chicagotribune--2020-01-07--Harwood Heights sets cannabis regulations after approving recreational sales

The attorney added that any cannabis business that might open in the village is unlikely to be included in the @ @ @ @ @ by state regulators .
The state of Illinois accepted applications from prospective new dispensary owners @ @ @ @ @ the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation has said it plans on granting a @ @ @ @ @ the beginning of May .

Devin Doran, dispensary outreach worker, left, and Eric Chance, cultivation manager, walk through rows of marijuana plants growing in a vegetative room at Revolution cannabis cultivation center Thursday, May 30, 2019, in Delavan, Ill. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune) (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
The Harwood Heights Board of Trustees voted unanimously Jan. 2 to approve an ordinance that permits recreational cannabis businesses within village limits but imposes restrictions on them.
The ordinance limits the number of such businesses that may operate in the village to three, requires they obtain special use permits, and prohibits on-site consumption of cannabis, along with giving the village wide discretion for further inspection and regulation.
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The village was debating its policies around recreational cannabis sales as recently as November, as it fielded interest from several businesses exploring the possibility of opening a dispensary. On Dec.12, Harwood Heights voted to permit the sale of recreational cannabis in accordance with the state law that took effect Jan. 1, 2020. Some nearby municipalities, including Park Ridge, have voted to ban the businesses within their limits.
Village attorney Mark Heinle said the ordinance is aimed at bringing the village into compliance with the state while still reflecting the wishes of Harwood Heights’ residents and elected officials.
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“People can possess in the village, people can use in the village subject to state laws, but you don’t have to, as a village, allow businesses that traffic in cannabis to open in the village,” Heinle said. The three types of cannabis businesses allowed in Harwood Heights will be a recreational dispensary, a medical dispensary, and a “craft growing” operation, excluding on-site consumption establishments and cannabis processing facilities.
Dispensaries will be required to maintain a 500-foot buffer from “child-centric businesses such as schools, day cares, libraries, parks, and other sensitive areas such as religious facilities,” and will not be allowed to open within 1,500 feet of each other, as required by state law.
The ordinance establishes the zoning that will be required for each type of business, with the recreational and medical dispensaries zoned as commercial properties and the craft growing operations zoned as industrial. It also requires what Heinle called a “rigorous process” for approval of the businesses’ special use permits.
“It is unlike and well beyond anything any other type of special use business would have to submit,” Heinle said. “I don’t want anyone to get the impression if this is approved tonight that this means you’re going to have a dispensary opening that you’re unaware of… in the middle of the night next week, or something. It’s a pretty rigorous process.”
The attorney added that any cannabis business that might open in the village is unlikely to be included in the first wave of licenses granted by state regulators. The state of Illinois accepted applications from prospective new dispensary owners until Jan. 2, and the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation has said it plans on granting a maximum of 75 licenses by the beginning of May.
According to Harwood Heights’ ordinance, “qualifying cannabis businesses [that operate in the village] would be required to submit much more detailed operational information and plans than other types of prospective business in the village, as well as being subject to stringent and comprehensive state and local regulations.”
Harwood Heights Mayor Arlene Jezierny also updated the board on the status of the city’s negotiations with Earth Med, a company that operates a dispensary in Addison. Jezierny said that the company has “looked at a number of places” it may potentially locate, and that the village has recommended a site in its industrial zone. The mayor said she is still awaiting word on whether Earth Med will move forward with its plans.
Ultimately, Heinle said that given the high demand for recreational cannabis products, businesses will have no shortage of choices regarding where to open up shop.
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“As a practical matter, somebody coming to the village is going to be looking at a lot of communities, and if they’re getting bad vibes or bad juju, they’re going to find places that want them,” Heinle said.
“So I don’t think your hands are going to be tied by making this a special use… there’s little chance that there’s going to be an element of the business that isn’t well considered at any stage, or that you’ll be surprised by.”


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--Jewel-Osco president Paul Gossett quietly steps down just over a year into the job; former exec step

Jewel-Osco president Paul Gossett quietly steps down just over a year into the job; former exec steps in

Itasca-based Jewel-Osco , which has 188 stores mostly in the Chicago area , has held onto its 26 % market @ @ @ @ @ grocery market that has been pressured by intense price competition and the rise of delivery @ @ @ @ @ Mariano ’ s , it must contend with the growth of discount grocer Aldi , @ @ @ @ @ stores in the Chicago market and is attracting new shoppers with its remodels , and @ @ @ @ @ s Fresh Market , which is expanding into more suburbs .

Paul Gossett quietly stepped down as president of Jewel-Osco in the fall, just over a year after he took the reins of Chicago’s largest grocery chain following the sudden death of his predecessor, Doug Cygan.
Gossett, a longtime Albertsons executive who moved to the Chicago area from the Boston area for the job, “left the company to pursue other opportunities,” Mary Frances Trucco, a spokeswoman for Albertsons-owned Jewel-Osco, confirmed in an email Tuesday. The company did not publicly announce the leadership change when it happened and Trucco did not provide any other information about Gossett’s departure.
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Mike Withers, who served as president of Jewel-Osco from 2014 to 2017, has returned to take Gossett’s place, Trucco said. Withers, who started with Albertsons in 1976 as a courtesy clerk, since 2017 has served as executive vice president of retail operations for Albertsons’ East region, based out of the company’s Boise, Idaho headquarters.
Gossett, 58, had been leading the Albertsons-owned Shaw’s and Star Market grocery chains in the Boston area when he was tapped to succeed Cygan, whom he called a “friend and confidant.” Cygan, a well-liked Albertsons lifer who had become president of Jewel-Osco just a year earlier, died July 5, 2018, at the age of 55 after a brief illness.
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Gossett’s LinkedIn page lists his role as president at Jewel-Osco as ending in October. It doesn’t list a new job. Public records show he and his wife, Lori, bought a house in Batavia in October 2018. Gossett could not be reached Tuesday.
Itasca-based Jewel-Osco, which has 188 stores mostly in the Chicago area, has held onto its 26% market share in a crowded local grocery market that has been pressured by intense price competition and the rise of delivery. In addition to Kroger-owned Mariano’s, it must contend with the growth of discount grocer Aldi, which has expanded to 160 stores in the Chicago market and is attracting new shoppers with its remodels, and independent grocers like Pete’s Fresh Market, which is expanding into more suburbs.


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--Crews rescue coyote from Monroe Harbor

Crews rescue coyote from Monroe Harbor

Fire Department crews were dispatched to the area about 11:20 a.m. to help with an animal in the water , @ @ @ @ @ Langford .
Fire crews rescued the animal , said fire spokesman Larry Merritt .

Chicago firefighters comfort a coyote that was rescued from Lake Michigan near Randolph Street and Lake Shore Drive on Jan. 7, 2019. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
Emergency crews rescued a coyote from Monroe Harbor in downtown Chicago midday Tuesday, authorities said.
Marine unit officers responded to a marine distress call regarding an animal in the water in the 100 block of North Lake Shore Drive, according to police spokeswoman Kellie Bartoli. Two animal control units also responded.
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Fire Department crews were dispatched to the area about 11:20 a.m. to help with an animal in the water, said Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford. Fire crews rescued the animal, said fire spokesman Larry Merritt.
The animal could be seen on a stretcher Tuesday afternoon, wrapped in a blanket, next to Monroe Harbor .
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This afternoon, CACC received a call for an assist from the Chicago Fire Department Marine Unit / Dive Team who saw a... Posted by Chicago Animal Care and Control on Tuesday, January 7, 2020
When animal control officers arrived, the Fire Department was able to pull “the young coyote from the water, put him on a gurney with blankets to warm him up!” animal control officials said in a Facebook post. “The coyote was transported to CACC, and our partner Flint Creek Wildlife Rehabilitation will be picking him up...”


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--Peppa Pig playland to open this summer in former Rainforest Cafe site at Woodfield Mall

Prices have not been finalized but will be similar to those at locations in Texas and Michigan , where tickets @ @ @ @ @ under 8 years old start at $ 22.50 for a two-hour visit .
The Woodfield @ @ @ @ @ a cafe and Peppa Pig-themed store .

The Rainforest Cafe on Thursday, Dec. 19, 2019 at Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg. The restaurant, which closed Jan. 1, will be replaced with Peppa Pig's World of Play, an indoor play center for preschool-age children. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
Rainforest Cafe’s red-eyed tree frog and gorilla are out at Woodfield Mall. Now, it’s Peppa Pig’s turn.
Peppa Pig’s World of Play, based on the hit kids’ animated television show, is moving into Rainforest Cafe’s old space at the Schaumburg mall this summer.
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The 15,000-square-foot space, designed for preschool-age children, will have 14 play areas based on the show, which follows the adventures of a 4-year-old British pig, her family and friends with names like Suzy Sheep and Rebecca Rabbit.
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Woodfield Mall will be the third Peppa Pig-themed play center in the U.S., operated by U.K.-based Merlin, which runs theme parks and attractions in 25 countries, including Legoland Discovery Center, which also has a Schaumburg location.
“By giving fans a unique opportunity to step into the incredible world of this hugely popular little piggy and encouraging them to discover, explore and play together, we are confident that Peppa Pig World of Play will become a popular destination for families in the Chicago area," Ben Brinded, group development director at Merlin Entertainments, said in a news release.
Peppa Pig is coming to Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg. (Associated Press)
Prices have not been finalized but will be similar to those at locations in Texas and Michigan, where tickets for an adult and child under 8 years old start at $22.50 for a two-hour visit. The Woodfield Mall location will also have a cafe and Peppa Pig-themed store.
Woodfield Mall’s Rainforest Cafe closed Jan. 1 when its lease expired, according to parent company Landry’s Restaurants. The company said it was working to relocate employees to other restaurants in the area including Rainforest Cafes in Chicago and Gurnee, Morton’s The Steakhouse, McCormick and Schmick’s, Bill’s Bar and Burger, and Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.
Rainforest Cafe opened at Woodfield in 1995. The chain also has locations in Gurnee and downtown Chicago.
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lzumbach@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--Masked thieves steal $20,000 in purses from Louis Vuitton store at Northbrook Court mall, police say

In a quick incident described by Northbrook authorities as happening in “ just a matter of seconds , ” the @ @ @ @ @ at 7:30 p.m. , grabbed about 10 purses , and ran outside to a white @ @ @ @ @ sedan fleeing east at a “ very high rate of speed ” on Lake Cook @ @ @ @ @ village news release Tuesday .

