Follow JJ on Twitter @jaeckel!


Injuries to #1 goalie Corey Crawford and titular (I get an 'A' for diction) #2 goalie Nikolai Khabibulin have made Hawk GM Stan Bowman look downright brilliant in going out and signing Finnish net minder Antti Raanta this past offseason.

Sure, Raanta's had a shaky moment here and there, but he's also been very good for stretches and appears ready to take the reins for a game or two while Crawford recovers, and certainly to displace Khabibulin when/if he could ever come back.

Raanta was solid yet again last night, backstopping the Hawks to a 6-2 victory over Florida, and he will get another chance to prove his mettle, under tougher circumstances, on the road in Dallas tomorrow night.

In other news, Kent "Don't Call Me Grampa" Simpson has been called up from Rockford to back up Raanta. The arrival in Chicago of former 2nd round pick Simpson, he of the 3.38 GAA in the AHL, is ample proof of how smart the Raanta signing really was.

Bryan Bickell has been placed on retroactive IR while continuing rehab on his injured knee.

I'll be back tomorrow with a Dallas preview.



Until then,


JJ

Join the Discussion: » 669 Comments » Post New Comment

» Thanks and Farewell

» Where do we go from here?

» Preds at Hawks Breakdown

» "All Teams Have Flaws"

» The Games You Should Win