It's been a long and interesting year for the Hawks, and tonight they will take the ice for game 82 as they face off against the LA Kings for one more win in the 2023–24 NHL season. I’m going to keep this one short and sweet, as I have a few ideas about how I want to discuss this past season for the Hawks. Once again, this will be a game that means nothing for one team and could mean a lot more for the other. The Hawks are set; they know they will have the 2nd best odds to win the 2024 Draft Lottery and will draft no lower than 4th this June. This is a game that if you decided to stay up late for, that is simply to take in one more viewing of the Bedard show and get one last look at players of interest before the off season. Its going to be very interesting to see how this team looks come opening night this fall compared to how they are going to finish this season because I think any betting man will take the bet that KD is going to be working on some roster retooling this summer. Again, more on that in the coming days. If you choose to watch tonight, just enjoy it, and if it is a bad showing from the Hawks, take comfort in knowing that we are just two days away from playoff hockey.
Next up
The Kings come into this one in a battle with Vegas for the final Pacific Division playoff spot. The Knights currently hold the 3rd spot with 98 points and will face off against the Ducks tonight, while the Kings sit in the final wild card spot with 97 points. The odds are the Kings will finish in the spot they currently are in and have a series with the Dallas Stars on the horizon. They haven’t been doing themselves any favors as of late, going 5-5 over their last ten games, and are coming into this one off a 3-1 loss at the hands of Wild. It’ll be interesting to see what kind of lineup they go with here tonight: do they bring their top guys out and battle for third, or do they accept their fate, knowing even a win does nothing unless they get some help from the lowly ducks? Either way, expect a Kings team to come out flying.
Projected Line Up
As of posting, I am not seeing any info on what lineup the Hawks will be going with tonight, but I would imagine it will be similar to what we saw the other night against the Knights. I expect Arvid Soderblom to get the last start of the season, as Mrazek has earned the right to an early start to his off-season after playing in a career-high 56 games and 53 starts.
Thats going to be it for me, puck drop is set for 9:30pm central time and for the last time this season, Lets Go Hawks!
Chicago Blackhawks Blogger • 
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