morrissey
Rick Morrissey biography
Rick Morrissey has been a sports columnist at the Sun-Times since December 2009. Before that, he was a columnist at the Chicago Tribune for nine …
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MORRISSEY: Stunning ineptitude on power play could cost the Hawks the Cup
It might be that I’m quibbling here. The Blackhawks could end up winning the Stanley Cup with a power play not even a blind, orphaned mutt could love. But I don’t think so. I think having a man advantage should be, oh, I don’t know, …Read More
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MORRISSEY: Superhuman efforts of Game 1 truly breathtaking to behold
It’s all still a blur. There’s a spray of yellow, black and white uniforms chasing a splash of red and black uniforms — and vice versa. This goes on for hours, a feverish hockey dream of narrow, iced-over hallways leading to locked doors that look …Read More
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Blackhawks’ Game 1 victory gives hockey good name
RICK MORRISSEY: What we had, playing out in front of us on a continuous loop, was crazed, energy drink hockey. Ferocious hockey. It was the first overtime Wednesday night, and players were gladly sacrificing their bodies on the altar of the Stanley Cup.
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MORRISSEY: Shaw vs. Marchand in battle royale of irritants
Brad Marchand is called “The Little Ball of Hate,’’ which is just about the greatest nickname ever. It’s borrowed from former NHL player Pat Verbeek, but that’s OK. It fits Marchand like a spiked black glove. President Obama referred to him that way during a …Read More
On big stage, Patrick Kane doesn’t miss his cue
RICK MORRISSEY: Patrick Kane has impeccable timing. You need a goal to win the 2010 Stanley Cup? No problem. He’ll squeeze the puck into a space big enough to accommodate a garter snake. You need a goal in double overtime Saturday to send the Blackhawks to the Stanley Cup Final? Against the best goalie in the league? Coming right up.
MORRISSEY: High drama as Blackhawks return to Cup Final
Ifear for the city’s mental health, for its work productivity,for its marital wellness. Mostly I fear for its liver. I worry that pets will go unfed and grass un-mowed as Chicago walks around in a beautiful, restless Stanley Cup Final fog. Can the greater metropolitan …Read More
MORRISSEY: We can’t be absolutely, positively certain any player is clean
Name one major-league baseball player you are positive never has used a performance-enhancing drug. I mean absolutely, bet-the-savings-account positive. There are two possible answers here: You can’t. You’re crazy. As the latest revelations about baseball and PEDs continue to spill out, it’s apparent that putting …Read More
White Sox aren’t just bad, they’re utterly tedious
RICK MORRISSEY: If there is such a thing as an allergic reaction to success, then that’s what the White Sox are experiencing. If you want to check them for rashes, knock yourself out. I’ll go with what I’ve been forced to see on the baseball field.
Blackhawks’ speed, skill kill
RICK MORRISSEY: Just as rock beats scissors, speed beats tough-guy stuff in hockey. That’s why the Hawks trounced the Kings 4-2 on Sunday night, why they lead this series 2-0 and why the lasting image of Game 2 was of Los Angeles’ Jonathan Quick, the best goalie in the NHL, skating shell-shocked off the ice in favor of a replacement in the second period.
MORRISSEY: After dreary start at strangely sedate United Center, Blackhawks, fans turn it up
The crowd at the United Center apparently was under the impression that quiet hours were in effect after 4 p.m. Saturday. It was either that or fans had agreed to a mass induced coma for reasons known only to them. This was the first period …Read More
Blackhawks, fans can breathe again after tense Game 7
RICK MORRISSEY: If you want to know exactly how Brent Seabrook scored the game-winning goal in overtime Wednesday night, don’t ask him. But if you want to experience hockey’s fog of war, a blurry place of pure reactions and muscle memory, take an unsteady walk with him.
Chicago coaches, managers far less interesting than they used to be
MORRISSEY: If you found yourself feeling a little wistful last week, it might have had something to do with Mike Ditka and Phil Jackson being in the news. And if you found yourself feeling sleepy not long after pondering them, I’d guess it’s because you had turned and beheld the flat, featureless coaching landscape in Chicago.
MORRISSEY: Hawks earn trip back to Detroit with spirited effort in victory
If you are of the belief that all goals are created equal, then the first of the Blackhawks’ four goals Saturday had no more meaning than the others. It was worth exactly 25 percent. But if you happened to be sitting in the United Center …Read More
Captain Jonathan Toews needs to lead Blackhawks by example
RICK MORRISSEY: There was something a tad much about what Jonathan Toews said Thursday morning. Something overboard, something overdone. Something too too, if you know what I mean. “When you put it all together and we play the right way, we’re an amazing, amazing bunch of guys,” he told reporters. It didn’t sound like the understated captain we know.
Brian Urlacher retires as he should — a Bear
RICK MORRISSEY: It could have ended better. Of course, it could have. Brian Urlacher could have retired after the final game of last season and received the send-off he deserved. No awkwardness. No hard feelings.
Blackhawks’ easy season has turned tough
RICK MORRISSEY: Let’s face it, the Blackhawks have literally and figuratively skated through this season. Almost everything has come easy for them. They’ve not experienced even the vaguest feelings of impending doom.
MORRISSEY: Jordan is better than Kobe, but LeBron is another matter
To most of us in Chicago, there’s no hesitancy when it comes to choosing between Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. Bryant is a great player and does a nice impression of MJ, but equals? No. We’re talking Dr. Evil and Mini- Me here. Anything Bryant has …
MORRISSEY: Red Wings won’t just roll over
You know, the Detroit Red Wings are pretty good. That fact apparently had escaped a segment of the local population, most of them in fan gear but some of them wearing skates, helmets and toothless smiles. The Red Wings outhustled and outmuscled the Blackhawks on …
Blackhawks back up fans’ ‘Dee-troit ...’ chant
RICK MORRISSEY: If you believe things happen for a reason, then the Blackhawks’ Western Conference semifinal against the Red Wings was meant to be. If you sit on the other side and believe life is a series of coincidences, then this series is simple chance.
It’s not over ... but it’s over for Bulls as injuries finally take toll
Nine points. The Bulls scored nine points in the third quarter Monday night. If you want to know what hitting the wall looks like, it looks like nine points in a quarter. Hitting the wall looks like an 88-65 loss to the Heat. It looks like 17 turnovers. It looks like a 25.7 shooting percentage. It looks like … it’s over.
