Kruger will get a look in Bolland’s role

While there was no official word from the Blackhawks on Tuesday, Swedish prospect Marcus Kruger will join the team today as a potential replacement for Dave Bolland at center.

The 20-year-old Kruger just finished his second season in Sweden’s top pro league, playing for Djurgarden, where he had 6 goals and 29 assists in 52 games.

Kruger is a 5-foot-11, 172-pound Bolland-type heady center who was rookie of the year in Sweden last season as a 19-year-old.

“He’s a very smart player, in the Dave Bolland mold, if you were going to compare him,” Hawks general manager Stan Bowman said recently. “He does all the little things. He just knows how to play hockey.”

Hawks coach Joel Quenneville is eager to get a look at Kruger, who the Hockey News ranked as the organization’s fifth-best prospect behind Nick Leddy, Jeremy Morin, Kyle Beach and Dylan Olsen.

“We saw him in camp and I’ve seen him play a few times and he’s a kid who is a responsible player with good hockey sense and instincts,” Quenneville said. “We’ll see how it works out. It’s an opportunity for us to assess him quickly and see if he can fit right in there.

“We’re missing two important players in (Patrick) Sharp and Bolland. We’ll see kind of adjustment there is, but he has real good instincts and that can help him quickly.”

Bowman began the process of bringing Kruger over even before Sharp hurt his left knee Sunday against Phoenix. This was a move made to help fill the void left by the absence of Bolland, who has a concussion and isn’t expected back anytime soon.

“He’s the same,” Quenneville said. “You can’t really say when he’s going to be able to get back on the ice. Hopefully we see some signs of encouragement in his case, but right now it’s wait and see.”

The Hawks drafted Kruger in the fifth round in 2009 and wanted him on the NHL roster this season.

“He didn’t think he was ready for the NHL,” Bowman said.

Taking it slow:Defenseman Jordan Hendry, who faces a five- to six-month rehab after undergoing surgery to repair a torn ACL, isn#146;t ready to think about his future with the Hawks.Hendry will be an unrestricted free agent July 1.#147;I#146;m just focusing on rehab right now,#148; Hendry said Tuesday. #147;I#146;m not worrying about the future. Everything will take care of itself. I#146;m just worried about getting healthy and being ready for the next step.#148;Hendry was hurt Feb. 27 on a hit by Phoenix forward Shane Doan.#147;I knew even before I hit the ice it was my knee and it wasn#146;t good,#148; Hendry said.Pairs skating:Joel Quenneville said the plan is to keep defensemen Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook together, likely into the playoffs.Until Sunday, Keith and Seabrook had been separated since early February.#147;That#146;s probably how we#146;re going to do it right now,#148; Quenneville said.The other pairings at practice Tuesday were Niklas Hjalmarsson with Cris Campoli and Brian Campbell with Nick Leddy.