Chicago Blackhawks

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Chicago Blackhawks
Image:Chicago Blackhawks01.gif
Conference	Western
Division	Central
Founded	1926
History	Chicago Black Hawks 1926—1986 Chicago Blackhawks 1986—present
Arena	United Center
City	Chicago, Illinois
Local Media Affiliates	Comcast SportsNet WSCR (670 AM)
Team Colors	Red, White, and Black
Owner	William W. Wirtz
General Manager	Dale Tallon
Head Coach	Denis Savard
Captain	Adrian Aucoin
Minor League Affiliates	Norfolk Admirals (AHL) Toledo Storm (ECHL)
Stanley Cups	1933-34, 1937-38, 1960-61
Conference Championships	1991-92
Division Championships	1969-70, 1970-71, 1971-72, 1972-73, 1975-76, 1977-78, 1978-79, 1979-80, 1982-83, 1985-86, 1989-90, 1990-91, 1992-93

The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They currently play in the Central Division of the National Hockey League (NHL). They have won three Stanley Cup Championships and thirteen division titles since their foundation in 1926. The team's name was spelled Chicago Black Hawks prior to the 1986-87 season. The Blackhawks are one of the Original Six NHL teams along with the Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, and Detroit Red Wings. Since 1994, the Blackhawks have played in the United Center in Chicago.

1 Franchise history
2 Season-by-season record
3 Notable players
4 NHL awards and trophies
5 Franchise individual records
6 Trivia
7 References
8 See also
9 External links

[edit] Franchise history

[edit] Beginnings

The Chicago Black Hawks joined the NHL in 1926 as part of the league's successful foray into United States-based teams. They were founded by coffee tycoon Frederic McLaughlin. Most of the Hawks' original players came from the Portland Rosebuds of the Western Canada Hockey League, which had folded the previous season.

McLaughlin had been a commander with the 333rd Machine Gun Battalion of the 86th Infantry Division during World War I. The division was named after a Native American; Chief Black Hawk, who was a prominent figure in the history of Illinois, and is one of many sports team names using Native Americans as icons. McLaughlin's wife, Irene Castle, designed the original version of the team's logo, which survived with only minor changes until 1955.

For many years the name was spelled primarily "Black Hawks", but sometimes "Blackhawks", even by the club itself. This ambiguity was finally settled in the summer of 1986 when the club officially decided on the one-word version based on the spelling found in the original franchise documents. Over the years, McLaughlin took a very active role in running the team, even though he knew very little about hockey. For instance, he served as his own general manager for many years.

The Hawks' first season was a moderate success, with the forward line of Mickey MacKay, Babe Dye, and Dick Irvin each finishing near the top of the league's scoring race. The Black Hawks lost their 1927 first-round playoff series to the Boston Bruins, who'd made the playoffs for the first time ever.

Following the series, McLaughlin fired head coach Pete Muldoon. According to Jim Coleman, who was a sportswriter for the Toronto Globe and Mail, McLaughlin felt the Hawks were good enough to finish first. Muldoon disagreed, and in a fit of pique, McLaughlin fired him. At the time, finishing in first place was considered to be as much of an achievement as winning the greatly coveted Stanley Cup. According to Coleman, Muldoon responded by yelling, "Fire me, Major, and you'll never finish first. I'll put a curse on this team that will hoodoo it until the end of time." The Curse of Muldoon was born, and became one of the first widely-known sports "curses". While the team would win three Stanley Cups, they would do so without having finished in first place either in a multi- or single-division format.

The Hawks proceeded to have the worst record in the league in 1927-28. By 1931 the Hawks reached their first Stanley Cup Final with goal-scorer Johnny Gottselig, Cy Wentworth on defense, and Charlie Gardiner in goal, but fizzled in the final two games against the Montreal Canadiens. Chicago had another stellar season in 1932, but that did not translate into playoff success.

The Black Hawks won their first Stanley Cup in 1934 (over the Detroit Red Wings) with Gardiner's 1.73 goals against average and Paul Thompson's 20 goals. Gardiner died of a brain hemorrhage two months after the season ended.

After Chicago floundered over the next three years, they were thought to be a laughingstock in 1938 and only barely made the playoffs. They stunned the Canadiens and New York Americans on overtime goals in the deciding games of both series, advancing to the Final against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Black Hawks goalie Mike Karakas was injured and couldn't play. This forced a desperate Chicago team to pull minor-leaguer Alfie Moore out of a Toronto bar and onto the ice. In the two games Moore played, he only allowed two goals before Karakas was healthy enough to return. It was too late for Toronto, as the Hawks won their second championship. The 1938 Black Hawks Cup champions remain the team with the poorest regular season record ever to win the Stanley Cup.

