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Antti Niemi still confident after shaky performance

Image (1) Niemi6-thumb-250x166-12617.jpg for post 1856

Antti Niemi had just as shaky a game as Michael Leighton did in the first two periods of last night’s game, with one subtle difference: he stayed in the game and made the big saves when his team needed them the most.

It’s also interesting to see how one team pulls their goaltender after five goals allowed, while the other team sticks with theirs. With how Niemi has played consistently in the postseason there’s no doubting that Joel Quenneville has more faith in his goaltender, while Laviolette is quick to turn back to his veteran if Leighton stumbles.

Sticking with Niemi proved to be the right choice, even if the only other alternative was Cristobal Huet, as he buckled down and gave his team the saves they needed to get the win. He only made six saves in the third period, but each one gave his teammates more and more confidence in their goalie.

Says Patrick Sharp: “That’s what the great thing about Antti is. It doesn’t matter how many he lets in, he’s always going to make that next save. I thought when it was a tie game and we got the lead there, he played his best hockey. Very sharp toward the end.”

It’s amazing to think of how far Niemi has come this season, when the weakest part of a great Blackhawks team was in net. He is now one heck of a confident goaltender, and he’s not going to let two bad periods get him off his game moving forward.

“I felt Grade A, pretty good at first. Of course, giving up five goals is not good for your focus,” Niemi said. “I can’t get too negative about the goals and started thinking about those too much.”

He was arguably the most important player for the Blackhawks against the Sharks, and he’s going to have to play much, much better for the rest of the series if he hopes to be hoisting the Stanley Cup. Still, the saves that he made in the third period are enough to give himself and his team the confidence they need to not worry about the goaltending game after game.

It’s this confidence that kept Quenneville from pulling Niemi, after he allowed five goals in the first two periods and letting the Flyers tie the game twice i the second period.

“I wasn’t looking at the goalie to make that change,” Quenneville said. “I thought he gave us a chance, and I thought he did what he had to do, particularly in the third.”