fl resolution
adopud by Tlte Qity Qouncil ofthe Qity of Ghicago, Illinois
resented by MAYOR RAHM EMANUEL on JULY 24, 2013
&TBQS , The 2013 Chicago Blackhawks stormed out of the gate, overwhelming their National Hockey League opponents, captivating the people of Chicago, and garnering worldwide attention by recording at least one point in the standings in each of their first 24 games, a record streak in which the team's three shootout losses were more than offset by a remarkable tally of 21 victories; and
WHEREAS, The Blackhawks never let up as the season progressed, winning the Presidents' Trophy by finishing with a league-leading record of 36 wins, 7 defeats, and 5 overtime losses, for a total of 77 points; and
WHEREAS, The countless highlights of the Blackhawks' dominant regular season included their 3-2 victory over the defending champion Los Angeles Kings on February 17th, a win powered by the stellar two-way play of defensemen Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook; their March 3rd shootout victory over the team's archrival, the Detroit Red Wings, a game in which superstar forward Patrick Kane preserved Chicago's point streak by scoring both the tying goal with 2:02 remaining in regulation time and the only goal in the shootout; and their league-leading total of seven shutouts, a testament to the grit and skill ofthe team's goalkeepers, Corey Crawford and Ray Emery; and
WHEREAS, The Blackhawks entered their first-round playoff series against the Minnesota Wild with One Goal - to capture the most storied trophy in all of sports, the Stanley Cup, for the second time in four seasons and the fifth time in franchise history; and
WHEREAS, After making quick work of the Wild, the Blackhawks found themselves in an epic battle with the Red Wings, which they survived by winning the final three games of the seven-game series, capping their furious comeback with a thrilling 2-1 overtime win in Game 7 at the United Center; and
WHEREAS, Rather than succumbing to exhaustion following the brutal Red Wings series, the Blackhawks kept their eyes firmly on the prize, dispatching the Kings four games to one in the Western Conference Finals to earn a date with the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup Finals; and
WHEREAS, This Stanley Cup Finals matchup was special from the outset, as it represented the first time in 34 years that two of the "Original Six" NHL teams (the Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and the Toronto Maple Leafs) met for the championship; and
WHEREAS, The Blackhawks and Bruins treated hockey lovers everywhere to an enthralling series, beginning with a pulse-pounding three-overtime affair in Game 1 - the fifth-longest game in Stanley Cup Finals history - that finally ended in the wee hours of the morning when forward Dave Bolland tipped a shot by defenseman Mical Rozsival off of forward Andrew Shaw's leg and past Boston's goalkeeper, giving the Hawks a 4-3 victory; and
WHEREAS, Games 2 through 5 of the Finals somehow maintained the intensity of Game 1, with every line on both teams displaying dazzling strength, speed, and stamina as they split the four meetings, setting up a potentially decisive Game 6 in Boston; and
WHEREAS, The Blackhawks and the Bruins went all out yet again in Game 6, which reached the final 76 seconds with Boston clinging to a 2-1 lead; and
WHEREAS, At this moment, just when Game 7 seemed inevitable, the Hawks shocked the Bruins - and the world - by scoring not once, but twice, in the span of 17 miraculous seconds - first, Hawks stalwart captain Jonathan Toews fed the puck to winger Bryan Bickel, who blasted it home to tie the score, then defenseman Johnny Oduya fired a shot that careened off the post to center Dave Bolland, who poked it past Boston's goalkeeper to give Chicago the lead with less than a minute to play; and
WHEREAS, The Blackhawks held that lead through the final horn, setting off delirious celebrations both on the ice in Boston and in the homes, streets, and taverns of our City; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor and Members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, assembled this twenty-fourth day of July, 2013, do hereby congratulate the Blackhawks players, their first-class coach, Joel Quenneville, and his assistants, and the team's management and support personnel on winning the 2013 Stanley Cup; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be presented to the Chicago Blackhawks as a sign of our esteem and good wishes.
MAYOR
CITY CLERK
OFFICE OF THE MAYOR
CITY OF CHICAGO
RAHM EMANUEL
MAYOR
July 24, 2013
TO THE HONORABLE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CHICAGO
Ladies and Gentlemen:
I transmit herewith a congratulatory resolution honoring the Chicago Blackhawks. Your favorable consideration of this resolution will be appreciated.
Mayor
Very truly yours,