The Chicago Blackhawks Convention continued Saturday with a 10-hour day that included autograph sessions, panels, and entertainment for fans.
I unwisely spent five hours of my day acquiring a wristband and signature of Tony Esposito. The extremely wasteful time has meaning because my dad grew up a “Tony O” fan, so getting his autograph on my dad’s Blackhawks sweater was important. His session started at 3:30 p.m. and was supposed to end at 5:30. The wife and I left with signatures in two at 6 with many more to go.
Most signing sessions had similar crazy stories. Brandon Saad had his signing at 9 a.m., with wristbands going out at 8:30. Fans camped out by his area as early as 4 a.m. to guarantee the plastic band. I talked with two ladies that confirmed that stupidity of some fans. They admitted getting his stage at 6 a.m. Other signings included Steve Larmer, Jonathan Toews (if you won and received his winning color-coded signing time), and Stu Grimson.
Panels ranged from meeting the front office staff to a kids press conference. Little news of importance was said Saturday. According to Tim Sassone, Mark Bernard said during the player development panel that Brandon Pirri, Adam Clendening, Jeremy Morin, Jimmy Hayes, and Ryan Stanton were ready to contribute on the NHL level.
The Stanley Cup was on display from 10 a.m.-7 p.m. so fans could take their photos with professional sport’s most hallowed trophy. Touching the cup was not allowed.
The Blackhawks also hosted a game show at 6:30 for fans to enjoy and participate in. Fans could audition for the show Friday night and Saturday from 9 a.m.-noon.
The Chicago Blackhawks Convention closes Sunday with multiple autograph sessions, including one by Bobby Hull, and a handful of panels including one about playing in the old Chicago Stadium featuring Grimson, Eric Daze, and Larmer, among others.
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