Game 6 – Pregame Thoughts…

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.

The best of times because my team is in the Stanley Cup Finals.

The worst of times because I am in Grad School Finals.

You would think that I would be blogging 24/7, considering how elated I am about the Blackhawks.

But “Stanley Cup Finals” is not a legitimate reason for getting an extension on my final projects (due Friday), regardless of the teams playing in them.

Since this may be the last game of the Finals, here are a few thoughts about the series:

Coach Joel Quenneville has been dubbed “Coach Q” or sometimes just “Q” by Chicago media and fans. I’m wondering if Philadelphia has a nickname for Flyers head coach Peter Laviolette? If not, may I suggest “P-Lav”?

Speaking of P-Lav, when asked which of his two goalies would start Game 6, Laviolette snapped back at reporters, asking them if they inquired about who Chicago was going to start in net. A tad defensive, no?

TSN Analyst Ray Ferraro thinks that the Blackhawks will win Game 6 tonight.

Ed Olczyk–who is a TV color commentator for the Blackhawks–has said all along that the series will go 7 games.

Perhaps the ‘Hawks should pretend that they are playing the San Jose Sharks. Then they’ll win for sure. Maybe someone could slip a little teal dye in the Flyers laundry…

Since Dave Bolland, Adam Burish and Nick Boynton each appeared in at least one game during the Finals, they are all eligible to get their names engraved on the Stanley Cup if the Blackhawks win. None of them appeared in 40 regular season games for the ‘Hawks, which is the other criteria for eligibility.

Bryan Bickell played 16 games with the Blackhawks during the regular season, and 4 in the playoffs. He has yet to see any time in the Finals, though. If Andrew Ladd sits out again due to injury (as was rumored today), then it would be great to see Bickell in the lineup so that he can get his name engraved on the Cup if the Hawks win tonight.

The Coach Q graffiti you see at the top of this article was swiped from a friend’s Facebook page. Not sure where she found it, but it’s pretty awesome.