[edit] The Original Six era

The Black Hawks got back to the Final in 1944 behind Bill Mosienko and Doug Bentley's 30-goal seasons and their linemate Clint Smith leading the league in assists. After upsetting the Red Wings in the semifinals, they were promptly dispatched by the juggernaut Canadiens in four games. Mosienko still holds the record for quickest hat trick, 21 seconds, in the NHL, but Habs star Maurice "The Rocket" Richard proved Mosienko's better.

Owner and founder Frederic McLaughlin died in 1944. His estate sold the team to a syndicate headed by longtime team president Bill Tobin. However, Tobin was only a puppet for Red Wings owner James Norris, Sr., who had been the Black Hawks' landlord since his 1936 purchase of Chicago Stadium. For the next eight years, the Norris-Tobin ownership, as a rule, paid almost no attention to the Black Hawks. Nearly every trade between Detroit and Chicago ended up being Red Wing heists. As a result, for the next several years, Chicago was the model of futility in the NHL. Between 1945 and 1958, they only made the playoffs twice.

In 1952, Norris' eldest son, James Norris, Jr., and Red Wings minority owner Arthur Wirtz (Norris, Sr.'s original partner in buying the Red Wings 23 years earlier) bought the floundering club. They guided it through financial reverses, and rebuilt the team from there. One of their first moves was to hire Tommy Ivan, former Detroit coach and GM, as general manager.

In the late Fifties, the Hawks struck gold, picking up three young prospects, forwards Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita, and defenseman Pierre Pilote, as well as obtaining star goaltender Glenn Hall and veteran forward Ted Lindsay, co-organizer of the original NHL Players Association, who'd just had a career season (30 goals-55 assists), from Detroit. Hull, Mikita and Pilote would become preeminent stars, Hall rematured well in the Windy City, and all would eventually make the Hockey Hall of Fame.

After two first-round exits at the hands of the eventual champions from Montreal in 1959 and 1960, it was expected that the Canadiens would once again beat the Hawks when they met in the semifinals in 1961. A defensive plan that completely wore down Montreal's superstars did the trick though, as Chicago won the series in six games. They then bested the Wings to win their third and most recent Stanley Cup championship.

The Hawks made the Cup finals twice more in the 1960s, losing to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1962 and the Habs in 1965. Chicago remained a force to be reckoned with throughout the decade, with Hull's four 50-goal seasons, Mikita winning back-to-back scoring titles and MVP accolades, Pilote winning three consecutive Norris Trophies, and Hall being named the First or Second All-Star goaltender eight out of nine seasons. Hull and Mikita especially were widely regarded as the most feared one-two punch in the league. However, despite a strong supporting cast which included Bill Hay, Ken Wharram, Phil Esposito, Moose Vasko, Doug Mohns and Pat Stapleton, the Hawks never quite put it all together.

In 1967, the last season of the six-team NHL, the Hawks finished first, breaking the supposed Curse of Muldoon, 23 years after the death of Frederic McLaughlin. However, they lost in the semifinals to Toronto, who went on to win the Stanley Cup. Afterward, Coleman, who first printed the story of the curse in 1943, admitted that he made the story up to break a writer's block he had as a column deadline approached.

[edit] The expansion era

Hall left for the expansion St. Louis Blues for the 1967-68 season. Pilote left for the Maple Leafs for the 1968-69 season. In that season, despite Hull breaking his own previous record of 54 goals in a season with 58, the Black Hawks missed the playoffs for the first time since 1958 — and the last time before 1998.

In 1967, the Black Hawks made a trade with the Boston Bruins that turned out to be one of the most one-sided in the history of the sport. Chicago sent young forwards Esposito, Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield to Boston in exchange for Pit Martin, Jack Norris and Gilles Marotte. While Martin would star for the Hawks for many seasons, Esposito, Hodge, and Stanfield would lead the Bruins to the top of the league for several years and capture two Stanley Cups. In Boston, Phil Esposito set numerous scoring records en route to a career as one of the NHL's all-time greats.

Nonetheless, in 1971, life was made easier for Chicago, as in an attempt to better balance the divisions, the expansion Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks were both placed in the East Division, while the Hawks moved into the West Division. They became the class of the West overnight, rampaging to a 46-17-15 record and an easy first-place finish. With second-year goalie Tony Esposito (Phil's younger brother and winner of the Calder Memorial Trophy for Rookie of the Year the previous season), Hull, his younger brother Dennis, Mikita, and sterling defensemen Stapleton and Bill White, the Hawks reached the Stanley Cup final before bowing out to the Canadiens. Montreal veteran Henri Richard admitted later, "I could have been a bum, and instead, I was a hero."^{[citation needed]}

A critical blow to the franchise came in 1972, though, with the start of the World Hockey Association. Long dissatisfied with how little he was paid as the league's marquee star, Bobby Hull jumped to the upstart Winnipeg Jets for a million-dollar contract. Former Philadelphia Flyers star Andre Lacroix, who received very little ice time in his single season in Chicago, joined Hull, and the pair became two of the WHA's great stars. The Hawks repeated their appearance in Cup Final that year, however, again losing to Montreal. Stapleton left for the WHA too after that year, depleting the team further.

