Losing a game like this is a wakeup call and a point of development for a young team. This Blackhawks team is still very new to the concept of winning and being among the elite teams in the NHL.

They will be a better hockey club for this Minnesota experience. That I believe. Also, give Minnesota credit for never giving up. That team doesn’t have the greatest talent in the world, but I am deeply impressed on how hard they constantly work their asses off on the ice. No quit in that team whatsoever. They have a good future ahead of them.

we have a game tomorrow so i hope they dont think about this loss for to long, but hey we played a bad game we cant win em all, now lets go duck hunting tomorrow night. Go Hawks

Now that game threads are going over 1000 comments, it may be time to think about adding a second thread as the game goes on, if and when one of you guys are around to do it. The commenting engine starts getting really slow after it gets up past a certain point.

Otherwise, tonight’s was an awesome thread for a very strange and ultimately deflating game.

The truth is we win this game if Sopel is in goal from 5-1

I’ve watched this team since the early 70’s and never seen a goalie blow a game like this. After they got to within 1 the Hawks were playing keep away and that last goal was just horrible I’m speechless and I guarantee Q is as well. They have been hiding Huet all year and it didn’t work tonight.

Awful. How can anyone be an apologist for this douche who blows a 5-1 game? Amazingly bad.

WTF???!!!! I thought shootouts would be easy wins from now on because eventually worst case an opponent will miss the net once in a while and with Toews, Kane, Hossa, Sharp, Versteeg we’re guarenteed at LEAST 4 outta 5 right? Frick….ONE goal in 8 tries? And we had to go 11 rounds earlier this season?

This is absolutely the best thing that could have happened — if they re-learn the 60 minutes lesson.

Anyone here who thinks that Minnesota is going to fight for position with the Hawks in April: raise your hands. Didn’t think so. So we get a point after trying to throw away both of them, from a team that won’t matter much in the end.

These guys are human. They’ll screw up. Sometimes royally. The real question is: do they lose their confidence? If they tighten up, this could be the beginning of a bad stretch. But I’m betting the other way — and a good performance tomorrow night will validate that.

Oh, and GET OFF HUET. A 2-point-nothing GAA is nothing to sneer at. Niemi could start tomorrow, but if weren’t a back-to-back, I’d light a fire under his ass and put him right back out there.

He’s terrible. At the very least a $5 million goalie should be able to pull this one out. So often he has no idea where the puck is or simply makes a one save effort the just gives up. i.e. the save hammer made for him against the wild tonight. The last 2 Wild goals he doesn’t even know where the puck is, and I’m not sure what coachQ was thinking tonight but why let this guy continue to flop around the ice like a carp when you have an answer on your bench, seemed to work for the Wild. Make Niemi the starter get one of Atlanta’s goalies as a backup in the Kovy deal and make Huet part of the deal, with copious other talent as well and lets stop having to watch a $5 million dollar a year goalie that can’t make 20 saves a game. Enough already, a chimp could play goal in front of our D on most nights. He’s an average goalie at best who’s salary is gonna cost us much mope valuable talent in the long run. Cut him loose Now pls

Yeah I should be more rational like the idiots like you and the goof that says we should blow up the team . Listen just because you find Huet attractive and will be heartbroken when he finds another companion elsewhere doesnt mean the rest of us have to watch him indirectly dismantle this team with his huge salary . Other players i.e. sharp,seabrook,hammer ect could go unsigned because we have this average at best goalie making $5 mil per. There comes expectations with that and hes simply not meeting them . Clear evidence is Niemis numbers . They’re better! BECAUSE WE HAVE THE BEST DEFENSE IN THE LEAGUE! A chimp should be able to play good in front of these guys most nights.This may be a biased observation but the whole team seems to have more life when Niemi’s in there . Go get an established veteran backup ,cheap goalie who can supplant Niemi if he stumbles, Plenty on the market right now and cut huey loose before he ruins the best chance this team has for a championship since the Beatles invaded America. Nothing personal against Huey seems like a nice guy but he’s not a difference maker and at $5 mil per he should be. These glitches should be the exception to the rule instead his good games are. In the playoffs last year he had one good game and was horrid otherwise.Thats been his Hawks story he has one good performance, which anyone who makes the NHL should have at least one thats why they’re here, and then guys like you say see told ya so. He’s average at best and overpaid even at half the cost his numbers right now are deceptive enough to move him to someone looking for help and possibly eat some of his money so now is the time. I apologize if this means you two have to have a long distance relationship after that but hey I want my Hawks to win.

My comments were clearly intended to be entirely sarcastic unless of course there is some truth to the rumor with you and Huey? Hmmm? As for my chimp fetish sorry was watching Planet of the Apes while posting my bad. Just trying to make a point. I’ll change the channel now.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=87892361691&ref=ts

They count by twos up there – that’s how Clutterbuck gets 2,383,214 hits every year.

