Vancouver’s taxicab community needs your support.

With the Chicago Blackhawks’ Patrick Kane coming to town for Games 3 and 4 of the Canucks-Blackhawks series, cabbies in the Lower Mainland are banding together and ensuring they have the proper change ready — two dimes, in particular — just in case it’s needed.

Kane and his cousin were charged with beating up a taxi driver in Buffalo in an August 2009 incident after the cabbie allegedly was unable to provide 20 cents in change for the $15 paid by Kane.

It’s up to us as a society to band together and keep our beaded-seat-sitting brothers and sisters safe. If you pull up next to a cab driver at a light this week, show them your solidarity by giving them a different finger for a change. A thumbs up.

That’s just great.  I’m not sure it really did anything in terms of affecting Kane’s game, but it definitely made me laugh.  I doubt the Canucks fans are laughing now after going down 2-1, but I’m still enjoying it.  Keep printing stupid headlines and giving up hat tricks to Dustin Byfuglien.

To me, the Canadians are the favorites in the tournament. They just have too much talent throughout the entire lineup.  The Russians might have the most firepower and the scariest top players, but their depth will hurt them and they cannot match Canada in the goaltending department. 

The US will do well to get bronze, but as we’ve seen before they can provide a surprise (good or bad).  Kane’s line with Paul Statsny and Zach Parise should provide plenty of scoring that will scare teams in the quarterfinal round and Ryan Miller can steal a game at any time in goal.  It all starts today, so hopefully those crazy Canadians have actual ice in the arena.  Check out the Hawks videos for the popsicle eating contest and the speed skating.

On the left, current Blackhawks stars Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Adam Burish enjoying some drinks on New Years Eve with a lovely lady. On the right, former Blackhawks star Chris Chelios’s mugshot from his recent DUI.  Although Chelios is a reminder of some good years, its funny how all things present about the Hawks are awesome, and all things past about them seem so crappy.

h/t pics: Tremendous Upside Potential and Chicagoist

NQTC Reader JavierSandooski

Imagine if the Cubs locked up Alfonso Soriano, Milton Bradley and Kosuke Fukudome to solid long term deals. (Oh wait – they did? And it’s worked out terribly??) Now imagine the complete opposite — this is basically the move the Hawks are making with today’s official announcement of signing Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane (both 5 years) and Duncan Keith (13 years) to long term deals.

It’s a great move by the hawks, regardless of the fact that they may be somewhat overpaying these guys; reports have Toews & Kane hitting the cap at $6.3 million and Keith at $5.5 million. These three are each all-stars and most likely will be Olympians this winter in Vancouver. Toews is the youngest active captain in the NHL at 23 and the Hawks are dependent on him – they went 8-0 after his return from missing six games with a concussion – they went 3-3 in the 6 games he missed. Duncan Keith is one of the best defensemen in the league; and Kane has elite skills that don’t come along very often.

This move definitely sets the core of the Blackhawks in place for years to come: the three aforementioned, Hossa and Seabrook, and now the matter becomes who else is staying and who is going. Rumors recently have circulated, which basically have said anyone else on the team might be one of the guys to go (Sharp, Versteeg, Buff, Barker, list goes on). All I know, they better keep my boy The Hammer (PS – email me asap if you know where I can get a sweet Hjalmarsson jersey tee). Oh and I’d really like if they can keep Sharp and Versteeg. Now, enjoy this video made by my friend Pat starring my favorite Hawks player.

Here’s the problem with that bit of “news”.  It is not really possible with the NHL salary cap system that is currently in place.  The same Tribune article that is insinuating that these deals are essentially already done out of one side of its mouth is explaining how it is impossible out of the other side:

The salary cap this season is $56.8 million. It’s expected to remain the same or drop slightly next season, which could handcuff the Hawks, who already have 13 players signed for around $43 million for 2010-11.

With Hossa on the hook for 12 years at about $5.5 million per and Huet another $5.5 million, you would have to think that Kane and Toews will command at least that.  If they sign the long-term deal, maybe they would give a discount, but why would two kids with that kind of talent agree to be locked up at a lower rate than their value through their prime playing years?

The Hawks front office has worked many miracles the last few seasons, but this one would top them all.  The little problem of “math” seems to be an inflexible obstacle to the signing of all three of these budding young stars.  If it somehow happens, this Hawks team could dominate the next decade in Chicago.  NQTC reader DC Blackhawks said it best: “if they do [these deals], they will own the city.  Outside of MJ, few players have played in Chicago for 10+ years and their team was very competitive.”  He makes a good point, although I don’t know if I’d go that far.  Here was my response, “If they lock it up, maybe, but let’s see some cups first.”