While the team led or was second in the West Division for four straight seasons, for the rest of the 1970s, the Black Hawks made the playoffs each year but were never a successful Stanley Cup contender, losing 16 straight playoff games at one point. The team acquired legendary blueliner Bobby Orr from the Boston Bruins in 1976, but ill health forced him to sit out for most of the season, and he eventually retired in 1979. Stan Mikita did the same the following year after playing 22 years in Chicago, the third-longest career for a single team in league history.

By 1982, the Black Hawks squeaked into the playoffs as the 4th seed in the Norris Division (at the time the top four teams in each division automatically made the playoffs), and were one of the league's Cinderella teams that year. Led by second-year Denis Savard's 32 goals and 119 points and Doug Wilson's 39 goals, the Hawks stunned the Minnesota North Stars and Blues in the playoffs before losing to another surprise team, the Vancouver Canucks, who made the Stanley Cup Finals. Chicago proved they were no fluke the next season, also making the third round before losing to the eventual runner-up Edmonton Oilers. After an off-year in 1984, the Hawks again faced a now fresh-off-a-ring Edmonton offensive juggernaut of a team and lost in the third round in 1985.

In 1986, while going through the team's records, someone discovered the team's original NHL contract, and found that the name "Blackhawks" was printed as a compound word as opposed to two separate words ("Black Hawks") which was the way most sources had been printing it and as the team had always officially listed it. The name officially became "Chicago Blackhawks" from that point on.

In the late 1980s, Chicago still made the playoffs on an annual basis, but made early-round exits each time. It wasn't for a lack of offense, though: Savard and Steve Larmer each consistently scored 30 goals a season. The defense was poor.

In 1989, after three straight first-round defeats, and despite a fourth-place finish in their division in the regular season, Chicago made it to the Conference Final in the rookie seasons of both goalie Ed Belfour and center Jeremy Roenick. Once again though, they would fail to make the Stanley Cup Final, losing to the eventual champion Calgary Flames.

The following season the Hawks did prove they were late-round playoff material, running away with the Norris Division title, but, yet again, the third round continued to stymie them, this time against the Oilers, despite 1970s Soviet star goaltender Vladislav Tretiak coming to Chicago to become the Blackhawks' goaltender coach.

In 1991, Chicago was poised to fare even better in the playoffs, winning the Presidents' Trophy for best regular-season record, but the Cinderella Minnesota North Stars stunned them in six games in the first-round en route to an improbable Stanley Cup Final appearance.

In 1992 the Blackhawks, with Roenick scoring 53 goals, Chris Chelios (acquired from Montreal two years previously) on defense, and Belfour in goal, finally reached the Final after 19 years out of such status. However, they were no match for the defending champs, Mario Lemieux and the Pittsburgh Penguins, losing in four straight games.

Belfour posted a 40-win season in 1993 as the Hawks looked to go deep yet again, and Chelios accumulated career-high penalty time with 282 minutes in the box, but St. Louis stunned Chicago with a first-round sweep.

After a near-.500 season in 1994, the Blackhawks moved out of the old Chicago Stadium and into the new United Center in the lockout-shortened 1995 season. Bernie Nicholls and Joe Murphy both scored 20 goals over 48 games, and Chicago once again made it to the Western Conference Final, losing to the rival Detroit Red Wings.

Roenick, Belfour, and Chelios were all traded away as the Blackhawks faltered through the late 1990s until they missed the playoffs in 1998 for the first time in 29 years, one season short of tying the Boston Bruins' record for the longest such streak in North American professional sports history.

[edit] The 21st century

The millennium has largely been a disappointing time for the Hawks thus far. Eric Daze, Alexei Zhamnov, and Tony Amonte emerged as some of the team's leading stars by this time. However, Chicago missed the playoffs for four straight years until they took a quick first-round exit in 2002. Amonte left for the Phoenix Coyotes in the summer of 2002, and the Blackhawks missed the playoffs again in 2003 and 2004.

A somber note was struck in February of 2004, when ESPN named the Blackhawks the worst franchise in professional sports [1]. Indeed, the Blackhawks are now viewed with much indifference by Chicagoans, as the team seems to find any way possible to alienate what fans are left, what with owner "Dollar Bill" Wirtz raising ticket prices and still refusing to put home games on television. Many hockey fans in Chicago prefer the minor-league Chicago Wolves to the 'Hawks, who have advertised themselves by saying "We Play Hockey the Old-Fashioned Way: We Actually Win". The club under Wirtz was then subject of a highly critical book, Career Misconduct, sold outside games until Wirtz arrested its author and publisher.

