Bolland relishes top-line challenge
SAN JOSE, Calif. - Blackhawks center Dave Bolland talked Saturday as if he knew he and linemates Andrew Ladd and Kris Versteeg would be assigned to checking Joe Thornton and the Sharks' top line.
"I don't know how they know that (because) we haven't talked about that yet," Hawks coach Joel Quenneville joked. "It's an option. I think they relish the challenge and the opportunity and they did a real nice job against the Sedins.
"The matchups in this series will be a little tougher. They have two lines you have to be concerned about. I'm still not sure how it's going to match up."
Quenneville did admit defensemen Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith would be on the ice against Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Dany Heatley.
"We've just got to play our game and have five guys out there willing to do the job coming back with good sticks and speed," Seabrook said. "Their No. 1 line, they're big, they're strong, they can play physical, they can score goals and they can pass the puck. We just have to play them as physical as we can and have good sticks."
The 6-foot-4, 235-pound Thornton would represent a different kind of challenge for Bolland than checking the smaller and crafty Henrik and Daniel Sedin.
"Joe's the size of those two together," Bolland said. "His body position is really good from playing against him, and Heatley and Marleau are two amazing players. So it'll be a challenge we're looking forward to."
Thornton claimed he didn't watch much of the Vancouver series and only heard about the job Bolland did on the Sedin line.
"To be honest with you, I didn't watch," Thornton said. "In the playoffs I tend to just worry about our games, but I heard he kind of drove the Sedins crazy.
"I guess he's turned into a real good checking forward. We're just going to have to win faceoffs and things like that."
Bolland took it as a compliment when told what Thornton said about driving the Sedins crazy.
"Joe said that?" Bolland asked. "Everybody from Vancouver has been saying, 'I don't know how you did it; how did you do it?' I don't know what I did. It was fun and a bit of an accomplishment to do it to those guys."
Daniel Sedin lost his composure several times against Bolland, earning penalties, but the Hawks' center doesn't think it will be as easy to get under Thornton's skin.
"If I can, yeah, it will be great, but Joe's more laid back," Bolland said. "We're going to be on them the same way we were on the Sedins."
Sharks coach Todd McLellan likely will try to keep the Thornton line away from the Bolland line with the last line change at home.
"Their checking line of Bolland, Ladd and Versteeg does a very good job and we'll have to deal with that," McLellan said. "But it's nothing Joe, Patrick and Dany haven't seen before. If it's not going well we have a plan."