I was with thousands of Winnipeggers in the Xcel Energy Centre in St. Paul, Minn. on Sunday night and I had a chance to watch one of the best teams in the National Hockey League.
The Chicago Blackhawks, with captain Jonathan Toews of Winnipeg and all-stars Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp and Brian Campbell, just waxed the outclassed Minnesota Wild 4-1. Dustin Byfuglien from Roseau, via the Brandon Wheat Kings, had two goals and two assists while Toews had two assists as the Hawks dominated the Wild in every possible way to win their franchise-record ninth straight game.
The Hawks are now 20-6-7 on the season and with talent at every position, they clearly have a shot at the Detroit Red Wings and San Jose Sharks in the West.
GM Dale Tallon deserves a lot of credit for building this winner.
Meanwhile, a Minnesota Wild executive told me on Sunday that he believed both the Phoenix Coyotes and the Nashville Predators are essentially bankrupt and are being carried by the league — that’s all of their expenses, including payroll. You’d have to think that at some point commissioner Gary Bettman is going to have to bury his pride and allow these teams to move to Canada where people actually care about hockey.
Meanwhile, as both D&J’s and All Season Tours dropped off thousands of ‘Peggers at the Dome yesterday afternoon, it became clear that folks around these parts are in love with the Vikings. Most of them sat right below me in the auxiliary press box and they all cheered loudly as Ryan Longwell hit the 50-yard field goal to win the game, the NFC North and a spot in the playoffs for the Vikes.
It’s also nice to see that after a tough few years, the Winnipeg sports tour companies had a good weekend. Maybe they’ll fare well for the Wild-Red Wings/Vikings-Eagles this coming Saturday and Sunday.
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