The Blackhawks broke Camp Culver following a morning practice Thursday, with the roster reduced to 32–a number that includes two players who haven’t been on the ice yet.
Center Brent Sutter is recovering from knee surgery and won’t be ready for the start of the season. Defenseman Michal Sykora still hasn’t joined the team because of visa problems in his native Czech Republic.
Of the 30 other players on the roster, 10 are rookies. Four have a shot at making it to opening night–left wings Dan Cleary and Jean-Yves Leroux and defensemen Christian Laflamme and Tuomas Gronman. Centers Dmitri Nabokov and Todd White, wings Ty Jones and Craig Mills and defensemen Remi Royer and Alain Nasreddine will see some action in upcoming exhibition games.
Twelve players were assigned to the Hawks’ minor-league affiliate in Indianapolis, including 28-year-old Petri Varis, who led the Finnish Elite League in scoring last season and was expected to make a strong push for a roster spot in training camp.
Wolves watch: New coach John Anderson will get the first in a short series of Chicagoland geography lessons Saturday night when the Wolves begin their exhibition season in Franklin Park against Grand Rapids.
The whirlwind tour of local rinks will continue Sunday in Northbrook with a practice game against Cincinnati, followed by stops in Fond du Lac, Wis., Joliet and Buffalo Grove.
Anderson wants to be a predictable coach with an unpredictable team.
“I’m user-friendly,” said the 12-year NHL veteran who last season led Quad City to the Colonial League championship. “I see myself as an instructor and a motivator. I don’t yell at my players.
“We’ll win with hard work and trickery. We’ll have different schemes, and we’ll change our scheme at a shift’s notice. It’ll make teams wary of us.”