Following the lockout of the 2004-05 season, new GM Dale Tallon set about restructuring the team in the hopes of making a playoff run. Tallon made several moves in the summer of 2005, most notably the signing of Tampa Bay Lightning Stanley Cup-winning goalie Nikolai Khabibulin and All-Star defenseman Adrian Aucoin. However, injuries plagued Khabibulin and Aucoin (among others), and the Blackhawks again finished with one of the worst records in the league (26-43-13) — next-to-last in the Western Conference and next-to-next-to-last in the league.

The Blackhawks reached another low point on May 16, 2006, when they announced that longtime TV/radio play-by-play announcer Pat Foley, the voice of the 'Hawks for 25 years, was not going to be brought back, a move unpopular amongst most Blackhawks fans.

Despite Tallon's desperate moves, the Blackhawks finished 14th in the Western Conference in 2005-06. With the third overall pick in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, the team selected Jonathan Toews, who'd led the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux hockey team to the 2006 NCAA Frozen Four.

The Blackhawks were eager to make a splash in the free-agent market, and offered big money to many of the top free agents. They were, however, denied, only being able to acquire two backup goalies in Patrick Lalime and Sebastien Caron. Chicago was one of the biggest buyers in the trade market, though, acquiring a future franchise player in left-winger Martin Havlat, as well as center Bryan Smolinski from the Ottawa Senators in a three-way deal that also involved the San Jose Sharks. The 'Hawks dealt mean forward Mark Bell to the Sharks, Michal Barinka and a 2008 second-round draft pick to the Senators, while Ottawa also received defenseman Tom Preissing and center Josh Hennessy from San Jose. Havlat gives the Blackhawks the talented, first-line caliber gamebreaker they so desperately needed. The Havlat trade was soon followed by another major trade — winger and key Blackhawk player, another left wing, Kyle Calder, was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for grinding defensive center Michal Handzus. The move caused a stir in Chicago. Calder had won an increase in his contract through arbitration, which was accepted by the Hawks, but rather than ink their leading scorer, the Blackhawks decided to address their need for a proven center by acquring Handzus.

Nevertheless, the team has still not won the Cup since 1961, the longest drought of any current NHL team. (The current Senators franchise began play in 1992, named for a team that folded in 1934 and last won the Cup in 1927).On November 26, 2006 Blackhawks GM Dale Tallon fired Head Coach Trent Yawney and appointed assistant coach Denis Savard as head coach. Savard had been the Assistant Coach of the Blackhawks since 1997, the year after he retired as one of the most popular and successful Blackhawks of all time.

[edit] Season-by-season record

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes

Records as of December 2, 2006. <ref>Hockeydb.com, Chicago Blackhawks season statistics and records</ref>