The Louis Vuitton store at Northbrook Court mall in Northbrook was targeted by what witnesses describe as scarf-wearing male teenagers who stole about $20,000 worth of merchandise on Jan. 6, 2020. (Alexandra Kukulka / Pioneer Pres / Pioneer Press)
Five people with scarves over their faces stole thousands of dollars worth of merchandise from the high-end Louis Vuitton store at Northbrook Court Mall in Northbrook Monday night, authorities said.
In a quick incident described by Northbrook authorities as happening in “just a matter of seconds,” the five suspects entered the store at 7:30 p.m., grabbed about 10 purses, and ran outside to a white sedan. Officers saw the sedan fleeing east at a “very high rate of speed” on Lake Cook Road, according to a village news release Tuesday.
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The purses were worth $20,000, Northbrook Deputy Chief Dan Strickland said in the release. Witnesses described the suspects as male teenagers wearing scarves over their faces, according to the release. No one was injured.
Surveillance footage provided by the Northbrook Police Department shows masked individuals in Northbrook Court mall Jan. 6, 2020. They are suspects in a "grab and run" theft at the Louis Vuitton store at the mall, located in Northbrook. The suspected shoplifters stole an estimated $20,000 worth of items from the luxury store. (Northbrook Police Department / HANDOUT)
Surveillance footage provided by the Northbrook Police Department shows suspected thieves and their vehicle Jan. 6, 2020 who are believed to committed a "grab and run" theft at the Louis Vuitton store at Northbrook Court mall in Northbrook. (Northbrook Police Department / HANDOUT)
This video by the Northbrook Police Department shows what police say is the vehicle five thieves sped off after stealing merchandise from Louis Vuitton. (Northbrook Police Department)
Northbrook police are in contact with the Chicago Police Department, but authorities don’t know yet if it was related to a Chicago incident about 24 miles away that also occurred Monday night, the release stated.
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A group of masked thieves stole merchandise from the Louis Vuitton store on the city’s Magnificent Mile Monday night, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Five to six men wearing masks entered that store, located in the 900 block of North Michigan Avenue, around 6:50 p.m. and snatched merchandise before running out the front door, according to Chicago police. The loss in that incident has been estimated at $50,000.
“We can’t say Northbrook is related to this incident at this time but we are looking into all possibilities,” Karie James, of the Chicago Police Department, said in an email Tuesday.
A cab driver saw the thieves get into a black SUV, which was a stolen vehicle, according to Chicago police officials.Police explained that the SUV headed north on Michigan Avenue.
As of Tuesday afternoon, no arrests had been made in either incident, according to police.
A representative of Northbrook Court mall directed media inquiries to the Northbrook Police Department. “This was an unfortunate incident and we are working with our tenant and our partners at the Northbrook Police Department on this developing investigation,” Rachel Wille, of Brookfield Properties, said in an email Tuesday. Brookfield Properties owns the mall.
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Representatives for Louis Vuitton did not respond to requests for comment about the thefts. The high-end retail brand is headquartered in Paris, with offices in the United States.
akim@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @annakreports


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--From fake lottery winnings to Social Security scares, North Shore police say residents of all ages a

From fake lottery winnings to Social Security scares, North Shore police say residents of all ages are being targeted in sophisticated phone scams

The offender told the victim that her computer had been hacked , and that in order to repair it , @ @ @ @ @ cards and provide him with the access codes .
The victim complied , and purchased @ @ @ @ @ cards and provided the scammer with the access codes , which were then immediately used @ @ @ @ @

From a bogus Beijing police sting to a phony Apple computer repair scheme, North Shore police officials say residents have been fleeced out of thousands of dollars in recent weeks as targeted victims of increasingly sophisticated phone and internet scams.
“Most people are trusting in nature, and when they get an email or phone call from someone who is allegedly in trouble with the police, or has been admitted into the hospital, they are eager to help,” Winnetka Deputy Police Chief Brian O’Connell said.
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In 2019, the village had 17 residents who reported losses totaling thousands of dollars from phone or email scams, the majority of which were requests for money made from familiar emails or phone numbers that had been hijacked by the scam artists, O’Connell said.
And those financial losses were just a fraction of the total number of incidents where residents contacted police to report suspicious phone calls and emails throughout the year, especially during tax season, when so-called IRS scams are rampant nationwide, O’Connell said.
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In nearby Wilmette, one of the most recent scams involved a resident who reported that she was a victim of a phone scam in which the offenders claimed to be the Beijing police, Deputy Police Chief Patrick Collins said.
After asking the victim to install the WhatsAPP messaging application on her phone, the offenders carried out conversations through the app, demanding that the victim provide photos of her passport, her Chinese ID card, Social Security number, and all her banking information.
The scam concluded after the offenders convinced the victim to make wire transfers in the amount of $38,000, police said.
North Shore police officials say residents are increasingly being targeted by sophisticated phone scams. (Jenny Kane / AP)
“Foreign nationals can be targeted by offenders who have their information from a public records search, with the victim falling for the scam because they are threatened with deportation or arrest if they don’t comply,” Collins said.
Another recent scam targeting a Wilmette resident unfolded last month, with the victim reporting to police that they had been contacted via the telephone by an unknown person purporting to be an Apple technician.
The offender told the victim that her computer had been hacked, and that in order to repair it, she needed to purchase gift cards and provide him with the access codes. The victim complied, and purchased $5,500 worth of gift cards and provided the scammer with the access codes, which were then immediately used to redeem the cards.
“Anytime anyone is asking you to buy gift cards, or looking for wire transfers, those are all red flags," said Collins, who suggests that any resident being solicited for money by phone or email should immediately contact their local police department, where officers are trained to detect financial scams.
Still, even when a victim has been warned by police that a phone call or email request is definitely a scam, the allure of easy money can be a powerful emotion, leading some residents to make impulsive and financially devastating decisions.
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Such was the case of a Wilmette resident who years ago visited the police station to report they had received an email announcing they were winners of roughly $1.5 million from an alleged Canadian lottery, and needed to send around $30,000 to pay for taxes in advance of receiving their prize.
Collins recalled that police warned the resident that the alleged lottery winnings were fake, and she was being fooled by offenders perpetrating an increasingly common scam.
“We convinced her the first time she got a message that it was a scam, but then a short time later, they made contact again, and this time, she was taken for the money," Collins said.
“These scam artists are good at laying the foundation, and a resident who keeps getting contacted can start to think, ‘this deal is too good to pass up.’ The victim is acting on their emotional response, thinking, ‘I’ll be rich,’ or, ‘I can really use this money,’" he said.
According to the Federal Trade Commission website, “consumers should beware of fraudulent calls from imposters who identify themselves as government agents such as FTC employees or contractors.”
Even if real FTC employees’ names and phone numbers are used, these calls are scams, according to the website.
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Other common scams include:
The consumer has won a sweepstakes or lottery but has to send money to take delivery.
The consumer’s assets are frozen until a fake debt, fine or lien is paid.
The caller is going to help the consumer recover funds lost in a scam.
The caller claims to be collecting back taxes or immigration fees
Residents who receive a scam phone call or email can report the incident by filing a complaint at ftc.gov/complaint.
While the FTC cannot resolve individual consumer complaints, officials can offer victims tips to help them get their money back, according to the website.
In Glencoe, a resident lost nearly $17,000 in a phone scam in September 2019 after answering a call from an unknown person, who scammed the victim by falsely claiming that her Social Security number was involved in an identity theft, and telling her she had to pay for a new number, said Public Safety Deputy Chief Rich Weiner.
“There are all sorts of scams ... IRS, Social Security, and others, where the offenders are getting the victims’ personal information from dark web searches, where there’s compromised information for sale on the black market that has been stolen from data breaches,” Weiner said.
Above all, Weiner cautions residents to shed the assumption that victims of financial scams are primarily the elderly, or vulnerable individuals who who are unable to discern the truth from a scam.
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“When it comes to victims, it’s anybody from any background, age, profession and ethnicity,” Weiner said. “It’s people from all walks of life who are being hoodwinked into thinking something is legitimate, because the offender passed on at least one piece of information that rings true to them.”
Among the recently surfacing scams being perpetrated across the U.S. are fake emails telling a victim their password has been compromised, and demanding bitcoin, as well as messages threatening to release pornographic images allegedly taken from a victim’s video camera, Weiner said.
North Shore police officials say some phone scammers have posed as IRS officials. (Susan Walsh / AP)
Weiner said he is hopeful that a recently passed federal so-called robo call law, which aims to deter unsolicited robocalls with tougher penalties for perpetrators, will help dissuade telemarketers, who he said are intrusive, even when they are operating legally.
“I get at least a dozen calls a week, and most are recorded messages,” Weiner said, adding that even legal robo-calls can blur the line between legitimate inquiries and illegal activity, making it confusing for residents to detect an actual scammer when they call.
“If you have caller ID, and you don’t recognize the phone number or caller, don’t pick it up,” Weiner said, acknowledging that this approach can be tricky, as offenders are using increasingly sophisticated software that can “spoof” a phone number.
“Try to remember that if it’s really someone you know calling, and they need to get a hold of you, they will leave you a message,” Weiner said.
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Back in Winnetka, O’Connell said police have seen an uptick in reports the past five years of an array of scams, with victims representing, “a wide range of ages, both male and female.”
“Most people are eager to help those in need, and unfortunately, these offenders are taking advantage of people who have good spirits and are goodhearted,” O’Connell said.
For more information on how to report consumer scams, visit consumer.ftc.gov/features/scam-alerts.
kcullotta@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @kculllotta


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--Column: ESPN should drop Booger McFarland and Joe Tessitore as ‘Monday Night Football’ announcers

But in what can only be hoped is their last NFL telecast , each was terrible in uncharacteristic ways on @ @ @ @ @ , the Bills with the ball and down by three , their season on the @ @ @ @ @ go in the fourth quarter .

