Blackhawks vs Blues Recap: Oh, Jeez.

The Hawks had a chance to take control of the new NHL Central Division tonight. Instead, they ended up the victims of St. Louis's biggest sports night of the year, losing 3-2 to the Blues on the night the Cardinals clinched a spot in the NLCS. And while it's still only the third game of an 82-game season, this still should have been better.

First, let's start off with the good parts: The Hawks are very dangerous on the Power Play. Both goals came seconds after the Blues scored, and during the Power Play. Also, Corey Crawford, was exceptional, making 31 saves against the Blues. The game itself was a good back-and-forth battle between two very good teams and involved a lot of physical play.

But sadly, the Hawks gave up 3 goals, the last of which they'll want back.

Make no mistake the Blues came to play tonight. They've had to watch the Hawks while they've won the Cup twice in four years and they were no doubt envious of the Hawks' success. They made damn sure every goal the Hawks scored, they earned it.

The Blues opened the scoring on a Vladimir Tarasenko goal on an odd-man rush that beat Corey Crawford. Patrick Kane answered 77 seconds later on the Power Play, which was a dumb penalty given up by the Blues. Then David Backes deflected a Steven Pierangelo shot, which was answered by Toews about 39 second later.

The third period itself was scoreless until 21 second left. The Hawks were going for the jugular against the Blues and looked as if they were about to put the Blues on the brink before a bad Brent Seabrook hit allowed the Blues to go in transition on a 3-on-1 and race up the ice for the score. The Hawks pulled Crawford to no avail and the Blues took the first meeting between the two teams.

Just like with the Lightning game, I'm beginning to wonder if the Stanley Cup Hangover is affecting these players this year. This team has been picked to repeat as champs, yet they keep letting teams get to them easily. If they can't put away opponents, I have a very bad feeling for the rest of the season. The good thing is, it's only the beginning. The bad part is, I want to see them storm out of the gate. Only time will tell, but they had better get their act together, or it's good-bye Lord Stanley.

Blackhawks vs Blues Preview

NBC has been pushing the Blackhawks-Blues rivalry, although it's not without reason or history. With the Red Wings moving to the Eastern Conference, the Hawks won't have chants of "DEE-TROIT SUCKS!" raining down from the rafters as much and they'll need a new rival. That rival is the St. Louis Blues, which essentially makes this the Cardinals-Cubs rivalry with the colors switched.

The Hawks and Blues were big rivals in the old Norris AKA "Black and Blue" Division in the late '80s and early '90s. Their playoff series were tough, physical and heated, their rivalry culminating in a massive series of brawls on St. Patrick's Day, 1991, an event popularly known as the St Patrick's Day Massacre. Six players on each team, which added up to a total of twelve, were ejected. A video of the incident is available on YouTube.

Of course now, the Hawks-Blues rivalry is starting to heat up and tomorrow, the two teams play in their first game of the year. The Hawks are built on speed, quickness, the Blues on big bodies and bruising hits. It looks to be an old Norris Division match-up transplanted into the modern age.

One member of the Hawks who has an interest in this match-up is Brandon Bollig, a St. Louis native himself. He's said that this is one of the games the Hawks have circled on their calenders, and they should come out swinging against the Blues. They'll need to.

The Blues as a whole have only allowed a total of two goals the entire season. The Hawks will have to get past Jaroslav Halak, who looks to be the Blues' starting goalie on Wednesday. The Blues also added top defensemen Jay Bouwmeester and Jordan Leopold, so expect the Blues to be pretty defensive. But they also inked forwards Brenden Morrow and Derek Roy for some offensive firepower.

Experts have been picking the Blues to be a challenge for the Hawks, so don't expect an easy victory. The two teams will be very evenly matched. The new alignment also adds weight to this match-up, as the top 3 teams in each division move onto the playoffs, and there's the possibility the Hawks and Blues will meet in the playoffs. I expect the Hawks to win, but it will not be easy at all. In fact, it should be fun.