Strange Days Have Found The Chicago Bears

It turned out to be a bitter-sweet 31-20 victory for da Bears over the reeling San Diego Chargers on Sunday.

They added one to the win column, but franchise quarterback--and that's exactly what he played like in the second half--Jay Cutler has a fractured thumb and will undergo surgery on Wednesday.
It was a strange game all around. There was no pressure on Chargers' QB Philip Rivers, Matt Forte couldn't get the run game going, and the defense had a tough time for a while until they made a few key plays in the second half.

How's this for strange...it was Jay Cutler and--I'm going to regret saying this and soon, I bet--Mad Mike Martz who carried da Bears on Sunday. (Big-ups to Adam Podlesh the special teams who were able to flip the field and provide good field position after da Bears were losing that battle early). Cutler was so good that there were a few Roy Williams sightings--no that wasn't a typographical error. In the third quarter, Cutler hit Williams for 11, 12 and 11--all on consecutive plays. Apparently, Williams sold his soul to the devil for a pair of new hands after a few early drops. Uncouth.

Even Johnny Knox stopped playing like Johnny Knoxville. He was running good double-move routes, getting open and adjusting to the ball like, well, like an actual NFL wideout. Look for Knox to be more involved in the coming weeks. Bizarre.

After Charles Tillman pretty much had the game of his life shutting down Megatron, he had a bad game on Sunday. He was unable to contain Vincent Jackson, who went for seven receptions on nine targets for 165 yards and a tuddy. Considering V-Jax is a good receiver, he isn't elite like Calvin Johnson is, so it was exasperating to watch Peanut get burned time after time. Odd.

Tillman did, however, make an amazing play when he punched the ball away from the Bolts' RB Ryan Mathews that led to a 24 yard touchdown pass to Knox. Cutler made a ridiculous throw on the run and Knox made an absurd catch in the back of the endzone by making sure he had two feet in after a nice adjustment to the ball. Since Tillman came into the league he is the best at creating a turnover as he has recorded 27 forced fumbled in his career.

Besides just having an overall bad game, Tillman didn't get ANY help from the front four. Da Bears have been mixing it up in recent weeks and playing a lot more "press" and man-free coverage. Life is a lot easier on your cornerbacks when the opposing quarterback has large, angry men trying to make Rivers-shaped indentations in the turf. Seems like that effort just wasn't there since Red-butt Rivers was only hit once and wasn't sacked at all.

Paging Mr. Peppers and his staff, where are you? Silence. The d-line should have had a day against a depleted San Diego o-line. Instead, they turtled and left it up to the other seven to stop the Bolts. Curious.

I haven't mentioned Matt Forte yet--until now--because I didn't want to. Here's why...59 yards on 21 carries for an 2.8 average. Puke. Abnormal. And just plain bad, especially for a guy pining for more guaranteed money and who has already surpassed the average shelf life for a running back in the NFL.

Da Bears will have to go AT LEAST 3-3 in the remaining six games on their schedule to make the playoffs. This will have to happen with back up quarterback Caleb Hanie under center. They don't know what they have in Hanie yet. And Martz wanted no part of the Hanie-experiment as he had him demoted to third string QB in training camp behind Nathan Enderle. Hanie doesn't have Cutler's hair-trigger release or arm strength, but he is athletic and he likes to move out of the pocket.
The biggest concern for Hanie will be his recognition at the line of scrimmage and how well will he make his progressions once the receivers run their routes.

Cutler is out for at least five weeks, but don't fret. Da Bears are well-coached and unlike most teams, they can play well in all three phases of the game. They have an advantage on most teams when it comes to defense and they definitely have the special teams advantage against the soft-schedule teams remaining in the regular season and it's not crazy to think they can take four of the last six.

With those favorable match ups, consider this...Carson Palmer may have a slight edge over Hanie. But I'll take Caleb over Tyler Palko, Tim Tebow, Tavaris Jackson and Christian Ponder. The Packers may be 14-0 when da Bears face them, which could mean it's Matt Flynn time to not risk an Aaron Rodgers injury. I'll take Hanie there too. Again, here's why...

Hanie has been carrying a clipboard with da Bears for four years, which means he's been around the two years Martz has been in Chicago. He knows the offense. He prepares for every game as if he were going to start every week and he'll be watching tape even more closely because he actually IS starting for at least the next five weeks. And most of all, because Caleb wants this. He wants to shine in the spotlight. He wants to lead da Bears to the playoffs.

