Tonight we'll stagger up from the basement or fall to our deaths from above.

Shall we dance, or maybe just limp around?

vs

It's never easy, is it? After watching the series nearly completely fart through Corey Crawford in games 3 and 4 on West Madison, the Hawks managed to keep their season alive in yet another affair that needed overtime in the desert. Game 5 saw some changes made on the Hawks' part, which yielded a positive result, and we will now see if the Yotes can adjust. On Saturday night, the Hawks untethethered their defensemen and allowed them to jump into the play, which helped in some cases and backfired in others. Either way, the Hawks decisively held sway in the puck possession game, with the Corsi numbers requiring SPF 50 to be viewed. Coyotes goalie Mike Smith once again allowed late goals, which is becoming a bit of a trend in the series. But it's the men in front of him who are also starting to show a bit of wilting with the added pressure coming in from the blue line. The Yotes ran around in Game 5 and lost more than their share of board battles they had been accustomed to winning, including one on the decider from the Captain. Perhaps as the series extends and the sample size grows larger, it's becoming more and more difficult for them to sustain that level while surrendering that many shots and attempts, even when their primary objective is to prevent those. As a result, look for the Coyotes to amp up their forecheck in an effort to spend less time in their own zone, especially when 2 and 7 in red are not on the ice.

Once again reinforcements may come in the form of Martin Hanzal, who is a game time decision, though he did skate this morning. Should Hanzal return, even at partial strength, his size and two way game poses puts yet another obstacle in the way of the Hawks' uphill climb. Ray Whitney and Radim Vrbata have not shown the same chemistry with their myriad different linemates as they had to close out the season flanking Hanzal. If he returns to the lineup tonight, it could very well be the death knell for the Hawks' season if he's able to resume where his game was at previously.

As for the Men of Four Feathers, they'll be receiving reinforcements in the form of Andrew Shaw, returning from his three game exile for collding with Smith in Game 2. Shaw figures to slot in either alongside Bolland and Frolik, who are by far and away the Hawks best forwards right now, or down to the fourth line, where his "exuberance" can be put to good use. His presence punts Brandon Saad into the press box, with Jimmy Hayes thankfully staying in the lineup in favor of Brandon Bollig. But while these players being effective does lighten the burden of minutes on the top six, the responsibility to rise to the occasion still ultimately falls on the top lines of the Hawks, especially if your name is Patrick. Messrs Kane and Sharp have been relatively quiet through five games, and the Hawks cannot survive to a seventh with their continued silence. Though Patrick Sharp has been active, he's yet to find the space he needs to sneak into without the puck, and Patrick Kane has been doing too much WITH the puck, particularly at the Yotes' blue line. Simplified, focused efforts from these two should lead to success. And taking advantage of power plays given would make things a lot less stressful too.

On the back end of things, Sami Lepisto remains in the lineup, though he'll likely be used sparingly in the latter half of the game, creating all different types of permutations of defensive pairings. Niklas Hjalmarsson and Johnny Oduya need to quicken up their decision making with the puck, especially if the Coyotes crank up the forecheck to combat the Hawks' added pressure. The leash is off Nick Leddy, and we'll just have to live with the defensive boners if he's green lit to create away from the puck, which yielded some very timely results on Saturday. Marlboro 72 is asked now to only stay the course. Behind them is Corey Crawford, who had a solid if unspectacular outing on Saturday after two nearly season-killing goals last week. Crow didn't have a lot to do, and the one goal he allowed probably could have been had, but he did what has always been asked of him - make the saves you have to, make one big save a period, and control rebounds. The story from the crease does not change tonight.

The position the Hawks find themselves in has changed little from Saturday night as well, as all of the margin for error has been used up in the first 4 games. Patience and station-to-station passes are still paramount, as is waiting out Smith for opportunties to send the puck high.

The Doomsday Clock still reads 11:59.

Let's go Hawks.

Another game day - another need to go with a badass beard. in Sons of Anarchy, Opie is a bit of a tragic figure who gets both redemption and revenge. After spending years in prison he struggles with breaking the law but can be counted on when needed most. He also sports one of the biggest and gnarliest beards that would make any biker proud. Opie also appears to be immune to the heat in Charming, California and sports a winter hat nearly year round.

Please keep the spoilers to a minimum in the comments - I haven't seen season 4 yet.

