{"id":8536,"date":"2024-12-31T03:34:06","date_gmt":"2024-12-31T03:34:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536"},"modified":"2024-12-31T03:34:06","modified_gmt":"2024-12-31T03:34:06","slug":"breaking-winter-classic-comes-at-unfortunate-time-for-struggling-blackhawks-who-dont-fit-the-festive-mood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING: Winter Classic comes at unfortunate time for struggling Blackhawks, who don’t fit the festive mood"},"content":{"rendered":"

At 12-23-2, having lost four straight games to fall back into last place in the NHL standings, the Hawks hardly match the vibe of the NHL\u2019s biggest regular-season event. But they\u2019ll head outside nonetheless to face the Blues at Wrigley Field on Tuesday.<\/h2>\n

\"Taylor<\/p>\n

The 2024-25 Blackhawks need to thank the 2017-18 Sabres.<\/p>\n

Only because of those atrocious Sabres are these Hawks not the worst team ever to play in a Winter Classic, which they will do Tuesday at Wrigley Field against the Blues.<\/p>\n

At 12-23-2, having lost four straight games to fall back into last place in the NHL standings, the Hawks hardly fit the vibe of the NHL\u2019s biggest regular-season event. The league will put on a fantastic show, Wrigley will provide a romantic setting and Chicago hockey fans will create a good atmosphere, but the Hawks will not put a high-quality product on the ice.<\/p>\n

Nor will the Hawks\u2019 players or coaches wake up Tuesday in a particularly festive mood. It probably would\u2019ve worked better if the Winter Classic happened back on Dec. 20, when the Hawks had won three straight and at least felt optimistic about interim coach Anders Sorensen\u2019s positive impacts.<\/p>\n

But now, coming off 6-2 and 5-1 losses within the last four days, they\u2019re feeling discouraged, defeated and despondent \u2014 the opposite emotions from those the NHL wants the Winter Classic, a celebration of hockey\u2019s outdoor roots, to evoke.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was in the Uber over here and I\u2019m like, \u2018F, I wish last night would\u2019ve went a lot better than it did,\u2019\u201d forward Taylor Hall said Monday. \u201cIt does take a little bit of the shine away from the event with how we\u2019ve played the last two games, but that\u2019s sports.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team will need to make a concerted effort to lift themselves up Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n

“[This is a] very disappointing point in the season, but this a cool event you\u2019ve got to soak in,\u201d Jason Dickinson said. \u201cIt\u2019s not something you get to experience every day. It\u2019s something you\u2019ve got to cherish and enjoy with the people around you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\"Winter <\/picture>\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>
The Blackhawks acclimated to the Wrigley Field rink during practice Monday.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption>
\n

Michael Reaves\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

It\u2019s a similar situation to the 2017-18 Sabres, who entered the Winter Classic on New Year\u2019s Day at Citi Field in New York with an abysmal 10-20-8 record. They rallied from two goals down but fell 3-2 in overtime against the Rangers, who also ended up missing the playoffs that year.<\/p>\n

The other worst teams in the Classic\u2019s 17-year history are the 2018-19 Hawks (who entered the game 15-20-6 and lost) and last season\u2019s Kraken (who entered the game 14-14-9 but won).<\/p>\n

Poor TV ratings for that Kraken-Golden Knights matchup at T-Mobile Park in Seattle prompted the NHL to return to two historic franchises and a more famous venue for this year\u2019s Classic. But considering the 17-17-4 Blues are merely a middling team in their own right, excitement for this matchup seems relatively low again \u2014 with good reason.<\/p>\n

Avoiding going up against college football playoff games \u2014 because of the move to New Year\u2019s Eve \u2014 should help those aforementioned TV ratings, but a lofty figure seems unlikely.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, fans, players and league officials are all collectively rooting for forecasted rain Tuesday morning to stop hours before the 4 p.m. game, as it is supposed to. After the sun went down Monday \u2014 despite mild 40-degree temperatures \u2014 the ice was in good shape.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ice was amazing for how much rain we\u2019ve had in Chicago. I was really impressed,\u201d Hall said. \u201cThe lighting is going to be better the darker it gets and the more the spotlight is on the ice surface.\u201d<\/p>\n