Season	GP	W	L	T	OTL	Pts	GF	GA	PIM	Finish	Playoffs
1926-27	44	19	22	3	—	41	115	116	448	3rd, American	Lost in Quarterfinals, 5-10 (TG) (Bruins)
1927-28	44	7	34	3	—	17	68	134	375	5th, American	Did not qualify
1928-29	44	7	29	8	—	22	33	85	363	5th, American	Did not qualify
1929-30	44	21	18	5	—	47	117	111	573	2nd, American	Lost in Quarterfinals, 2-3 (TG) (Canadiens)
1930-31	44	24	17	3	—	51	108	78	416	2nd, American	Won in Quarterfinals, 4-3 (TG) (Maple Leafs) </br> Won in Semifinals, 3-0 (TG) (Rangers) </br> Lost in Finals, 2-3 (Canadiens)
1931-32	48	18	19	11	—	47	86	101	464	2nd, American	Lost in Quarterfinals, 2-6 (TG) (Maple Leafs)
1932-33	48	16	20	12	—	44	88	101	401	4th, American	Did not qualify
1933-34	48	20	17	11	—	51	88	83	337	2nd, American	Won in Quarterfinals, 4-3 (TG) (Canadiens) </br> Won in Semifinals, 6-2 (TG) (Maroons) </br> Stanley Cup Champions, 3-1 (Red Wings)
1934-35	48	26	17	5	—	57	118	88	375	2nd, American	Lost in Quarterfinals, 0-1 (TG) (Maroons)
1935-36	48	21	19	8	—	50	93	92	411	3rd, American	Lost in Quarterfinals, 5-7 (TG) (Americans)
1936-37	48	14	27	7	—	35	99	131	291	4th, American	Did not qualify
1937-38	48	14	25	9	—	37	97	139	258	3rd, American	Won in Quarterfinals, 2-1 (Canadiens) </br> Won in Semifinals, 2-1 (Americans) </br> Stanley Cup Champions, 3-1 (Maple Leafs)
1938-39	48	12	28	8	—	32	91	132	367	7th, NHL	Did not qualify
1939-40	48	23	19	6	—	52	112	120	351	4th, NHL	Lost in Quarterfinals, 0-2 (Maple Leafs)
1940-41	48	16	25	7	—	39	112	139	335	5th, NHL	Won in Quarterfinals, 2-1 (Canadiens) </br> Lost in Semifinals, 0-2 (Red Wings)
1941-42	48	22	23	3	—	47	145	155	365	4th, NHL	Lost in Quarterfinals, 1-2 (Bruins)
1942-43	50	19	19	12	—	50	179	180	361	5th, NHL	Did not qualify
1943-44	50	22	23	5	—	49	178	187	240	4th, NHL	Won in Semifinals, 4-1 (Red Wings) </br> Lost in Finals, 0-4 (Canadiens)
1944-45	50	13	30	7	—	33	141	194	245	5th, NHL	Did not qualify
1945-46	50	23	20	7	—	53	200	178	339	3rd, NHL	Lost in Semifinals, 0-4 (Canadiens)
1946-47	60	19	37	4	—	42	193	274	467	6th, NHL	Did not qualify
1947-48	60	20	34	6	—	46	195	225	572	6th, NHL	Did not qualify
1948-49	60	21	31	8	—	50	173	211	695	5th, NHL	Did not qualify
1949-50	70	22	38	10	—	54	203	244	620	6th, NHL	Did not qualify
1950-51	70	13	47	10	—	36	171	280	615	6th, NHL	Did not qualify
1951-52	70	17	44	9	—	43	158	241	627	6th, NHL	Did not qualify
1952-53	70	27	28	15	—	69	169	175	736	4th, NHL	Lost in Semifinals, 3-4 (Canadiens)
1953-54	70	12	51	7	—	31	133	242	797	6th, NHL	Did not qualify
1954-55	70	13	40	17	—	43	161	235	733	6th, NHL	Did not qualify
1955-56	70	19	39	12	—	50	155	216	826	6rd, NHL	Did not qualify
1956-57	70	16	39	15	—	47	169	225	809	6th, NHL	Did not qualify
1957-58	70	24	39	7	—	55	163	202	906	5th, NHL	Did not qualify
1958-59	70	28	29	13	—	69	197	208	921	3rd, NHL	Lost in Semifinals, 2-4 (Canadiens)
1959-60	70	28	29	13	—	69	191	180	970	3rd, NHL	Lost in Semifinals, 0-4 (Canadiens)
1960-61	70	29	24	17	—	75	198	180	1072	3rd, NHL	Won in Semifinals, 4-2 (Canadiens) </br> Stanley Cup Champions, 4-2 (Red Wings)
1961-62	70	31	26	13	—	75	217	186	894	3rd, NHL	Won in Semifinals, 4-2 (Canadiens) </br> Lost in Finals, 2-4 (Maple Leafs)
1962-63	70	32	21	17	—	81	194	178	906	2nd, NHL	Lost in Semifinals, 2-4 (Red Wings)
1963-64	70	36	22	12	—	84	218	169	1116	2nd, NHL	Lost in Semifinals, 3-4 (Red Wings)
1964-65	70	34	28	8	—	76	224	176	1051	3rd, NHL	Won in Semifinals, 4-3 (Red Wings) </br> Lost in Finals, 3-4 (Canadiens)
1965-66	70	37	25	8	—	82	240	187	815	2nd, NHL	Lost in Semifinals, 2-4 (Red Wings)
1966-67	70	41	17	12	—	94	262	170	757	1st, NHL	Lost in Semifinals, 2-4 (Maple Leafs)
1967-68	74	32	26	16	—	80	212	222	606	4th, East	Won in Quarterfinals, 4-2 (Rangers) </br> Lost in Semifinals, 1-4 (Canadiens)
1968-69	76	34	33	9	—	77	280	246	842	6th, East	Did not qualify
1969-70	76	45	22	9	—	99	250	170	901	1st, East	Won in Quarterfinals, 4-0 (Red Wings) </br> Lost in Semifinals, 0-4 (Bruins)
1970-71	78	49	20	9	—	107	277	184	1280	1st, West	Won in Quarterfinals, 4-0 (Flyers) </br> Won in Semifinals, 4-3 (Rangers) </br> Lost in Finals, 3-4 (Canadiens)
