<p>I wish I could be there, but I have a pre-planned meeting that has already been postponed twice. Have fun and give us a full account.</p>
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<p>You folks are so kind. Actually I have long been desensitized to losing so it doesn’t bother me anymore. Furthermore, I watch games for the tactics and strategies involved, not so much cheering for the home team. Does that make any sense?</p>
<p>I used to get a real thrill when the old Black Hawks came to town. They should have won more than one Cup during those years because they had enormous talent-Bobby Hull, Stan Makita, and Pierre Pilote were some of the names I remember. We used to say that those Hawks had too many Chiefs and not enough Indians.:)</p>
<p>After the Leafs won in 67, they traded away their best performers during the playoffs. Do names like Jim Pappin, Peter Stemkouski(sp?), and Bobby Pulford ring a bell? Yes, they were traded to Chicago, I believe, and the Leafs have never recovered.</p>
<p>Talking about Bobby Pulford. I used to drive by his hometown of Newton-Robinson on my way to work. I remember him joining the Hawks’ front office after retirement. Curious if he is still living in the Chicago area…</p>
<p>Bill Wirtz had an equivalent in Toronto by the name of Harold Ballard. Old Harold was so cheap that he literally ran the team into the ice, pocketing the huge profit (the team was and still am one of the richest in the NHL) and did not put anything back into it. Looks like Chicago has recovered but not Toronto.</p>
<p>I honestly had more fun watching the last two hawks series than I had watching my red wings all year. Congrats, Chicago. 
It’s about damn time!</p>
<p>Canuckguy,</p>
<p>Yes, it does makes sense. I am practically at that point about the Cubs, but that’s not for this thread. </p>
<p>Rocky Wirtz brought Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita and Tony Esposito back as Ambassadors, and they have been a big hit, especially Bobby. I don’t know if Pulford is still in the area.</p>
<p>gloworm… weren’t the Walter E. Smithe commercials hilarious? (speaking of Mikita and Esposito).</p>
<p>Yes, they were great. But the ones I saw also had Bobby.</p>
<p>Pulford is no longer on the management team but is still involved with the Wirtz organization in some way. My H has played golf with him a few times as they have mutual friends. </p>
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<p>This is surprising in some ways because both Mikita and Hull had very bad reputations back when they were players, and Hull had some issues in retirement that would make his job as a team ambassador questionable.</p>
<p>The Finals was interesting because we had two teams with big flaws, of the type not seen in some of the teams of the last decade or so. Chicago has 2 of the best forwards in hockey but you can’t really say the lines really had great depth of quality. In many years, being that unbalanced up front gets you through a few rounds but not to the Cup. Chicago has room to improve their team. Their real weakness, however, was that their defense (and sometimes the forwards playing defense) makes lots of mistakes. They tend to push the puck, which leads to passing mistakes, but they made some moves in their own zone that had me shaking my head in wonder. But Philly is also a team with a limited number of skilled stick hands, though they were significantly better at fore checking and overall doggedness. Neither team has a Martin Brodeur or close to it. Philly had steadier defensive play but much of their overall play was unimaginative. That’s what a Toews or Kane brings, along with the great touch</p>
<p>I’m curious to see if cottonwood comes here to fill us in. My “meeting” really turned in to a watching of the parade and rally. The three I mentioned earlier were there and recognized, as well as Savard, Pilote, and Keith Magnusun’s son represented his dad.</p>
<p>It was a mass of people, I would guess 1million.</p>
<p>Wish I had been there.</p>
<p>gloworm - cottonwood had better fill us in! D2 ended up having an issue with her eye, which made it sensitive to light, so we stayed in today. I watched a lot of it on TV and honestly, after hearing about how warm and humid it was getting, and the people needing medical attention, I was sort of glad I didn’t go (aside from the fact that I’m dealing with my own headache today). Reports were of over 2 million+ people there.</p>
<p>It was great, I just got back. And I’m hungry, I heard there was two dollar a slice pizza, but I missed out. I didn’t go at the crack of dawn (or camp out all night!) I got there around ten thirty. It was warm and there is a breeze down the river, the sky was overcast, too, that helped. You never saw such a sea of Blackhawk shirts and mostly red ones. I stayed on the shady side of the street for awhile and people watched. Great spot for the parade, high enough to see. I could hear the marching band and it was easy to see the players on the double decker buses, and the Cup on the last bus. I thought ticker tape was something that dropped down, and there was some of that. But the players had cannon shots of red, white and blue ticker tape airmed at them! OK, back to the shade and later I osmossissed close enough to see the jumbotron. Rocky Wirtz introduced everyone that works for the Blackhawks, from the Zamboni men on up. Finally the coaches and players, each spoke very briefly and one player did a rap (?) song. Very ebullient crowd and some independent thinkers in Sox/Cubs gear, the crosstown classic is today, too. Then the fireworks! So loud over the river! </p>
<p>No rain on this parade. Didn’t see any bad behavior. The flowers in the medians are a little worse for wear. I had a camera and got some great shots of creative fans, like the guy dressed head to toe as the Cup. Now where is my pizza?</p>
<p>Glad you had a great time, but that was Eddie O doing all the intros. I think the whole thing is going to be replayed somewhere tonight.</p>
<p>Go Hawks!!!</p>
<p>Oh, and if the Cubs ever get a parade like that, I’ll volunteer to be the CC rep.</p>
<p>Am signing you up gloworm. I did the Obama rally report on election night!</p>
<p>Glad you survived it cottonwood. News now is saying there were quite a number of heat-related incidences that required paramedic attention.</p>
<p>The closest I got to any celebration was yesterday, when I was coming home from running some errands and drove by the Wirtz farm… gave a respectful, obligatory wave from within my car as I passed by.</p>
<p>WGN is re-showing their broadcast from today, later tonight.</p>
<p>They have a 6 year window. After that I will be gone. So, I’ll say that if in the next 6 years they win the WS, I’ll be there.</p>
<p>2 million showed up for the parade in 90 degree weather! H works down there and stepped out to listen. Versteeg SANG. Speaking of versteeg, I really hope they can keep him with all the salary cap issues coming up. In a year or two he’s going to be a massive superstar.</p>
<p>Gloworm, face facts, once a cubs fan, always a cubs fan. It’s not pretty, but you’ll never give up on them. Not even in 6 years. 
But it is time for them to win.</p>
<p>Poetgrl,</p>
<p>I am going to have to ween myself off the American teams. The six-year plan is to be retired/living on the beach OOC.</p>
<p>You’ll be watching the cubs over the internet. In 6 years, I doubt there will be even one thing you can’t watch over the internet. And you’ll say, as I do every year, I am NOT going to watch the Cubs this year…and you will watch the cubbies. It’s true. :p</p>
<p>UGH! Sad, but probably true.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Sox win.</p>
<p>Another thing from yesterday, once and awhile someone appeared in a national team soccer shirt.</p>
<p>I didn’t get to see the WGN replay or the ten o’clock news, I was moving my son’s stuff home from his dorm.</p>
<p>cottonwood513 - I think they also said there would be a replay on the NHL channel sometime today (if you’re not still busy moving, or unpacking!).</p>
<p>You had a full day yesterday!</p>