The Chicago Blackhawks are on an eight game losing streak… officially surpassing their ’07 seven game losing streak.

Are you sick of this map yet?  Yeah, so am I.  But we have to face our problems to overcome our challenges, and the Blackhawks need to do the same tonight in Nashville, playing against the team that brought them into this mess of a situation, the No. 5 (WC) Nashville Predators.

Hawk’s fans saw some light mid January when Coach Q’s boys revved up some excitement, stacking up five, almost consecutive, wins.  That all changed when the team traveled to Nashville to meet the Predators in the Bridgestone Arena on January 21 and were crushed 5-2.  Back-to-back, the Predators invaded the United Center on January 24, and beat the Hawks 3-1 at home.  The next game?  January 31 in Vancouver, the start of this horrendous and winless road trip we find ourselves on.

Nashville, where this all began.  I know I said it before in Colorado, but THIS is where things REALLY need to change.  The Predators are seated right above the Blackhawks in the conference, ahead by two wins and five points.

There has been a lot of Crawford bashing going on lately (Ray Emery will be starting in goal tonight), which has some validity– he’s definitely shaken up and moving around way too much, but eight games in a row means you have more than just a goalie problem.  The Blackhawks have been falling completely flat on the PK and the PP.  If you can’t score when you’re down a man, and you can’t score when you’re up a man, you can’t score.  Right now the Hawk’s are averaging about three points per game… that’s not how you win the Stanley Cup, that’s not even how you should qualify for the playoffs.