Blessing In Disguise? Khabibulin Day-To-Day

Once Denis Savard was replaced by Joel Quenneville, the only real questions remaining for the Chicago Blackhawks are who will be the odd man out between pricey goaltenders Nikolai Khabibulin and Cristobal Huet, and what will the team get in return for the man that gets traded?

Huet is the newly signed, significantly younger of the two who figured to be the main man between the pipes for the Hawks in 2008-09 when he arrived. But a couple shaky starts, coupled with a resurgent Khabibulin playing perhaps his best hockey in a decade, have pushed Huet to the bench.

It also pushed youngster Corey Crawford, who has been referred to as "the future of the Blackhawks in goal" by General Manager Dale Tallon every time his name comes up, back to Rockford.

So there's your problem if you're Tallon. Two expensive goalies and the future in the minors because there's no ice time available in Chicago. What can a coach and general manager do to solve such a problem?

The break (pardon the pun) the Hawks management had been waiting for may have come in the tough loss at San Jose. After suffering what appeared to be an upper leg/groin injury in the final minute of the second period in San Jose, Khabibulin is now listed as day-to-day and doesn't figure to play until at least the first home game in two weeks on December 3. In reaction to the injury, the Hawks summoned Crawford from Rockford and will start Huet in goal against Anaheim.

The most unfortunate part of this story is other injury suffered in the San Jose game. Defensiveman Aaron Johnson, who has been a surprising contributor on defense for the Hawks, was placed on the Injured Reserve on Friday to make room for Crawford.

It has not yet been determined how severe the injury to Khabibulin is or how much time he might miss, but the injury gives the Hawks the ability to give Huet consistent minutes in net for the first time this season. It hasn't been that Huet has been poor in goal; his 3.08 goals against average would indicate the contrary. But Khabibulin is sporting a 7-1-4 record thus far and may finally be earning his contract with the Hawks.

At the end of the summer and throughout the preseason, Khabibulin was nowhere to be found. Rumors had the Blackhawks trying to sell his contract to clubs in Russia or other areas of Europe, simply trying to get the veteran's salary off their books. But the suitors weren't there and no deal was made, leading the Hawks to have two expensive players at the same position.

The rumor mill hasn't slowed down during an action-packed first quarter of the season for the Hawks. Savard received his pink slip seemingly hours into the season, and the trade rumors have been all over the league. The most recent rumor has Dustin Byfuglien and Brent Sopel going to Washington for former Hawk Michael Nylander. There were a number of potential deals involving Khabibulin staying inside the NHL, and if Huet performs to the level his salary would warrant the rumors might pop up again.

At least now the Hawks, and the fans, will get a chance to see how Huet handles consistent playing time. If he does well, it might open doors for the Hawks to get a significantly higher value for the red-hot Khabibulin than they would have in August.