Never in the history of professional football have the Bears and the Detroit Lions met in the playoffs. It’s just as well. The antagonistic postseason history between Chicago and Detroit doesn’t need an excuse to get physical.
These are cities that pride themselves on blue-collar work ethics, where greeting a friend with a handshake or a lead pipe to the back of the neck may or may not mean the same thing. Everything about the places is robust: the sports, the fans of sports and the waistlines of the fans of sports.
The Bulls and the Pistons will meet in the Eastern Conference semifinals starting Saturday, the upstart Chicago team trying to break through against the veteran Detroit team not yet ready to cede its spot atop the conference.
How it will affect the cities’ postseason tote board remains to be seen. But given the history, it’s likely to add a lively, bruise-inducing chapter.
Blackhawks vs. Red Wings
You might remember a time when something called hockey was relevant and the Blackhawks were not in need of an adrenaline needle through the sternum. In that time, it also may astound you that the Hawks often enough had the denizens of Hockeytown by their octopi. In their 14 playoff meetings with Detroit, the Hawks have won eight. Their overall playoff record against the Red Wings is 38-31. Since 1970, the Hawks have taken four of the six series between the teams.
Well, losing eight of 14 playoff series isn’t exactly embarrassing. And it’s almost like the Wings precipitated the Hawks’ dive out of significance. They wiped the Hawks out of the 1995 conference finals 4-1, a series that included three gut-wrenching Detroit overtime victories.
From there, the Hawks lost in the conference semis in 1996, in the first round in 1997, and they have made the playoffs just one time since. Meanwhile, Detroit has won three Stanley Cups.
Edge: Detroit.
Bulls vs. Pistons
Speaking of precipitating demises, one need only flash back to 1991 for the flashpoint in Bulls-Pistons playoff history.
A sweep of the defending world champions in the conference finals ushered in the Bulls’ dynasty years and dumped Detroit unceremoniously from high-level relevance for the next decade or so. Never mind that the Bulls have lost three of the last five playoff meetings. The big one belongs to the Bulls.
Indeed, for three years, the Pistons were the burly, surly bouncer outside the bar that would just not let the Bulls through the ropes, no matter what credentials they had.
In 1988 the Pistons bounced the Bulls in the conference semifinals. Then it was two straight conference finals victories in 1989 and ’90, which led to two straight NBA titles.
But when the Pistons finally folded in 1991, the Bulls’ dynasty began. Not an ideal legacy, and it might or might not get tweaked beginning this weekend.
Edge: Chicago.
Cubs vs. Tigers
The Cubs shattered the championship dreams of the Tigers in 1907 and ’08, winning consecutive World Series championships against Detroit. Then again, in 1907 and ’08, people might have dreamed more about transport without the use of horses than baseball titles. But we digress. It wasn’t even close. The Cubs went 8-1-1 across those two series. Would anyone expect less from a team that sent Orval Overall and Mordecai “Three Finger” Brown to the mound to clinch a series? Plus, Ty Cobb was on the losing end, which was probably good for some highly entertaining property destruction.
The last time the Cubs were in a World Series, the Tigers beat them 4-3 in 1945. That victory was — hmm, how to put it? — about as auspicious as the Chicago River turning blood red while locusts chew apart the bean in Millennium Park.
Detroit, which also beat the Cubs in the 1935 Series, won it all again in 1968 and 1984, then lost last year. The Cubs … well, you know.
Edge: Detroit.
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bchamilton@tribune.com