He wants to win.


Tune in to Chicago Sports Fix with Josh Catlow and me, Rob Zielinski, this and every Monday from 6 to 8pm only onChicagoland Sports Radio.

Share your thoughts with us by calling 312.564.7375 during show hours or email us at chicagosportsfix@gmail.com.

Adam Oestmann, Managing Editor for Chicago Bears Huddle, will be joining us in the first hour.

The Daily Herald's Barry Rozner, who also hosts WSCR 670-AMThe Score's venerable baseball program Hit & Run, will be joining us any Monday now to TALK MORE HOCKEY! Unfortunately, due to his schedule, we cannot get a definitive date. So you'll have to be listening to catch our interview with him.

Follow me on twitter @robzielinski.

PREACH

Da Bears Are Handing Out Humblin' Butt Whoopins

The Detroit Lions escalated from little brother, to puffy-chested little brother, to chirpy, to dirty before they fell and hit every step in their dissension down Da Bears' "humblin' [butt] whoopin" staircase.


Julius Peppers unhinged his jaw and swallowed Megatron whole. Peppers spent the rest of the afternoon making plays. This was a--we'll call it a "clean" clothes-line--across the shoulder pads of Calvin Johnson, who then proceeded to cough up the football at the 12:18 mark of the first quarter, and that set the tone for the rest of the day. Urlacher tried the ol' scoop-and-score, but he was caught by Pettigrew after 17 yards. Stiff jab to the chin.

Matt Forte punched the ball into the end zone on two runs from the 12. The first was from a spread shotgun look and he continued to show his excellent field vision on the touchdown run from the I-formation. Da Bears were in a "Tank" personnel (1 WR, 2 TE, 2RB) look on a Lead Open run. Lead-blocker Clutts broke to the right out of his stance and Forte immediate recognized the read that the defense got from Clutts and he cut back against the over-pursuit of the Lions' defense. Touchdown, punch to the gut.

Nate Burleson beat Tim Jennings, twice. But "Tiny" Tim didn't give up. Jennings caught Burleson from behind, punched the ball out of his arm, and recovered his own forced fumble. Another quick jab.

The Lions had two turnovers and two 15-yard penalties in the first 10 minutes of the game. It was like they were looking in the mirror and punching THEMSELVES.

The Detroit defense did play well--when they weren't playing dirty--ya know, ripping off helmets, leg-whipping and pile driving. Bears QB Jay Cutler threw for a mere 123 yards and was 9-20 on pass attempts. The offense was held to only 3-13 on third conversions and 4.9 yards per catch. And besides the touchdown and one 40 yard scamper, they held Forte in check with 64 yards on 18 attempts. That's a 3.6 yard average for those of you with your calculator out.

But that was the only phase working for the Lions. For some reason, Detroit's recently signed, off the couch--and more recently, released--punter Malone, kept kicking the ball to the greatest punt returner off all time in Devin Hester. Hester returned his first punt for 29 yards before he was knocked out of bounds by Malone. That wasn't the case on the next Hester return as he took it to the House on an 82 yard return. 1-2 combo lands cleanly.

Hester is the greatest for a few reasons. He is able to "set up" the punting team's coverage because he isn't afraid to run laterally and force the coverage to adjust their lanes. Hester runs East and West, which forces the coverage to break their discipline. This is when #23 strikes. Hester has elite field vision, as well. It's just harder to tell because Hester will make his cut before a seem has been created, but he knows it'll be there. And it always is. He's a step ahead of everybody at all times and that's all he need to plant that foot and get up field for the score.

FYI: In Hester's five NFL seasons, he has 2516 receiving yards, 2502 punt return yards and 3156 kickoff return yards.

Mike Martz gaff of the week: third down and a foot, the offense lines up in the power-I formation. Cutler fakes the handoff to Clutts and tosses it left to Forte, who is dropped for a loss and they're forced to punt. Why must I ask where is Marion Barber every frickin' week?

The only thing Da Bears couldn't stop was themselves. Coming into the game, the Lions only turned the ball over five times. Da Bears matched that and then some with six take-aways on Sunday. Body shot, body shot, upper-cut, down for the count.

