The "Ready For Prime Time Players"

Tommie Lee
Jul 24, 2014
2 min read

(AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Earlier this week the Blackhawks announced their National TV Schedule for NBC this coming season.

We fans have 20 games to look forward to, more than any other franchise has in the coming year.

Five of those games are scheduled to be on network TV, the rest on NBCSN.

The first is October 21st at the Flyers. A trip to St. Louis will be televised on December 3rd. Then, as the winter stretch hits and the regular football schedule comes to a close, they pick it up with five games in January, six in February, four in March, and three games in April that will no doubt be key matchups (Blues & Wild at home, and then at St. Louis on April 9th.)

This schedule of course includes the New Year’s Day match-up with the Capitals in Washington DC. That game makes Chicago and Washington the fourth and fifth teams, respectively, to appear twice in the Winter Classic. The local broadcast schedule on Comcast and WGN will be announced later.

Last weekend the Blackhawks held their convention. Among the highlights: Jonathon Toews turned around on stage and snapped the ultimate selfie with the crowd; a “Baby Boom” panel was held with all four new fathers on the team (Brent Seabrook, Marian Hossa, Niklas Hjalmarsson and Michal Rozsival) talking about the dual responsibilities on and off the ice; a group of living legends talked about the game…Tony Esposito, Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita, Denis Savard and Pierre Pilote; Johnny Oduya was walking in a boot on his right foot, which he broke in Game 7 of the Conference Finals; and Patrick Kane walked around being charming.

Looking to the future, Coach Q said that he was very impressed with what Teuvo Teravainen was doing in practices. GM Stan Bowman hinted the moves needed to get the team under the cap may not come until prospect camp this fall. When asked about trade rumors, Patrick Sharp — whose name seems to comes up more often than anyone else’s — shrugged them off as “part of the business.”

One final note from this week: Sports Illustrated reported that Patrick Kane is finding creative ways to keep himself loose and get his practice in against live targets. Kaner unleashed five goals and five assists Tuesday night in a Buffalo Recreational League game. Wearing #88 on Defense for a team called the Piranhas, he was part of a well-oiled machine that devastated the Essex Street Pub team 13 to 5. SI gave special credit to Essex Street Pub Goaltender Willie Stewart, who “somehow managed to stop 22 shots…instead of just lying down in the net and taking a nap like most reasonable people would have done.”

Getting lit up by Patrick Kane shouldn’t bother the Essex Street boys, though.

They’re in pretty good company when it comes to having that happen.

Go Hawks.