HAWK TALK

MOvember, Help Out If You Can

Wed, 4 Nov 2009 16:38:54 -0500

Guys I am growing my stash for a great cause..MENS HEALTH, take a look at the site and you will see...anyone who gets this and knows me will know I am going to look like a total idiot with the stash, not that some days I am that far off, but if that is what it takes to get your donation then I will have to do it...HA!

I have decided to join a global movement that is bringing much needed attention to cancers that affect men. I’m doing this by growing a Moustache this Movember, the month formerly known as November. My commitment is to grow a moustache all November and I am hoping that you will support my efforts by making a donation. The funds raised go to the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the Lance Armstrong Foundation (LIVESTRONG).

What many people don’t know is that 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime and testicular cancer is the most common cancer in men aged 18-35. Facts like these have convinced me I should get involved.

To make a donation, you can either:

•    Click this link http://us.movember.com/mospace/328118/ and donate online using your credit card or PayPal account , or
•    Write a check payable to ‘Movember Foundation’, referencing my Registration Number 328118 and mailing it to: Movember Foundation, PO Box 2726, Venice, CA 90294-2726.

All donations are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law.

The Prostate Cancer Foundation will use the money raised by Movember to fund research to find better treatments and a cure for prostate cancer.

The Lance Armstrong Foundation will use the money raised by Movember to fund:

•    The LIVESTRONG Young Adult Alliance program which has the goal of improving survival rates and quality of life for young adults with cancer between the ages of 15 and 40.
•    Research initiatives to further understand the biology of adolescent and young adult cancers.

For more details on how the funds raised from previous campaigns have been used and the impact Movember is having please go to http://us.movemberfoundation.com/research-and-programs.

Thank you
REID SIMPSON

New Season Brings New Expectations

Mon, 5 Oct 2009 18:12:19 -0400

Well its been a pretty damn good summer here in Chicago and the Hawks have a few new challenges to deal with going into the new season. Its going to start with who is going to step up and be their number one goalie or for that matter are they going to have one ? And how are they going to respond the the success of last season when every team in the league is going to be taking them a hell of a lot more seriously every time they visit or are being visited by these new group of guys....Have they turned the corner from students to teachers...I think yes some have....Have they added the right pieces to the puzzle to take the next step and really contend for the Stanley Cup, I think maybe they are close but some adjustments will need to be made along the way to get there, they aren't quite there yet...Good news from my perspective, they have the right guys in place at all levels to make this happen. There will be some trades and there will be some down times this season but in the end they will be stronger for it and will make a run for the cup like last year...how deep they go will depend on their ability to come together and if they answer the question of goaltending before the year ends....

Now lets get to what I saw over in Finland...By the way the Hawks alumni went 2-1 on the trip, playing in Stockholm and Helsinki and broke the record for most sleepless man hours for men over fifty on the boat ride from Sweden to Finland..
The Hawks got off to a pretty good start losing in a shootout in the first game but this game could have gone either way. The Panthers in the first period seemed to have more jump but as the game wore on most of the Hawks caught up and their talent started to show and at one point looked liked they would win. A few turnovers and a key save and it would have been that way. Most guys just played alright but remember this is not a team where alright will get Joel to say good job and no curfew tonight boys...
The following night was a different story. From start to finish for the most part to a man they just looked better, scored more, and got the goaltending they are going to need most games to be where they want to be in April..They were playing the Panthers, who by the way impressed me in a lot of ways, but I will wait to see their next five games before I start tooting the horn of how good they are on a daily basis...Some of the guys I really liked were Brent Seabrook, The Jon’s(John’s) Madden and Toews, Antti Neimi and big buff, he looks like he needs to get a little more jump but he can still dominate a game when he gets gritty..Patty Kane looks likes the most talented player out there when he works, he seemed to come alive after he scored and got hungry but a young kid like that is going to have to realize with the expectations on him to make this team go, his first shift right through 60-65 are going to have to be like that. I have played with a lot of superstars over the years and the ones that have their jerseys hanging in the rafters and the ones that people still talk about as the top players all had that one thing in common...They worked their asses of every single shift every single day... he is very close so credit goes to him ,as he has had a good start and so have the Hawks...now who is going to be their starting goalie come Nov 15! That is I am sure is their number one concern or doubt...If the had Brodeur or Luongo on their lineup sheet , I would say buy your playoff tickets to the finals today sometime because they would be hard to get come Christmas time.