The defense stuck with what worked last week. Cornerbacks Charles Tillman and Tim Jennings were asked to play off-man coverage in Cover 1 and Cover 3 schemes, especially earlier in the game. The Lions got away with a few one-step slant routes, so coach Mari-Lovie went to more "press" coverage. This allowed the CBs to re-route the Lions' wide receivers at the line of scrimmage and not allow them to get the inside position for the quick slants with room to run after the catch.

Don't underestimate the phenomenal job Tillman did in shutting down Megatron, the best receiver in the NFL. Megatron was targeted 17 times by QB Matthew "Insert relevant excuse or cry-baby nick name here" Stafford through the first three quarters and he only had six receptions.

Again, a lot of credit goes to the front four. They were getting to Stafford early and often. They made him incredibly uncomfortable in the pocket, which allowed the CBs to only stay on their men as long as they needed to. The front four influencedStafford's accuracy and timing and the secondary reaped the benefits all afternoon.

I can't say enough about Peppers. He was disruptive off the edge and even more so when he lined up at the 3-technique. He consistently got pressure from the interior of the line and collapsed the pocket. He had a key sack and dropped Stafford for an 11 yard loss after he dominated the guard, fought through existing traffic in the backfield and was still able to bring down Stafford to force a field goal.

It was a great defensive effort all around. In the three games Chris Conte and Major Wright started as the safety tandem, da Bears' defense has allowed only one touchdown pass. Yeah, I can't believe it either.

Charles Tillman said that "hitting is the equalizer." This rang true on Sunday. The defense was laying the wood all afternoon. The hit Briggs put on Megatron in the second half will forever be in my mind's highlight reel. And to make it clear, even though he was called for an illegal hit, it was a legit clock-cleaner.

Da Bears played with a sense of purpose and it showed. Big credit to all the players, especially on defense and special teams, which trickles down to coach Lovie and his staff.

Barring any major injuries to key players, Da Bears are primed for a deep playoff run. In Lovie We Trust-ie.


Tune in to Chicago Sports Fix with Josh Catlow and me, Rob Zielinski, this and every Monday from 6 to 8pm only onChicagoland Sports Radio.

Share your thoughts with us by calling 312.564.7375 during show hours or email us at chicagosportsfix@gmail.com.

Adam Oestmann, Managing Editor for Chicago Bears Huddle, will be joining us in the first hour.

The Daily Herald's Barry Rozner, who also hosts WSCR 670-AMThe Score's venerable baseball program Hit & Run, will be joining us any Monday now to TALK MORE HOCKEY! Unfortunately, due to his schedule, we cannot get a definitive date. So you'll have to be listening to catch our interview with him.

Follow me on twitter @robzielinski.

PREACH

Chicago Bears Detroit Lions Preview

This is a different Chicago Bears team that played the Lion in Detroit back in Week-5.


It was being said at the beginning of the season, but it's finally becoming true ... the offense is familiar with Martz' scheme.

The confusion at the line of scrimmage has been minimized. A big part of that is due to Martz' evolution as a play caller. Not only has he decreased pre-snap motions, but he is using more spread-action plays and utilizing Cutler's ability to throw on the run. We actually saw a designed roll-out play to the right against the Eagles on Monday night. The Lions also employ the Wide-9 technique. If Avril and Vanden Bosch start giving the o-line fits, look for more designed plays to move Cutler outside of the pocket to buy time and throw down the field.

Again, the Wide-9 technique is inclined to create running lanes, especially off-tackle. So, look for Matt Forte to have yet another big game on the ground running behind Clutts; however, Detroit does have more athletic defensive linemen who play with a mean streak--unlike "Cry-baby" Babin who ran to daddy Godell because he got BLOWED-UP consistently at the line of scrimmage Monday night.

Javhid Best has been ruled out because he's still dealing with lingering concussion symptoms. This is a big blow to the Detroit ground-game because Best has the ability to hit a home run every time he touches the ball. Da Bears learned that when he snapped off an 88 yard scamper back in Week-5. Back-up RB Maurice Morris is formidable, though. He's averaging 4.1 yards per carry on 31 attempts.

The true test will come against trying to shut down Calvin "Megatron" Johnson. Megatron dominated Da Bears' defense in their last meeting with five receptions for 130 yards and a touchdown. He's had hot hands all season. Johnson has scored in every week except one and he's on a four game streak of 100+ yards receiving.

