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The Chicago Blackhawks are going to make the 17th pick in the 2020 NHL Draft.

The Chicago Blackhawks won the play-in series against the Edmonton Oilers but then failed to defeat the Vegas Golden Knights in the second round which locked them into the seventeenth overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft. It is a pick that will take some good scouting to hit on but there have been some incredible players to come from that pick in recent NHL history. Since 2000, there have been some star players drafted at pick 17 and the Hawks would really benefit if they found one for themselves.

Last season, the Vegas Golden Knights selected Peyton Krebs with the 17th overall pick. It is still early and he hasn’t come up yet but Vegas is one of those teams that you have to trust at this point. In 2018, the New Jersey Devils selected Ty Smith with the 17th overall pick and he has been one of the best defenseman in the WHL ever since.

In 2015, the Winnipeg Jets drafted Kyle Connor with the 17th overall pick and he has developed into one of the best players in the NHL. Five years after he was drafted, Connor has 105 goals and 96 assists for 201 points in 249 games. In 2012, the San Jose Sharks drafted Tomas Hertl who has become one of the best players on the team. He is a great power forward who can do it all for them and has proven it in the regular season and the playoffs.

Jake Gardiner is an example of a defenseman that can be taken with a pick like that. There are going to be all sorts of kids who play that position available this year at 17 and we all know the Hawks need help in that area. If they can find themselveas a guy like that, it wouldn’t be a terrible direction to go.

One of, if not the player ever taken with that pick is Zach Parise by the New Jersey Devils. He was taken in that spot at pick 17 in 2003 which went on to become the greatest draft class in the history of the National Hockey League. Parise played for the Devils for seven seasons where he accumulated 194 goals and 216 assists for 410 points in 502 games. There was a season in there where he had 45 goals and 49 assists for 94 points. He has since played for the Minnesota Wild and has over 1000 games played in the NHL.

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There are different levels of success throughout these names listed but if the Hawks can get a successful player at pick 17 in 2020 they will be satisfied. This is projected to be a great draft so it will be exciting to see who may fall to them and how it goes for everyone involved.

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The talks of a sportsbook at Wrigley Field have been discussed for some time, and with the legality of sports betting in Illinois, it’s finally coming.

The Chicago Cubs and DraftKings announced a $100M partnership that would put a sportsbook right at Wrigley Field by the end of 2022. This is huge news for more than a few reasons, none more significant than the fact that it has the potential to be the first book at a professional sports stadium. The Cubs and DraftKings aren’t thinking small on it either, as they have stated that the intention is to make it the largest individual sportsbook in the entire country.

DraftKings made its introduction in Illinois by opening a book at the Casino Queen in East St. Louis earlier this summer. As for the location at Wrigley, that is unknown. Taking into consideration Wrigleyville’s overhaul, one possible spot would be in Gallagher Way. However, the new editions to Clark St. have made conscious efforts to be family-friendly and primarily designed for patrons with game tickets.

Crane Kenney on @670TheScore:

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“It’ll be on campus.

With the construction of our office tower, we have retail spaces on the 1st and 2nd levels. There’s also some space at the ballpark – where the old DK sports bar was.

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There’s one other site on campus we’re considering.”

— Joe Ostrowski (@JoeO670) September 3, 2020

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The Chicago Cubs and DraftKings have a history. The southeast corner of Addison and Sheffield used to be home to the DraftKings Sports Zone (Captain Morgan club) and makes a lot of sense, as well. No matter where the book is located on-site, there will be a slew of regulatory speed bumps to clear before anything transpires. However, with a target date of 2020, there should be plenty of lead-in time to get things solidified and launched smoothly.

It’s important to note that the Ricketts family will not own the sports book itself. For obvious reasons, that would be an extreme conflict of interest. However, a partnership between the organization and the sportsbook operator is well within the boundaries of what’s allowed and gives the Cubs another robust source of revenue. Considering the Cubs time and time again tell its fans how broke they are, this is $100M we all welcome with open arms.

In a statement, DraftKings founder Matt Kalish told ESPN, “It might be the Cubs to win, maybe a few props like first home run, then stroll into the game at 6:45, sit down, sweat my bets and cheer on the Cubs. Then, after the game I can stop back at the DraftKings book, relax with my friends, get some food and drink and think about the next day’s game, maybe put in a few more tickets.”

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Can you imagine the hoards of drunken Wrigley Rats after a day of drinking on Clark stumbling over to the book to place a night’s worth of bets? It’s going to be madness. Forget having a ticket to the game and betting solely on a Javier Baez HR prop, any 24-year-old post-grad with an early-onset gambling addiction who lives on Grace St. can take 12 steps and lay a paycheck on whatever they want. This is huge news no matter what angle you approach it from.

You can currently register for the DraftKings sportsbook online and begin betting there without having to verify your account in person so long as you’re within Illinois state limits.

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One of the jewels in the crown of Chicago’s most beloved museums and attractions is the iconic Art Institute of Chicago. On any day at the Art Institute, there’s pretty much always something to see for even the most skeptical and uninitiated of art-viewers, and this fall is no exception.

Carissa Rodriguez: Still from The Maid, 2018

Ending September 7, 2020

In addition to the presentation of New York-based artist Carissa Rodriguez’s film The Maid, this exhibition also features a film piece called The Girls, as well as the photographic work All the Best Memories Are Hers. According to the Art Institute website, these three works are “metaphors of creation, reproduction, and the passage of time.”