The final straw on ESPN's lead NFL announcing team — or as analyst Booger McFarland might put it, the last of a series of incidents that convinces you it makes no sense to continue — came during Saturday’s Bills-Texans playoff game in the closing seconds of regulation.
A lot of people ding McFarland for stating the obvious, just as the common criticism of play-by-play partner Joe Tessitore is that he is way too excited way too much of the time, nuance falling prey to bombast.
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But in what can only be hoped is their last NFL telecast, each was terrible in uncharacteristic ways on third-and-10 at the Texans 29, the Bills with the ball and down by three, their season on the line with 15 seconds to go in the fourth quarter.
“I tell you what,” McFarland said. “If I’m (Bills coach) Sean McDermott at this point, you almost just want a quick draw play, get a few yards, spike it.”
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Not even McFarland’s harshest critics would say his suggestion was obvious, mainly because it defied all logic.
A draw for just a few yards on third down followed by spiking the ball on fourth down would give the Texans the ball and the game.
Booger McFarland advocating a draw on third down to “get a few yards” and then spike it on 4th down. He’s actually paid for this stuff. — Simon Clancy (@SiClancy) January 5, 2020
Tessitore, who has a tendency to speak in all caps, meanwhile, responded only with a subdued, “Third-and-10,” the one time football fans across the country watching ESPN and ABC wanted him to crank it up to 11.
You know, maybe Tessitore could have boomed something along the lines of that being one of the dumbest ideas ever, but no.
McDermott’s Bills, fortunate enough to not have to watch the game on TV, sensibly tried another pass, then kicked a 47-yard field goal to tie the Texans 19-19.
The Texans ultimately won the game in overtime with a field goal of their own in sudden death, ending the football year for both the Bills and ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” announcing team.
At the risk of hypocritical obviousness and obnoxiousness, we’ll simply say it would bother few if this were the end of ESPN’s Tessitore-McFarland era.
Joe Tessitore and Booger McFarland are the real life version of Cotton McKnight and Pepper Brooks from Dodgeball. — Justin Russo (@FlyByKnite) January 5, 2020
In their first season on “MNF,” once-and-future Cowboys tight end Jason Witten was so badly miscast as an analyst with them that it took heat off every other aspect of the show.
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Clearly, problems remained in Season 2.
In its big pro football and baseball showcase programs, ESPN has a knack for obscuring the games it’s supposed to cover by larding its telecasts with fancy graphics, special camera angles, hype and other tinsel.
The Booger Mobile rolling up and down sidelines — and in front of ticket-buyers — in 2018? Really? Did that really seem like a good idea or just expensive?
ESPN often seems more interested in trying to impress the NFL with all the resources it devotes to “Monday Night Football” than in serving viewers, who typically prefer depth to volume.
Louder and flashier has never trumped cogent competence, which brings us back to Tessitore and McFarland.
As it turned out, without Witten around, it became abundantly clear they weren’t all that great, either.
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ESPN has a veritable army of football play-by-play announcers from which to choose. Why not go with someone who dials up (or down) the enthusiasm as events warrant to better convey what’s actually going on?
Tessitore burned hot and stayed there, wearing the audience out over 3½ hours, especially when the action couldn’t match his call.
It’s the playoffs and Joe Tessitore is *still* too excited over everything, amazing — Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) January 4, 2020
As for McFarland, how about he switch with rock-solid, razor-sharp pregame/halftime show contributor Louis Riddick, and everyone calls it a day?
Live game coverage isn’t for everyone. McFarland fell into a habit of speaking more to fill the silence than improve it. The result was insights such as “Your playmakers have to make plays” and explaining that a two-point conversion with a one-point lead would make it a three-point game.
McFarland nevertheless had his moments. He unhesitatingly called out NFL officials for blown calls during a Monday night Packers-Lions game he and Tessitore worked in October.
Those miscalls, too, may have seemed obvious to many, but not everyone with a microphone will take such a firm stand on something that makes the league look bad. The default is to give the refs wiggle room.
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Not everyone with a say will take a stand on something that makes a network look bad either.
A new “MNF” graphic that confused viewers was ditched after just two quarters this season, but correcting more significant mistakes can take longer. Bailing on an announcing team can be as hard as giving up on a young quarterback who hasn’t panned out.
Still, the need for offseason changes in the “Monday Night Football” booth seems obvious, or as Booger would say … oh, never mind.


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--From its humble beginnings 15 years ago, the Tomorrow Never Knows festival is now a big thing

One of the year ’ s most exquisitely curated , perhaps-excessively-tasteful music festivals , TNK has hosted a handful of @ @ @ @ @ , Father John Misty ) in the course of its impressive run .
You probably @ @ @ @ @ with any show in the 2020 lineup , but in case you can ’ t @ @ @ @ @ a night by night guide to the best of the fest :

Singer-songwriter Melissa Harris, who records as Born Days, is one of the most promising local artists performing at the five-day Tomorrow Never Knows fest. (Rachel Winslow)
Tomorrow Never Knows began life in 2005 as a mid-winter micro festival with an eye toward up-and-comers. Fifteen years later, it’s a local standby that stretches over five days and venues, having expanded from early outposts Lincoln Hall and Schubas to include Metro, the Hideout, and Sleeping Village.
One of the year’s most exquisitely curated, perhaps-excessively-tasteful music festivals, TNK has hosted a handful of pre-breakout stars (Bon Iver, Father John Misty) in the course of its impressive run. You probably can’t go wrong with any show in the 2020 lineup, but in case you can’t decide, what follows is a night by night guide to the best of the fest:
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WEDNESDAY
Born Days
Where: Lincoln Hall, in the middle of a bill with Desert Liminal and Caroline Polachek.
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In a sentence: The nom de project of Lincoln Square singer-songwriter Melissa Harris, who specializes in reverb-heavy electronic pop.
Why you should go: This smart, female-fronted lineup of dark wave, distortion-heavy dream pop and lush, modern pop is among the fest’s finest.
Check out: “Where We Live,” the title track to Harris’s new EP.
Taylor McFerrin
Where: Overseeing a Schubas date that includes Harriet Brown, CJ Run, and Wyatt Waddell.
In a sentence: McFerrin, a beatboxer, Electric Lotus compatriot and son of famed singer Bobby McFerrin, experimented with slightly-out-of-focus soul on his recent album, “Love’s Last Chance.”
Why you should go: If you like adventurous and expansive hip-hop and R&B. And get there early for local rapper and singer CJ Run.
Check out: The Anna Wise collaboration “Memory Digital.”
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THURSDAY
Sen Morimoto will perform at Sleeping Village. (John Khuu)
Ider
Where: Headlining a Schubas bill that includes Allday, Boy Bjorn and Zzo.
In a sentence: London flatmates Lily Somerville and Megan Markwick make a brooding, Haim-like noise on their harmony-heavy, electro-pop full-length debut, “Emotional Education.”
Why you should go: This TNK date, part of the duo’s first official North American tour, offers what might be a fleeting opportunity to see Ider while they’re still playing clubs.
Check out: “You’ve Got Your Whole Life Ahead of You Baby,” an “Emotional Education” highlight.
Sen Morimoto
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Where: Sleeping Village, opening a show which includes fellow local heroes Nnamdi Ogbonnaya and Lala Lala.
In a sentence: The Chicago-based multi-instrumentalist occupies a space somewhere in between jazz and rap on his omnivorous 2018 release, “Cannonball!”
Why you should go: Morimoto and Ogbonnaya are friends who co-parent the record label Sooper. It would not be unreasonable to expect onstage collaborations.
Check out: The shapeshifting “This is Not.”
FRIDAY
Singer-songwriter Stella Donnelly will perform at Lincoln Hall. (Pooneh Ghana)
Stella Donnelly
Where: Atop a Lincoln Hall bill featuring V.V. Lightbody and the Ophelias
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In a sentence: The Welsh-Australian singer-songwriter’s 2017 track “Boys Will Be Boys” became her breakout song, and a #MeToo anthem.
Why you should go: Donnelly has a reputation for fiery, funny live shows.
Check out: “Boys Will Be Boys,” from her official 2019 debut, “Beware of the Dogs.”
Modern Nature
Where: Headlining a Schubas bill that includes Hannah Cohen, Toth, and Olden Yolk
In a sentence: This minimalist folk supergroup includes members of Ultimate Painting, Beak, and Woods.
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Why you should go: If you like thoughtful, occasionally delicate country-folk and introspective psych rock, you’re not going to do much better.
Check out: Frontman Jack Cooper has compared his group’s breakout track “Nature” to the works of seldom-cited British folk heroes Fairport Convention.
SATURDAY
Resavoir
Where: Lincoln Hall, headlining a bill with Valebol and Luke Titus.
In a sentence: Whitney’s Will Miller moonlights as the trumpet-playing leader of this experimental jazz group.
Why you should go: Resavoir is a sprawling collective that encompasses some of the city’s finest players, including keyboardist/vocalist Akenya Seymour.
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Check out: The title track to their first, self-titled full-length.
Hand Habits
Where: Topping a Schubas showcase that includes Fran, Garcia Peoples and Fauvely
In a sentence: The brainchild of singer-songwriter Meg Duffy (who identifies as non-binary), Hand Habits released its latest album of ruminative Americana, “placeholder,” last year.
Why you should go: While Duffy is an absorbing live performer, there isn’t a clunker in this lineup. Come early for local dream pop stunner Fauvely.
Check out: “placeholder” standout “Can’t Calm Down.”
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SUNDAY
Will Miller of Resavoir will perform at Lincoln Hall. (Tim Nagle/Ground Control Touring)
Helltrap Nightmare
Where: At the Hideout for two shows with WHY? Footclan.
In a sentence: Expect a gross-out freak show, sketch comedy, drag queens, and a PowerPoint presentation; Helltrap contains multitudes.
Why you should go: After a years-long monthly residency at the Hideout, the beloved local weirdos moved to L.A. last fall. This is a rare opportunity to see them back on their former home turf.
Check out: This should give you some idea of what you’re in for.
Frances Quinlan
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Where: Sleeping Village, headlining a bill that includes Indigo De Souza.
In a sentence: Quinlan is the frontwoman of beloved Philadelphia band Hop Along, and one of indie pop’s great unheralded songwriters.
Why you should go: With Quinlan at the helm, Hop Along are (were?) famed for the energetic intensity of their live shows.
Check out: “Rare Thing,” the lead single from her upcoming solo debut, “Likewise.”
Allison Stewart is a freelance writer.
ct-arts@chicagotribune.com
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Twitter @chitribent
When: Wednesday to Jan. 19
Where: Times and locations vary
Tickets: Five day pass, $100. Individual show prices vary. WWW.tnkfest.com


