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Penguins Fall to Sabres 4-3

The Pittsburgh Penguins lost their final pre-season game tonight in Buffalo by a score of 4-3.  With the loss, the Penguins finished the pre-season at 1-3-2, with the only win coming in Game #2 against Montreal.  Sidney Crosby, Petr Sykora, Mark Recchi, Gary Roberts, Alain Nasreddine, Mike Weaver, and Kris Letang were all scratches for the game (presumed healthy scratches). 

The Buffalo Sabres got on the board first at 15:53 of the first period on a power play goal by D. Roy with assists from T. Vanek and M. Afinogenov.  At the time, Mark Eaton was serving a 2-minute minor for charging.  It was the only goal of the first period with the Sabres outshooting the Penguins 8-5.

In the second period, both teams picked up a goal.  Buffalo struck first on an even strength goal from D. Kalinen with assists by T. Vanek and D. Stafford at 4:32.  The Penguins battled back to within a point on a short-handed goal by Maxime Talbot at 12:10 from Colby Armstrong, while Jarrko Ruutu was in the box on an interference call.  The Penguins outshot the Sabres in the second 7-4.

In the third period, Pittsburgh picked up the next goal on an even strength attempt by Colby Armstrong at 1:47.  Jordan Staal and Maxime Talbot each picked up an assist on the marker.  Pittsburgh then took the lead at 8:28 on a power-play goal by Sergei Gonchar, with assists by Ryan Whitney and Erik Christensen.  Unofrtunately, Buffalo took over the remainder of the game scoring the tying point on a power-play goal by J. Pominville (from D. Roy and M. Afinogenov), while Maxime Talbot was in the box on a tripping call.  The game winner came on an even strength chance by T. Connolly from D. Kalinen and J. Hecht.  The Sabres outshot the Penguins 12-5 in the final frame, and had the edge in shots overall at 24-17. 

Marc-Andre Fleury was in net for the Penguins and had some tremendous saves throughout the game.  However, the lack of quality defensive zone coverage by the Penguins allowed too many goals on net, particularly in the latter half of the third period.  Power play chances were even for both teams with 6 penalties and 12 minutes a side.  The Penguins had a much better showing on the face-off tonight, winning 55% of the draws.  Maxime Talbot had a goal and an assist tonight and picked up the game’s 2nd star.  Colby Armstrong also had a goal and an assist. 

Click HERE for the Penguins Rink Rat Post Game Report. 

And with that, the Penguins complete their pre-season, albeit less successfully than they might have hoped.  Nonetheless, the purpose of pre-season is to assess the team’s prospects, work the lines, and get back into game form.  Hopefully the Penguins can apply the right team and line adjustments to enable them to bolt out of the gate early in the regular season.  I was excited by the level of play that I witnessed in Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Marc-Andre Fleury, and Jordan Staal in the pre-season, particularly Malkin who really looks ready to turn it up a notch.  Hopefully he can deliver and be consistent throughout the whole season.  I am concerned by the current state of readiness of the Penguins defensive corps.  Hopefully they can pull it together before too many regular season games come and go.

Tune in next week as the Penguins drop the puck in their season opener at the Carolina Hurricanes at 7PM on Friday, Oct 5, 2007.  NHLPens.com will be hosting an audio feed, scoreboard and live chat at the “In Game” room.  It is a fun way to follow the game with other fans if you can’t be there in person.  Check back and look for “In Game” links on game day.  Also, be sure to check back daily for updated articles and forum postings on your favorite NHL Team, the Pittsburgh Penguins!

Pens Lose to Sabres 6-5

The Pittsburgh Penguins put on a good show tonight, but lost to the Buffalo Sabres 6-5 in a back and forth, offensive juggernaut of a game.  The game, shown live over the internet, was accompanied here on NHLPens.com with live chat.  Thanks to the fans who stopped by and participated in the live chat room during the game.   

In the first period, the Buffalo Sabres put up the first two points against the Penguins on even strength goals from Vanek and Campbell at 1:26 and 12:50.  The Penguins chipped one away from the Sabres lead on a power play goal by Sidney Crosby at 15:34, with assists from Evgeni Malkin and Colby Armstrong.

In the second period, it was the Penguins who struck first to even the score at 2 on an even strength goal by Jordan Staal at 5:37, with assists from Sidney Crosby and Mark Recchi.  The Pens then struck again for their first lead of the game at 17:53 on a power play goal by Sidney Crosby, his second of the night, with assists from Evgeni Malkin and Ryan Whitney.  The Sabres evened it back up at 3-apiece less than a minute later on a goal from Tallinder at 18:28. 

In the third period, Pittsburgh again struck first on a nice power play goal from Ryan Malone at 2:32, with an assist from Erik Christensen.  At 6:19, the Sabres tied it up at 4 on an even strength goal from Roy.  Pittsburgh bought the lead back at 8:59 on an even strength goal by Erik Christensen, with assists from Ryan Malone and Ryan Whitney.  But the Sabres came back to tie it yet again at 16:35 on an even strength goal from Zagrapan, and scored the game winner at 19:32 on an unassisted even strength goal by Roy.  Evgeni Malkin slapped one in at the buzzer, in what would have been the game tying goal, but the clock had just expired less than a second before the puck went across the line and the goal was disallowed. 

Sidney Crosby finished the night with two goals and an assist, and took a hard hit against the boards which sent him to the bench doubled over in pain for a shift.  Evgeni Malkin had two assists and was phenomenal in the game tonight.  He drew four of the five Sabres penalties, and was constantly making plays at both ends of the ice.  Crosby picked up the second start of the game and Malkin the third star.  The Penguins were again held to less than 50% on the faceoff (48%). 

Penguins goaltender Dany Sabourin did not have a great outing, giving up 6 goals on 23 shots (0.739).  He did have a few really good saves, and he really didn’t get any help at all from the Pens defense.  In fact, the defense was largely ineffective in the game.  Defenseman Darryl Sydor had an especially bad night, passing the puck directly to the Buffalo offense and then letting them skate into the zone and shoot right through his legs for the Sabres 5th goal.  He was on the ice for 4 of 6 Sabres goals.  Defenseman Kris Letang did not have an overly impressive game either, although he did put one heckuva shot in on goal from the point.  Adam Hall left the game with a cut to the nose from a high stick late in the second period and did not return. 

The Penguins travel to Buffalo for a rematch on Saturday night in their 6th and final game of the pre-season.  The Penguins are looking to get some momentum in aadvance of the regular season start next week.  The Pens offense made good strides, but their goaltending and defense didn’t gain any traction tonight.  I anticipate Marc Andre Fleury will get the nod tomorrow, and hopefully the defense will do a little self assessment overnight.   

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