Keep your eyes and ears open, an announcement about the extensions is expected in the next couple of weeks.

Still, when newcomer John Madden tallied late in the first period, there was this feeling that I knew the Blackhawks had the firepower to come back.  The second period belonged to Chicago, with goals from Kane, Byfuglien, and Bolland in a span of seven minutes.  Patrick Sharp tied the game about five minutes into the third on a great redirection that found the net.

With the United Center frenzied, the Hawks pressured but couldn’t end the game in regulation, but it only took 26 seconds of the extra period.  Brent Seabrook found himself with the puck and snapped a low shot beat Kiprusoff and cap the amazing comeback.

It’s safe to say I’ve never seen a game like that before.  To play so horribly in the first period and be able to completely turn that around to out-shoot the Flames by 19 and win is amazing.  I cannot overstate how bad things were during the onslaught by the Flames.  Duncan Keith even made a mistake!  As bad as Huet looked, Niemi looked just as bad when he came in after three goals.  It half expected to see Mark Grace come into goal.

For this young team to hang in and dominate the last two periods says so much.  As for their make-up, you have to like that they didn’t quit and while they may not have believed they could win the whole time, it didn’t take much to find that confidence.  While the veteran Madden got the first goal, Patrick Kane was electrifying last night.  The kid had a goal and two assists and with two teams filled with stars, he was the best player on the ice.

The comeback marks the biggest comeback in franchise history and ties for the best in league history.  That stat makes me think of when you’re watching a long field goal and the kicker hits a 58-yarder and they say “that would have been good from 65 or 70.”  While the Hawks only matched the five goals in regulation, you got the feeling watching that if it was six or seven, they would have matched that too.

We thought this would be an exciting season, and it certainly looks like that will be the case.

Chicago Cubs

Corey Patterson: The word on Patterson was that he was the next Lou Brock.  After a good half season followed by an injury, his career sputtered out.

Mark Prior: The second pick in the draft behind Joe Mauer, Prior was amazing for a couple seasons, but injuries plagued his career.  He was recently in camp with the Padres but *gasp* went down for the season with an injury.

Kerry Wood: Remember 1998?  He was a rookie when he tied Clemens’ record for most strikeouts in a game with 20.  He always had nagging injury problems and never developed into the Cy Young caliber pitcher everyone thought he could be.  Eventually he was converted to a closer and he has had some success in that role.

Felix Pie:  All you need to know is he was supposed to be the next Corey Patterson.  Yikes.

Chicago White Sox

Gordon Beckham: All I hear Sox fans talk about is Gordon Beckham.  The shortstop of the future they say.  When he finally came up this season, he struggled a bit.  Recently he has been hitting better though, and time will tell whether he pans out.

Joe Borchard: He was given the largest signing bonus in MLB draft history (until Justin Upton surpassed it).  Unfortunately he only had one stint with the major league club, resulting in a .174 average.  After bouncing around a bit the past couple years, he finally had to undergo Tommy John surgery last season

Josh Fields: Fields came up in August in 2007 and hit 23 home runs between then and the end of the season.  Although he only hit .244, the City had high hopes for him.  Unfortunately Crede came back from injury and started most of the 2008 season.  Fields started this season at 3rd base, but due to poor hitting has been mostly relegated to the bench in recent weeks.

Brian Anderson: The next Willie Mays?  Even I thought so after his ridiculous season in center field a couple years ago.  He was suppsoed to be able to hit too, but unfortunately that never happened.

Chicago Bulls

Jamal Crawford: The Bulls used a lottery pick on this guy, who was supposed to be an elite scorer.  Unfortunately his poor poor defense and terrible shot selection doomed him to mediocrity.  He was recently traded to the Atlanta Hawks, where I’m guessing he will score about 17 points a game while shooting 38% from the field.

Marcus Fizer:  He was the big low post scoring presence the Bulls needed.  Until he sucked.  Terrible player.

Eddy Curry and Tyson Chandler (Baby Bulls): Krause traded Elton Brand for the rights to select Chandler 2nd in the draft and then took Curry 4th.  Curry never tried and Chandler never developed into the elite defensive/rebounding  player he was supposed to be.  Until he got traded to New Orleans of course.

