HELSINKI -- Heck of a call from Joel Quenneville, right?
The Blackhawks coach put in rookie backup goalie Antti Niemi for his fourth career NHL start, and the kid responded Saturday with a 23-save shutout in his native country.
"It was a good opportunity, basically his hometown, he was excited to play in front of his home country," Quenneville said. "I thought he played a great game. It was a good challenge for him and I loved the response. You have to give him a lot of credit to stand up to a couple of key barrages in the second period and during some penalty kills in the third. He looked sharp."
Perhaps no one was happier than the GM of the team, Stan Bowman, who wrestled with the decision of keeping either Niemi or goalie Corey Crawford (who cleared waivers Thursday). He kept the Finn.
"It wasn't an easy decision. They both had good camps," Bowman said. "But it's nice to see him get off to a good start like that. Obviously Joel has confidence in him, playing him in the second game of the year."
Niemi recorded his first career shutout and was named the game's first star in front of a frenzied crowd, which saw a Finnish hero for the second night in a row after Ville Koistinen's shootout winner Friday for Florida.
"It's an unbelievable experience," Niemi said. "First to play an NHL game in your home country and so close to your hometown, then to get your first shutout -- it's incredible."
To be fair, however, Niemi really wasn't tested until the third period, in my opinion. The Hawks never let Florida touch the puck for 40 minutes and held back after being up 4-0.
"I don't think we tested him enough," said Panthers blueliner Dennis Seidenberg. "On the shots we did get on him, he did very well, but it just wasn't enough."
Florida managed just three shots on goal in the opening period.
"The first period might have been the hardest because I didn't have any shots," Niemi said. "It's no fun when you have no shots."
Fourth wave
You know it's going to be a long night for Florida when the Blackhawks' fourth line is having its way with your second line. But that's exactly what happened on a pair of shifts in the first period Saturday, as the Chicago line of Tomas Kopecky, Colin Fraser and Ben Eager controlled the puck on a forecheck cycle against the Panthers' second line of Cory Stillman, Steve Reinprecht and Michael Frolik. That's when you know early on Chicago is winning the game no matter what.
Cool Kulikov
I know it's the second time in two NHL games I mention this kid, but I have to tell you that after watching 18-year-old Dmitry Kulikov, I can see how the 14th overall pick in this past June's draft cracked this roster. His patience with the puck, sense of anticipation and ability to separate Chicago players from the puck is unheard of for a defenseman his age. The Panthers appear to have a real keeper here.
Horton quiet
One player I barely noticed this weekend was Panthers first-line right winger Nathan Horton. He was held off the scoresheet and limited to only three shots on goal. He needs to have a bigger presence for this team to win. This is the sixth NHL season for the 24-year-old and it's time for him to firmly establish himself as a consistent high-end producer. He showed flashes over the past two seasons, but didn't carry it through all year long.
Scouting Sopel
Veteran Blackhawks defenseman Brent Sopel had a better evening after struggling at times in Friday's opener. He looked more sure of himself Saturday. The Hawks' No. 6 blue-line spot is really up for grabs and Sopel is getting the first shot at making it his. Jordan Hendry was scratched for a second straight game.
Sweet emotion
A few Finnish fans lamented to me after the game that they there were disappointed they didn't see the gloves drop even once this weekend. True enough, there wasn't a single fight, not even a roughing penalty, over both games. And really, there wasn't a lot of emotion between two clubs who rarely play each other. They still produced decent hockey without the rough stuff; but in a perfect world, a good scrap would have been welcomed.
Hawks help out
The Hawks donated 65 tickets to the IFK Helsinki junior hockey club for Saturday's game, kids between the ages of 10 and 13 benefiting from the gift. Matti Hagman, Esa Tikkanen, Christian Ruuttu, Ilkka Sinisalo, Ville Peltonen, Niklas Hagman, Niklas Backstrom and the Ruutu brothers, Jarkko and Tuomo, are former IFK hockey club members.
A look at the lines
The forward lines and defense pairings didn't change from Friday. The Hawks elected to keep Bolland and Toews with their new linemates, the two centers swapping midgame Friday.
FLORIDA:
Forwards:
Booth-Weiss-Horton
Stillman-Reinprecht-Frolik
Olesz-Campbell-Dvorak
Matthias-Kreps-Koistinen
Defense:
McCabe-Leopold
Ballard-Seidenberg
Allen-Kulikov
CHICAGO:
Forwards:
Kane-Bolland-Byfuglien
Versteeg-Toews-Sharp
Ladd-Madden-Brouwer
Eager-Fraser-Kopecky
Defense:
Keith-Seabrook
Campbell-Hjalmarsson
Barker-Sopel