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--3 takeaways from the Bulls’ 118-110 loss to the Mavericks, including the impact of Wendell Carter Jr

3 takeaways from the Bulls’ 118-110 loss to the Mavericks, including the impact of Wendell Carter Jr.’s ankle injury and Luka Doncic’s 3rd-quarter blitz

“ While I was lying down on the ground , I ’ m like , ‘ Man , this is @ @ @ @ @ was hurt last year . '
And it affected a lot of stuff for myself @ @ @ @ @ Carter said via NBA.com , referring to the season-ending thumb injury he suffered almost a @ @ @ @ @ just pray to God I can come back sooner .
My goal is to come @ @ @ @ @ end of this month .
That ’ s what I ’ m looking forward to @ @ @

Luka Doncic put a hurt on the Bulls they won’t soon forget in Monday’s 118-110 loss to the Mavericks in Dallas.
Doncic posted a triple-double and scored 21 of his game-high 38 points in the third quarter — when the Bulls typically retreat into their shell. This time it had more to do with Kris Dunn’s foul trouble.
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Lauri Markkanen toughed out an ankle injury and led the Bulls with 26 points in nearly 36 minutes.
“You’ve just got to fight through,” Markkanen said via NBC Sports Chicago. “I know it’s just how much pain I can tolerate. It was nothing really significant with that ankle. I was good to go.”
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Coach Jim Boylen praised Markkanen’s heart and looked for other silver linings in the Bulls’ fourth straight loss.
“I saw a lot of good things,” Boylen said via NBCSCH. “I like the way we ran. I think we had under 10 turnovers (they had nine) — we forced 15. We won the boards and a lot of good things.”
Here are three takeaways from the game.
1. Wendell Carter Jr.’s ankle injury puts the Bulls in a serious bind.
UPDATE: Wendell Carter Jr. sustained a right ankle sprain. X-rays were negative. He will not return tonight. pic.twitter.com/Sxay3rOknf — Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) January 7, 2020
Talk about bad luck with ankles.
Markkanen and Zach LaVine were game-time decisions with left ankle sprains and played through them.
And during the game, Daniel Gafford rolled his left ankle after landing on Tim Hardaway Jr.’s foot 40 seconds before halftime. Carter sprained his right ankle in a similar way while trying to defend Dwight Powell’s layup and was taken to the locker room in a wheelchair.
“X-rays were negative,” Boylen said after the game via NBCSCH’s broadcast. “So it’s an ankle sprain as of right now unless something else pops up.”
“While I was lying down on the ground, I’m like, ‘Man, this is the exact moment where I was hurt last year.' And it affected a lot of stuff for myself and my team,” Carter said via NBCSportsChicago.com, referring to the season-ending thumb injury he suffered almost a year ago. “I just pray to God I can come back sooner. My goal is to come back no later than the end of this month. That’s what I’m looking forward to right now.
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“But my mindset now is to come back by Wednesday (against the Pelicans in New Orleans). That’s just the kind of the person I am. I want to help my team, the sooner the better. But it hurts a lot. Do as much therapy as I possibly can. See if I can go Wednesday. That’s my mindset.”
He is scheduled to have an MRI on Tuesday.
The Bulls already have a paucity of frontcourt players with Otto Porter Jr. out with a broken foot and Chandler Hutchison playing Monday for the first time since Nov. 27. Hutchison had no points, rebounds or assists in six minutes.
Now, without Carter, they lose their best middle man on offense and defense.
Markkanen occasionally plays center, but he’s vulnerable as a rim protector and post-up defender. Gafford is a force as a shot blocker and rebounder, but his offensive game is limited.
Carter doesn’t have the all-around offensive game of some centers, but he’s the most versatile the Bulls have.
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Thaddeus Young could play center, but there are several reasons the Bulls might think better of starting him there if Carter misses extended time.
First, Carter has averaged 30 minutes, and Young, a 13-year veteran, has played 28 minutes or more only four times this season. It wouldn’t be wise to wear him out in an already arduous January.
Second, Young has been a revelation playing small forward — he had 11 points, nine rebounds and three steals Monday — and the Bulls might be reluctant to disrupt that newfound chemistry.
And third, the Bulls would be better served keeping Dunn’s defense with the first unit and Young’s offense and leadership with the bench. An already inconsistent second unit might struggle with a Coby White-Gafford-Hutchison lineup.
2. The Mavericks beat the Bulls with and without Luka Doncic.
Dunn picked up his fourth foul using his hands to get around a screen, and that forced the Bulls to replace him with Shaquille Harrison.
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It didn’t take long for Doncic to seize on the mismatch against the leaner Harrison, using his size and speed to beat him to the basket or daring him to come up to defend the 3 and punishing him with long bombs if he didn’t — such as the 29-footer Doncic launched over Harrison for his 14th point.
“When (Dunn) gets in foul trouble, we’re not as good defensively,” Boylen said via NBCSCH. “I thought Shaq played his heart out.”
On defending Doncic, Boylen said: “You’ve got to live with some of those shots. Some nights they go in and some nights they don’t. I don’t want us fouling him. I don’t want us side-saddling him (letting Doncic get level with his defender)."
The Bulls squandered perhaps their best opportunity with Doncic and the rest of the Mavericks first unit sitting to start the fourth quarter and the Bulls fielding Tomas Satoransky, Dunn (then LaVine after Dunn picked up a fifth foul), Young, White and Gafford.
Jalen Brunson, Delon Wright and Max Kleber all hit 3s, and Justin Jackson added six points to push the Mavericks’ lead from four to 11 — all with Doncic seated.
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3. What is Jim Boylen implying about the Bulls’ skill level?
Boylen made a telling admission while trying to explain why his players missed open 3-pointers while the Mavericks rebounded those misses and made well-defended 3s on the other end.
“Sometimes a player’s skill level is important,” he said during the postgame address on NBCSCH.
First, when isn’t skill level important? Second, that sounds like an admission that the Bulls don’t possess the same skill as better teams, at least when it comes to consistently making 3s (they shot 29%) or getting rebounds.
In one particularly bad sequence, the Bulls were down 95-90 with less than nine minutes left when they allowed the Mavericks to grab two straight long rebounds of missed 3-pointers and then Wright made them pay when he hit the third try.
“That was a big part of the game,” Boylen said. “It was disappointing.”
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chicagotribune--2020-01-07--My worst moment: Michael Imperioli and performing the end of a play in the middle

“ I play Det .
Mike Sellitto , who was Lincoln ’ s partner at the time of his injury @ @ @ @ @ “ And now it ’ s several years later and I am kind of helping @ @ @ @ @ NYPD and solve crimes , but now in a different capacity .
I play more @ @ @ @ @ who grew up in New York and made his way through the ranks of the @ @ @ @ @ s very intellectual and cerebral and has this whole understanding of history and science .
@

Though most famous for playing the gangster Christopher Moltisanti on “The Sopranos,” Michael Imperioli has a long resume of cop roles as well, from “Law & Order” to “Life on Mars” to “Detroit 1-8-7.”
That continues with NBC’s “Lincoln Rhyme: The Hunt for the Bone Collector,” based on the Jeffery Deaver novel about a forensic criminalist (Russell Hornsby in the title role) who experiences life-changing injuries while on the job, but is coaxed back to work from home using his intelligence and skills of observation and deduction.
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Michael Imperioli plays Det. Mike Sellitto in NBC’s “Lincoln Rhyme: The Hunt for the Bone Collector." (Peter Kramer/NBC)
“I play Det. Mike Sellitto, who was Lincoln’s partner at the time of his injury,” Imperioli said. “And now it’s several years later and I am kind of helping Lincoln come back to the NYPD and solve crimes, but now in a different capacity. I play more of an instinctual street guy who grew up in New York and made his way through the ranks of the NYPD, whereas Lincoln’s very intellectual and cerebral and has this whole understanding of history and science.”
Imperioli calls the series “very well-written, high-stakes, strange and off-beat.”
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When asked to share a worst moment in his career, he talked about performing in a play several years back in New York. “It was in the Studio Theater at Fordham University at Lincoln Center. For a while I pretended I was a student there so I could be in their plays.”
My worst moment …
“I was doing a play called ‘The Woods’ by a Chicago native, David Mamet. This was a long time ago, probably 30 years ago. And ‘The Woods’ is a two-character play, a man and a woman at a lakeside cabin. It’s a two-act play and they’re both on stage the whole time so there’s nowhere to hide — it’s just us talking to each other.
From left: Michael Imperioli and Russell Hornsby in “Lincoln Rhyme: The Hunt for the Bone Collector." (Barbara Nitke/NBC)
“Somewhere in the run of the play, I think it was not long after it opened, toward the end of the first act one night, I’m really into it and putting my all into it — and my co-star is looking at me very strangely. And she’s responding to my lines very hesitantly. And I’m thinking, ‘What is her problem? Is she forgetting her lines?’
"I’m just going full-force, ya know? And she’s giving me these odd looks. She’s responding correctly, but it’s very half-hearted and I’m like, she’s blowing it! What’s the matter with her? I shouldn’t have done this play with her! What’s her problem? I was mad at her. Like: She’s an amateur, why am I acting with these college students when I’ve already been off-Broadway? Which was true, I had already done some stuff off-Broadway and here I am acting with these college kids.
“And I reach the last line of the first act and I walk off stage for intermission. And the minute I get backstage, before I even confront my co-star — because I’m about to say, ‘What’s your problem? Get it together, we have a big audience out there!’ — the moment I get into the wings I realize that I’m the one who blew it because I just forced my co-star to perform the end of the play with me.
“Like, there were 10 minutes left in the first act and somewhere in there I switched gears and I started doing the end of the play instead of the end of the first act.
Michael Imperioli (right) with Dennis Farina on set taping an episode of "Law & Order." (Bill Denver/AP)
“And I just went white. And a cold sweat came over me. I was horrified. That feeling is the worst thing you can imagine. It’s a college studio theater, yes, but you still take these things very seriously. And I just remember that feeling of absolute horror.
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“And my co-star is staring at me and I go, ‘I know what happened.’ (Laughs) And we have this intermission to somehow negotiate: OK, we can’t really repeat those lines because the audience just saw them, so what do we do? So we decided, when we get to the last 10 minutes of the second act we’ll make something up.
“So we made it up and improvised on the spot a new ending to the great David Mamet’s play ‘The Woods’ — I hope he doesn’t read this article because (laughs) it’s not something I’m proud of, to be honest — but nobody in the audience really noticed that we created an alternate version of the ending.”
Had Imperioli done improv before that night?
“A little bit. A bunch of students from my acting class, we started two companies — one was a theater company that produced plays, and the other one was this experimental group that did improv. Not so much improv comedy so much as improvisational acting exercises.
“So I had a little experience doing it, but not much.
Michael Imperioli and James Gandolfini in a scene from HBO's "The Sopranos." (BARRY WETCHER / Associated Press)
“But this was improvising in the voice of David Mamet, keeping the vibe and the tone, which I guess we tried to do. It probably wasn’t very good (laughs). We somehow salvaged it because it wasn’t like people were throwing stuff at us and walking out.”
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The takeaway …
“Trust the person you’re acting with. Don’t be so adamant about your own convictions — if you see them having some kind of problem, maybe figure out what it is.
“Actors blank out all the time. It’s a lot more difficult when you’re on stage, obviously. But it happens where you’ll go up a bit (forget a line) and someone else will pick up the slack and help you get you back on track.
“But that’s such a different thing than what happened to me. I didn’t even know what was going on (laughs). But at least I jumped to another scene from the same play — it wasn’t like I started doing lines from Arthur Miller or Tennessee Williams and yelling, ‘Stella!’”
Michael Imperioli at a screening of the final season of HBO's "The Sopranos" in 2007 at Radio City Music Hall in New York. (STEPHEN CHERNIN / Associated Press)
nmetz@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--XFL will take a 'Star Trek’ approach to rules when it kicks off next month

