Sharks look to bite Niemi by shooting higher

SAN JOSE, Calif. - The Sharks are eager for another crack at Antti Niemi on Tuesday night in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals.

Many of them, from Joe Thornton to Ryane Clowe to Rob Blake, said they need to get pucks higher on the Blackhawks goalie, but that's what teams have been saying all season.

The scouting report on Niemi usually goes like this: tough to beat low because of quick legs, but his weakness is his glove hand.

These numbers suggest that maybe that scouting report needs to be updated: Niemi is 9-4 in the playoffs with a 2.44 goals-against average and a .918 save percentage.

"To be honest with you he's one of the hardest goaltenders to score on in practice shooting high," Hawks winger Patrick Kane said. "Sometimes I can't even figure him out in practice.

"He's a different kind of goalie and sometimes you feel you can have success on different kinds of goalies."

And how is Niemi different?

"I think sometimes you look at his technique and mechanics and probably say they're a little bit different, but he gets the job done," Kane said. "He's such a good competitor and prepares well and really cares about the game."

The Sharks put 45 shots on Niemi in Sunday's 2-1 loss in Game 1 but felt they missed out on some good opportunities to beat him.

"We'd like to get some shots upstairs," Thornton said Monday. "I don't think we tested him as much as we could with quality chances. We saw video this morning, and we'll be better.

"We just wanted to throw a lot of shots at him, and we did that. He has great legs, and we knew that. We just need to get more pucks up on him."

The Sharks had minimal traffic around Niemi, with Blake crediting the Hawks' defensemen for keeping the front of the net clear.

"He's a very quality goalie, obviously," Blake said. "We understood that, but when goalies see pucks they're going to stop them. They did a very good job clearing away the second and third opportunities, but that traffic issue will become more evident throughout the (series)."

The Hawks can expect perhaps a more active game from Clowe, who is the muscle on San Jose's second line with Joe Pavelski and Devin Setoguchi.

"(Niemi) came as advertised, with his quick legs and his ability to take away the lower part of the net," Clowe said. "We've got to try to get it up on him, but it's obviously easier said than done. We need to get a little more traffic and make his life harder."

Sharks coach Todd McLellan believes more second and third chances are key.

"Niemi did what he was supposed to do and made some tremendous saves," McLellan said. "Making him scramble a little more will be a goal of ours."

The Hawks expect to see a more desperate San Jose team, knowing it's in big trouble if it has to go to the United Center for Game 3 on Friday down two games to none.

"We've got to win; we realize that," Thornton said.

"We had a good start in Game 1, but the good news is there's a lot of things we can improve on and do better," Hawks captain Jonathan Toews said. "Taking fewer penalties and playing better defensively so we can attack a little more are a few things we'll be focusing on."

Both teams have been down 1-0 in previous series, so they know things can turn around quickly.

The Hawks dropped series openers against Nashville and Vancouver. The Sharks trailed Colorado in the opening round after losing Game 1 on home ice, so they have the experience of coming back.

"It can't hurt us, but I will say this isn't Colorado. It's Chicago," McLellan said. "It's a completely different team and monster, if you will."

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