Heartfelt tribute a lasting memory for ex-Hawk Hjalmarsson
Leave it to the Blackhawks to play a tribute video so moving that it forced Niklas Hjalmarsson to miss a shift.
"That was a tough one," Hjalmarsson said after his Coyotes defeated the Blackhawks Thursday at the United Center.
The 90-second piece featured plenty of memorable moments, including Hjalmarsson lifting the Stanley Cup, saying hello to his son through the glass, goal celebrations and fierce open-ice hits. The most lasting image may have been Hjalmarsson holding up three fingers while seated next to Jonathan Toews after the Hawks won the Cup in 2015.
"I gave my heart and soul for this club for 10 years and played as hard as I could," Hjalmarsson said. "I'm proud of what I accomplished along with my great teammates that I had here for a long time. Then when I saw my son, too, it was tough to hold back the tears."
Hjalmarsson was supposed to play the next shift, but coach Rick Tocchet pulled his teary-eyed defenseman off the ice.
"It would have been tough to make a shift right after the video," Hjalmarsson said.
The fans proceeded to give Hjalmarsson a loud, lengthy ovation, as the Hawks tapped their sticks to salute their former teammate.
"I almost got emotional, too, seeing his reaction," Jonathan Toews said. "He's one of those guys you'll never forget what he meant to this locker room. He was a quiet guy in the room but we all know how he played and put everyone else before himself.
"Happy for him to get that reception. It's well-deserved and obviously we miss having him around."
Anisimov joins Kane
Coach Joel Quenneville mixed up the lines at practice Friday, reuniting Artem Anisimov with Patrick Kane and Nick Schmaltz. Brandon Saad was on the third line with Chris Kunitz and David Kampf.
Alexandre Fortin, who failed to capitalize on numerous scoring opportunities against Arizona, will likely be a healthy scratch Saturday at Columbus.
Davidson for Manning
Defenseman Brandon Davidson, a healthy scratch for the first six games, is expected to make his season debut against Columbus.
"I want to be a part of it as much as possible," said Davidson, who came into camp on a professional tryout and signed a one-year deal Sept. 27. "I know these situations happen … but I've been very patient. I kind of expected this starting the season. Every day you just go in with the right mindset, put your work boots on and get ready for your chance."
Brandon Manning will sit. Joel Quenneville wasn't happy with how Manning played a first-period 2-on-1 that led to Arizona's first goal Thursday.
Slap shots
After making 33 saves for Arizona on Thursday, Antti Raanta is now 16-0-3 with a .946 save percentage and 1.49 goals against average at the United Center. … Jonathan Toews (5G, 5A) and Alex DeBrincat (6G, 4A) extended their season-opening point streaks to six games vs. the Coyotes. … Patrick Kane had just 4 shot attempts (1 on goal) against Arizona. He averaged 11.2 attempts in the first five games.