The scoreboard is what matters in the end and the Blackhawks won 4-2 yesterday.
We can point to the shots on goal and puck possession numbers all we want to but in the end the result is all that matters.
Bottom line is the Blackhawks took full advantage of the Wild mistakes while the Wild met up with Corey Crawford.
The takeaway here is this like all other regular season games is just one of eighty two. The race to accumulate the most points to establish who makes the playoffs and seeding. That is all the regular season determines.
The real season begins in mid April and that is where the winner of the Blackhawks Wild debate will end, on the ice, not on paper or from the talking heads on TV, or from we on the internet. It will be determined on the ice and if yesterday's game was any indication of the level of play that we can expect, I can't wait.
These two teams are clearly the class of the Western Conference and when they play it is definitely worth the price of admission.
Now for all the Wild fans that are shaking their heads after another loss to the Blackhawks, I give you the Washington Capitals. Up until about a week ago they were the consensus favorite to go to the Cup in the ever toughening Eastern Conference. Funny how a team much like the Wild, who seem to be stuck in neutral when the Spring arrives, the Caps have somehow become everyone's darling. Don't look now but those Caps have dropped four straight and Alex Ovechkin has not scored a goal in 10 straight. Oh and they host the Wild tomorrow.
None of this matters as both the Wild and Capitals will be in the playoffs and that is where this will all be measured.
Another can't miss game in Washington tomorrow for regular season entertainment, but the result will not determine how far either team goes in the games that really matter.
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