1971-72	78	46	17	15	—	107	256	166	844	1st, West	Won in Quarterfinals, 4-0 (Penguins) </br> Lost in Semifinals, 0-4 (Rangers)
1972-73	78	42	27	9	—	93	284	225	864	1st, West	Won in Quarterfinals, 4-1 (Blues) </br> Won in Semifinals, 4-1 (Rangers) </br> Lost in Finals, 2-4 (Canadiens)
1973-74	78	41	14	23	—	105	272	164	877	2nd, West	Won in Quarterfinals, 4-1 (Kings) </br> Lost in Semifinals, 2-4 (Bruins)
1974-75	80	37	35	8	—	82	268	241	1112	3rd, Smythe	Won in Preliminary Round, 2-1 (Bruins) </br> Lost in Quarterfinals, 1-4 (Sabres)
1975-76	80	32	30	18	—	82	254	261	944	1st, Smythe	Lost in Quarterfinals, 0-4 (Canadiens)
1976-77	80	26	43	11	—	63	240	298	1104	3rd, Smythe	Lost in Preliminary Round, 0-2 (Islanders)
1977-78	80	32	29	19	—	83	230	220	1308	1st, Smythe	Lost in Quarterfinals, 0-4 (Bruins)
1978-79	80	29	36	15	—	73	244	277	1254	1st, Smythe	Lost in Quarterfinals, 0-4 (Islanders)
1979-80	80	34	27	19	—	87	241	250	1325	1st, Smythe	Won in Preliminary Round, 3-0 (Blues) </br> Lost in Quarterfinals, 0-4 (Sabres)
1980-81	80	31	33	16	—	78	304	315	1660	3rd, Norris	Lost in Preliminary Round, 0-3 (Flames)
1981-82	80	30	38	12	—	72	332	363	1775	4th, Norris	Won in Division Semifinals, 3-1 (North Stars) </br> Won in Division Finals, 4-2 (Blues) </br> Lost in Conference Finals, 1-4 (Canucks)
1982-83	80	47	23	10	—	104	338	268	1185	1st, Norris	Won in Division Semifinals, 3-1 (Blues) </br> Won in Division Finals, 4-1 (North Stars) </br> Lost in Conference Finals, 0-4 (Oilers)
1983-84	80	30	42	8	—	68	277	311	1358	4th, Norris	Lost in Division Semifinals, 2-3 (North Stars)
1984-85	80	38	35	7	—	83	309	299	1432	2nd, Norris	Won in Division Semifinals, 3-0 (Red Wings) </br> Won in Division Finals, 4-2 (North Stars) </br> Lost in Conference Finals, 2-4 (Oilers)
1985-86	80	39	33	8	—	86	351	349	1537	1st, Norris	Lost in Division Semifinals, 0-3 (Maple Leafs)
1986-87	80	29	37	14	—	72	290	310	1692	3rd, Norris	Lost in Division Semifinals, 0-4 (Red Wings)
1987-88	80	30	41	9	—	69	284	328	2228	3rd, Norris	Lost in Division Semifinals, 1-4 (Blues)
1988-89	80	27	41	12	—	66	297	335	2496	4th, Norris	Won in Division Semifinals, 4-2 (Red Wings) </br> Won in Division Finals, 4-1 (Blues) </br> Lost in Conference Finals, 1-4 (Flames)
1989-90	80	41	33	6	—	88	316	294	2426	1st, Norris	Won in Division Semifinals, 4-3 (North Stars) </br> Won in Division Finals, 4-3 (Blues) </br> Lost in Conference Finals, 2-4 (Oilers)
1990-91	80	49	23	8	—	106	284	211	2412	1st, Norris	Lost in Division Semifinals, 2-4 (North Stars)
1991-92	80	36	29	15	—	87	257	236	2663	2nd, Norris	Won in Division Semifinals, 4-2 (Blues) </br> Won in Division Finals, 4-0 (Red Wings) </br> Won in Conference Finals, 4-0 (Oilers) </br> Lost in Finals, 0-4 (Penguins)
1992-93	84	47	25	12	—	106	279	230	2394	1st, Norris	Lost in Division Semifinals, 0-4 (Blues)
1993-94	84	39	36	9	—	87	254	240	2125	5th, Central	Lost in Conference Quarterfinals, 2-4 (Maple Leafs)
1994-95¹	48	24	19	5	—	53	156	115	1123	3rd, Central	Won in Conference Quarterfinals, 4-3 (Maple Leafs) </br> Won in Conference Semifinals, 4-0 (Canucks) </br> Lost in Conference Finals, 1-4 (Red Wings)
1995-96	82	40	28	14	—	94	273	220	1880	2nd, Central	Won in Conference Quarterfinals, 4-0 (Flames) </br> Lost in Conference Semifinals, 2-4 (Avalanche)
1996-97	82	34	35	13	—	81	223	210	1763	5th, Central	Lost in Conference Quarterfinals, 2-4 (Avalanche)
1997-98	82	30	39	13	—	73	192	199	1546	5th, Central	Did not qualify
1998-99	82	29	41	12	—	70	202	248	1807	3rd, Central	Did not qualify
1999-00	82	33	37	10	2	78	242	245	1444	3rd, Central	Did not qualify
2000-01	82	29	40	8	5	71	190	233	1234	4th, Central	Did not qualify
2001-02	82	41	27	13	1	96	216	207	1234	3rd, Central	Lost in Conference Quarterfinals, 1-4 (Blues)
2002-03	82	30	33	13	6	79	207	226	1189	3rd, Central	Did not qualify
2003-04	82	20	43	11	8	59	188	259	1318	5th, Central	Did not qualify
2004-05²	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2005-06³	82	26	43	—	13	65	211	285	1518	4th, Central	Did not qualify
2006-07	23	9	12		2	16	49	67	343	-	-

