the Philadelphia were just about wrapped up with the other remaining Original Six team in the conference finals when ticket prices started to make news for Games 1 and 2 of the finals. Gulp
Post 5: Thanks Goodness for HD – May 26th
After was seemed like an extra long week to wait for Game 1 of the finals, I spent time at Starbucks while CIndy was at the salon and I wrote a little letter to the team asking for their help in making our world just a little better.
Post 6: A Better World for Our Child – May 29th
And finally, this past Wednesday night after a long 49 year wait (of which I’ve only been alive for 30) the Stanley Cup was on it’s way back to Chicago. As all the marketing ads from the NHL promised – history was made.
Post 7: Thank You Blackhawks!!! – June 10th
And now, it’s Friday and most of these young rascals who are still younger than me (sigh) are having their day in the sun an probably going on less than 4 hours of sleep since Game 6 ended in Philly. And you can’t really blame them, they’ve worked hard and sacrificed for this, and they have more than earned it.
What’s Next?
Well, a couple things. First, I’m officially announcing the end of my retirement from hockey. Okay, that was a joke. 
Kidding aside, the next thing for us that’s Hawks related is the Blackhawks Convention in Downtown Chicago at the end of July. We went to the one last year and had a good time, but this year’s going to be amazing. Plus, we’re staying at the Hilton downtown this year during the festivities, so that will just make it even better.
As for the players, they will get to participate in one of the coolest traditions in professional sports. They each get to have the Stanley Cup for an entire day all to themselves. Some take it back to their hometown – I know Sweden and Russia are on the itinerary for sure – others share it with thousands of their closest friends. In any case, you know there’s going to be a lot to talk about this summer as the Cup checks in during all of it’s travels. Hey, does the Stanley Cup have a foursquare account? 
Well, it’s been a draining last 2 months on the hockey front, so after this short breather, be sure to check back for more updates as the convention approaches, as we tackle a trip out to Des Moines, and the latest baby news before then.
Bandwagon or not (preferably not) let’s all enjoy this championship for our home team. Wooohoooo!
- Kris
It doesn’t matter how they did it, but our Hawks barely made it into the playoffs to defend the Stanley Cup playoffs starting this week. And as has been the tradition here on the blog, it’s time to share our picks for the first round.
