Just a quick disclaimer. I've been a hawks fan all of my life. I used to be able to see them when I was a kid. But due to a lot of reasons, it became impossible to continue to afford tickets to the games during their lean years. Which was, pretty much, the majority of my life. And since they weren't on television, I didn't really see much of them, nor was able to really "support" them during the dark ages. I also want to say that I've always enjoyed reading SCH and have spent a lot of time these past two years since the Hawks have been back on TV.

But something really started to irk me during the live blogging of the trade deadline. First of all, someone posted the Red Eye article about the bandwagon fans. I think what bothered me there was everyone complaining about fans that yell, "SHOOT!" Well, I'm a very vocal fan. I'm yelling at the athletes no matter what the sport. And, for example, against Islanders when Hossa was 5 feet from the net and couldn't decide to pass or shoot (and ended up whiffing), I was screaming "SHOOT THE PUCK!" at the TV. Like Edzo says, it's never a bad idea to direct the puck towards the net." And when I see the Hawks dancing for 2 shifts in the opponent's end like the Harlem Globetrotters (which is a good thing) and not get a shot off, yeah, I'm a lil' annoyed. I don't see how that is any different from the people on here that complain about the lack of Versteeg(!) dumping the puck, or Byflugien being constipated on the ice. Or posting pictures of clown shoes.

On to the goalies. It is a very polarizing issue, I get that. I don't like Huet. I think he is overpaid for what he brings to the team. And Niemi has the ability to be good, I think, but not yet. The goalie situation is quite possibly the weakest link of the Blackhawks, right behind the sloppy defensive play of late. People want the weakest link to be shored up a bit. I don't understand the backlash against people complaining about the goalies. I get that it is an old subject, and people have been bitching about Huet all season, and that it can be tiring to continue hearing about it, but it is a valid concern. If our defense is off, our goalies can't seem to pick up the slack. Will that be fatal in a cup run? Maybe. Maybe not. Nobody knows the answer. Even Josh Mora said he was concerned in the podcast. Reading the comments about the goalie situation is like being in a room with PS3 owners facing off against 360 owners. Seriously, you're both right and both sides have a fair amount of cognitive dissonance goin on there...So the personal attacks and idiocy on both sides has led me to stop reading the comments on this site, which I used to enjoy.

And a quick aside, I've seen a couple times where comments have talked about the psyche of the players and their body language and whatnot. I have a Master's in psychology and am working on my Ph.D. To listen to people in the comments say that Huet giving in soft goals doesn't impact the thought process and the feeling of the players on the ice is sheer...well...naiveté. The Hawks DOMINATED that first period against the Oilers. Got up one goal. And then it came crashing down. Someone said in the game thread "Is it too much to ask to see the hawks play angry for a period." Well, it took a while but they finally did. Other nights they haven't. If you paid attention you could see the Hawks struggling to regain that anger and drive. Eventually they did, thanks in part to Eager, Toews, and yes, even Kopecky.

I could go on for a while on this, but the simple fact is that is that you cannot say that the stress level of the defense is not extremely high. Almost every time they make a mistake, one of the goalies let's in a goal. That pressure could very easily lead to more mistakes. So the goalie situation is a very real problem. I don't think there is any question there. If only for the fact that we pay nearly $6 million for an average goalie. The question, though, is: "How big of a problem is it?" Only time will tell.

So I guess what I've been trying to say is that I used to enjoy reading the comments on this blog. And getting different people's perspectives regarding things like the goalie situation. I enjoy having my positions challenged and being forced to examine other's perspectives. But with the amount of vitriol in the comments lately has become overwhelming whenever the goalies are brought up. Both sides are right. It is a problem, but it also isn't. It is as much as a problem as the cap space. It is a problem, just not yet. Will the goalies be the Hawk's downfall? Time will tell. Snapping at people that complain about the goalies is a bit hypocritical when you are quick to point out the downfalls of every other player on the ice, like Steeger, Kopecky, and Seabs.

I have to echo the thoughts of the other fanposts. As I write this the Hawks are now first in the division. First in the conference. Second in the entire league. They have a +54 goal differential, second only to the Capitals. Their PP% is 7th. Their PK is 6th. They average the most shots per game in the entire NHL. They still have the fewest shots against. Both our goalies have a Sv% above .90 and a GAA below 2.5. As much as I don't like Huet and think Niemi needs experience, we've won 42 out of 63 games.  

The Hawks can seemingly dominate every statistical category (save goaltending) most nights. Toews is a monster. Kane's face lights up after an assist. It is a fun team to watch. It is an aggravating team to watch. They are not a perfect team; they have flaws. And if you want to bitch about one thing, don't snap at people that bitch about another. Because in the end, it's all just bitching about a team that just keeps on winning. Even when they do play like shit.

I apologize for the ramblings, but I just needed to vent after getting so annoyed at the comments these past couple of days.