Around the UC: Off Day

Articles:

-ESPNChicago: Fratelli on his way to Chicago

"Jon Fratelli, who sings the Blackhawks' adopted anthem "Chelsea Dagger," will perform with his band at Metro on Clark St. on Sunday during Game 5 of the Stanley Cup finals."

-ESPNChicago: Hawks look to address Pronger acts

"Quenneville is talking about Pronger's propensity to use his stick while guarding opponents in the slot, at least in one case obstructing a player after he dumped the puck in the offensive zone. Each playoff series has a supervising official, and in the finals it's Mike Murphy.

"We discuss -- and [Murphy] will discuss -- what we see with both teams when he [Murphy] has his meetings with the teams," NHL executive vice president and director of hockey operations Colin Campbell told ESPN.com via e-mail.""

-NHL.com: Blackhawks hardly 'special' in Final

"The Blackhawks emerged from the West Finals against the San Jose Sharks with a power play that was scoring 23 percent of the time and a penalty-killing unit that stifled the opposition at an 85.1-percent clip. All that fell apart during the first two games of the Final against the Flyers, but it didn't matter since the Blackhawks still found a way to win both games at the United Center.

That changed Wednesday in Game 3, when the power play went 0-for-3 and the penalty killers allowed two goals on three chances during the Blackhawks' 4-3 overtime loss at the Wachovia Center. For the series, the Blackhawks are 0-for-6 on the power play and have allowed the Flyers to score four times in 10 chances with the extra man."

-USAToday: Blackhawks' powerplay scoreless but hopeful of a breakthrough

"The Blackhawks, whose power play was clicking at 22.5% before the Final, think that as long as they keep forcing opportunities, one goal could lead to a bushel-full."

Keith: "You can have slumps and you can have hot streaks. Most of the time, it's just a bounce (that makes a difference). That's hockey for you."

-Suntimes: Lake County's got the fever, Blackhawks fever (best county besides Cook, obviously)

""The Blackhawks are extremely hot right now," said Loren Laxamana, store manager for Clark Street Sports at Westfield Hawthorn Mall in Vernon Hills. "We got in the Western Conference Championship T-shirts and those are probably the hottest-selling items. We already sold out of the hats and had to order more."

Jerseys with star players names like Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane have been selling well, as well as T-shirts and hats, Laxamana said. The store is also selling Blackhawks decals, magnets, flags and other items."

(Funny story about this store: a few months ago went in there and asked if they had Seabrook shirts. The guys working said they don't make Seabrook shirts anywhere. No Seabrook shirts? Yeah, okay. Went to another store and they had a ton.)

-The Star: What's in an NHL name? If it's Byfuglien, less than meets the eye

"Byfuglien inherited the name from his mother, who is Norwegian. In his hometown, the tiny northwest Minnesota burg of Roseau, locals say “Bye-FOOG-lie-in.” On TV and among hockey fans, however, it’s “Bufflin.” He’s a large guy — listed at 257 pounds — so sometimes it’s “Big Buff.”"

-Puck Daddy: Bad news, Chicago: Apparently God wants Flyers to win Cup

"We've been to Chicago. There are lots of places of worship. Obviously, the only prayer the Blackhawks have now is to have all members of the clergy in both cities engage in a holy war, hopefully with magic wands like the wizard fights in Harry Potter."

-ESPN: Game 3 draws best Versus ratings ever

"The Flyers' 4-3 overtime victory over the Blackhawks on Versus on Wednesday night earned a 3.1 rating and averaged 3.6 million viewers. It was the highest-rated and most-watched telecast in network history."

-Redeye: Blackhawks pride takes over Chicago's public spaces (photos)

-Chicago Tribune: Pressure is on Chicago Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville

"I didn't want Quenneville to blur the biggest big-picture issue emerging from the Blackhawks' 4-3 overtime loss to the Flyers with an overly complex description of how a careless mistake changing lines contributed to Claude Giroux's winning goal.

I just wanted a better grasp of how, at such a critical time, with at least two Hawks running off the ice at the end of their shift, the Flyers took advantage of a de facto power-play opportunity and Giroux scored on a redirection at the 5:59 mark of overtime."

-Off Day Videos:

Toews

Kane

Versteeg

Madden

-Off Day Photos from the Chicago Tribune: