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The Morning After: 'Hawks Lose, Back In A Hole

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Apr 21, 2010 3:00PM

Blackhawks Fall Again
The Blackhawks fell into a hole once more in their quarterfinal series against the Nashville Predators, losing 4-1 in last night's Game Three. Down 1-0 in the first, a Tomas Kopecky power play goal evened the game at 1-1, but it was all Predators from then on as Nashville scored three unanswered goals to close out the game and take a 2-1 series lead. Once again, Nashville got the upper hand in shots, out-shooting the 'Hawks 35-27; Antti Niemi had 31 saves on the night - including eight during power plays - but still took the loss in net allowing all four Nashville goals. The 'Hawks weren't able to keep any momentum going as Nashville's physical play kept the 'Hawks off-balance and now have put even more pressure on the Western Conference's number two seed. Said Coach Quenneville after the game, "Certainly tonight we can't be pleased with the way we played. They were the harder-working team, more resilient, more desperate. We know that each and every game is going to escalate and today, for whatever reasons, we didn't achieve what we wanted to." The 'Hawks try to battle back and even the series in Game Four tomorrow night (7:30 p.m., CSN).

Sox Cruise Past Rays
John Danks had a sterling outing as he shut down the Tampa Bay Rays to lead the Sox to a 4-1 victory. Danks only allowed one run on two hits while striking out nine over eight innings. Paul Konerko doubled in a run in the first and Alex Rios smacked an RBI triple in the second to set up the Sox with a 2-1 lead, all they would need. But just for insurance, they added two more runs on solo homers: Andruw Jones in the sixth and Paul Konerko in the eight. Bobby Jenks pitched a scoreless ninth to earn his third save of the season. Even Ozzie came away impressed by Danks' outing, calling it "one of the best days I've seen him throw the ball." The win snapped a four-game losing streak and will hopefully give the Sox momentum as they head into tonight's rematch against the Rays (7:10 p.m., WCIU).

Cubs Shutout In NYC
The Big Apple is proving to be a Big Pain for the Cubs as they dropped their second straight game to the Mets (and their fourth straight overall), losing 4-0. Carlos Zambrano pitched well, giving up only two runs over six innings and striking out nine. John Grabow gave up two more in the eighth, adding to the bullpen woes, but, hey, at least the bullpen didn't blow a lead this time. Improvement! Still, the Cubs' bats were silent as the offense only managed three hits against the Mets' pitching. The Cubs will once again attempt to end their skid as they send Carlos Silva to the mound tonight (6:10 p.m., CSN).