CB Charles Tillman was outstanding last week, but I don't suspect coach Mari-Lovie will play much press or man coverage on Sunday. Megatron is much too physical and is a rear breed WR, unlike the gnats of Philadelphia. Look for Da Bears to change the game plan--as well they should--and get back to more of the Lovie-2 scheme. Da Bears defense will give the Lions different looks before the snap and then break off to their zones or land-marks.

Which leads us to take-aways. Detroit has the best turnover differential in the NFL with +13. The Detroit defense has taken the ball away from teams 18 times, but has only turned the ball over five times. Da Bears MUST win the turnover battle or they WILL lose this game.

Lions QB Matthew Stafford is deadly-accurate--when he has time in the pocket. Da Bears d-line needs to get consistent pressure on Stafford to make him uncomfortable and maybe bait him into throwing a few passes he'll wish he can have back.

Major Wright didn't have a particularly good game on Monday and he began to share time with Brandon "Head-shot" Merriwether. We'll see more of a time split this Sunday. This is Merriwether's chance to redeem himself after constantly doing the wrong thing in Lovie's scheme by free-lancing like an undisciplined high school hot-head.

Rookie safety Chris Conte still really hasn't been tested deep since he won the SP (starting position). I think that will change Sunday and Stafford will look to expose his inexperience.

WSCR's Bears beat reporter Zach Zaidman reported that Da Bears are more mad now after watching tape from Week-5 than they were after that game. They've recognized the silly mistakes they've made and they're itching at the chance to rectify the situation.

Da Bears have improved each week in the past month. They're not happy that their long time little brother in the Lions is all grown up. This game has playoff implications and I expect Da Bears to play the way a team would win a playoff game...by running the ball effectively, chewing the clock, and executing a few big plays.


Tune in to Chicago Sports Fix with Josh Catlow and me, Rob Zielinski, this and every Monday from 6 to 8pm only on Chicagoland Sports Radio.

Share your thoughts with us by calling 312.564.7375 during show hours or email us at chicagosportsfix@gmail.com.

Adam Oestmann, Managing Editor for Chicago Bears Huddle, will be joining us in the first hour.

The Daily Herald's Barry Rozner, who also hosts WSCR 670-AMThe Score's venerable baseball program Hit & Run, will be joining us any Monday now to TALK MORE HOCKEY! Unfortunately, due to his schedule, we cannot get a definitive date. So you'll have to be listening to catch our interview with him.

Follow me on twitter @robzielinski.

PREACH

Special Season for Special Bears?

I was expecting some team to emerge from the NFL Blob, but I never thought that it could possibly be Da Bears.


They're now 7-2 on Monday Night Football since Lovie Smith took over as their head coach in 2004. Are those just arbitrary numbers, or does Lovie know how to get his team ready for prime-time football?

I tend to think it's the latter as I'm thoroughly impressed with the way Da Bears were prepared to go into Philadelphia and beat the Eagles at The Linc.

They were disciplined in every facet of the game. Individuals did what was asked of them and they took care of their business. This was a staple win and it puts Da Bears in a great position for a playoff berth as they've beaten all three teams that they'll be up against for a Wild Card spot (Atlanta, Tampa and Philadelphia).

Da Bears opened the game by punching the Eagles square in the mouth. They did it with quick snaps at the line of scrimmage and by getting away from their familiar "window dressings" or pre-snap motions. It helped to neutralize the crowd noise and minimize their chances for any false starts.

The o-line came through in a BIG way. QB Jay Cutler had been sacked in 31 straight games but not on Monday night. This was the second time in 41 starts with Da Bears that Cutler wasn't sacked.

The Eagles defense didn't even record a QB Hit! Now that's stepping up in the clutch. We knew the o-line was improving at run blocking. They've been firing off the ball well for a few weeks now, but for Cutler to drop back 32 times and not be hit says a lot about the pass blocking improvement.

They took that Eagles "Wide 9,” chewed it up and spit it out. Sure, Cutler had to use his legs to escape pressure and elude those hits throughout the game, but overall it was a special effort from the men up front.

Cliché segue alert—speaking of special efforts—Jay Cutler's second half performance was the reason why GM Jerry Angelo traded two first round draft picks, a third round pick and Kyle "Neck Beard" Orton to obtain him. He was incredible.

One of my new favorite football plays occurred in the fourth quarter. Number 6 escaped pressure twice, fell down, got back up, alluded pressure from two more Eagles defensemen and tossed the rock to Barber for an eight-yard gain. Special.

