Hawks' Teravainen scores twice on second day of camp
SOUTH BEND - It was the kind of goal that reaffirmed all the superlatives used to describe Teuvo Teravainen's elite skill level.
The Blackhawks' top prospect broke into the offensive zone at full speed, received a pass from Matt Carey and split two defenders before bringing the crowd to life with the first of his 2 goals Saturday at the University of Notre Dame's Compton Family Ice Arena.
Goalie Matt Darling never had a chance. The 20-year old Teravainen barreled toward the net and unfurled a quick backhand-forehand deke to send the puck home over the left pad.
It was a one of those pretty goals that gets everybody talking, but the reality is that it's going to be difficult for Teravainen - or any Hawks prospect - to make the NHL roster out of training camp. Regardless, that remains the goal for Teravainen, until he's told otherwise.
"Of course I want to make the team and I want to play," he said. "Right now, I think I'm ready but Chicago has a real tough team to make, so many good players here. So, I just need to play really well and I need to earn a spot."
Pulling off more attention-grabbing plays in preseason games would help.
What happens in that portion of camp, which starts next week, will carry more weight than the scrimmages at Notre Dame - despite Teravainen's second goal, a one-timer from the right circle, impressing nearly as much as his first.
Teravainen does have three NHL games under his belt, after coming to Chicago near the end of the regular season last spring. He didn't record a point and finished the season in the American Hockey League with the Rockford IceHogs, where he scored 2 goals in five games.
There, in a short amount of time, he flashed the same high-end skill set that allowed him to score nine goals and tally 44 points in 49 games with Jokerit in the Swedish League, and lead Finland to the gold medal in the 2014 IIHF 2014 World Junior Championships.
Many other NHL teams might already have him penciled into a role among their top six forwards, but the Hawks already have a backlog of experienced, high-skill NHL forwards. So, the debate their management must weigh will be whether Teravainen should start in Chicago, where he's likely to get less ice time, or send him to Rockford first to continue developing on a top line.
"(It's) not up to me," Teravainen said. "Coaches (will) say where I'll play and I'll play there. If it's Rockford, first line or second line (and) playing more minutes, or playing less minutes in Chicago, I don't know … and I don't need to know right now."
All he needs to concern himself with at the moment is continuing his development daily.
Teravainen, selected 18th overall by the Hawks in 2012, has already drawn comparisons to Patrick Kane and he doesn't need to look far to find Kane or other stars to emulate.
"He's certainly got some great pros to watch," Hawks coach Joel Quenneville said. "(He can) become a sponge as far as what it takes to be an NHL player, what it takes to be a good pro and (develop) that consistency of knowing that every day the demands are out there and you're looking for something ... looking for a contribution where you look like you're getting better."