One of the hazards of getting fat and lazy and not keeping up with my blogging:

I had a prediction all cooked up which has come to pass, and now I don't get to take credit for it. Damn!

Anyway, I SWEAR TO GOD that, while watching the Blackhawks/Nashville game the other night—the Hawks' home opener; a game they wound up losing in a shootout—I had a premonition that the team was going to can coach Denis Savard and that in the next few days, Chicago sports fans would all be treated to the sight of John McDonough's sad moon face in front of the cameras and microphones, as he talked about how integral a part of the organization Savard was/is and, you know, "This is just a move we had to make at this time, as much as it pains me."

NOW IT HAS HAPPENED! At least, the firing part has happened. Moonface's press conference will be at 4:30 Thursday afternoon.

I want to be in line for some predictive credit, so listen for the following during McDonough's announcement:

• References to Denis Savard's "loyalty" and "work ethic"
• "slow start"
• "players have been underperforming"
• "a change was necessary"
• "one of the hardest things I've ever had to do in sports" (firing Savvy, that is)

By the way, Savard's replacement, former St. Louis Blues and Colorado Avalanche coach Joel Quenneville, has a lifetime record of 438-283-118 in 11 NHL seasons, including a 44-31-7 mark last year with Colorado. He was fired this past May over "a difference in hockey philosophy" with Avs GM Francois Giguere, according to the Denver Post. Finally, Quenneville, who was arrested last month on suspicion of DUI, has never won a Stanley Cup, which automatically makes him a perfect fit for the Blackhawks.

And no, I'm not writing this much about hockey because I can't bring myself to think about the Cubs.