If you watched any of the games between the Chicago Blackhawks and Avalanche last year, an easy ending was the furthest thing from your mind.
If Marty Turco expected to face fewer shots in Chicago than he did in Dallas...
Despite allowing a soft game-winner to Paul Stastny in overtime, Turco kept a sloppy Blackhawks team in the game. He faced 41 shots, allowing four to get past him (.902 save percentage). And even though the last one that slipped through his armpit wasn't pretty, he made a number of big saves that kept the game close.
Beyond Turco, there were a number of storylines that began to emerge that could make Saturday night an intriguing second chapter.
The biggest, and most noticeable, was following the baby Blackhawk in his debut. Nick Leddy, 19, was skating with Niklas Hjalmarsson in the Hawks top four less than 18 months after picking up his high school diploma.
Early in the first period, Leddy let a bouncing puck get past him and he took his time going after it. Two sprinting Avs players left him in their dust, and Chris Stewart scored on Turco. Leddy has been touted as one of the better skating def ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by TAB BAMFORD
Chicago Blackhawks: What We Learned From Game 1
October 8th, 2010 by TAB BAMFORD Leave a reply »
Advertisement