Posted by John Byrne at 3:14 p.m.
Mayor Richard Daley put the city’s sausage on the line today, wagering a smorgasbord of Chicago food with his Vancouver counterpart that the Blackhawks will beat the Canucks in a playoff series that starts Saturday night.
A hundred Vienna Beef hot dogs and a hundred polish sausages are among the local delicacies riding on the backs of a team Daley said represents the values of Chicago.
"This is a working city, an immigrant city, and there’s just something about the Blackhawks that inspires everyone out there," Daley said. "They work at it. They give a hundred percent on the ice, and that’s what Chicago’s all about."
The mayor was joined by Blackhawks officials at City Hall next to a table heaped with Eli’s cheesecake, BJ’s Market grilled turkey legs, buckets of Garrett’s popcorn and other edibles.
Daley also took a shot at the policies of departed Hawks owner Bill Wirtz, who did not allow the team’s games to be televised locally.
"The fans are there, whether you’re there or watching it on TV, which is sensational, because for many years it was not on TV. That alone has opened the sport to many, many people, who never had the opportunity to see it on TV," Daley said.
The mayor said he has not heard what Vancouver’s mayor will put on the line.
The friendly wager between mayors might be the most cordial thing about the Western Conference semifinal series — the Blackhawks and Canucks have an intense feud that dates back to last year when Chicago eliminated Vancouver in the playoffs.
Here’s the full list: Two deep dish Connie’s sausage pizzas; 100 Vienna Beef hot dogs and 100 Polish sausages; Azteca Foods shells, tortillas and tortilla chips; Garrett’s six-and-a-half gallon caramel and cheese popcorn mix; 800 Golden Dragon fortune cookies; a case of Half Acre Brewery pale ale and a case of golden ale; three gift packs of Robinson’s barbecue sauce; a floral arrangement from Illinois Specialty Cut Flowers; fried catfish, turkey legs and barbecued turkey tips from BJ’s Market; and a large Eli’s cheesecake.