TG = Total Goals

¹ Season was shortened due to the 1994-95 NHL lockout.

² Season was cancelled due to the 2004-05 NHL lockout.

³ As of the 2005-06 NHL season, all games tied after regulation will be decided in a shootout; SOL (Shootout losses) will be recorded as OTL in the standings.

[edit] Notable players

[edit] Current roster

As of December 1, 2006. [2]

Goaltenders
#		Player	Catches	Acquired	Place of Birth
31	Image:Flag of the United States.svg	Brian Boucher	L	2006	Woonsocket, Rhode Island
39	Image:Flag of Russia (bordered).svg	Nikolai Khabibulin	L	2005	Sverdlovsk, U.S.S.R.
40	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Patrick Lalime (IR)	L	2006	St. Bonaventure, Quebec

<center>Defensemen
#		Player	Shoots	Acquired	Place of Birth
2	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Duncan Keith	L	2002	Winnipeg, Manitoba
5	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Jassen Cullimore	L	2004	Simcoe, Ontario
6	Image:Flag of Finland (bordered).svg	Lasse Kukkonen	L	2006	Oulu, Finland
7	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Brent Seabrook	R	2003	Richmond, British Columbia
23	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Jim Vandermeer	L	2004	Caroline, Alberta
33	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Adrian Aucoin - C (Injured)	R	2005	Ottawa, Ontario
43	Image:Flag of the United States.svg	James Wisniewski	R	2002	Canton, Michigan

<center>Forwards
#		Player	Position	Shoots	Acquired	Place of Birth
8	Image:Flag of Finland (bordered).svg	Tony Salmelainen	RW	R	2006	Espoo, Finland
10	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Patrick Sharp	C	R	2005	Thunder Bay, Ontario
11	Image:Flag of the United States.svg	Bryan Smolinski - A	C/LW	R	2006	Toledo, Ohio
14	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Rene Bourque (IR)	LW	L	2004	Lac La Biche, Alberta
15	Image:Flag of Finland (bordered).svg	Tuomo Ruutu	C/LW	L	2001	Vantaa, Finland
16	Image:Flag of the Czech Republic (bordered).svg	Radim Vrbata	RW	R	2005	Mlada Boleslav, Czechoslovakia
17	Image:Flag of Sweden.svg	Michael Holmqvist	LW	L	2005	Stockholm, Sweden
19	Image:Flag of Russia (bordered).svg	Denis Arkhipov	C	L	2006	Kazan, U.S.S.R.
20	Image:Flag of the United States.svg	Brandon Bochenski	RW	R	2006	Blaine, Minnesota
22	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Martin Lapointe - A	RW	R	2005	Ville St-Pierre, Quebec
24	Image:Flag of the Czech Republic (bordered).svg	Martin Havlát (IR)	RW	L	2006	Mlada Boleslav, Czechoslovakia
26	Image:Flag of Slovakia.svg	Michal Handzus (IR)	C	L	2006	Banska Bystrica, Czechoslovakia
47	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Martin St. Pierre	C	L	2005	Embrun, Ontario
49	Image:Flag of the United States.svg	Carl Corazzini	C	R	2006	Framingham, Massachusetts
51	Image:Flag of the United States.svg	Jeff Hamilton	C/LW	R	2006	Dayton, Ohio
57	Image:Flag of Canada.svg	Karl Stewart	LW	L	2006	Aurora, Ontario

[edit] Team captains

Dick Irvin, 1926-29
Duke Dukowski, 1929-30
Ty Arbour, 1930-31
Cy Wentworth, 1931-32
Helge Bostrom, 1932-33
Chuck Gardiner, 1933-34
No captain, 1934-35
Johnny Gottselig, 1935-40
Earl Seibert, 1940-42
Doug Bentley, 1942-44
Clint Smith, 1944-45
John Mariucci, 1945-46
Red Hamill, 1946-47
John Mariucci, 1947-48
Gaye Stewart, 1948-49
Doug Bentley, 1949-50
Jack Stewart, 1950-52
Bill Gadsby, 1952-54
Gus Mortson, 1954-57
No captain, 1957-58
Ed Litzenberger, 1958-61
Pierre Pilote, 1961-68

