11:40 AM Thu, Oct 20, 2005 | Permalink
Joe McDonald  Email
|
Rookie goaltender Hannu Toivonen will start for the Boston Bruins tonight against the Buffalo Sabres.
It will be his third appearance and second start for the B's. Toivonen, 21, made his NHL debut against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Oct. 8 and earned a 7-6 victory.
"He lived up to expectations," said coach Mike Sullivan. "We thought he played extremely well and he gave our team a chance to win. We think Hannu is a capable guy, that's why he's here. He had a tremendous training camp and he is a competitive kid. He really battles everyday to improve and get better. Right now we feel like we have a pretty solid tandem."
Sullivan informed Toivonen on Wednesday night that he would start against the Sabres in the club's return trip back to the Garden since the season-opener on Oct. 5.
"It's really exciting," said Toivonen. "I'm being honest with you, it is a great thing to play the first game at home. Hopefully it is going to be a good night with a packed building. It's going to be a good feeling."
In only his third year as a professional, Toivonen learned a very important lesson during his first NHL game against the Penguins.
"Basically I learned that I can play the game," he said. "I got my confidence level up and I feel comfortable out there. This is going to be my third game in the thing and you just have to take steps all the time. You start to feel more comfortable everyday and the things you do start to get easier. Hopefully tonight will be another step forward. I can't get ahead of things right now, I just need to play another hockey game and not make it any more difficult than that."
New comments
New photos
Authors
New posts
Projo blogs
Archives
Leave a comment