| Nieminen Shows Rookies The Ropes
By Adam Kempenaar Three hours after his first training camp practice ended, Lasse Kukkonen was still hanging around the arena. While the other rookies from his group had already boarded the bus and made their way back to the hotel, the 22-year-old defenseman sat waiting for his "landmates," Tuomo Ruutu and Ville Nieminen, to finish their scrimmage. Although it is common in any hockey locker room to find players from the same neck of the woods clustered together -- whether they're from Russia, British Columbia or Boston -- in the case of this Finnish trio, the relationship is a practical one. "Let's start with what my role is in our little three-guy group," Nieminen says with a laugh. "My role is to be a translator and driver." When Blackhawks general manager Mike Smith signed Nieminen as a free agent in the off-season, the 26-year-old left wing's skills as a chauffeur probably didn't factor into the deal. But Smith believes that Nieminen could fill another important role this season as a mentor to Ruutu and Kukkonen, two "kids" in a new country participating in their first NHL training camp. "There's no question older players can help younger players in terms of figuring out the lifestyle, where to live, eat, stuff like that," Smith says. "I think it's more off the ice than on the ice. But that's part of leadership as well, making sure younger players are being helped and not left to fend for themselves."
Both Ruutu and Kukkonen acknowledge that Nieminen has fulfilled that leadership position since the start of camp. "Ville has been here in the States for like five years, so, he's kind of used to all the off-ice stuff," Kukkonen says. "He can tell us what to do, what we shouldn't do, what's coming up, so it's easier." "For those guys, they are here for the first time in the United States," Nieminen says. "They probably feel a little bit more comfortable and they feel more at home when there is a little bit older guy to show them around. "I don't know -- they read the map and I drive. It's a fun group." Bringing the excitement In the 78-year history of the franchise, the Blackhawks have never had more than one Finnish player in training camp at one time, much less three who have a legitimate shot at being on the opening night roster. Nieminen and Ruutu are already penciled in among the top nine forwards, and Kukkonen is one of two or three players in the mix for a spot on the blue line. Although Nieminen had only met Kukkonen and Ruutu once, briefly, before training camp started, the thought of having two landmates around made him more eager to get to camp.
"I was excited [when Ruutu signed] because I had a good experience in Colorado," Nieminen says. "Riku Hahl came my last year there and we didn't know each other either, but that really helps when there are younger guys to bring the excitement to each other, and, at the same time, you have somebody to talk to." Nieminen didn't have to wait long to get a glimpse of the excitement Ruutu could bring as the two were paired together with Mark Bell during the first camp scrimmage on Sept. 12. Nieminen and Bell each tallied a goal and an assist for the Black team, while Ruutu dished out two assists and a handful of hard checks en route to a 6-4 win over Red. "Well, I had never seen him play or anything like that, but the first two days of the camp I was like, 'this guy… is… awesome,'" Nieminen says, slowing down to emphasize the last word. "He will have a very bright future here in Chicago and he's very intelligent. Smart, smart kid. "I had talked to him about the whole athlete thing -- doing everything on the ice better and loving the sport. And then I saw him on the ice and I knew I hadn't seen many guys born in '83 who could be that good. Actually, I never saw any 20-year-old being that good." "He's a tough player and he's very competitive," says Kukkonen, who played with Ruutu on Finland's 2001 bronze-medal winning World Junior Championship team, and against him for the past three seasons in the Finnish Elite League. "He likes to win, so it's fun to play against that tough kind of guy. You've got to be as tough as he is, so he gets the best out of you." A good mix As a group, Ruutu, Nieminen and Kukkonen may represent all of Finland. But individually, they represent three distinct parts of the country. "Lasse is from way up north," Nieminen says. "I'm from the middle part of Finland, and Tuomo is very south, capital city. So we have a good mix. We all talk a little bit different Finnish too." Those little language differences have done nothing to cramp the group's communication; the three new Blackhawks have been more or less inseparable throughout training camp. "We go stretching together. We go to the gym together. And we try to do everything as much as possible to be better on the ice and recover from the hard training camp," Nieminen says. "We are really enjoying the sport right now. We have a good spirit in our group." But just how long will the trio remain together? Although Ruutu enjoys the camaraderie -- in addition to Nieminen's free taxi service -- he's wary of being viewed as a member of a clique within the locker room, rather than part of the whole team. "At first it's easier for us, you know. Go with Finland, see how things are going here," Ruutu says. "But I don't want to do that. I hate when the guys have their own group. It shouldn't be like that. "But it's nice to have a few Finnish guys here," Ruutu finishes with a smile.
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