Tyrus Thomas: John Paxson traded Aldridge for Tyrus on draft day and most people thought it was a great move.  Tyrus is athletic and has a ton of upside and was only 19 years old.  Oops.  So far he has never taken the step from high talent/low IQ, and has been in all kinds of recent trade rumors.

Derrick Rose: Too early to tell, but most think he will be a perennial all-star at least and a hall of famer at best.  We’ll see.

Chicago Bears

Curtis Enis: His ridiculous college numbers at Penn State did not translate into much of anything.  He had a decent second season, almost breaking 1000 yards, but never made any noise in the NFL again.

Rashaan Salaam: After winning the Heisman in college, he rushed for 1,000 yards in his rookie season with the Bears.  Everyone thought he was going to be a starter in the league for a long time.  Too bad he could never cure his fumbleitis, and the injuries didn’t help.

Cade McNown: This quarterback from UCLA was going to be the best quarterback the Bears had since, well, ever.  Or so people thought.  He was young and perhaps did not deserve all the criticism and booing he got, but his performance on the field did not exactly light up any opposing defenses.

Rex Grossman: Oh the Sex Cannon.  There’s not much to be said about him that hasn’t already been said.  I love the guy, but he just couldn’t see over his line and made so many bad decisions.  He was the quarterback that went to the Super Bowl in 2006, however (note how I didn’t say he “took” the Bears to the Super Bowl).

Brian Urlacher: Hey hey!  Someone that actually panned out.  He was a safety in college, but the Bears immediately moved him to outside linebacker and eventually to the middle.  He was one of the dominant players at his position for the last decade.

David Terrell: The Bears needed receivers (sound familiar?) and turned to this standout from the University of Michigan.  Someone forgot to tell us he couldn’t catch the ball though.  Out of the league within a few years.

Chicago Blackhawks

Jonathan Toews: Toews and Kane are pretty much inseparable in this discussion.  The Hawks have finally begun to turn things around since old man Wirtz’s death.  Toews had a stellar rookie season, scoring the second most goals on the team behind Kane.  He was named a captain and helped lead the team to the Western Conference Finals this year.

Patrick Kane: Although he looks like he’s 12 and has a finesse (see: soft) game, he has been extremely effective for the Hawks.  He won Rookie of the Year and continues to dazzle hockey fans.  Also helped lead the Hawks to the Western Conference Finals alongside Toews this season.

Anyone Else from 1999-2006: I didn’t follow the team and I’m guessing most of you didn’t.  I have no real memory of a “chosen one” from the Hawks during this time.  If you can think of one let me know.  We’ll call these “the lost years”.

Seriously, Patrick Kane looks like he is 15 years old.  All kidding aside, he deserves this honor, among many others he will hopefully be getting throughout the course of a long, successful career.

h/t: Chicagoist

h/t Puck Daddy

• Both teams are having some trouble getting production from their stars.  For the Hawks, this hadn’t been a problem until Kane disappeared this round, but the Wings have been looking for Datsyuk and Hossa all playoffs long.  Datsyuk is nursing a sore foot that caused him to miss practice yesterday.  Hossa and Kane seem to be the likely candidates to break out in Game 3….so look out for Datsyuk.
• Turnovers are still killing both teams, as both have deadly offensive skills that punish miscues.  The Hawks have shown they can create chances against Detroit, so if they can show a little more poise in Game 3 and limit the turnovers, there is no reason they can’t push it to 2-1.
• Khabibulin has been great in this series, but Osgood has been better.  Time for Nikolai to outplay his counterpart no matter how good Ozzie plays.  Bulin has won a Stanley Cup and knows he has to take some pride and step it up.  Not that I’m calling him out, it’s just that when you have an apparent advantage in goal, it needs to show.
• I know the Hawks have come out strong in the first two games and lost, but I really think if they do it again it’s a great sign.  They’ve been playing good hockey, but Detroit has been great.  If Chicago can come out with physical play and strong legs, they have a good chance to build a lead and stay on top of it with the home crowd.
• Mmm, home crowd.  Anthem is going to be awesome once again and it should be one of the loudest games ever in the United Center.  Get pumped because after two days off, it’s time for more playoff hockey.

Game is at 7 PM CT on Versus.  Game 4 is Sunday at 2 PM CT on NBC. I’ll try to get a recap/preview up, but I’ll be out of town this weekend.

