Strange opener for Seabrook
Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook admits it's going to be strange Friday when he looks over his left shoulder and doesn't see Duncan Keith as his partner in the season opener against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
Seabrook will be paired, at least to start the game, with rookie Niklas Hjalmarsson while Keith skates with Brian Campbell.
"As everyone knows we've played together over the last three years and it's a comfortable issue thing," Seabrook said. "But we've got a lot of great defensemen on this team and playing with any of the six or seven guys will be great."
Just because Seabrook and Keith start the game apart doesn't mean they won't finish it together.
With Campbell known more for his offensive ability there's a good chance Hawks coach Denis Savard will return to Keith and Seabrook down the stretch in tight games.
"We'll monitor (Campbell's play) that way," Savard said. "You look at the score, you look at the clock, and you make decisions that way with your bench. We'll have a lot of different combinations."
Savard might also go with Keith with Seabrook in situations that follow power plays if Campbell is out there for the full two minutes, which is likely.
Eager suspended: Left wing Ben Eager received a three-game suspension from the NHL on Wednesday for the match penalty he received last week in Dallas for swinging his stick at Sean Avery from the bench.
Eager will miss Friday's opener at New York, Saturday's game in Washington and Monday's home opener against Nashville. He must also forfeit $9,672 in pay.
Hawks general manager Dale Tallon blamed Avery for inciting the situation by skating past the Hawks' bench.
With Eager out of the lineup the Hawks will sport a fourth line of Colin Fraser at center between Adam Burish and Craig Adams in New York.
One or two? Denis Savard likes to think he has two No. 1 goalies in Cristobal Huet and Nikolai Khabibulin, and two No. 1 lines.
"I should be a pretty good coach then," joked Savard.
Savard says it's tough to call Patrick Sharp, Patrick Kane and Dustin Byfuglien the Hawks' No. 2 line behind Jonathan Toews, Martin Havlat and Andrew Ladd.
"They're No. 1 and No. 1A," Savard said.
Tip-ins: Defenseman Keith Carney, who didn't make the 22-man roster for opening night, still has a name plate and a locker in the dressing room at the Edge in Bensenville. - The new-look power play was sharp at practice Wednesday with Brian Campbell the focal point at quarterback up top and at the right point. - Rookie Jack Skille, who made the team at forward, has an $850,000 salary but a $1.2 million cap hit (counting potential bonuses) as the seventh pick in the 2005 draft.