The fans at the United Center still stand and cheer during the National Anthem the way they did when the Chicago Blackhawks played at the old Chicago Stadium. That tradition never died.

It did have a new vigor when the Carolina Hurricanes visited Chicago this week for the first time in almost four years. The last time the Canes were in town, the Hawks were an afterthought headed for oblivion.

On this trip, while they remain below the Bulls and spring-training baseball on the Chicago sports radar, there is a new sense of optimism and promise surrounding the franchise.

While the NHL mourned the loss of longtime Hawks owner "Dollar" Bill Wirtz when he died in September, his business practices had been an anchor on the Hawks for more than a decade.

His longstanding refusal to put home games on TV, a policy he inherited from his father Arthur along with the team, showed just how out of touch he had become with pro sports.

His refusal to pay stars like Chris Chelios, Jeremy Roenick and Ed Belfour saw a potential dynasty -- President's Trophy winners in 1991, Stanley Cup finalists in 1992 -- scattered to the winds, followed by the fans.

By the turn of the century, a once-proud franchise had been reduced to a team no one wanted to watch playing in front of empty seats in a soulless building.

When Wirtz died last fall, most expected his son Peter, who had become his deputy at NHL meetings and other events, to take over. But Peter Wirtz quickly turned the team over to his brother Rocky.

With a grasp both of the tradition of the franchise and the malaise that surrounded it, Rocky Wirtz has gotten the franchise headed in the right direction in the space of six months -- starting by putting home games on TV immediately.

His first hire may have been the best, bringing former Cubs president John McDonough over to run the Hawks. When McDonough started with the Cubs in 1983, crowds were so sparse, the upper deck would be closed for weekday games.

McDonough had a lot to do with making the Cubs an impossible ticket and his fingerprints were all over this month's ceremony that saw the Hawks honor Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita, who had been declared persona non grata by previous management.

Hull was a particular pariah, for spurning the Hawks for a million-dollar deal with the WHA in 1972 -- a grudge that lasted 35 years, passed from father to son.

The applause accorded Hull and Mikita was real and heartfelt, and the whole evening had the feel of a mending of fences -- between the Hawks and Hull and the fans and the Hawks. They'll do it again with Tony Esposito next week.

Meanwhile, general manager Dale Tallon has put together a promising young roster and coach Denis Savard -- another Hawks legend -- has tutored them in the legend and lore of the Original Six franchise.

His "Commit to the Indian" postgame tirade this season became sports-radio fodder, but made it clear to his team how players like Savard, Hull, Mikita and Esposito once felt about playing for the Blackhawks, and raised hopes it could be that way again.

The last time Bill Wirtz went before the fans, when Savard's jersey was retired in 1998, he was booed off the ice.

When Rocky Wirtz introduced Hull and Mikita, he received a standing ovation.