Adds Luck : `` As we went through this process , we had to keep in mind that players in @ @ @ @ @ in college , and a vast majority spent time in the NFL , some in @ @ @ @ @ to be somewhat selective in terms of innovations to adopt .
They need to be @ @ @ @ @ play fast .
We have had our coaches working with the players on all these @ @ @ @ @ do n't black out and think they are in a different league or back in @ @ @

NEW YORK — When the XFL debuts in February, it will take a "Star Trek" approach of going where no football league has gone before.
The eight-team league will have options for extra points worth one, two or three points. It will allow double forward passes behind the line of scrimmage.
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Kickoffs will look way different, in the name of both safety and excitement. Overtime will look like the NHL's version of settling matters with a "shootout.'' No coin tosses here, with each team getting up to five shots to score from the 5-yard line — similar to World Cup soccer shootouts.
Is it a catch at the sideline? Well, the officiating calls might be easier because the XFL will use the college rule of receivers needing only one foot in bounds rather than the NFL's two-feet rule.
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Speaking of officiating, there will be a dedicated ball spotter to ensure a faster tempo that comes with a 25-second play clock. A running clock, too, except in the final two minutes of each half. All replay reviews will be initiated by an officiating booth, with no coaches challenges.
To XFL Commissioner Oliver Luck, a former NFL quarterback and longtime football executive, a speedier game means a more entertaining one.
"From research we had done, fans think there's too much downtime and dead time. I suppose games have gotten longer," Luck says. "We wanted to take a step forward by going back to games under three hours based on all our fan research. More action and more plays speed it up.
"Our data analysts looked at hundreds of games. This makes sense from a flow perspective, TV perspective and fan perspective. And I am looking forward to as we launch, will our players be required to be in better shape? They'll be moving fast and playing with tempo. That is going to be neat; conditioning may play more of a role in our game."
The XFL kicks off on Feb. 8, the weekend after the Super Bowl, seeking more success than its predecessor in 2001 (one season) and last year's Alliance of American Football (less than a season). Its innovations could be a turn-on for fans who never tire of football. Or they could come off as gimmicks, though the XFL mantra is "no gimmicks — ever."
Luck and Fox analyst Dean Blandino, the former head of NFL officiating now overseeing XFL officiating, believe these and other changes are worth a try.
Such as the double forward pass.
"My thought as I watch the game develop, there are more quarterbacks out of the shotgun and already 6 yards back from the line," Luck explains. "You aren't wanting to throw a lateral to a receiver who would have to be 7 yards or more behind the line of scrimmage. I thought to myself that the traditional trick plays would be enhanced. ... We are excited to have that in the repertoire."
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The one-foot-in-bounds completions should ease the strain on pass catchers — and officials.
"When you look at the college rule versus the NFL," Blandino says, "it definitely is still a skilled play, but an easier play. But I will say there will be less replay reviews; it's easier to officiate looking for that one body part. I see less controversy in terms of catch/no catch."
Adds Luck: "As we went through this process, we had to keep in mind that players in our league will have played in college, and a vast majority spent time in the NFL, some in the CFL. We had to be somewhat selective in terms of innovations to adopt. They need to be teachable to our players to play fast. We have had our coaches working with the players on all these innovations to make sure they don't black out and think they are in a different league or back in college."
Luck and Blandino also note that the one-foot catch is safer because the receiver is not dragging his second foot, so he can roll to the ground in a true football fall.
Where fans (and bettors and fantasy players — yes, the XFL is likely to have those, too) might be most intrigued is after touchdowns are scored. There will be no PAT kicks in the XFL. Rather, a scoring team can go for one point from the 2-yard line, two points from the 5 or three points from 10.
Yep, a nine-point lead can be a one-possession game.
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"I think it brings strategy into a play that historically has been a simple decision," Luck says. "Even with the NFL moving the extra point kick further away, it's still a 93.6% success rate. A fait accompli.
"We think the tiered extra point brings an element of strategy that will be fascinating to watch. Potential points on the board are exciting plays and will add an exciting element to our game.
"One coach said he is thinking if his team scores on defense it is such a shift in momentum, and he would use those opportunities to go for three, even if in the first quarter."
Are all of the XFL’s changes going to be an enticement for fans? Luck, Blandino and company will begin finding out in a month.


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--What’s next for Tom Brady after an early playoff exit? Here are 5 potential landing spots.

`` Again , I just don ’ t know what ’ s going to happen and I ’ m not @ @ @ @ @ No one needs to make choices at this point .
I love playing football , @ @ @ @ @ team .
I ’ ve loved playing for this team for two decades and winning @ @ @ @ @ And again , I don ’ t know what it looks like moving forward , @ @ @ @ @ take it day by day . ''

Teammates and opponents, coaches and NFL executives, even most fans recognize that Tom Brady has nothing left to prove.
There might be one dissenting voice: Brady himself.
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Maybe that's why in the midst of the disappointment — and some discontent — with how the Patriots' season ended and how he performed in the second half of the schedule, Brady came pretty close to guaranteeing he will be back for a 21st season. At age 43.
Asked about retirement following the wild-card loss to the Texans, Brady said, "I would say it’s pretty unlikely, but, yeah, hopefully unlikely.''
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Later, to another question about his plans, Brady added:
"Again, I don’t want to get too much into the future and stuff. I mean, this team has fought hard. We battled every day, we tried to get better, we worked hard to improve, and I was proud to be a part of this team. Not only this year, but every year.
"Again, I just don’t know what’s going to happen and I’m not going to predict it. No one needs to make choices at this point. I love playing football, I love playing for this team. I’ve loved playing for this team for two decades and winning a lot of games. And again, I don’t know what it looks like moving forward, so we’ll just take it day by day.''
Brady doesn't need football any longer from a success standpoint. Not with a record six Super Bowl rings, four MVP honors in the big game, and three league MVP awards. Five years after he has retired, he'll be feted in Canton, Ohio as a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady speaks to the media following a loss to the Dolphins on Dec. 29, 2019. (Elise Amendola/AP)
He doesn’t need the money, either.
What he seems to require, like so many star athletes, is the competition that spices his existence. The adrenaline explosions. The challenges.
The locker room rapport. The practices. The game planning.
Brady surely knows there are few, if any, replacements outside of the game once he leaves the sport for good. Unlike the man he is most compared to among his contemporaries, Peyton Manning, Brady doesn't fit the off-field celebrity role Manning has embraced so well.
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So, barring physical ailments — and few football players ever have taken care of themselves the way Brady has — another year at the helm of the Patriots or another team appears doable. Here's a peek into which uniform Brady could wind up in for 2020.
Patriots
Obviously, remaining where he has spent the last two decades not only as the face of the franchise but for several years the face of the league is most logical. Or is it?
Maybe Brady would like to try replicating his New England successes with another coach. In part to show he can reach the top in a different system and a different city. In part to display that the Patriots' dynastic run was built on his brilliance more than anything.
Should he return to Foxborough, Brady can name his price. Does anyone see owner Robert Kraft balking? Especially after some of the "hometown discounts" Brady allegedly took in past negotiations?
He also would be wise to insist on better personnel around him after the drop-off in talent level at receiver and on the offensive line this season.
Chargers
Brady is a California guy; sure, it's NoCal, but he and his wife, super model Gisele Bundchen, would seem a perfect fit in SoCal.
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Philip Rivers comes off one of his worst seasons and the Chargers could be ready to move on from their long-time QB. Plus, what better way to move into their new home? They will be overshadowed by the Rams in SoFi Stadium — except with Brady behind center.
Bengals
Brady could play and tutor Joe Burrow. Nah, he's not likely to touch the NFL's worst team.
Bears
Brady at 53 might be more reliable than Mitchell Trubisky was this season. And, like New England, the Bears haveChicago has a top-shelf defense.
Cowboys
Maybe Dak Prescott isn’t the answer to America’s Team’s nearly quarter-century Super Bowl drought. We all know how much Jerry Jones likes to create headlines. What a doozy that would be in Big D.


