Booing has become sweet music to Campbell's ears
For the last two years, every time Brian Campbell has touched the puck in games at HP Pavilion unhappy Sharks fans have booed the Blackhawks defenseman for leaving as a free agent following the 2007-08 season.
At first Campbell didn't appreciate the taunts, but he has grown to like it. Those boos figure to be even louder come Sunday when the Hawks and Sharks open the Western Conference finals (2 p.m., Channel 5).
"I didn't like it my first time back," said Campbell, who played only 33 games with the Sharks after being acquired at the 2008 trade deadline. "But then I talked with people who have been through that before and I think sometimes it's a sign of appreciation that they're disappointed I wasn't there anymore.
"I think you try to turn everything into compliments in some sort of way, or positives. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm right, but I'll look at it that way."
Campbell said he spoke with coach Joel Quenneville about it last season when it first happened.
"He coached (Chris) Pronger forever and he said, 'You think you've got it bad, Pronger got booed in every city,' " Campbell said.
Campbell signed an eight-year, $56.8 million contract with the Hawks, saying it had nothing to do with the Sharks or San Jose and everything to do with being closer to his home in Ontario.
"They were aware of my situation," Campbell said. "I was up front with them the whole time. The organization's first class and it's a great place to be."
Waiting game: When the puck finally drops for Game 1 at 2 p.m. on Sunday afternoon, the Sharks will have been off for eight days, which is too long for coach Todd McLellan.
The Sharks were hoping to play tonight, but that plan was scrapped when Philadelphia beat Boston on Wednesday to force a Game 7 tonight in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The NHL doesn't begin the next round of any series until the previous round is completed across the board.
"In our situation, I wish we would be playing (tonight), to tell you the truth," McLellan told reporters Thursday. "But it's not and there's nothing we can do about it.
"We're past the rest part. I know when we finished with Detroit, you guys asked the same question and we said we'd err on the side of rest. We're past that. If we're not rested now, shame on us. Now we're to the point where we've got to take care of the rust."
The Sharks held an optional practice Thursday.
Same look: The Hawks practiced Thursday with the forward lines the same as in Game 6 against Vancouver, meaning Troy Brouwer was on the left side with Patrick Sharp and Marian Hossa.
More to come: The NHL only announced that Game 1 of the West finals would be Sunday at 2 p.m., and televised nationally by NBC. The remainder of the series schedule will be made public today.