From start to Finnish, Niemi stars for Hawks

Posted October 02, 2009 11:00 pm

By Tim Sassone

It was a weekend Antti Niemi won't forget.

Just two days after being named the Blackhawks' backup goalie following a three-week competition with Corey Crawford, Niemi made his first start Saturday, and the rookie responded with a 4-0 shutout of the Florida Panthers in Helsinki, Finland.

This was no ordinary shutout for Niemi, who did it just a few miles from his hometown of Vantaa, Finland. The crowd of almost 12,000 in Hartwall Arena roared when the local kid was named the game's first star for his 23-save performance.

"It's an unbelievable experience," Niemi told reporters. "First, to play an NHL game in your home country and so close to your hometown, then to get your first shutout, too. It's incredible."

Hawks coach Joel Quenneville played a hunch and went with Niemi on his home turf instead of coming back with Cristobal Huet, who was average in Friday's 4-3 shootout loss to the Panthers.

"It was a good opportunity, basically in this kid's hometown," Quenneville told reporters. "I thought he played a great game. It was a challenge for him, and I loved the response. You have to give him a lot of credit."

The Hawks got power-play goals from Brian Campbell, Patrick Sharp and Dustin Byfuglien to back Niemi.

Patrick Kane also added a goal as the Hawks took 3 out of 4 points from the Panthers to conclude a highly successful trip to Europe to begin the season.

"We're happy with 3 out of 4 points and we're heading home confident," Jonathan Toews told NHL.com.

That's 2 goals in two games for Kane, Sharp and Byfuglien, but the story Saturday was Niemi.

"He showed us he is an NHL-level goalie," Campbell said.

"It was great for him to play at home," Kane told reporters. "The reception he got from the Finnish fans for the first star, that was awesome for him. He played great and it wasn't as if he had a lot of layup saves."

Niemi had little work in the first period dominated by the Hawks but then had to make 6 strong stops early in the second.

"The first period might have been the hardest because I didn't have any shots," Niemi said.

Campbell's power-play goal through a Byfuglien screen opened the scoring at 3:05 of the first period. Kane and Sharp scored in the second period.

"It was nice to score early, and our power play was effective," Quenneville said. "I thought we had more energy early, which helped us. Tonight was overall more consistent."

Panthers goalie Tomas Vokoun, who made 52 saves in regulation and overtime in Friday's win, was under siege again. But this time there were no letdowns by the Hawks.

It was only fitting that Niemi sparkled Saturday after Florida's Finnish defenseman Ville Koistinen was named the game's first star Friday for scoring a goal in regulation and the winner in the shootout.

Niemi and Koistinen were the only Finns to play in the two games in Helsinki.

"Two Finnish heroes was a perfect script for the event," Koistinen told NHL.com. "Yesterday was great for me, and I'm sure Antti is really happy right now.

"These are moments we'll look back at later on, when we're sitting by the fireplace with a brandy and a cigar."

The Hawks flew home to Chicago immediately after the game and were expected to get Sunday and Monday off before returning to practice Tuesday.

The Hawks don't play again until Thursday night at Joe Louis Arena against the Red Wings, who also will be fighting jet lag after opening the season with two games in Sweden.

Tim Sassone's game tracker Blackhawks 4, Panthers 0 Three stars: 1. Antti Niemi. Hawks rookie goalie makes 23 saves for his first NHL shutout - and he did it in his home country. 2. Dustin Byfuglien. The big winger was a factor for the second game in a row with a goal, an assist and strong net presence. 3. Patrick Kane. Make it two games in a row with a goal and an assist for the Hawks' winger. Rebounded well: Hawks defenseman Brent Seabrook, whose turnover led to the tying goal late in regulation Friday, played a big game Saturday with 2 assists in almost 24 minutes of ice time. Sitting it out: Hawks coach Joel Quenneville went with the same 20-man lineup as Friday, meaning defensemen Jordan Hendry and Aaron Johnson, winger Radek Smolenak and goalie Corey Crawford were the healthy scratches.

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