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--There’s no more mocking Minnesota. And is that the best Michigan can do? Our final Big Ten football

There’s no more mocking Minnesota. And is that the best Michigan can do? Our final Big Ten football power rankings.

If only Chris Olave hadn ’ t broken off his route .
If only the SEC replay officials knew what @ @ @ @ @ only Shaun Wade hadn ’ t ducked his head ever so slightly on that blitz @ @ @ @ @ hadn ’ t dropped that screen pass .
This was the Big Ten ’ s @ @ @ @ @ The Buckeyes mauled Michigan , Penn State and Wisconsin ( twice ) .
They outgained @ @ @ @ @ They had a phenomenal season with an empty finish .

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chicagotribune--2020-01-08--Even with a court order, families struggle to find services for developmentally disabled adults: ‘We

Even with a court order, families struggle to find services for developmentally disabled adults: ‘We have great programs you just can’t get into them.’

“ The state to its credit is now , I think , looking very seriously at an issue that needed @ @ @ @ @ '' Taylor said .
“ Obviously the ideal would be that people would receive services @ @ @ @ @ 18 , and I wish we were at that point and hopefully we will be @ @ @ @ @ but what we ’ re trying to do is ensure that this is done responsibly @ @ @ @ @

Charlene Synoga has spent the past year searching in vain for someone to help her 23-year-old son Jason.
Nonverbal and on the severe end of the autism spectrum, Jason needs to be bathed, dressed, fed and constantly supervised. But Synoga wants more for her son. She wants him to learn “everyday skills” — washing the dishes, grooming himself, crossing the street, going to the grocery store — and is hoping to find a day program that will teach him.
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So far, she said she has been rejected by 12 programs. After she thought she finally found one, she said she then realized the provider was woefully understaffed: Two staff members working with 11 young adults with severe disabilities confined to a classroom.
“I want my son to be able to get back to his routine,” Synoga said. “His whole life has changed so much, he’s miserable. ... It’s so hard because this isn’t fair to him. He could still be learning things."
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Some of his medical conditions, including thyroid disease and severe psoriasis, have worsened recently, and she blames the stress he has been under since he finished school last year. Frustrated at being cooped up, he often hands her his coat over and over until she takes him for a drive around the neighborhood. Sometimes he hits himself on the head repeatedly or tries to run away. He has gained a lot of weight.
“You can see the boredom in his eyes,” she said.
Nearly 20,000 people with disabilities in Illinois are on a waiting list to receive state aid after they age out of the state’s public education system, the Tribune reported last month. Most wait years before they are selected.
While the state is working to reduce the wait time by making funding more readily available, many people are still being left in limbo. Once they are off the list, some like Jason, are being turned away by programs that don’t have enough room or staff to handle their needs.
A single mother, Synoga works full time at home. She uses the state aid she receives from the Department of Human Services to pay someone to watch Jason while she keeps searching for a program.
“It’s really, really hard,” she said. “Every day is a rough day. They’re our kids, we want what’s best for them. ... What is out there for the low-functioning?”
She said she’s considering moving to another state — a decision others in her situation have made.
Illinois ranks among the worst states in the country for how it cares for people with developmental disabilities, according to Ancor, a national association of more than 1,600 private providers of services to people with disabilities. Since 2011, the state has been under a federal court order to do better. The question is, how much better can the state afford to be?
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The state spends at least $400 million a year on services and aid for the developmentally disabled, according to Allison Stark, director of the Human Services Department’s division of developmental disabilities. She estimates Illinois would have to double that amount to eliminate the wait for services.
There aren’t enough community programs and group homes, said Stark, who served as CEO of a community provider before being hired by the state. Some providers, strapped for resources, are unwilling to accept people who need highly skilled care.
"There has been a significant lack of investment in our community capacity for service providers, so that is a huge component to this problem,” Stark told the Tribune. “We want to fund more families and individuals to services, but we need to have services that they can go into that they want.”
Advances in medical care are helping people with disabilities live longer, further straining resources, she noted. “I wish I had an easy answer for why Illinois is in the state that we’re in,” Stark said. “Part of it is that we’re now in the process of investing more than we probably have in the past, and there has been a renewed commitment to trying to address the wait list.”
‘Reasonable pace’
There are roughly 19,500 people on a waiting list the state keeps of those who want state aid and services. About 8,200 of them are actively seeking services and about 11,300 anticipate needing services sometime in the future. Generally, no one under 18 is selected unless there is a “crisis situation” such as homelessness or abuse or neglect, according to Stark.
Under a “reasonable pace” provision in the court order, the state has promised that by 2025, no person will wait more than five years after their 18th birthday to receive state aid to pay for home care, job coaches or other services. The current wait is as long as seven years. Stark said the department is on track to reach its target.
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But families will still likely have problems finding programs near them or staffed well enough. A monitor appointed by the federal court has found the department out of compliance several times over the availability and quality of group homes and day programs in some parts of the state. The monitor also found services lacking for people with intense medical, behavioral or physical needs, and inadequate monitoring of services.
Ronnie Cohn, the court monitor, said a study on the quality and availability of community services is underway, with results expected in February. She acknowledged that whittling down the wait list “really is not that meaningful if you have nowhere to go.”
Sherri Schneider runs Family Benefit Solutions, an organization that helps families navigate the complex benefit system and find services. Selection from the waiting list can feel like “winning the lotto,” but the thrill is short-lived for families who struggle to find programs that match their needs.
“They may say they’re taking people off the list, but there’s not enough services for all these people,” Schneider said. “Even though the state is selecting people, they’re not creating enough community capacity. … We have great programs, you just can’t get into them or there are not enough programs.”
One of Schneider’s clients was selected from the waiting list to move her son into a group home. She cares for him alone, and she occasionally is injured by his aggressive behavior. Sometimes he needs to go to the emergency room to be calmed down. The client has spent the last four years contacting and visiting agencies throughout the state, but no one will take him, Schneider said.
‘Scrambling for nothing’
There are more than 300 providers of adult services, but the availability and scope differ across the state and even across Chicago.
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Nancy Hughes’ son Zachary made it off the list months ago when his behavioral problems grew worse. He was physically harming himself and losing skills he had learned in school.
But Hughes said her son hasn’t received state funding yet because services must first be in place. “The program options for people on the South Side of Chicago are limited and don’t have the capacity to do individual services that many adults with autism need," Hughes complained.
Gary Hake, director of an agency that covers 31 counties in southern Illinois, said service providers there face the same issues. “They’re underfunded and having a hard time recruiting staff,” he said.
Ellen Garber Bronfeld said it took a year to set up funding for her son to work at Perk Center Cafe in Glenview, a not-for-profit coffee shop that provides employment and vocational training to people with developmental disabilities. It has taken other families she knows two to four years to find agencies that will take them.
Some parents have quit their jobs and sought better services out of state once their children aged out of public education, according to Garber Bronfeld, co-founder of IPADDUnite, a networking and advocacy group.
“Those with higher needs are often left scrambling for nothing,” she said. “All of a sudden, you’re 22 and there’s nothing.”
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To help people while they are still on the list, the state Department of Rehabilitation Services offers job training and employment support. The state also funds grants, including the Illinois Lifespan program, which provides information, resources and family support.
But again, the funding, availability and geographic reach are limited, according to Meg Cooch, CEO of Arc of Illinois, another advocacy group.
She said the state has improved the process in the past year. Families are notified six months before a person is expected to make it off the list so they can at least begin looking and planning.
However, schools differ in how much guidance and preparation they offer to parents as people transition from public education to adult services. In rural areas, especially, there can be a lack of communication between the state, schools and families.
“It’s a fragmented system,” Cooch said. “The disability services and schools don’t always communicate."
June Oosterhoff-Hoops works with the families of 14- to 21-year-old students at the Elim School in Palos Heights to ensure they’re on the wait list for services. When they’re selected, she helps them choose adult programs in the community.
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Since the court order, more of her students are getting access to funding. But a lot of them are being turned away from programs.
“What we’re finding is that many of our students get denied based on the fact that programs are saying we just don’t have support based on our current funding stream,” she said. “It’s frustrating for our families to have funding and get denied from multiple placements and they don’t know what to do.”
‘Not a minimum wage job’
Experts in the field say a key problem is the low reimbursement rates the state pays providers.
Caretakers in group homes and staff at day programs are barely paid minimum wage, which creates a revolving door of staff as administrators struggle to find qualified people.
“This is not a minimum wage job and yet they’re getting paid, sometimes, less than minimum wage,” said Schneider, of Family Benefit Solutions. “If I can make more at Taco Bell, why would I want to change someone’s diaper and help them out? … It’s a very hard job, and people quit.”
In Illinois, the average number of people living in a group home is up to the federal maximum of eight, compared with the national average of two to three, Schneider said. The quality of life can suffer in larger group homes because there aren’t enough staff to accommodate everyone.
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“If there are six people living in a group home and four wish to go bowling, due to low staffing levels it is common for everyone to have to go bowling even if they do not wish to,” she said.
One family has tried to move their son from a state-operated developmental center into a community group home three times, Schneider said. Each time he was moved back to the center because he didn’t have enough support. One of the times, there was funding for a staff professional to help their son but no funding for a rapid response team in case of a crisis.
“Many organizations are hesitant to serve more difficult cases due to the low rates and the inflexibility of the services that are vital to meet their needs but are not available,” Schneider said. “He didn’t fail, the system failed him. I believe everyone should be able to live where you want to live and eat when you want to eat and turn the lights on when you want to turn the lights on.”
One provider, who asked not to be identified, said the lack of resources forces agencies to make difficult decisions, including the closing of group homes. One of the homes was in Cook County and cared for eight people, several of them with intensive needs who required around-the-clock support.
With only one staff member working in the home at a time, the agency asked administrators to step in and lend a hand to support shifts.
To begin to remedy the issue, the state increased the reimbursement rate by 3.5%, retroactive to July, and initiated a study on rate structure, according to Barry Taylor with Equip for Equality, a major advocate for people with disabilities that’s been involved in the legal action. It has also hired an outside consultant make recommendations.
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“The state to its credit is now, I think, looking very seriously at an issue that needed looking at for decades," Taylor said. “Obviously the ideal would be that people would receive services as soon as they turn 18, and I wish we were at that point and hopefully we will be that down the road, but what we’re trying to do is ensure that this is done responsibly with the capacity."
The governor’s office released a statement saying, “it took years to get to where we are today” and that Gov. J.B. Pritzker was “working every day to ensure our government is working for those who need it most.” He gave no details.
Crossing state lines
Anne Higley’s son was diagnosed with autism when he was 3. For years the family lived in southern Illinois and traveled to St. Louis for his medical care. When he was in seventh grade, they moved to Bloomington, Indiana, in search of a more inclusive school system, better transition services, future employment opportunities and support for their son.
“We pretty much knew we would not receive those things in Illinois,” Higley said. “It’s a painful lack of services for families.”
Finding better options in Indiana, they decided to stay. Higley’s son, now 25, attends college where he’s studying criminal justice. He has access to tutors and will start receiving waiver services in January, which Higley said will allow him to receive behavioral support services and have someone to help him as a personal assistant.
According to the Department of Human Services, more than 1,353 people were removed from the wait list last year because they moved out of state. It’s not known how many of them left in search of better services, but Illinois ranked 44th in a recent report on how well states’ Medicaid programs serve people with developmental disabilities and their families.
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“We are behind in Illinois comparatively,“ said Josh Evans, president and CEO of Illinois Association of Rehabilitation Facilities. “But the benefit of being behind is we can look at what other states have done. … You can’t make these changes overnight.”
In Michigan, ranked 13th, there is no wait list for community-based services. Special education laws allow people to stay in school until 25. Services are supposed to begin within 14 days of a diagnosis, said Lynn Sutfin with the Michigan Department of Human and Health Services.
Wisconsin coordinates its home and community-based programs for people with developmental disabilities with the physically disabled and the elderly. This creates “a larger pool of funds to generate savings to support the continued expansion of home and community-based services and elimination of the wait list,” said Curtis Cunningham, assistant administrator for the state’s long-term care benefits and programs.
Wisconsin plans to eliminate the wait list by July 2021, he added.
After the Tribune reported on the length of the wait list, Taylor expressed concern that it would discourage people from signing up. He said those caring for adults with disabilities have more reason to be hopeful than they have in the past.
“I do have hope that the new administration is committed to improving the issues,” he said. “But it takes more than just philosophical commitment, it takes resources … fiscal commitment.”
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Nick’s future
In its story last month, the Tribune wrote about Nick Redfern who had been on the wait list for nearly seven years. Shortly after the story appeared, Nick’s mother got the call: Nick would be selected from the list in July.
Nick Redfern, who has autism, with his mother Susan Redfern in their Aurora home on Nov. 13, 2019. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
“Having the letter, having the notification that we can get things going … there will be some hope again,” Susan Redfern said.
While “cautiously optimistic,” she is bracing herself for more waiting as she searches for programs willing to take Nick, who needs one-on-one attention.
She wants a program that will allow her son to build relationships with others. “My hope for my son and all the others is that they get things going for them that are useful and fulfilling,” Redfern said, “And get them out in the community like everyone else.”
Twitter @MarieCFazio


