from Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe,

Before the season, NBC rightly claimed Bruins-Blackhawks on March 11. The network deployed its varsity team of Mike Emrick, Ed Olczyk, and Pierre McGuire to call the game because of its projected significance. The Blackhawks are rolling on a nine-year run of postseason appearances, with three of their dashes stretching into Stanley Cup-winning marathons. They are a ratings behemoth, the perpetual well the league and NBC seemingly tap as often for Winter Classics (Bruins-Blackhawks at Notre Dame on Jan. 1, 2019) as regular-season matinees.

The nine-year streak will end soon. Only the Oilers, Canucks, and Coyotes are worse than the Blackhawks in the West. It is unfortunate when Chicago fans scream the loudest for anthem singer Jim Cornelison. They are more used to cheering wins and Cups. Instead, they are left to wonder whether GM Stan Bowman can pull enough bunnies out of his bowler to complement stars who are aging.

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