So because we overpaid Huet we should just accept it?? Like the foolish islanders ? We did that for years under the old man and whatd it get us, the point is right now, this being our best opportunity to win it all, we have an overpaid goalie taking cap space from more deserving employees. In my opinion his stats are deceptively adequate enough to move him because of our defense. If you dont you risk him continuing or declining his performance dimishing the opportunity to move him. He’s done nothing in our uni to warrant optimism and as far as his veteran presence why wasnt he the number 1 guy last year. He’s average thats why. Plenty of teams out there relying on young goalies

I’ve got work to do and can’t spend any more time pointing out logical fallacies. Enjoy your Sundays.

You’re a legend in your own mind eh?

Some of you hueylovers need to get back on your meds

There ya go oh and start Niemi pls LOL hehehe

Everone taken their shots?? Wow Hope ya dont mind if I come back sometime? remeber like it or not we’re rooting for the same thing just with different ideas
 Ok everyone sing Kumbaya

This Huet hating makes no sense. Just a few days ago, the Hawks chased Vezina-trophy winner and Olympian Tim Thomas and a few weeks ago scored 5 goals on Martin Brodeur, who some people think is the greatest goalie of all time. According to the Huet haters, these guys suck too. Sorry to say, but the 5 goals against Huet had more to do with 1) luck and 2) the play in front of him than they had to do with Huet.

The loss for the Blackhawks Saturday night agaisnt the Minnesota Wild should prove to be a good lesson for the Hawks and an opportunity to further mature as a team as they continue to"skate" to the playoffs as a top seed in 2010.
Eddie O commented during the intermission about the Blackhawks ability to put teams away and that “killer” instinct they now have as a team versus previous years. I do agree with Eddie, the Blackhawks have certainly matured as a team and have demonstrated that “killer” instinct at times but perhaps allowed a little overconfidence and their recent success to cloud that need for a “killer” instinct Saturday night. While this "killer"instinct at times goes into a lapse I do not believe it will hinder them come the playoffs. The team seems to play very loose and without pressure, perhaps due to their youth and team chemistry not to mention their superior puck handling and skating skills to most other teams in the NHL.
My concern for the Blackhawks in winning the 2010 Stanley Cup and while I believe they are one of the most exciting and skilled hockey teams I have seen since a kid is their starting Goaltending. While I mentioned earlier that the Team seems to lapse that “killer” instinct at times I feel Cristobal Huet often demonstrates a lapse in concentration and focus not just on occassional lapse. Last night on the second goal against the Blackhawks, Huet insisted on staying on his knees throughout the entire play, from the time the Wild player went behind the net to the the time it was played in front of the net. Huet was caught off guard and not in a position to make the save which should have been somewhat routine. The 5th goal was anothe loss of focus where somehow the puck was shot right at him and managed to get through him into the net. Huet has shown times where he has played with pure brilliance, but more times then not their are minimal scoring chances per game and without looking at stats I am willing to bet that the Blackhawks (the best team defense in the NHL) surrender the fewest shots and fewest scoring chances in the NHL. So lets not get clouded by the GAA and Save % of Huet. Huet in my opinion is a back up goaltender at best and not a starting goaltender who is going to WIN a game for you when you need it….if Huet continues to be the main goaltender for the Hawks going into the playoffs…look towards 2011 for the Stanley Cup. Going foward I would like to see more of Niemi as he seems to have that ability to hang tough during tight games and shut the door when the Hawks need it most. Plus Niemi has youth!
I am not saying sit Huet the remainder of the season but play him enough to keep Niemi fresh, perhaps split the games between Huet and Niemi going forward, but I do ask that Hawks management and Joel Q take a real hard look at who the starting goaltender is come the playoffs! Eddie O keep up the GREAT work on the color commentary!

Jim O

The other guys have won vezinas and won many many games when their teams were flat . When does huet start doing that. Thats the point. The window of opportunity is critical because this is the year the hawks talent is pekaing if he’s ordinary he hurts us bigtime this year and his salary hurts us into the future. Trade this great goalie (sarcasm) now

Huet too ofter reacts like he did during that save that hammer made. One swat at it thenoh well. He wasnt even trying to get back in the play Inexcusable

So lets see,accept the insults, and the insults were directed here first, which is fine but the people here cry when you respond. I came here merely because this is the Yahoo sponsored thread for Hawk fans and expressed a negative opinion of Huet and the board lights up. again which is fine but now the huet lovers say well we can insult you but you cant recipricate. Yeah right grow another skin or set of cajones where apropriate amd quit whining. Its apparent to me there are a few reasonable hawks fans here that would like to discuss which is fine but there appears to be a clique here that think what they say goes. Then when they cant resspond they say hey man its only sarcasm or they retreat to a higher thread and hide in another scroll to drop insults. again fine by me but sound like detroit fans to me