Not over yet for Hawks
Funny how this works.
Saturday night, the Blackhawks were trading punches with the Blues in St. Louis. Tonight, the Hawks will be among the biggest Blues fans on the planet.
The Hawks stayed alive in the Western Conference playoff race Wednesday night with a rousing 6-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings before a revved-up packed house at the United Center.
But to avoid being knocked out of the race tonight, the Hawks need Nashville to lose at home to St. Louis either in regulation, overtime or in a shootout.
"We'll be huge (Blues) fans," Adam Burish said. "Kind of a weird turnaround, huh?"
A Predators win over the Blues would clinch the eighth and final playoff spot for them and render Friday's game with the Hawks at the UC meaningless.
Vancouver still is in the running for the last playoff spot as well and would need to lose one of its last two games to help the Hawks' cause.
The Hawks meant business from the start Wednesday, jumping out to a 3-0 lead less than eight minutes into the game and knocking out Red Wings starting goalie Dominik Hasek.
The Hawks scored their 3 goals less than two minutes apart.
"It was a huge game, and I can tell you that before the game it was a big-game feel in here," Burish said. "I guess we were loose, but we weren't as goofy in here as sometimes we can be. Guys were serious. Guys were focused. It had a playoff kind of feel in here.
"If we can keep that attitude and that excitement, we're still alive, and hopefully we can sneak in."
Cam Barker scored on a power play at 5:53 with Jordan Hendry making it 2-0 just 43 seconds later with his first NHL goal off a Dave Bolland faceoff win.
Barker's goal came with Chris Chelios in the penalty box for cross-checking Patrick Kane in the back.
Robert Lang's goal at 7:52 sent Hasek to the bench and brought on Chris Osgood.
"We knew what we had to do," said Kane, who had a goal and 2 assists. "We knew we had to win three and we had to start it tonight."
It was 3-1 early in the second period when Dustin Byfuglien scored on a power play. The Red Wings crept to within 4-2, but Kane scored his 19th goal at 7:39 on a tip-in of a Duncan Keith shot.
Burish added the topper with 4:19 to play.
"We were ready," Hawks coach Denis Savard said. "We plugged the neutral zone pretty good and stayed disciplined. We played a heck of a game."
The fact the Hawks still have a shot at the playoffs with two games left in the season illustrates how far they have come.
"We never quit believing," Byfuglien said. "I mean, we're right there."
Right there but in need of some help from the Blues and from either Edmonton or Calgary in games against the Canucks.
"Let's hope those games Friday (against Nashville) and Sunday (at Detroit) mean something," Savard said. "They will mean something for us. We want to continue on a roll whether we make it or not, so that next year we'll continue that roll we finished on, if that's the case."