Hawks beat Blues, clinch playoff spot

Victory! My Blackhawks beat the Blues- who will almost certainly win the division this year, but didn't last night- 4 to 3 in a shootout. The victory clinches a playoff spot for the Good Guys.

It wasn't Prozac that did it. It was Dave Bolland.

Worryingly, the Sons of the Four Feathers blew a two-goal third period lead before Bolland struck. But if captain Jonathan Toews ever gets back from his concussion, maybe the Madison Street Warriors can make a deep run into the playoffs after all (of course, whether Good Corey or Bad Corey shows up will make a major difference.

My instincts say that we're still at least two years away from recovering from the Bill Wirtz salary cap debacle which forced the partial dismantling of the 2010 Stanley Cup Champions. But we can only hope.

ADDENDUM: Looks like I miscalculated. They needed a regulation victory to clinch a playoff berth; the victory over the Blues left them a point short.

This they remedied with their shootout victory over the Preds Saturday night. The Hawks can finish no lower than sixth in the conference; they could finish as high as fourth. The top eight teams in each conference make the playoffs.

Duncan Keith is back from his suspension. As soon as Captain Serious returns, we'll be all set for the post-season. Or as set as we're gonna be.