After a disappointing follow-up season to the Blackhawks’ Stanley Cup campaign, Scottish indie rockers “The Fratellis” are demanding a trade, citing a lack of ice time as their reason.

The band’s anthem “Chelsea Dagger” became a mainstay on the Hawks’ path to NHL dominance in 2010, but has become all but forgotten after a 2011 season that saw very few pucks hit the back of the net for the post-champion squad.

“We’re well buggered with the amount of playing time we got this past season,” said bassist Barry Fratelli. “The bloody donut race on the Jumbotron was called up more often than we were.”

During the 2009-10 season, “Chelsea Dagger” could usually be heard three to five times per home game as Toews, Kane, Hossa or one of the many role players on the roster lit up the lamp. But, alas, this season fans were lucky to sing along once or twice a week to the catchy “dun da da dun da da…” chorus that they’d come to love so much.

“Your man Stan Bowman gave us the impression that we’d be just as useful this season with the likes of Jake Dowell, John Scott replacing Big Buff, Versteeg and that other lad, Ladd,” lead vocalist Jon Fratelli lamented.

Bowman and other Blackhawk brass have taken the band’s words to heart and promised to find a suitable place for them, which no doubt means “Chelsea Dagger” will be blasting through Philips Arena, home of the Atlanta Thrashers next season.

A source in the Hawks camp has indicated interest in Steve Perry as a replacement, since the aging crooner hasn’t been seen since the 2005 White Sox rally.

By Gregg Jaffe

Gregg Jaffe