Chicago Blackhawks’ Stanley Cup Run Set To Start Again

For Chicago Blackhawks fans, the time is now to relish in the moment of true greatness because we may not see a hockey team like this for a while.  It generally takes about 49 years.

I don’t know if you remember where you were when the Chicago Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup in 2010 but I knew exactly where I was.  A few friends and I were at a bar in Lincoln Park called Wise Fools Pub with a decent amount of Hawks fans there.

I remember thinking that week how weird it was to have a Chicago team in a championship game since the Bulls.  Back then, NBC didn’t have the rights to the majority of the NHL playoff games.  A comapny called Versus did and nobody really knew if they had that channel or not.

Versus did do some pretty cool marketing by spray painting images of the Stanley Cup all around Chicago with the phrase ” history will be made” next to it.  I get the chills just remembering that image in my head.  Anyways, when Kane scored that goal against the Flyers, the bar erupted.  We quickly ran outside to the sound of a roar from the street.  Fans rejoiced to their hockey team winning the cup for the first time in nearly 50 years.

Fast forward seven years and the Blackhawks are knocking at the door to do it all again.  It’s weird to think about the three times the Blackhawks won the cup because they all seem so different.  Specific moments stick out in my head like the battles between Chris Pronger and Dustin Byfuglein in 2010, the Kane overtime winner against the Kings in 2013, and the Toews performance against the Ducks in 2015.  Those are just a few of the great moments we’ve all been lucky enough to be apart of these last few years.

The reason I’m writing this article is because sometimes it’s hard to know what’s happening around you until it’s over.  This Chicago Blackhawks organization completely transformed hockey in Chicago and created a winning culture in less than a decade.  Across town, the Cubs are starting to do the same.  There has been a lot of special moments for Hawks fans the last few years that it’s easy to forget how we got to this point.

There’s going to be a day where Jonathan Toews isn’t your captain, where Joel Quennville isn’t your coach, and where Stan Bowman isn’t your GM.  It’s hard to see what’s next for this team, but the only thing you can do is enjoy it.  We have the luxury of watching a handful of hall of fame players on the ice every other night who have inspired kids all over the city to get into hockey.  I can’t wait to see the influx of great players to come out of Chicago in the coming years.

Next: Forsling Recalled

Stepping away from the drama of the playoffs and all of the speculation, all I see is a team ready to make history again.  For anybody who questions the Blackhawks aren’t a dynasty, this is the year we disprove them.  I’m not trying to jinx the Hawks, nor am I saying that they have it in the bag.  All I’m saying is that there is something in the air in Chicago at the start the playoffs, and it’s not just spring awakening.