Who has a better chance of winning a championship in 2012: the Bulls or the Blackhawks?

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Chicago Blackhawks center Jonathan Toews waits for a faceoff during a game with the Minnesota Wild Thursday January 12, 2012 at the United Center. | Tom Cruze~Sun-Times

Updated: February 23, 2012 8:15AM

Today, filled with wonder over our winter-sport good fortune, Mr. Happy has a happy question for the class.

Who has a better chance of winning a championship in 2012: the Bulls or the Blackhawks?

This isn’t dog vs. cat or Cubs vs. White Sox. This is Ginger vs. Mary Ann. It’s a gentle exploration of who’s 1A and who’s 1B. Everybody wins!

Both teams are among the best in their respective leagues. Both have a young superstar who will be a slam-dunk (or an open-netter) Hall of Famer, barring injuries or a sudden “Space Jam”-like talent drain. Both teams have excellent coaches with voices that growl more than purr.

All that said, go with the Hawks.

They have a Stanley Cup in their recent past (2010), and even though much of that team is gone, most of the core is intact. They don’t seem to have mountains to scale the way the Bulls do with Mt.  LeBron and Mt. Dwyane.

The Bulls made it to the conference finals last season. The Hawks lost in the first round of the playoffs. Wouldn’t that put the Bulls ahead at this point? Not necessarily. The Hawks were inconsistent last year coming off their Stanley Cup season and squeezed into the playoffs as an eighth seed. But they took the Vancouver Canucks, who ended up in the finals, to seven games. The Hawks weren’t that far away. They look hungry now.

Mr. Happy has the Hawks beating the Bulls in a shootout, but here are a few questions and answers to help you decide:

◆ Who has the better superstar?

Don’t make me do this. Trying to decide between the Blackhawks’ Jonathan Toews and the Bulls’ Derrick Rose is like trying to decide between ice cream and cake. Rose was the NBA’s Most Valuable Player last season; Toews could be the NHL’s version this season. Both are everything you want in a captain: talented, determined, dedicated. Each has the ability to carry his team.

If you were lucky enough to watch the gold-medal game in the Vancouver Olympics, then you know how much Canadians love Toews. He’s how they view themselves: tough and self-effacing. Same with Chicago and Rose: We’re an act-like-you’ve-been-here-before group. Rose thinks his game speaks for him. He’s right.

Advantage: Even.

◆ Which struggling player will find himself first?

These days, if you gave Patrick Kane a detailed map, he still wouldn’t be able to find the back of the net. And for whatever reason, the Bulls’ Joakim Noah has not been himself this season. The bet here is on Kane and his ridiculously high talent level.

Advantage: Hawks.

◆ Who has the better coach?

It’s hard to believe Saturday’s game against the Charlotte Bobcats was only Tom Thibodeau’s 100th as an NBA head coach. It feels as if he has been doing this forever. His team has a lot of talent, but he has made that talent better.

Same with Joel Quenneville and his Hawks. He has been blessed with a good roster, and he has
done a nice job of mixing and matching. And he already has won a Stanley Cup.

Advantage: Hawks.

◆ Which team has the most depth?

If you knew who Andrew Shaw was before Jan. 1, raise your hand. That’s what I thought. The 20-year-old center had five goals in his first eight games with the Hawks, and though it’s early, his success gives you an idea of the team’s depth. The Bulls have bench players who have experience in big games: Omer Asik, Taj Gibson, Kyle Korver, C.J. Watson and Ronnie Brewer, when he’s not starting for Rip Hamilton. Hard to beat the Bench Mob.

Advantage: Bulls.

◆ Who has the bigger hump to overcome?

The Bulls lost 4-1 to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals last season. The Heat, of course, went on to lose to the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals, even though they had more talent. The Bulls are up against a very strong, very motivated Miami team.

The Hawks don’t have a white whale, unless it’s the vagaries of their sport. The better team almost always wins in the NBA. The more talented team doesn’t always win in the NHL playoffs.

Advantage: Hawks.

◆ Who has the biggest question mark?

Things haven’t been the same for Duncan Keith since he won the Norris Trophy in the championship season. The defense as a whole needs to raise its game if the Hawks are to win another title.

For the Bulls, the question is whether Carlos Boozer can be a help late in games — playoff games, most importantly.

Advantage: Even.

Result: The Hawks have the better chance. Unless both teams win titles. Can you imagine?