HAWKS FINDING OUT WHAT ITS LIKE TO BE AT THE TOP

Wed, 27 May 2009 14:29:39 -0400

The Chicago Blackhawks are finding out what its like to play a top level team that just doesn't make that many mistakes and really makes you pay when you make one. The one thing out of all of this that I can say is very good is, the Hawks are not that far off yet from being a real contender every year if they make the right moves here in the coming months....Now lets break down where they are right now. They are down 3-1 in a series with a team that won the cup last year and in some ways you could argue are a better team than last season. All the games they have played up until now, with the exception of game 4, they have had a very good chance to win if they had cut down on some mental mistakes and executed a little better with the puck. Detroit like I said is just too damn good if you give them a chance to beat you. Now the last game I saw here in Chicago they looked like a desperate team and they just couldn't find the answers. Everything they did the Wings had an answer for. Get a power play they will score a goal, get a penalty they will score a goal, breakdown in your own end they will score a goal....and so on. I am going to flat out agree with Joel here though and no one is going to be able to fine me shit, what the hell were the refs thinking giving Matt Walker a penalty for roughing when they did. For christ sake I thought I was back in Russia watching a game in the KHL where the refs have no accountability for their calls and no consistency what so ever in what they call. The one thing players want is to know what they do whether or not they are going to get called for it and that was complete bullshit. And for the league to have the power to fine a guy for speaking out about it is even more bullshit. For a coach to not to be able to question what he sees out there on the ice by anyone that is working his game to me we may as well be in Russia, and I am talking about the old Russia pre 1990's, the one we were all scared was going to nuke us, not the one I have been living in the last 4 years, and they are still not that far off these days.
So lets talk about a few other things. Yes I believe the Hawks can still win this series, until you loose 4 you are in it. Do I think their chances are good, no. Everyone would have to have their perfect game for the next three games and I just don't think Detroit is going to let them off the hook at this point. Was the hit on Havlat a penalty? You could make an argument because he never actually touched the puck maybe, but it was right there and he was trying to play it so I say you are free game. No elbow, just a clean step on a guy that should have known he was in a dangerous area. That being said, two things would have happened by now if I was still playing for the Hawks. Now I know the days of calling your own shots are over in the media, so you would have to shut your mouth and just do it, but right away or sometime in game 4 when it was out of hand, I would have made sure that Kromwell wasn’t playing anymore either, or if he was it would be with some kind of injury or worried about getting one every time he stepped on the ice. For all the non violent people out there, and the league who may suspend me for a few if they had too, I have always said no one is going to do that to a guy on my team legal or not and not think about it every single time he plays us for the rest of his career. I love that hit, that is truly one of the best I have ever seen and I played a lot of games with Scott Stevens, but I just cant sit by and watch a guy on my team get run like that and not take a run back. Call me a sore looser, but that's just how I see it....
Lets check in after the game in Detroit tonight to find out where we are at....

HAWKS WIN! PROVE THEY ARE FOR REAL!

Tue, 12 May 2009 14:39:38 -0400

I have always measured the teams I have played on by their ability to win in big games. To play under pressure to come from behind, to hold leads in dying minutes and to have goaltending make saves at big points in the game. Well the Hawks did all those things last night in game six and accomplished something a hockey team here in Chicago hasn't in a very long time. From the the drop of the puck last night they dominated the play only to see the blue,white and green score first. They battled to a 3-1 lead only to see go down in the game later in the third...To a man for the most of the Hawks outplayed their opponents. They got good, great and outstanding games out of everyone that put a pair of skates on last night. Their jubilation was exciting like they had accomplished something they didn't expect but controlled like they know there is a long way to go, I really liked that...I cant say enough about the coaching staff and how they have molded these kids into believing that they can win under any situation and my hope is that they can ride that train into the next series with the same steam. The are going to have to not look at the names on the backs of the jerseys of what ever team they play and and do the dirty work they did in game six every night and claw there way to the cup finals...I stood last night at the united center with much admiration for what this team has done up to this point. I can say now that I didn't fully believe that this group of guys would get this far this fast. I knew it was a special bunch from being around them from time to time but the sky is the limit for these guys right now....

LOCKED UP IN CONVINCING STYLE, HAWKS MOVE ON

Tue, 28 Apr 2009 14:47:40 -0400

The Chicago Blackhawks won game 6 in convincing style last night in Calgary. From the first powerplay goal, to Buffs incredible rush that shows his size strength and skill that often gets overlooked at times, and to an empty net goal that sealed the deal. The Hawks were in control for the most part of last nights game and from what I saw on the highlights last night when I got back from Moscow of game 5 also....I am going to point the finger at one guy now and give him a lot of the credit here because if you are looking for a guy that has led this team day in and day out its him. Joel Quenville, you are proving to me once more that you are one of the top coaches in this game over lets say at least the last few decades...And I say this not because they won 1 round now, they may not win another game this playoffs. The next round will be a much tougher test. But he has taken a combination of raw skilled players and some muckers and grinders and turned them into a team with structure and confidence that hasn't been seen here in years. Everyone plays their part well and has a lot more to offer in all the other areas of their game too. There hasn't been a direction on this team on the ice in years, probably dating back to before I played in the late 90's. Everyone is pulling in the same direction now. The skilled players have been taught how to check, the workers skills have improved, the systems are played well by everyone. Everyone has seemed to have bought into the fact that when the water rises, every single boat in the harbor does too, and now we have a team.
Vancouver, wow these guys are hitting on all cylinders right now. Its going to be interesting how this round goes. I think this could be a tougher series than the next if the Hawks are going to move on. Or one team could get rolled over four straight, its that up in the air for me right now. But I can say this, the team that comes out and plays solid from their own end out is going to be the one to take this series. Defense is going to rule this round and which goaltender is going to leak first..One bad goal in any game could make the difference in a game and the series for that matter. That's how tight it may be. Its playoff hockey at its finest. There is no more time for anyone to be just good. Who ever wins is going to have to be great. Power play and penalty killing are going to be very important here. ALL in all I think the Hawks can move on from here but battle they must. I am looking forward to going to the UC. If they can come back from Van with a win under their belts then I think they can go up 3-1 from there...Good series guys, strap on the work boots now...