The man was having fun and playing like he was in the school yard; except, he was being an NFL leader and drove his offense down the field in a world-class fashion multiple times.

Matt Forte's production was enormous. 133 yards on the ground with a 5.5 average per carry is—we’ll stay with the theme here—special. However, you can NOT fumble the ball twice. He knows that and I know he'll be more protective with the football.

And no, meatball Bearsss fans, he did not fumble on purpose. There was a lot of "Diz lousy Mark Forte guy's fumbling on purpose cuz he hasn’t got paid by dat Gary Angleman yet," among the twitterverse. He'll get paid sooner or later, but he won't be helping you to pay your bills, so relax der guy. Go grill another SAU-sage in da grach with the doors closed.

Earl "Safety Valve" Bennett gets the game ball offensively, though. He was targeted five times and he made five receptions for 95 yards and a touchdown. Every catch he made resulted in either a first down conversion or a touchdown. Special. He offers Cutler stability just by stepping onto the field. He's got great hands and knows how to run a route and find the soft area in zone defenses. Even the Philadelphia "Dream Team" couldn't stop this number three receiver.

Even Martz had a big night as he was able to show more flexibility in his play-calling. Forte carried the ball 24 times, and Barber was called on nine times. That often spells success for Bears Football.

I did have a couple of gripes, though—as always. Like empty sets on third and shorts when pounding the ball with Barber was working, the seven (corner) route to Kellen Davis on third and one and the Wildcat on third and long, which seemed like a sort of concession play call. I'm still waiting for the perfect game from Martz. I promise I won't hold my breath.

The Lovie-2 scheme often got lost in the shuffle. Coach Mari-Lovie devised a game plan for the explosive Philadelphia offense. They played a lot of "press" coverage along with Cover 1 to contain Michael Vick and his WMD. Cornerbacks Tillman and Jennings played with physicality and roughed up DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin all night.

So much so, that they put enough fear into them to alligator arm a few passes from Vick even when no one was around. They did a great job jamming them at the line of scrimmage and making good, hard tackles when they had the opportunity.

Tillman, in particular, played his best game as a Chicago Bear in a long time. And he didn't even have one of his patented strips for a fumble!

The pressure generated by the front four is what allowed Da Bears to be successful in their "man" coverage. They were consistently flushing Vick out of the pocket, which lowers his accuracy considerably. Vick has become a more polished pocket-passer (alliteration aside), but if he gets hurried almost constantly like he was, he won't be effective.

Lance Briggs and Brian Urlacher played like true Monsters of the Midway. Urlacher led all Bears with 11 tackles and he was great in pass coverage. Briggs recorded 5 tackles of his own and tipped the pass that Major Wright picked off. They consistently put themselves in Vick's passing lanes and they cleaned up almost everything that reached the second level.

The only part of the game that wasn't special was, oddly enough, the special teams. Hester and Knox combined for only 51 kick return yards on five attempts. Da Bears got luckily when they chose not to cover either of the gunners on a punt return and the Eagles' rookie punter was unable to complete a the easiest pass he'll ever attempt. I will, however, give props to Adam Podlesh for his good punts. The hang time was a major factor on the muffed Jackson punt that led to a Bears TD.

I had a feeling Da Bears might split their games against the Eagles and the Lions, who they play next week, but I didn't think the victory would come from beating the Eagles at The Linc. And now they have a shot at sweeping this two game set.

If they do that, it'll take key injuries for them to not reach the playoffs and make a run for the Super Bowl.

Tune in to Chicago Sports Fix with Josh Catlow and me, Rob Zielinski, this and every Monday from 6 to 8pm only on Chicagoland Sports Radio.

Share your thoughts with us by calling 312.564.7375 during show hours or email us at chicagosportsfix@gmail.com.

Adam Oestmann, Managing Editor for Chicago Bears Huddle, will be joining us in the first hour.

The Daily Herald's Barry Rozner, who also hosts WSCR 670-AM The Score's venerable baseball program Hit & Run, will be joining us any Monday now to TALK MORE HOCKEY! Unfortunately, due to his schedule, we cannot get a definitive date. So you'll have to be listening to catch our interview with him.

Follow me on twitter @robzielinski.

PREACH

Chicago Bears: Contender or Pretender?

