Blackhawks' Rundblad admits he was 'nervous'
ANAHEIM, Calif. - Whacked onto the ice by Matt Beleskey as the Ducks were scoring their first goal, then crushed into the boards by 196-pound Kyle Palmieri seconds before Anaheim's second goal, it was hardly the kind of playoff debut David Rundblad was hoping for Sunday at the Honda Center.
A day later during practice, Rundblad was skating with Daniel Carcillo as Kyle Cumiskey joined the Blackhawks' starting defensemen while paired with Johnny Oduya.
Coach Joel Quenneville wouldn't come right out and say that Cumiskey is in fact starting Game 2 of the Western Conference finals, but his comments were telling.
"It'll be a good opportunity for him to come in and help us and bring some quickness to us," Quenneville said.
Rundblad admitted he was "a little bit nervous" and that his play was subpar. "Yesterday I wasn't quick enough or hard enough," he said. "That's the two things I have to do better if I'm going to play."
Cumiskey has six games of playoff experience - all with Colorado in 2010 - but the 28-year-old played just seven games for the Blackhawks this season, and that was his first NHL ice time since 2010-11 with the Avs.
The nerves figure to hit Cumiskey as well, but he's confident the Hawks' veteran defensive corps will be there for him if he messes up.
"I think for any team knowing that you got four guys that solid back there is a big confidence boost," Cumiskey said. "If I end up playing - whoever I'm with - it adds a little reassurance that he's such a good player in case you make a mistake, they may end up covering for me."
Bounce-back time:
Falling into an 0-2 hole isn't the end of the world as Hawks fans will remember last year when the team came back to beat St. Louis in six games after dropping the first two. But Jonathan Toews is hoping the Hawks can avoid that fate against Anaheim by playing a better 60-minute game Tuesday.
"We started well (in Game 1), created chances, did a lot of good things, a lot of little things well," Toews said. "(Then we) kind of trailed off and let them keep control as they got the lead. Maybe to a certain degree, we got that one out of the way.
"But I think we definitely have to bounce back. We have to have some urgency right here right now, and try to put some pressure on them in their building and go home feeling good about ourselves."
Looking to improve:
After Game 1, coach Bruce Boudreau was adamant that overall team play must improve if the Ducks hope to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.
Two players who realize they need to pick up their game are Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, whose line was very quiet Sunday. Getzlaf also coughed the puck up twice, the first time forcing goalie Frederik Andersen to make a can-you-believe-that stop against Patrick Kane.
"Our line wasn't very good," Getzlaf said. "We didn't handle the puck that well, and that's one of our strengths. It wasn't that we didn't do other aspects of our game well, but we didn't handle the puck. As a line, that's up to us to make plays. I turned the puck over a couple times, (and that's) uncharacteristic."
Said Perry: "We didn't play our best, especially in that first period. They took the play to us. Freddy stood tall, made some big saves and kept us in the game. Then we got that lead for him and never looked back."
Tip-ins:
The Blackhawks on Monday recalled forwards Phillip Danault and Ryan Hartman and defensemen Ville Pokka and Viktor Svedberg from the Rockford IceHogs. … The Hawks were the first team to outshoot the Ducks in the playoffs with a 33-27 advantage in Game 1. … The Ducks' Frederik Andersen has allowed 2 or fewer goals in eight of the team's 10 playoff games.
He said it:
"Spent a lot of time giving him one-timers on the point. Got a lot of assists that way. He was a great guy to play with."
- Kyle Cumiskey on playing with Shea Weber from 2003-06 in the WHL with the Kelowna Rockets.