2006 was not kind to the Chicago Blackhawks as a whole. And it seemed fitting that the team finished the year off with two losses.
The Hawks fell to the Boston Bruins Friday night 5-3 and then lost their New Year’s Eve game in Columbus 3-1.
The loss to the Bruins was a tough one as the Hawks put 40 shots on goal and could only get three of them by Boston netminder Tim Thomas. But the more concerning game was the loss to Columbus Sunday night. The team could only muster 22 shots and two of Chicago’s top wingers, Martin Havlat and Tuomo Ruutu only had one shot each. Havlat was noticeably defensive when this stat was brought up.
“What, do I gotta do everything now,” the Hawk forward asked in an odd Italian mobster voice. “You try and make me look bad in them papers and you might find yourself whacked. Jerky Chicago Reporters sleep with the fishes if you know what I mean.”
“It’s my fault,” coach Denis Savard said when asked about Havlat’s strange dialogue. “We watched ‘The Godfather’ on the trip to Columbus. Some of the guys took it a little seriously.”
“I believe in America,” center Denis Archipov shouted. “Capeche?”