• Game 6. [nhl.com] [Tribune]
  
• The return of Andrew Shaw. [CSN] [Sun-Times
• Verdi on Game 5. [nhl.com]
• The Patricks are frustrated by the Coyotes' D. [Sun-Times]
• Cimaglia says effort isn't the issue. This isn't the Cup team. [MyFoxChicago]
• Nick Leddy wants to build on a solid Game 5. [Sun-Times]
• So does Corey Crawford. [CSN]
  
• The plane was delayed about 6 hours, but all is well. [Tribune]
  
• 84 shot attempts is a considerable amount. [ESPN]
  
• OD thinks Torres could find Matt Cooke's hockey Jesus if he wanted to. [CSN]
• Q has come back from a 3-1 deficit against Phoenix before. [Tribune]
• Puckcast! [Hockeenight]
• Who deserves the Calder Trophy? [Copper&Blue]
• DGB with a history of playoff violence. [Down Goes Brown]
• Bid a fond farewell to the San Jose Sharks, the Pittsburgh Penguins, and the Vancouver Canucks.
• Our very own Skeen takes it to the DoPS. [CosbySweaters]

So most of you might not recognize his name but hopefully you're familiar with his nicknames, Posdnuos, Pos, Plug One or Plug Wonder Why. Or maybe you're just more familiar with his group - De La Soul. Their classic debut album 3 Feet High and Rising has plenty of messages we should take to heart. Staying positive is key. But as nice as the win last night was we still need 3 in a row to move on. 3. It's the magic number.

"Nothing's easy." -Homer Simpson

I shouldn't have been surprised for a couple reasons. A) I shouldn't have been surprised that this went to OT once again because this Hawks team has never wanted anything to do with easy. Everything for the past two months has been the ultimate test of balls, why should this be any different?

And B) I shouldn't have been surprised this was a Red Day, when Troy Brouwer scores the winner, Kris Versteeg scores, and Craig Anderson throws a shutout in MSG. Not to mention Phillip Humber's perfect game (fuck me, did the Mariners even threaten a hit?), a rare Cubs win, and the Bulls win. It's the blue bars and red stars day, my friends.

But let's get to the hockey, shall we?

-It feels so funny to say in yet another game that went to OT, but I feel like this was the Hawks most dominant game. The mistakes were limited to few, they actually started harassing the Yotes' D into mistakes and turnovers. Except for shifts here and there, the Hawks were barely threatened. And yet. the most egregious mistake was Hjalmarsson's pinch for no reason -- he would have been even more open for a pass at the point which Hayes wasn't even looking for anyway -- was duly punished. Which is the most impressive thing about the Yotes. When you give them an opening, they simply don't miss.

-But to speak of the Hawks' dominance, here is the CORSI.

-I really have no idea why it took so long, but Q finally figured it out. While Lepisto barely saw the ice, no forward saw less than 10 minutes. Did that contribute to Toews's winner? It couldn't have hurt. This is what happens when you roll four lines.

-You know what, let's not beat around the bush (by crackee!) any more. Michael Frolik has been the best skater on either side since he entered the fray in Game 3. The Hawks could have had this for the last three months of the season if Q hadn't spent considerable time fucking with his head. But whatever, that's done now. When Chicken Hawk returns on Monday, there's no way Fro can be moved from the spot he's in now. Shaw can be on the 4th line.

-Whatever other mistakes came from the Hawks tonight aside from the goal usually came from Johnny Oduya. He was the victim of some seriously bouncing pucks at times, but he also seems to want SAT length time to make a decision, which he won't get at this time of year.

-Oh Viktor, why do make it so hard to champion you? I'm sure there were a lot of us that wanted Rattlehead to net the winner after just an awful game. But when he wasn't taking penalties Stalberg was making things happen with his speed and he won the board battle to set up Toews's winner. If Q can stick with him, I expect a very big Game 6 from Stals.

-i will accept Nick Leddy's defensive shortcomings if he continues to attack at the other end, which he did.

-Hey Kaner, why don't you make another extra move at the blue line, asshole?

-Good on Corey Crawford, who really didn't have much to do which can be hard on a goalie. Brule was allowed to tee up from the ladies tees, but when Michal Rozsival had a prime chance Crow came up big. I know the two OT goals will be his epitaph no matter what happens, but for the overwhelming majority of this series he's been solid, if not more.

There are still many miles to go before we sleep. However, the longer a series goes, the bigger the sample size is. The bigger the sample size is the more the talent gap should shine through. I think you began to see that tonight, when the Yotes defense was as jumpy as we've seen it this series. Toews came up when it counted. I just can't believe that Kane and Sharp won't be heard from before it's over.

Sure, Smith could stand on his head. A bounce or two could go Phoenix's way on Monday. It could be anything. But you could argue that you can hear the Yotes' defense starting to creek. It could get louder Monday.

The clock still reads 11:59.

When the ship done sinks, and the crew done drowns, where am I gonna do all my hanging around? This cruise is ending, please hang onto your stub. Thank you for coming, and thanks for the love.