Return of the Blackhawks

Well in the second game against the Coyotes, the Blackhawks have finally started to show why they were picked at the beginning of the season to win it all. They played great defense, passed the puck around, made some stupendous shots, and with a small bit of Niemi playing some solid goaltending, the Blackhawks pulled of a 2-0 win over the Coyotes to remain above the rest in the West.

With the return of Seabrook tonight, the defense let up 28 shots and provided Niemi with some great support that was needed to grab this shutout. The saves that Niemi had tonight were some of the best that I've seen from him so far this season. You can watch the highlights from the game here. The glove save that he made while flat on his stomach was just unbelievable. He is showing us why he is the goalie that we are to rely on for the rest of the season and through the post season. Niemi has had some rocky points through the middle of the season, but has finally gotten past those points. I am actually glad he had those terrible games in the middle of the season and has emptied them from his system, rather than save the shitty games for now at the end right before the playoffs. A few goalies who are in the middle of their terrible runs are Nabokov and Miller who have let up an unbelievable amount of goals in the games since the Olympic break. Niemi is playing very solid and can be relied upon for the playoffs.

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