Is it better to be lucky than good? It was today for the Chicago Blackhawks.

Today the Blackhawks had the Detroit Red Wings in the United Center, where the Red Wings were playing for nothing but pride, while the Hawks were fighting for survival. Apparently the Wings' pride was stronger than the Hawks' survival instinct, as the Hawks dropped a 4-3 decision, then had to wait for the Minnesota Wild to beat the Dallas Stars to know whether they were packing their gear to go to Vancouver or to go home.

So it's Vancouver, Wednesday night.

Well, let's get to this:

THE GOOD:

Not much during the game. There were actually a couple Hawks who were playing with heart, most notably Brent Seabrook. Last year the Flyers rode a lucky playoff berth all the way to the Stanley Cup Final. What the Hawks do with their lucky break is up to them'

THE BAD:

It's a good thing for the Hawks that they don't get assists for turnovers leading to opposition goals. They were just brutal all day with puck discipline, and they've got to compose themselves.

The Power Play. They had two power plays today, and never had to kill a penalty, even after Duncan Keith damn near took Johan Franzen's nose off with his stick. Playoff series are won and lost with special teams. Look at last year - if the Nashville Predators had a power play that looked better than a blind man trying to find the chair in the corner of a round room, the Hawks would have never seen May 1, let alone June 9.

THE UGLY:

Captain Serious trying to be Captain do-it-all. QStache has thrown a line of Toews/Sharp/Hossa together, and as a result, Toews is trying to do the Power Forward work, and it's killing him. If Troy Brouwer is healthy for the start of this series, he needs to be up with Toews - even if he's not scoring goals, he can do the digging and banging that isn't really suited to Toews' game.

As previously stated, next for the Hawks is a date with their old friends, the Vancouver Canucks. Before you fall too deeply into a pit of despair, remember that behind all that offensive firepower is Alain Vignault on the bench.

Fuck it, in is in.