chicagotribune--2020-01-08--Person shot on Stevenson Expressway ramp to Dan Ryan near Bridgeport

About 1:15 a.m. , a shooter opened fire on a vehicle containing three people on the I-55 Expressway ’ s @ @ @ @ @ I-90/94 Expressway , near the Bridgeport neighborhood , according to Illinois State Police .

One man was shot and another injured by flying glass that shattered when shots rang out, hitting their car early Wednesday on the South Side’s Stevenson Expressway ramp onto the Dan Ryan Expressway.
About 1:15 a.m., a gunman opened fire on a vehicle containing three people on the I-55 Expressway’s inbound ramp to the inbound I-90/94 Expressway, near the Bridgeport neighborhood, according to Illinois State Police.
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The UIC Police Department contacted Illinois State Police to speak with victims of the reported expressway shooting: the driver, who was shot and taken to Stroger Hospital and a front seat passenger injured by flying glass from the windshield breaking, state police said.
The driver suffered injuries that were not life-threatening, while the passenger’s condition has stabilized.
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A third male passenger declined medical treatment at the scene.
The I-55 northbound ramp to I-90 northbound was closed at 2:17 a.m. for investigation but was reopened at 4:27 a.m.
Anyone who witnessed the shooting or has knowledge of the shooting is asked to contact the ISP at 847-294-4400. Callers can remain anonymous.


chicagotribune--2020-01-08--2 men shot in drive-by attack on Lake Shore Drive near Oak Street exit

At Stroger Hospital , cars from both Chicago police and Illinois State Police filled the emergency department parking lot .
@ @ @ @ @ in one of the spots facing away from the building , its emergency lights still @ @ @ @ @ the shooting .
Two CPD squad cars guarded the car as officers inside the lobby @ @ @ @ @ to arrive .

Chicago police respond to Stroger Hospital to investigate a shooting that occurred Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020 in the 1000 block of North Lake Shore Drive. (Alice Yin/Chicago Tribune)
A drive-by shooting left two men wounded early Wednesday on North Lake Shore Drive near the Michigan Avenue exit by Oak Street.
About 1 a.m., someone in a silver sedan pulled up next to a Pontiac Grand Prix driving south in the 1000 block of North Lake Shore Drive and fired shots, according to Chicago police.
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A 24-year-old man and a 25-year-old man inside the Pontiac were struck and drove to Stroger Hospital on the Near West Side, police said.
The younger man suffered a gunshot wound to the left side of his body, and the other was shot in the left leg, police said. Their conditions were stabilized at the hospital.
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No one was in custody.
At Stroger Hospital, cars from both Chicago police and Illinois State Police filled the emergency department parking lot. A gray Pontiac was parked in one of the spots facing away from the building, its emergency lights still blinking over an hour after the shooting. Two CPD squad cars guarded the car as officers inside the lobby waited for an evidence technician to arrive.
ayin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--‘Underwater’ review: Kirsten Stewart gives a nod to Ellen Ripley in ' mash-up of ‘Alien,’ ’20,000 Le

‘Underwater’ review: Kirsten Stewart gives a nod to Ellen Ripley in ' mash-up of ‘Alien,’ ’20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'

Norah is a mechanical engineer aboard a large structure surrounding the Kepler ocean drill , which is in the business @ @ @ @ @ s crust searching for minerals like a hungry anteater .
She ’ s a cynical @ @ @ @ @ spiders from the sink , but she knows how to make the tough decisions too @ @ @ @ @ rocked by several massive jolts , she ’ s forced to sacrifice a couple of @ @ @ @ @ passageway to save the whole ship .
Soon it ’ s just a small group @ @ @ @ @ make their way down to the ocean floor and across to another drilling station , @ @ @ @ @ their vulnerable suits and the deadly pressure from the miles of water they ’ re @ @ @ @ @ dangerous thing to navigate , but they ’ re of course underestimating the real threats @ @ @ @ @

The opening shot of “Underwater” roves around the empty, industrial passageways of some kind of transport vessel, the walls creaking. Motivated by an unknown force, the camera’s pan ultimately lands on Norah (Kristen Stewart), who has cropped bleached hair and a mouthful of toothpaste, clad in her skivvies. Immediately the audience recognizes this will be Stewart’s “Ripley moment,” paying homage to Sigourney Weaver’s iconic role in Ridley Scott’s “Alien” (but at the bottom of the Mariana trench, rather than in outer space).
Norah is a mechanical engineer aboard a large structure surrounding the Kepler ocean drill, which is in the business of penetrating the Earth’s crust searching for minerals like a hungry anteater. She’s a cynical sort of savior, scooping spiders from the sink, but she knows how to make the tough decisions too. When the structure is rocked by several massive jolts, she’s forced to sacrifice a couple of colleagues while sealing off a passageway to save the whole ship. Soon it’s just a small group of survivors, hoping to make their way down to the ocean floor and across to another drilling station, the Roebuck. It seems their vulnerable suits and the deadly pressure from the miles of water they’re under will be the most dangerous thing to navigate, but they’re of course underestimating the real threats of what lie beneath.
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Written by Brian Duffield and Adam Cozad, the specter of “Alien” haunts “Underwater,” a damp riff off and tribute to the 1979 extraterrestrial horror thriller. One can imagine the pitch meeting: “It’s ‘Alien’ on the ocean floor!” But it hews so closely one can easily predict each story beat, each reveal, each jump scare. Director William Eubank distinguishes the formulaic film with a jittery artfulness rendered in shades of gray and green, but what elevates the B-movie is the presence of Stewart, who is both a movie star and a great actress. Although she sometimes seems to vacillate between the two poles (“Charlie’s Angels” vs. “Personal Shopper,” for example), in “Underwater,” she is both, bringing her cool élan to this monster movie under the sea.
Oh yeah, “Underwater” is a monster movie, but you knew that, right? This Lovecraftian tale takes the “Alien” structure and plunges it “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” with a nod to Neil Marshall’s claustrophobic 2006 cave horror flick “The Descent.” The result is something Jules Verne could only dream of, putting even the iconic Xenomorph to shame.
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The sickly green aesthetic and harried editing brings a queasy verve to the proceedings, and coupled with the cast (Stewart is joined by Vincent Cassel, John Gallagher Jr., Jessica Henwick, Mamoudou Athie and T.J. Miller), “Underwater” rises above its generic provenance. But as stylish as it is, and with as many deeply treacherous and inventive dilemmas as the group faces, the film is too faithful to the formula that it never achieves pulse-quickening suspense. It devolves into a grim box-checking as our final girl drags herself around the murky environs of the ocean floor. “Underwater” never quite breaches the surface from good to great, though this well-appointed creature feature proves to be an excellent showcase for Stewart’s screen presence.
“Underwater” — 2.5 stars
MPAA rating: PG-13 (for sci-fi action and terror, and brief strong language)
Running time: 1:35
Opens: Friday


chicagotribune--2020-01-07--Ask Amy: Bank worker is instructed to 'flirt'

Your gift to her could be something as simple as just getting in touch to say how happy you are @ @ @ @ @ getting married .
The choice to start a family with a beloved person is a @ @ @ @ @ and this should be celebrated .

