Editorial: We can learn much from these Blackhawks

It's hard to pinpoint the moment Monday night that defines the 2015 Chicago Blackhawks. There are so many positives, and they were all on display both during and especially after the Stanley Cup-clinching game.

Duncan Keith - the MVP warrior who logged so many minutes for a depleted defense. And who was first to congratulate him after he was handed the Conn Smythe trophy? Fellow Conn Smythe winners Jonathan Toews (2010) and Patrick Kane (2013).

Those two - the core of the core. Kane, battling back from his midseason injury and a very slow start to the Final, getting back on track with the insurance goal. Toews, the best captain in all of sports, who leads by example, who wins at every level and who epitomizes the never-say-die attitude that permeates throughout the Blackhawks locker room.

But we've come to expect greatness from those players. It's the supporting players that made the after-the-game celebration even more touching and emotional.

No one should be questioning the toughness or the skill of goalie Corey Crawford. Replay the stop on Lightning star Steve Stamkos' breakaway to quiet the naysayers.

Want to know why fans in Chicago love these players? Because the players love them back. And fans share these special moments with the players along with their families - the babies, the toddlers, the parents. How can you not love seeing Kris Versteeg's baby boy, born just two weeks ago, sitting in the Cup?

And there are the guys who are new, having just won their first - and for at least one, only - Cup. Scott Darling, the hometown backup goalie from Lemont, who got the Hawks out of a jam in the first round, for example. His future is bright. For Kimmo Timonen, however, this is it. At 40, he is retiring. It was his last chance after 17 years. It says a lot about his teammates that he was the second guy to hoist the Cup after Toews. And the emotion he exhibited says a lot about what this accomplishment means to these players who toil for years.

"I didn't even think I was ever going to play hockey again," said Timonen, who was dealing with blood clots last year and was out until the Hawks dealt for him in February. "To be here now, a Stanley Cup champion. I don't have any words for you right now." His face said it all.

Leadership, both on the ice and off it, will be the lasting legacy of this Hawks organization. How many owners get cheered by fans? And how many veteran players coming in from other organizations can admit they needed a 27-year-old captain to figure out how to be successful?

"I came here and I thought I knew how to play hockey," said newcomer Andrew Desjardins. "Maybe I knew how to play the game, but I didn't know how to win. These guys taught me how to win."