Complex sentence: The 1948--49 Chicago Black Hawks season was the team's 23rd season in the National Hockey League, and it was coming off a last-place finish in the 1947--48 season, failing to qualify for post-season play for the 2nd straight year.
Split into simpler sentences: The 1948--49 Chicago Black Hawks season was the team's 23rd season in the National Hockey League. The Black Hawks were coming off a last-place finish in the 1947--48 season, failing to qualify for post-season play for the second straight year.