CHICAGO -- They call him the "Rat," and he'd prefer the "Greyhound," but if Dave Bolland keeps playing like this they'll soon be calling him "Mr. Clutch" or "Shorty."
Bolland scored a shorthanded goal on a first-period breakaway for the Blackhawks in their wild 6-5 series-opening win at United Center in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.
Along with playing another solid defensive-oriented checking game, Bolland continues to show the offensive skills he was known for in junior hockey. He centered a third line that produced three goals and three assists -- including Bolland's goal and assist with a plus-3 rating in 20:25 of ice time.
Bolland talked about his big offensive night, what it was like to have Tomas Kopecky on his wing instead of injured Andrew Ladd -- and, yes, how he once again found Vince Vaughn with a wink through the glass after scoring.
Q: Talk about the goal that you scored tonight.
Bolland: I think it was over to (Braydon) Coburn there and Coburn was fumbling it. Just sort of poke it right out of him and the puck was fumbling on the ice there. The ice was pretty bad. I just got a grip of it and just put it between his legs.
Q: The depth of scoring you guys had -- the first line didn't get a point, but everyone else seemed to …
Bolland: Yeah, the other guys stepped up tonight. Browsy, Kopecky, who's back in the lineup, we have other guys who produce. That's what's great about this team. If Toews or Kaner aren't scoring, we've got other guys who can step up as well.
Q: You guys had some penalties in the first period that gave them some life. Is that just a product of being nervous or too excited?
Bolland: No, what we've got to do is stay out of that box. Penalties kill us, and you can't produce when their (power play) is out there. That's something we've got to stay away from.
Q: Were you pretty happy with both ends of the ice for your line again?
Bolland: Yeah, with (Kopecky) coming in and with (Versteeg), it's tough playing against (Jeff) Carter and (Simon) Gagne and (Mike) Richards. It's a great line and that's something we've got to make sure of when we're back in our own zone.
Q: Was there a little bit of nervousness to start this game, and if there was, when did it go away?
Bolland: I think there could have been a little bit of nervousness. Just a different kind of game for us to adapt to. That's one thing we've got to adapt to pretty quick. We can't wait.
Q: Another shorty for you guys on the penalty kill. What's the secret?
Bolland: I don't know. If I see the guy fumbling that puck, I'm going to go for it. That could be it. We've done a great job on the PK, and we've got to keep going. We've got to stay out of that box as well.
Q: It looks like you guys are as dangerous on the PK as you are on the power play. Is that how it feels?
Bolland: Well, we've got to get a power play to do something out there on the PP. So I guess we've got to do something on the PK then, right?
Q: How frustrating is it not getting any power plays?
Bolland: Well, that's their go-to for some guys is the (power play), and if you don't get it, some guys get frustrated. But that's the way the game goes and we've just got to deal with that. We've got to put that behind us.
Q: Even though it may not have been the way you wanted to do it, you still got the win at home in the first game. Happy with that?
Bolland: It wasn't a textbook (win) for us. We didn't play a great game or how we play normally -- like how we played against San Jose and Vancouver. We're going to know for our next game what we have to do to beat this team.
Q: You've gotten this reputation as more of a defensive guy, but you've shown a lot of offensive ability lately.
Bolland: I like to show that off, too. In junior I was an offensive player, then when I came up here I took over the defensive role. It's a different thing, but I just want to keep on rolling and chip in some points as well.
Q: Is there a difference on your line with Kopecky in there?
Bolland: There is and there isn't. Laddy is a different player than Kopecky, but I've played with Kopecky before and I know how he plays. For me to get back with Kopey and Steeger, it was fine for us.
Q: Did you see Vince Vaughn again?
Bolland: Oh yeah, seen him again.
Q: Did you give him another wink?
Bolland: Oh yeah. Always. I always curl to the right now when I score now.
Q: It was at the same end of the rink as before, right?
Dave Bolland
Center - CHI
GOALS: 6 | ASST: 6 | PTS: 12
SOG: 29 | +/-: 6
Q: So many goals scored, that had to be a surprise wasn't it?
Bolland: Yeah, it was. That was a lot of goals scored. They've got a lot of good guys on their team and we've got a lot of guys who can score, as well. It just went back and forth.
Q: How would you rate Kopey's celebration move there?
Bolland: (laughs) I like that. When they're showing it up on the Jumbotron, his face was right in the camera. I don't know how pretty his face is, but it looked pretty funny.
Q: He might have scared away some fans.
Bolland: Yeah, he probably did with that mustache he's growing.
Q: With that many goals being scored, do even you guys start singing (Chelsea Dagger) on the bench?
Bolland: I think it's just stuck in our heads now. I know the whole song by heart now, so yeah.
Q: Five-hole on that one … where you thinking that as you broke in?
Bolland: I was thinking something else. I thought I was going to go high glove, but the puck wasn't settling down. I had to get it off quick.
Q: Does it ever cross your mind to maybe flail the arms to try and draw attention to possible penalties?
Bolland: No, we don't really do that.
Q: Would it help?
Bolland: I don't know if it would've helped out there tonight, but we stay away from that kind of stuff.
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.