LAST WEEK, when Kimmo Timonen went to Chicago to take part in the Blackhawks' Stanley Cup celebration leading up to the new season, the 40-year-old was not simply taking part in the festivities.
Sure, he went to a ring ceremony, then he was at United Center last Wednesday watching the team's banner unveiling and saw his name on the Cup. But he was also testing himself. When he went to Chicago's morning skate that day, he walked around the locker room for about 10 minutes.
"I wanted to see if I got any kind of itch to put my gear on and go out there, but I didn't," Timonen said on a conference call over the weekend.