No captain, 1968-69
Pat Stapleton, 1969-70
No captain, 1970-75
Stan Mikita & Pit Martin, 1975-76
Stan Mikita, Pit Martin, & Keith Magnuson, 1976-77
Keith Magnuson, 1977-79
Keith Magnuson & Terry Ruskowski, 1979-80
Terry Ruskowski, 1980-82
Darryl Sutter, 1982-87
Bob Murray, 1985-86 (interim)
No captain, 1987-88
Denis Savard & Dirk Graham, 1988-89
Dirk Graham, 1989-95
Chris Chelios, 1995-99
Doug Gilmour, 1999-00
Tony Amonte, 2000-02
Alexei Zhamnov, 2002-04
Adrian Aucoin, 2005 - present
Martin Lapointe, 2006 (interim)

</div>

[edit] Hall of Famers

Doug Bentley, LW, 1939-52, inducted 1964
Max Bentley, C, 1940-48, inducted 1966
Roy Conacher, LW, 1947-52, inducted 1998
Art Coulter, D, 1931-36, inducted 1974
Phil Esposito, C, 1963-67, inducted 1984
Tony Esposito, G, 1969-84, inducted 1988
Bill Gadsby, D, 1946-55, inducted 1970
Charlie Gardiner, G, 1927-34, inducted 1945

Glenn Hall, G, 1957-67, inducted 1975
Bobby Hull, LW, 1957-72, inducted 1983
Stan Mikita, C, 1958-80, inducted 1983
Bill Mosienko, RW, 1941-55, inducted 1965
Pierre Pilote, D, 1955-68, inducted 1975
Denis Savard, C, 1980-90 & 1995-97, inducted 2000
Earl Seibert, D, 1935-45, inducted 1963

[edit] Retired numbers

1 Glenn Hall, G, 1957-67, number retired November 20, 1988
3 Keith Magnuson, D, 1969-80, number unofficially retired
9 Bobby Hull, LW, 1957-72, number retired December 18, 1983
18 Denis Savard, C, 1980-90 & 1995-97, number retired March 19, 1998
21 Stan Mikita, C, 1958-80, number retired October 19, 1980
35 Tony Esposito, G, 1969-84, number retired November 20, 1988
99 Wayne Gretzky, number retired league-wide February 6, 2000

[edit] First-round draft picks

1963: Art Hampson (5th overall)
1964: Richie Bayes (4th overall)
1965: Andy Culligan (2nd overall)
1966: Terry Caffery (3rd overall)
1967: Bob Tombari (7th overall)
1968: John Marks (9th overall)
1969: J.P. Bordeleau (13th overall)
1970: Dan Maloney (14th overall)
1971: Dan Spring (12th overall)
1972: Phil Russell (13th overall)
1973: Darcy Rota (13th overall)
1974: Grant Mulvey (16th overall)
1975: Greg Vaydik (7th overall)
1976: Real Cloutier (9th overall)
1977: Doug Wilson (6th overall)
1978: Tom Higgins (10th overall)
1979: Keith Brown (7th overall)
1980: Denis Savard (3rd overall)
1981: Tony Tanti (12th overall)
1982: Ken Yaremchuk (7th overall)
1983: Bruce Cassidy (18th overall)
1984: Ed Olczyk (3rd overall)

1985: Dave Manson (11th overall)
1986: Everett Sanipass (14th overall)
1987: Jimmy Waite (8th overall)
1988: Jeremy Roenick (8th overall)
1989: Adam Bennett (6th overall)
1990: Karl Dykhuis (16th overall)
1991: Dean McAmmond (22nd overall)
1992: Sergei Krivokrasov (12th overall)
1993: Eric Lecompte (24th overall)
1994: Ethan Moreau (14th overall)
1995: Dmitri Nabokov (19th overall)
1996: None
1997: Daniel Cleary (13th overall) & Ty Jones (16th overall)
1998: Mark Bell (8th overall)
1999: Steve McCarthy (23rd overall)
2000: Mikhail Yakubov (10th overall) & Pavel Vorobiev (11th overall)
2001: Tuomo Ruutu (9th overall) & Adam Munro (29th overall)
2002: Anton Babchuk (21st overall)
2003: Brent Seabrook (14th overall)
2004: Cam Barker (3rd overall)
2005: Jack Skille (7th overall)
2006: Jonathan Toews (3rd overall)

[edit] Franchise scoring leaders

These are the top-ten point-scorers in franchise history. Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season.

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games Played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game; * = current Blackhawks player

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	P/G
Stan Mikita	C	1394	541	926	1467	1.05
Bobby Hull	LW	1036	604	549	1153	1.11
Denis Savard	C	881	337	719	1096	1.24
Steve Larmer	RW	891	406	517	923	1.04
Doug Wilson	D	938	225	554	779	.83
Dennis Hull	LW	904	298	342	640	.71
Pit Martin	C	740	243	384	627	.85
Jeremy Roenick	C	524	267	329	596	1.14
Tony Amonte	RW	627	268	273	541	.86
Bill Mosienko	RW	711	258	282	540	.76