Around the Great Lakes - Sports edition

I feel almost as if this should be two posts, one serious and one not. But it's all Chicago/Detroit stuff and it all fits together in some weird way. The two big sports stories this morning in my world come out of Chicago.

Last of the Old School
First and foremost, Bill Wirtz, the owner of the Chicago Blackhawks, passed away this morning. The Blackhawks have been a complete disaster for most of my lifetime. With the exception of the 1992 Finals appearance, they've been either slightly above average or terrible over the last quarter-century. Kind of like the Atlanta Hawks of the NHL, except the Blackhawks had some glory days long ago. Wirtz's legacy will probably be the move into United Center and the total lack of a local TV contract over the last several years. Both of these are/were sad situations. I will say that the United Center is a great place for basketball. The Bulls have truly made it their home over the course of its existence and it certainly makes for a better TV game than the Stadium did. But as a kid, I was a die-hard Wings fan and those divisional games against the Hawks were epic. Chicago Stadium was a big part of that. The noise, the goal siren, the old-style cages for the goal judges. The 1991 All-Star Game. Denis Savard, Steve Larmer, Dirk Graham, Al Secord, Doug Wilson, and on and on. United Center just isn't the same.

No announcement has been made about control of the franchise. This may seem like a callous statement five hours after Mr Wirtz's death, but the season starts in a week and the team appears (sort of) ready for prime time, with a slew of young talent and some pretty decent off-season acquisitions. Mr Wirtz was one of the last people from the old NHL to remain involved with the game. The post-expansion generation is nearly gone, a bizarre thought for those of us who grew up with the system firmly in place, seemingly until the end of time.

Or-ton! Or-ton!
It appears the majority of Bears fans have received an early Christmas present: Brian Griese is your new quarterback. Hail to the victors. Except he's facing nearly an identical situation to the one Rex did in 2005 when he came back from injury. His reign as starter is so eagerly anticipated that it's plainly obvious that things will not go well. To win the division, the Bears need to win at least 11 games. That means 10-3 from here on out. Quick rundown on what needs to happen to make 11-5 a reality:

1. Cedric Benson can't fumble, can't average 2.6 yards per carry, and has to be productive without a change of pace back to set up his running "style."
2. The defense has to stay healthy. Pretty much everyone. That's going well.
3. Griese has to play like a future Hall of Famer.

Write it down: you will see Kyle Orton in significant game action by Thanksgiving.