Johnson sees Hawks as a good fit
Ryan Johnson played only eight minutes in his Blackhawks debut Friday, but his responsibilities figure to expand as his game shape improves.
It was only Johnson's second game this season after signing with Rockford on a tryout basis last week. Before that, as an unsigned free agent, he had been skating five or six times a week with a university team in his hometown of Thunder Bay, Ontario.
“I had two broken feet last year and spent the first part of the summer just getting healthy and getting that taken care if,” Johnson said. “As the summer went on there were some teams that kind of questioned the health of my feet and wanted me to come into their camp without a deal.
“The way I play the game, I just felt that probably wasn't the best scenario for me.
“It was a real test of patience and I had lot of conversations, but nothing solid. It didn't seem like the right fit. When this came along it seemed like a no-brainer.”
The Hawks know Johnson well and like the defensive game he brings. Johnson played for coach Joel Quenneville in St. Louis and battled the Hawks for the last two seasons while with Vancouver.
“I take a lot of pride in the little things of the games: the faceoffs, the blocking shots and killing penalties, the little things that maybe don't show up on the score sheet but help teams win hockey games.
‘This organization knows me pretty well from the battles we've had over the last few years so I think they have a full understanding what they're getting.”
No Hossa or Kane:
Marian Hossa and Patrick Kane will miss Sunday night's game against Los Angeles at the United Center after testing their injuries again in practice Saturday.
Joel Quenneville said he hoped Hossa might be able to return Wednesday against Nashville. Kane left Saturday's practice early again with more ankle pain.
Viktor Stalberg will miss his second straight game with a suspected head injury.
Meet the new boss:
Former major-leaguer baseball union chief Donald Fehr was named executive direction of the NHL Players Association on Saturday in an overwhelming vote of approval by the players.
Fehr took over optimistic that there would be no work stoppage following next season when the current collective-bargaining agreement expires.
“We treat a work stoppage, a strike, as a last resort and it's something you consider only when you believe that all alternatives have failed,” Fehr said during a conference call with reporters.
“If you would ask me if I anticipate a stoppage, I would say no, and I certainly hope we won't have one, but I'm not going to predict what happens in negotiations.”
The quote:
Hawks defenseman Brent Seabrook on Friday's 4-1 win over Detroit: “It seems (it) was as close to a perfect game you can get. We're confident we can play like that all the time.”