On October 5, 2017 the Chicago Blackhawks opened their season against the reigning Stanley Cup champions, the Pittsburgh Penguins. A blowout 10-1 victory gave fans an enormous warm and fuzzy feeling about the new season. After a tumultuous summer of losing Marian Hossa, Artemi Panarin, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Marcus Kruger, Scott Darling, and Trevor van Riemsdyk, the fears over the drain of so much talent seemed to be unwarranted.
But what has ensued since then has been a slow unraveling of enthusiasm from both the team and the fans.