Savard plans to stick with his hottest goalie

While it's way too soon to call it a goaltending controversy, Blackhawks coach Denis Savard said Tuesday he would stick with Patrick Lalime as long as the backup continues to get results.

Lalime starts for the second game in a row tonight against the St. Louis Blues at the United Center.

"Patrick is finding ways to get us points," Savard said. "He's got us 3 out of 4 points in his last two starts. He's hot right now, so let's go with him. It's a healthy thing to have."

The Hawks play back-to-back at Colorado and Phoenix this weekend with Savard saying he would think about those games after tonight.

"I'm going to string Lalime as far as I can and vice versa with Nik (Khabibulin)," said Savard, who was asked if he agreed that Khabibulin's biggest problem is allowing soft goals.

"That's tough for me to say that he's let in bad goals when he makes 15 other big saves," Savard said. "He's made some really big saves for us, too."

Lalime is looking at tonight's game against the Blues as just another opportunity for him to play and help the team.

"I've felt pretty good the last two games and I just want to build on that," Lalime said.

This will be the second time Lalime has started two straight games. He played Nov. 7 against Columbus and Nov. 9 against St. Louis and won both starts.

Staying put: Denis Savard decided to leave the struggling Dustin Byfuglien on defense and not move him back to wing.

"We need big men back there," Savard said.

Byfuglien didn't play after the second period Sunday at Nashville.

"He was fighting it," Savard said. "His confidence has dropped, but he's a young guy and we'll keep working with him. We know the kind of defenseman he's going to be, but it takes time."

Good news: James Wisniewski and Ben Eager participated in practice Tuesday, though they avoided contact.

Wisniewski has been out since Dec. 26 with a knee sprain, while Eager has been sidelined with a concussion.

Denis Savard said Wisniewski, Eager and Jonathan Toews all could be back playing in two weeks. Dave Bolland, out since Dec. 23 with a broken finger, gets his cast off Monday and could be back in the lineup in 10 days.

Jason Williams (groin) remains out indefinitely.

Tip-ins: The Hawks say there are tickets remaining for tonight's game against the Blues. … Jonathan Toews certainly would have been added to the NHL Young Stars roster had he been healthy. … Buffalo defenseman Brian Campbell, who is expected to interest the Hawks this summer should he get to free agency, told the Sabres on Tuesday he wouldn't talk contract again with them until after the season.