Columbus Blue Jackets v Chicago Blackhawks Live

Being right at the top of the Western Conference halfway through the season, Hawks’ fans are very excited about the performance of the young squad around Patrick Sharp. Hoping to extend their winning streak, the Chicago Blackhawks will take on the struggling Columbus Blue Jackets at United Center on Friday at 1:30 a.m. GMT.

Albeit the Hawks made it all the way to the Conference Finals last year, many experts around the league thought that the team from Illinois overachieved in 2008-09. Yet, Patrick Kane and company proved their critics wrong as they rallied to a 31-10-3 record and lead the Western Conference three months into the season. Unlike other Stanley Cup contenders, Chicago managed to play equally well on both ends of the ice and could very well turn out to be the best overall team in this year’s NHL campaign. In fact, the Blackhawks allowed the fewest goals in the Western Conference while scoring at a scary rate of 3.3 goals per contest.

Unlike Chicago, Columbus had very little to smile about thus far and continues to fall behind in the race for the eight playoff seed. Even though the Jackets managed to win two straight on the road last week, they still have a long up-hill battle ahead of them. Most importantly, Rick Nash and company failed to show any consistent effort at the defensive end and lost many games despite putting up solid numbers offensively. Halfway through the season, veteran left wing Rick Nash leads the team with 19 goals and 41 points in 46 appearances. In conclusion, the Blue Jackets will most likely have to pull off a stellar performance in order to avoid falling to the Hawks on Friday night. Ultimately, Chicago is the much better overall team and should be able to come away with a win versus Columbus, provided they play up to their potential.

You can watch all games of the Columbus Blue Jackets and Chicago Blackhawks right here on www.watchlivenhl.com, the home of NHL live streaming.

Posted: 2th December 2009

Coming off three straight losses last week, the Columbus Blue Jackets are under considerable pressure to bounce back in order to stay in the playoff race. Thus, Rick Nash and company will travel to Chicago where they will face the Blackhawks on Wednesday at 1 a.m. GMT.

Albeit the Hawks started the season slow, nearly everything has been going Chicago's way in the last few weeks. More specifically, the team around Patrick Sharpe managed to win eight straight and quietly made it all the way to the second place in the Western Conference. In fact, the Blackhawks are only two points behind the leading Sharks after steamrolling Dany Heatley's team 7-2 at home this week. Unlike other teams in the upper echelon of the league, coach Joel Quenneville's squad managed to perform equally well at both ends of the ice. Allowing the second fewest goals in the league, Chicago's defensive lines have been a tough obstacle to overcome. Moreover, goalie Cristobal Huet held the Hawks' opponents to just 2.15 goals per contest, taking some pressure of Chicago's offense to put up big numbers night in and night out.

In contrast, the Columbus Blue Jackets experienced some ups and downs in the first eight weeks of this year's NHL campaign. However, the Jackets are still hanging on to the eight playoff seed despite losing three in a row versus the Rangers, Canadiens and Predators last week. So far, the main problem for the franchise from Ohio has been their stagnant offense that ranks at the bottom of the Western Conference. Although captain Rick Nash appears to be on his way to another All-Star game appearance, he had very little support from his teammates. Thus, the Blackhawks appear to be everyone's pick to clinch their ninth straight win when the game between Columbus and Chicago gets underway on Wednesday night. Ultimately, the Hawks are the better team offensively as well as defensively and benefit from competing with a much deeper roster than the Jackets.

You can watch all games of the Chicago Blackhawks and Columbus Blue Jackets right here on www.watchlivenhl.com, the home of NHL live streaming.