Malangatana: Mozambique Modern

Ending November 16, 2020

An exhibit which includes dozens of paintings, this “first solo exhibition of a modern African painter at the Art Institute” displays the singular style of Malangatana Ngwenya (known by most as simply Malangatana), highlighting his work from 1959 to 1975.

Noda Tetsuya: My Life in Print

Ending December 6, 2020

My Life in Print includes selections from a series of prints created by Japanese artist Nora Tetsuya— he began in the 60s and has yet to finish the series. The prints, which “are created through a unique and multilayered method” developed by Tetsuya, are over 500 in number.

Adornment: Jewelry of South Asia’s Nomadic Cultures

Ending January 9, 2021

This collection of “adornments” is more than just lost pairs of earrings and forgotten necklaces. The jewelry of nomadic tribes such as those that roamed Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India in the 19th and early-20th centuries held tremendous meaning in regards to “tribal affiliation, personal wealth, spiritual beliefs, and cultural heritage,” according to the Art Institute website. The pieces here also served a variety of practical functions related to health and wellness.

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Postcommodity: With Each Incentive

Ending September 7, 2020

Postcommodity is an arts collective comprising Cristóbal Martínez and Kade L. Twist, their project for the Art Institute is just the latest addition to a body of work whose content deals with issues of community destabilization and Indigenous cultural identity. The project, With Each Incentive, “reimagines the Bluhm Family Terrace as a stage for Chicago’s architectural future and contemplates how it might be transformed by the current way of Indigenous American refugees from Mexico and Central and South America.”

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The post 5 Things to See at the Art Institute of Chicago This Month appeared first on UrbanMatter.

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The entire Chicago culinary and hospitality community is mourning the death of one of their own. Beloved Chef Jill Dedinsky of Goddess & Grocer passed away unexpectedly after suffering a brain aneurysm. She was only 49 years old.

Dedinsky was known best for her hot pink chef’s coat and warm, inviting smile. She was a staple in the hospitality community and her loss is being felt by many. As the Executive Chef of Goddess & Grocer, she pioneered the cafe and bakery to becoming a go-to spot for Chicagoans to eat. Whether it be a quick bite during a lunch break in the loop or a Saturday morning coffee date in one of their neighborhood locations, her recipes were sought after for any occasion.

In her honor, The Goddess and the Grocer is featuring a “Jilly Bean” cupcake to raise money for the Special Olympics. Goddess will be donating 100 percent of the cupcake’s proceeds to the charity that meant so much to her. Annually, she’d support the charity through their Polar Bear Plunge by jumping into a freezing cold Lake Michigan during the winter.

The “Jilly” Bean Cupcake is available at all Goddess locations and Catering starting Wednesday, September 2, 2020. The cupcake features her favorite Goddess vanilla cake with hot pink buttercream to match her vibrant chef coat and topped with white chocolate shavings.

Because Dedinsky was so cherished within the community, supporters have put together a GoFundMe campaign to help raise money for medical expenses and to support her son who is a freshman at Jacksonville University in Florida. As of Thursday morning, roughly $61,000 of the $75,000 target has been raised. The page will stay open and available through Jill’s 50th birthday on November 19th.

To pre-order the “Jilly” Bean Cupcake, please fill out the online form, visit goddessandgrocer.com/jillybean. Please note, orders must be 48 hours ahead and a minimum of 12. Guests can also stop by any Goddess & Grocer location to purchase smaller quantities. For more information, you can follow the GoFundMe link or visit Goddess & Grocer’s website.

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We are very sad to announce that our Executive Chef, Jill Dedinsky, passed away yesterday in the hospital.⁠ She had suffered a brain aneurysm last Sunday and unfortunately never woke up. While we were hopeful at first that Jill would survive because of her true fighting⁠ spirit and zest for life, the brain damage was too severe for her to recover. Jill had just returned from Jacksonville and was all prepared to jump into the holiday swing. She is survived by her son Jay Ridgeway and her little dog Pepper. ⁠ ⁠ The @GoddessGrocer will be introducing a hot pink cupcake in her memory with 100% of the proceeds going to her favorite charities. A Go Fund Me has been set up by Jill’s friends to help put her son Jay through college.⁠ www.gofundme.com/f/all-in-for-jill

A post shared by Goddess and Grocer (@goddessgrocer) on Aug 30, 2020 at 12:20pm PDT

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The post Chicago Mourns the Death of Goddess & Grocer’s Jill Dedinsky appeared first on UrbanMatter.

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Norway’s Ulver debuted in 1993 as a howling black-metal outfit, but since then front man and composer Kristoffer Rygg has steered his ship into such different waters you can hardly say it’s going a-Viking anymore. (If you want to hear Ulver at their heaviest since their early days, I’d recommend their collaborations with Sunn O))), 2003’s “Cut WoodEd” and 2014’s Terrestrials.)…Read More

Local photographer Amy Boyle’s new project, 52 Phenomenal Women, elevates the voices of women and reminds us there’s power in sharing our stories.

On a recent hot Friday afternoon, I went with photographer Amy Boyle to visit 80-year-old Sue Smith in Lincoln Park, to hear her joyous words of wisdom I’d only read about. She greeted us in a summery orange shirt and matching handkerchief with shining jewelry, but an even brighter smile.…Read More