at 
And so the Hawks arrive in Edmonton, their last stop in western Canada for the year to face the Western cellar dwelling Edmonton Oilers. While the points aren’t there for the young, fast, and free-wheeling Oilers, they’ve proven that they’ll jump up and bite you in the dick if you’re not willing to at least attempt to play defense against them. They’ve done it twice to the Hawks already this season, and most recently, they blanked the usually focused Preds 4-0 on Monday. Though the Oil are near the bottom in every major offensive and defensive category, they still have some pieces that can put the puck in the back of the net if allowed space such as rookies Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle, and captain Shawn Horcoff. Coach Tom Renney will not be behind the bench tonight after his father recently passed away, so an inspired effort could be in the offing for the home squad.
For the Men of Four Feathers, they’re almost in a can’t win situation. Should they prevail, even in a decisive fashion, there will be no great fanfare (nor should there be) for dismissing the lowly Oilers. But if it’s close or should they drop this tilt, the air raid sirens’ blare will grow even louder, particularly after yesterday’s and today’s bag skates. Patrick Sharp will be joining Daydream Nation on the top line and Troy Brouwer will drop down to flank Tomas Kopecky along with Marian Hossa. Even if this combination comes up aces tonight, neither of these are long term solutions, especially given the discipline of the weekend’s upcoming opponents. We’re now seeing modest streaks from Calgary and San Jose vault them right into the thick of things, and if the Hawks can’t get one started tonight, then it’s probably not coming. They’re saying all the right things and they seem to now get it. But the time has long passed for just saying the right things, it’s time to get out there and fucking do them before time runs out. Let’s go Hawks.