What's a Regulation Loss?

I've been largely quiet on the hockey front here, a lot of it due to the fact that of the four major sports, hockey is the one I know the least about. But when a team goes halfway through a season without a loss in regulation, it deserves attention.

I've been home for a lot of these games and have gotten to see chunks of a lot of them, so I've been able to see a lot of the dramatics unfold before my very eyes. And really, this is an incredible run that is (deservedly) getting a lot of national media attention. This is a run the likes of which has only been seen once before (the '79-80 Flyers, who registered 35 straight games with a point) though not in a condensed season like this with back-to-backs and 3-games-in-4-nights throughout schedules. It's not worth comparing that to, say, the Heat's 16 game winning streak as both are impressive in their own ways.

What really impresses me with this Blackhawks team though is how deep they are. In 21 victories, 15 different guys have registered game-winning goals. During their slide last year, the Hawks' stars couldn't get anything going and there was no one left to pick up the slack. This year it's not an issue. The defense has gotten a lot better on all 3 pairings so it's not just Keith and Seabrook doing all the heavy lifting. Most impressive though has been the play of Corey Crawford and Ray Emery. Crawford was much maligned last year for not playing too well, especially in the playoffs against Phoenix. Maybe it was the infamous sophomore slump, but whatever the case, the Hawks are the most complete team in the NHL right now, and it's insane to think about.

Talking heads like Stephen A. Smith seem to think that a streak like this in hockey isn't as impressive as one in basketball, but on the whole, there's so much more parity in hockey. Of the 24 games so far, a majority have been decided by one goal, and the Hawks are not only unbeaten in regulation, they're also unbeaten in the 5-minute overtime. All 3 losses have come in shootouts... which is even more incredible.

Purely based on the Law of Averages, a regulation loss is bound to happen sooner or later and my hope is that it doesn't deflate this team. Of course, a lot of teams and their fans have been saying that the streak is going to end when they take on the Hawks, and it has yet to happen. I don't expect it to still be intact, but I would be beyond thrilled if this stretch is still running come April 19th when I cross "catch a Blackhawks game" off my sports bucket list. I'm sure the second half of this season will be full of as many amazing moments as the first, and hopefully it all culminates in a parade downtown this summer celebrating another Stanley Cup.