• The young stars for the Blackhawks would have to be super-human to not feel pressure going into Game 2.  Kane and Toews put up some awful stats in Game 1 and it’s on them to step it up tonight.  Kane was held without a shot just three times all season before Sunday, but now it’s four times and two of those have come against Detroit.  Kane mentioned that it felt like he was being triple teamed out there in Game 1, so hopefully for the Hawks he’ll be able to find some space and discover that magic he had against Vancouver. 
• I didn’t see Seabrook and Keith take a whole lot of heat after Game 1.  I thought these two had been a couple of the best defensmen in the entire league for the first two rounds, but a couple of bad turnovers in Game 1 were killers.  While guys like Datsyuk and Hossa struggle, the Hawks can’t afford to give away goals to other players. 
• One of the positives I saw from Chicago in the first game was their physical play.  The Wings played a real tough series against Anaheim before this one and if the Hawks can keep punishing the Wings with big hits, there’s a chance they could wear them down if they can extend this series. 
• Another good thing for Chicago is that being so young, there most recent playoff experience is the only kind they have.  The Hawks fell behind 1-0 in the Vancouver series and had a great comeback to win Game 2.  Just because this is a bigger stage, doesn’t mean they can’t handle it.  Look for a disciplined and spirited performance tonight. 
• Again, pay attention to the pace tonight.  After winning the first game, I can’t imagine the Wings would try and change styles, so it will likely be another wide open and exciting affair. 

That’s all I’ve got this afternoon, but I’m really looking forward to this one tonight.  6:30 PM CT, on Versus.

• Game 1 definitely lived up to the hype for the series.  Both teams were flying up and down the ice and testing the goaltenders.  As I heard the Pittsburgh-Washington series described, it looked like you were watching the game with the fast forward on the DVR.  I guess that answers the question regarding the pace the Red Wings would try to play at.  It’s going to be strength on strength as both teams prefer a wide open style. 
• The depth of the Red Wings was lethal.  The Filpula, Hudler, Samuelsson line dominated to the point that Quenneville switched Keith and Seabrook to match up with them in the third period.  Hjalmarsson, Barker, and Walker need to step up their play for the Hawks to have a chance here. 
• I probably should be careful using the word “lethal” in the last point, because it almost took on a very literal meaning when Ben Eager was upended and his skate sliced Adam Burish on his neck.  That was less than an inch from being disastrous.  Most of us remember the Richard Zednik situation from a couple years ago, and this could have been just as bad. Kudos to Burish for not being phased and playing a very strong game after that, until that double minor for cross-checking Draper twice in the last minute. 
• Where were the stars for the Hawks?  Kane and Toews combined for one shot on goal the entire game (Toews), while compiling a pair of minus-3’s.  Keith and Seabrook each had a turnover that led directly to the first two goals for the Wings.  NBC had an un-official count of 10 turnovers for the Wings and only 1 for the Hawks, but that was obviously wrong.  Both teams struggled hard in the turnover department. 
• Khabibulin was about as good as a goaltender can be while giving up four goals (the 5th was empty net).  Especially in the second period while Detroit had a few power plays he was outstanding.  The Hawks will need more of the same from Bulin, but it looks like he could steal a game in this series if he keeps it up. 
• Zetterberg and Datsyuk were amazing.  Every time there was a loose puck in their vicinity they got it.  There was one play where Zetterberg forced a turnover at center ice, went around three Hawks and Khabibulin thwarted his centering attempt; then he stole the puck again and created another chance.  While Toews and Kane disappointed, hopefully this is a glimpse into the future for those young stars. 
• The Hawks can be encouraged that they did not shy away from the big stage.  They came out in the first period and it looked like the rink was slanted their way.  There were also stints in which they dominated and peppered Osgood.  Burish, Eager, and company dished out some physical punishment too.  This game was 2-2 in the third and the Hawks had plenty of chances to take the lead.  I thought Versteeg and Campbell played great games with Versteeg creating chances and scoring, and with Campbell jumping into the play and even laying some big-time hits. 

Game 2 is Tuesday night in Detroit and will be on Vs. at 6:30 CT.

First, the anthem from last night:

Here are the highlights from a guy with a fairly annoying voice.

And the last couple minutes of the game with the Pat Foley and Eddie O call.

The Hawks will get the winner of the Detroit-Anaheim series, which the Wings lead 3-2 with game 6 in Anaheim tonight.  A Wings-Blackhawks series would obviously be amazing.  And might as well throw in a link to some Chelsea Dagger.  Congrats to the Blackhawks.