Hawks ready to face ex-teammates Sharp, Oduya

Weird. Fun. Strange. Different.

In a nutshell, that's how Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville and his players said it will feel to square off against Dallas' Patrick Sharp and Johnny Oduya on Saturday as the teams close the book on their preseason schedule.

"I'm sure they'll have fun with their ... ex-teammates," Quenneville said. "It's one of those games as players - whether it's the first time, regular-season game or when you play them in a preseason game - you always look forward to that one," Quenneville said.

Sharp was traded to the Stars for Trevor Daley and Ryan Garbutt, while Oduya signed days later as a free agent. Sharp spent 10 seasons in Chicago, scoring 239 regular-season goals and 42 more in the playoffs.

"Sharpie was one of my better friends here for the past eight years and had a really good friendship with him," Patrick Kane said Friday after the Hawks practiced at Johnny's IceHouse. "Talked with him a lot, especially over the off-season the past couple months. It seems like he's doing pretty well.

"He's found a nice little spot there with (Jamie) Benn and (Tyler) Seguin on the top line. Wish him all the best except when he plays us. It'll be fun to see him on the ice and talk to him a little bit."

Quenneville said he doesn't talk to opponents during the game. As for his players?

"The first time you're lined up against a guy I'm sure they'll have something good to say," Quenneville said.

Back at it:

After missing more than a week with an upper-body injury, Russian forward Artemi Panarin was back on the ice with his teammates Thursday and Friday. He skated with Patrick Kane and Artem Anisimov on Friday as the trio tries to form some much-needed chemistry with the regular season starting on Wednesday.

"As you can tell he's very skilled," Kane said. "He's got a nice little quick release to him and also very good stick handler and skater. So you can tell the skill's all there. It's top notch, as far as I'm concerned."

Coach Joel Quenneville said Panarin "could play" when the Hawks play Dallas on Saturday in their preseason finale.

Panarin said he feels better than he expected on the ice. As for learning English? That's a whole different story.

"He thought it was going to be easier," said Viktor Tikhonov, who has been doing much of the translating for Panarin.

Panarin said he has a teacher on Skype who he talks with daily, and he's also walking around the shops in Chicago to force himself to speak English.

Quenneville had a long conversation with Panarin (with Artem Anisimov translating) as practice was winding down.

"We were talking about how he's progressed over the last couple of days," said Quenneville, who then smiled and said: "Normally wouldn't take that long."