"We'll know a lot more about our football team," head coach Lovie Smith said about the ensuing game between his Chicago Bears and the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night.


I think he’s right. We'll find out if Da Bears are in fact a legit contender to make the playoffs.

They will face a very talented Eagles team in probably the loudest outdoor stadium in the NFL. Lincoln Financial Field actually has metal flaps designed to bounce crowd noise back down and onto the field.

We all know how crazy Philly fans can get. I’m referring to the noise they can generate, not the throwing of snowballs at Santa Claus—amongst many other egregious acts.

This will be the first true road game for Da Bears since the "Detroit Debacle" back in Week-5. And being on Monday Night Football, Philly fans could be feeling extra SAUCE-y. I have a feeling we'll be hearing a lot of "False start, offense, number 73 … 74 … 67 … 60 … 87," and so on.

But I can’t actually believe that I'm fairly confident with Lance Louis starting at the right tackle position. Gabe Carimi is healthy enough to play, and he's the best RT on the team.

But, the o-line has something going. They're playing as a cohesive unit. It comes down to the old adage: “If it's not broke, don't fix it.” Granted, the o-line has been getting a lot of help from running backs and tight ends with chip-blocks, but they've been competent. They do have to be better, though.

The Eagles employ a Wide-9 technique with their defensive-ends. Wide-9 is just a new flashy term for a technique—NOT a defensive scheme—that has been around for at least two decades. National broadcasters like flashy terms—remember when "Tampa 2" and "Wildcat" were all the rage?

The Wide-9 just means that the DE's line up about a foot outside of the TE and tilt towards the quarterback in a sprinter's stance. Since there's typically only one TE, only one DE is truly in a 9-technique. This helps to utilize their speed and turn it into power as they get up-field.

The Wide-9—like any technique—is not perfect; it is very susceptible to counters, draws and traps, which Da Bears have executed well in recent weeks. Besides having a weak linebacker corps, the Wide-9 is a big reason the Eagles give up 118 yards rushing per game. Look for Matt Forte to continue to be effective and gain large chunks of yardage, especially on the ground. Unless Martz goes all, you know, Martzy.

Da Bears have steadily been improving their run defense. Some of that has to do with jumping out to a lead and making their opponent one-dimensional, but they're improving nonetheless. They'll have to be near perfect if they want to win on Monday night. LeSean McCoy is second in the NFL in rushing yards. He's also very good at catching the ball out of the backfield.

Of course, the Eagles still have that one guy … Vick, I believe his name is. He can be dynamic, but he has struggled against Lovie's defense. Da Bears have sacked Vick 15 times and forced him to fumble five times since Lovie has been at the helm.

Da Bears aren't a particularly good match-up for Vick. The Lovie-2 keeps 11 sets of eyes on Vick at all times. Vick tends to shred defenses that use man-coverage, which follows the receivers, and by time the secondary turns around, Vick is already right behind them. Having all eyes on Vick may hold him to, say, a six-yard rush instead of a 25-yard gain.

Yes, Da Bears did beat the Eagles last year. However, Jay Cutler had a career day with four touchdown passes. It was also a coming-out party for a few defensive linemen as they recorded four sacks. The same needs to happen Monday, because the Eagles' wide receivers are smart and explosive. They'll exploit the soft spots in the zone defense if Vick gets time, as he is becoming a more polished QB in the pocket.

This will be Chris Conte's first true test at safety and it's going to be strict pass or fail grading.

Da Bears need to be disciplined in all facets of the game and have contributions from all three phases in order to win in Philadelphia. If they do, then they'll be real contenders to make the playoffs. If not, they'll be pretenders, unable to separate themselves from the NFL blob.



Tune in to Chicago Sports Fix with Josh Catlow and me, Rob Zielinski, this and every Monday from 6 to 8pm only on Chicagoland Sports Radio.

Share your thoughts with us by calling 312.564.7375 during show hours or email us at chicagosportsfix@gmail.com.

Adam Oestmann, Managing Editor for Chicago Bears Huddle, will be joining us in the first hour.

The Daily Herald's Barry Rozner, who also hosts WSCR 670-AM The Score's venerable baseball program Hit & Run, will be joining us any Monday now to TALK MORE HOCKEY! Unfortunately, due to his schedule, we cannot get a definitive date. So you'll have to be listening to catch our interview with him.

Follow me on twitter @robzielinski.

PREACH