Dear Amy: I brought a big client to the bank where I work. I partnered with a "relationship representative" (a female colleague) to build the account at the bank.
The rep informed me that she was having issues with the partnership and said she needed my help.
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I spoke to the client and we agreed to speak again at a later date.
Sometime after this, the rep and I saw him at a public event.
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I was truly shocked when the rep asked me to go "flirt" with the client.
I am gay, as is the man in question.
I am afraid to say something, as my position is too low, and I may be terminated.
What should I do?
— K
Dear K: You don't say how you responded to this request in the moment, but your colleague's suggestion is totally inappropriate, and you should register your discomfort.
Write down your account of exactly what happened, so you have a record, and take this to HR.
If you were terminated for bringing a very reasonable concern to the administration's attention, then you would surely have a case of wrongful termination that I assume any employment lawyer would be happy to take.
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I understand that banking is a "go-go" industry. Your bank's "relationship rep" might skirt all sorts of boundaries in order to keep major clients happy, but if she can't manage this professional relationship without calling upon you to flirt with the client, then she isn't very good at her job.
She could very easily claim that this was a joke. The word "flirt" can have nonsexual connotations. Regardless of her intent, she should not make comments like this, or attempt to use you in this way.
You brought this big client to the bank, and your doing so means that you are valuable to the bank. Don't underestimate your own value, both as an employee and as a person.
Dear Amy: My sister committed suicide after a complicated life, contentious divorce and child custody battle.
Her horrible ex-husband has always blamed me for her suicide.
I tried to help her and was dedicated to her (not him), while living abroad.
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Their daughter, 21, who I am in touch with and see when I am in the U.S., is getting married, but she did not tell me, which is disappointing.
Her dad forbade her from inviting me. She accidentally revealed it on Facebook.
Should I get her a present?
— Loving Aunt
Dear Aunt: I'm very sorry for this loss to your family. When people die by suicide, their death creates tremendous trauma, heartbreak, and relational challenges for survivors.
After your sister's death, your niece was left with one parent, who you describe as "horrible." She is only 21 years old, and she has already been through a lot.
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I don't think this question is really about a wedding present. But to answer your question -- yes, you should definitely give her a gift.
Your gift to her could be something as simple as just getting in touch to say how happy you are to learn that she is getting married. The choice to start a family with a beloved person is a positive one for her, and this should be celebrated.
Express your desire to meet her significant other at some point in the future, and don't put any pressure on her regarding being invited to the wedding.
Extended family members can be important heroes to their younger family members -- especially when there is loss and grief in the picture. You may never know the extent of your positive influence on your niece, but you should continue to attempt to keep the relationship going.
Dear Amy: More feedback to "Seen it All" about how customer service personnel should handle irate clients. I was in customer service for over 30 years.
The abusive customer is well aware of their demeanor, and might have it well practiced.
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Ask Amy Daily No-nonsense advice for better living delivered to your inbox every morning. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy >
The best way to get past the ire is to let the aggrieved customer have their say (rant), apologize, and then ask, "What would you like me to do?"
This approach reliably defuses the situation. The complainer is distracted and taken "off their script" in order to reconsider their demand.
— Really Seen It All
Dear Really: I receive a lot of upset, irate, and (sometimes) abusive "feedback" to my work. I agree that how you receive this can transform the experience. People really do need to be heard. "What would you like me to do?" is the perfect response.
Get the latest no-nonsense advice for better living delivered to your inbox every morning with our Ask Amy newsletter. Sign up here.
(You can email Amy Dickinson at askamy@amydickinson.com or send a letter to Ask Amy, P.O. Box 194, Freeville, NY 13068. You can also follow her on Twitter @askingamy or Facebook.)
Copyright 2019 by Amy Dickinson
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chicagotribune--2020-01-07--Dylan Strome leaves with a right ankle injury as the Blackhawks lose 2-1 to the Flames

The Hawks already have lost Brent Seabrook and Calvin de Haan for the season and are playing without the injured @ @ @ @ @ , Andrew Shaw and Drake Caggiula .
Losing Strome would be another huge blow to @ @ @ @ @ , who failed to pull within four points of the final wild-card spot in the @ @ @

The Predators already had lost. The Canucks also finally lost, got blown out even, after winning seven in a row.
All the Blackhawks had to do was take care of business at home against the Flames and it would have been a perfect night for them in the Western Conference wild-card race.
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But they failed to hold on to an early lead and failed to score the tying goal despite a late push, falling to the Flames 2-1 on Tuesday night at the United Center.
With a win the Hawks would have leaped in front of the Predators, pulled into a tie with the Wild and moved within four points of a playoff spot. Instead, they’re deeper in a hole after one more chance at two points evaporated.
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The standings aren’t at the forefront of Duncan Keith’s mind, but he’s certainly paying attention to them.
“I don’t know about every night, but yeah, definitely aware (of the standings),” he said. “Have to have some awareness of our situation. It’s going to be a tight one all the way.”
Not if the Hawks, one of five teams in the league whose home points percentage is .500 or lower, keep losing at the United Center.
Here are three takeaways from Tuesday's loss:
1. Losing Dylan Strome for even a few games would be a big blow.
It’s still too early to know how much time Dylan Strome will miss with a right ankle injury, but even a few games could have a profound impact on the Hawks season.
The Hawks already have been playing without forwards Brandon Saad, Andrew Shaw and Drake Caggiula, so losing Strome — whose 30 points are tied for third on the team with Alex DeBrincat — would force them to dig deeper into an already thin bench.
Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 14 Flames defenseman Oliver Kylington skates away as Blackhawks center Dylan Strome loses his balance in the second period. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)
Coach Jeremy Colliton said the Hawks would know more Wednesday and “we’ll know if it’s days or weeks.”
Days they may be able to overcome. But weeks? At some point the entirety of the injuries will be impossible to overcome, if they aren’t already.
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2. Penalties hurt the Hawks, even if they didn’t give up any power-play goals.
It’s hard to kill any five-on-three power plays, but when a team has to kill two of them — and both are well over a minute long — it takes its toll.
The Hawks managed to keep the Flames from scoring in the second period when they had 1:05 with a two-man advantage and then again in the third when they had 1:17 with a five-on-three. But with the Hawks already down a man with Strome out of the game, it wasn’t possible to regain the momentum they had during the first period.
The Hawks had 14 shots in the first period when they took a lead on Dominik Kubalik’s 13th goal of the season but managed just 18 over the final two periods.
“Obviously, it’s huge to kill it because it kept us in the game, but it’s hard on the guys we’re using,” Colliton said. “It was a game where we seemed to need every bit of energy, especially when you get the short bench, so not something we wanted to do.”
3. Besides Patrick Kane, Dominik Kubalik has been the Hawks’ best position player the last two weeks.
When Brandon Saad injured his right ankle in the second period against the Jets on Dec. 19, Dominik Kubalik didn't waste any time helping to fill the void.
Kubalik scored in the third period to help spark a 4-1 comeback win over the Jets, and he has 10 points (five goals, five assists) in his last nine games while Saad has been out.
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The Hawks may need Kubalik even more if Strome is out for an extended period. Kubalik had their only goal Tuesday against the Flames when his deflection of an Adam Boqvist shot gave the Hawks a 1-0 lead late in the first period.
Kubalik's confidence is soaring, not that it ever took much of a hit this season. With Tuesday's tally, he's second among all rookies in goals behind the Sabres' Victor Olofsson and sixth in points with 23.
“Your confidence is going higher when you’re producing, so right now I feel really good and I’m just trying to build on it,” Kubalik said.
Here’s coverage from Tuesday’s game:
The Blackhawks keep losing players and failing to build any momentum.
Dylan Strome left Tuesday’s game after he suffered a right ankle injury early in the second period, and Elias Lindholm scored a pair of second-period goals to lift the Flames to a 2-1 victory over the Hawks at the United Center.
The Hawks already have lost Brent Seabrook and Calvin de Haan for the season and are playing without the injured Robin Lehner, Brandon Saad, Andrew Shaw and Drake Caggiula. Losing Strome would be another huge blow to the Hawks (19-19-6), who failed to pull within four points of the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
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Strome’s right leg twisted awkwardly when Oliver Kylington dove at him to break up a two-on-one, and Strome immediately headed for the locker room after limping off the ice. The Hawks later announced he had a right ankle injury and was out for the game.
Don't like to see this. Dylan Strome headed to the locker room after this play. pic.twitter.com/jXgZfGhf0h — Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) January 8, 2020
The Hawks twice killed off five-on-three power plays, including in the second period when the Flames had a two-man advantage for 65 seconds. The Hawks took a too-many-men penalty, then caught a bad break when Zack Smith nearly had a shorthanded breakaway only to have his stick clip a defender as he headed up the ice, prompting a high-sticking call.
The Hawks escaped, but a few minutes later Lindholm scored to give the Flames a 2-1 lead. Patrick Kane tried to make a pass off the boards to Kirby Dach as he was exiting the zone, but Matthew Tkachuck intercepted it and fed Lindholm, who hit a wobbly shot that carried over Corey Crawford’s shoulder.
Crawford had a terrific game, stopping 26 shots, including a miraculous save during the Flames’ second two-man advantage early in the third period to keep the Hawks in the game.
The Hawks were patient and in control during the first period but didn’t break through until Dominik Kubalik’s deflection of an Adam Boqvist shot slipped through goalie Cam Talbot’s legs to make it 1-0.
Break on through to the other side [of the goalie] ⚫
Watch live on the #MyTeamsApp: https://t.co/XnEPdXphMO pic.twitter.com/K0dMwy2G2D — Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) January 8, 2020
It was Kubalik’s 13th goal of the season and gave Boqvist a three-game point streak. Kane had a secondary assist to move him within seven of 1,000 career points.
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The solid work from the first 20 minutes was erased 14 seconds into the second period, when Lindholm escaped Boqvist in the slot and fired a point-blank shot between Crawford’s legs to tie it at 1.