Petr Mrazek will start in goal for the Hawks, and forward Craig Smith will make his return from a back injury, Sorensen said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At 12-23-2, having lost four straight games to fall back into last place in the NHL standings, the Hawks hardly match the vibe of the NHL’s biggest regular-season event. But they’ll head outside nonetheless to face the Blues at Wrigley Field on Tuesday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8537,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,10,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chicago-blackhawks","category-nfl","category-san-francisco-49ers"],"yoast_head":"\nBREAKING: Winter Classic comes at unfortunate time for struggling Blackhawks, who don't fit the festive mood - Breaking News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BREAKING: Winter Classic comes at unfortunate time for struggling Blackhawks, who don't fit the festive mood - Breaking News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"At 12-23-2, having lost four straight games to fall back into last place in the NHL standings, the Hawks hardly match the vibe of the NHL's biggest regular-season event. But they'll head outside nonetheless to face the Blues at Wrigley Field on Tuesday.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Breaking News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-12-31T03:34:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/DTH5RTF.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"MrKen\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"MrKen\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536\",\"name\":\"BREAKING: Winter Classic comes at unfortunate time for struggling Blackhawks, who don't fit the festive mood - Breaking News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/DTH5RTF.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-12-31T03:34:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-12-31T03:34:06+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b503ba061d907097809c4aa8a240af15\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/DTH5RTF.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/DTH5RTF.png\",\"width\":1080,\"height\":1080},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"BREAKING: Winter Classic comes at unfortunate time for struggling Blackhawks, who don’t fit the festive mood\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"Breaking News\",\"description\":\"Explore top US sports stories, and live updates\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b503ba061d907097809c4aa8a240af15\",\"name\":\"MrKen\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab07af1f129ef9c67f3a58e6273eac4d8eb51a1cb066ea995eb6d5f03eceb61b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab07af1f129ef9c67f3a58e6273eac4d8eb51a1cb066ea995eb6d5f03eceb61b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"MrKen\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?author=2\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"BREAKING: Winter Classic comes at unfortunate time for struggling Blackhawks, who don't fit the festive mood - Breaking News","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"BREAKING: Winter Classic comes at unfortunate time for struggling Blackhawks, who don't fit the festive mood - Breaking News","og_description":"At 12-23-2, having lost four straight games to fall back into last place in the NHL standings, the Hawks hardly match the vibe of the NHL's biggest regular-season event. But they'll head outside nonetheless to face the Blues at Wrigley Field on Tuesday.","og_url":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536","og_site_name":"Breaking News","article_published_time":"2024-12-31T03:34:06+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1080,"height":1080,"url":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/DTH5RTF.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"MrKen","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"MrKen","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536","url":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536","name":"BREAKING: Winter Classic comes at unfortunate time for struggling Blackhawks, who don't fit the festive mood - Breaking News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/DTH5RTF.png","datePublished":"2024-12-31T03:34:06+00:00","dateModified":"2024-12-31T03:34:06+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b503ba061d907097809c4aa8a240af15"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/DTH5RTF.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/DTH5RTF.png","width":1080,"height":1080},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=8536#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"BREAKING: Winter Classic comes at unfortunate time for struggling Blackhawks, who don’t fit the festive mood"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/","name":"Breaking News","description":"Explore top US sports stories, and live updates","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b503ba061d907097809c4aa8a240af15","name":"MrKen","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab07af1f129ef9c67f3a58e6273eac4d8eb51a1cb066ea995eb6d5f03eceb61b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ab07af1f129ef9c67f3a58e6273eac4d8eb51a1cb066ea995eb6d5f03eceb61b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"MrKen"},"url":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?author=2"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8536","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8536"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8536\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8538,"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8536\/revisions\/8538"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8537"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8536"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}