They have had some downtime in Europe, but their focus has been on hockey.
After reaching the Western Conference finals last season for the first time since 1995, the Blackhawks face inflated expectations entering Friday’s NHL opener against the Florida Panthers.
They will play the first of two games on back-to-back nights at Hartwall Arena, a building the city constructed for the sole purpose of getting a regular-season NHL game.
Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith said being in Finland adds to the excitement of starting a new season. The teams appeared together at a downtown pep rally Thursday at Esplanade Park, and the coaches, captains and lone Finn player (Antti Niemi and Ville Koistinen) of each team spoke.
That was the last fun event for both teams.
Now comes “the business to do,” as Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said.
Around the league, many predict the Hawks will win the Stanley Cup. Defenseman Brent Seabrook, though, said they are “starting from square one again.”
“We have to use last year as a learning experience, remember what it took to get there and how hard we played,” he said.
Added Keith: “We have to be hungrier. It comes down to having the mindset that this year is going to be tougher in the sense that teams know about us and teams are going to be ready to play us.”
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Hawks cover-up
Patrick Kane might be on the cover of NHL 10, but that doesn’t mean much when it comes to the video game’s simulation of the 2009-10 season.
EA Sports predicts the Boston Bruins will be NHL champs again, beating Kane and the Blackhawks 4-2 in the Stanley Cup finals. The simulation predicted the Hawks would oust longtime nemesis Detroit in the playoffs en route to the finals.
The game predicts the Blackhawks will finish the regular season 54-26-2.
