"Absolutely nothing went the Blackhawks' way Thursday against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Use any cliche you want. The Hawks were simply out of sync and out to lunch as the Blue Jackets hung them out to dry in an ugly 8-3 rout at Nationwide Arena.

The Hawks failed to clear the puck from the defensive zone or keep it in the offensive zone. They turned the puck over often, allowed a handful of breakaways, fought to get the power play going and -- perhaps most important as the playoffs approach -- Cristobal Huet struggled in net.

Add it all up and you have by far the worst loss of the season for the Hawks. Oddly enough, the Hawks clinched a playoff berth with the Calgary Flames losing 3-2 to the New York Islanders.

Thursday's loss was a complete about-face from Tuesday's 2-0 win over the Phoenix Coyotes, where the Hawks played sound defense, eliminated many scoring chances and got stellar goaltending. "