A Look Inside: Hannu Toivonen - Part II
9/13/2004

By Brian J. Scully
BostonBruins.com

This is Part II of a story on Bruins' goaltending prospect Hannu Toivonen. Click
here to read Part I.

-- "I hope that will be the worst performance that I will ever have in a Bruins
uniform." - Hannu Toivonen on the first day of training camp in 2003 after
giving up seven goals in 30 minutes of play.

Hannu Toivonen arrived in Boston jet-lagged from criss-crossing the world on his
way to Wilmington. His new pads hadn't arrived and he was less-than-settled into
his new country.

So - given the stylistic differences between European and North American hockey
- it was to be expected that he would struggle a bit. And struggle he did.

Facing a team that boasted a little-known prospect from Acadie-Bathurst of the
QMJHL - Patrice Bergeron - Toivonen was lit up. His save percentage hovered
somewhere around .400, which would be incredible in baseball, but nowhere else.

But - to his credit - and in a display of his maturity, he gamely met with the
media.

"I was horrible," he said. "I will be better tomorrow."

He made few excuses and instead went out and pitched a near-shutout for the rest
of training camp, culminating in a two-period shutout effort in a pre-season
game against Montreal.

"Other than that first day that was tough on him, he just took off," said
Gorton. "He had a great camp and he kind of flew under the radar, because of
Patrice Bergeron. I think, with Hannu in goal, and Andrew in goal, we're pretty
solid in net for a good time. Andrew's done it now and Hannu is pushing. In due
time everyone will know who he is."

Toivonen was assigned to Providence at the end of camp and proceeded to make a
name for himself with the P-Bruins, playing for coach Scott "Flash" Gordon, a
former goalie himself. As with everywhere he has gone in his career, Toivonen
earned praise.

"He's experienced beyond his years," said Gordon. "I don't think I've ever seen
a goaltender at 19 that was as good as he was. Everything he does is great -
he's smart, he's always in position, he's athletic.

"There are a lot of good goalies right now who butterfly - look at Andrew
Raycroft and how good he has played up in Boston. You get the same thing with
Hannu, but even beyond his positioning, his athleticism is beyond where most
goalies are. Butterfliers get in front of the puck and move side-to-side, but he
can throw in that athleticism that you just don't see often. He's going to be a
great player. I think everybody in our organization is thrilled. And he's doing
it at such a young age. You watched him play and you never said, 'That's a
19-year-old kid.' He's big in stature and he plays like he's been around for
ever."

Learning in part from last year, Toivonen arrived well ahead of schedule for
this year's training camp.

"The biggest reason I came over earlier was to get rid of jetlag and get
settled," said Toivonen. "I needed to get all the small things done before
training camp. I didn't want to worry about any of the small things at all. Last
year, I know that I was horrible the first week of training camp. I think that
was because I had to worry about things off the ice. So, I think it is better
for me to come a couple of weeks before so that I'm ready to go and also relaxed
to go. There won't be any hurry to get things done in the two days before camp.
I'm ready for training camp. Bring it on."

This year, Toivonen hopes to capitalize on his comfort with the surroundings.

"I know the style of practicing over here, small details like that," said
Toivonen. "It's just so much easier to play when you know what you are facing.
Having been here for a season, I know what is going to happen before the game,
after the game, things like that. I know what I need to do to prepare for
traveling and how to be ready for each and every game.

"Take a Sunday afternoon game - I know what I have to do, now, to be ready to
play in the afternoon. I feel very comfortable."

Adjusting well

Toivonen is a world away from his home in Finland, but he is the picture of
comfort in Providence, one-year removed from his first season as a professional
hockey player in North America.

Where last year, he found a different culture, a different style of hockey, and
the
difference of living alone for the first time, this year he is a man about
Providence.

Not that he's too comfortable here.

He has every intention of moving up I-95 to Boston. And - given the track he's
on - that will happen sooner rather than later.

Toivonen has flown under the radar somewhat to this point. But all that is
changing very quickly.

"He had a stellar first year, playing in about half the Providence games with a
2.30 goals against average and a .921 save percentage. He also made the jump to
many "top prospects" lists around the league and as the go-to-guy in Providence
this season, he'll increase his exposure tremendously.

Just last season, his own stick manufacturer misspelled his name, writing
"Toivonovonen" and giving rise to yet another nickname. It's safe to say, at
this point, that won't be repeated.

"Yeah, at first my sticks came in and they said, 'Toivonovonen' which was pretty
funny," said Toivonen. "Some guys still call me that."

Still, the Bruins want to make sure that Toivonen is ready and are willing to
let him season in the AHL, given their plans for him long-term.

"It always takes time," said Gorton. "That's probably the worst position to rush
someone at in the world. We learned from Andrew that if you give a goalie the
proper games, he'll tell you when he's ready.

"We went through this process with Raycroft, although we drafted him in a
different spot. It takes a little time. You never know how they are going to be.
They're both similar because they're pretty even-keeled guys and they're both
focused. You just know that they are going to do what's right in order for them
to get to play. Hannu - after that first day of camp - had a really solid camp.
He was good for us. He got a lot of great experience last year. It's a big year
for him. As far as being ahead of schedule, yeah, he probably is."

Toivonen, who is about as laid-back as you could expect a goaltender to be, is
just enjoying the process. He professes that there is really nothing special
about him or his situation.

"I'm just a normal kid, nothing else," said Toivonen. "I don't consider myself
anything else. I'm just a normal 20-year-old. That's what I am to my family and
friends at home. I'm just a normal kid who gets to play hockey. I love the game
and I'm fortunate enough to play it at the pro level."






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