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Malkin and Fleury Shine in 6-3 Win Over Thrashers

The Pittsburgh Penguins returned from a 4-day layoff to beat the Atlanta Thrashers 6-3 as they were powered by the offensive prowess of Evgeni Malkin and the excellent netminding of Marc-Andre Fleury.  Malkin picked up 4-points (2G, 2A) to continue his dominating lead in the league scoring race, while Fleury made several highlight reel saves as he stopped 28-of-31 shots in his first action since November 15th.  Malkin’s 4-point night gives him 53-points (14G, 39A) in 31-games, or 1.71 points per game, putting him on pace for a 140-point season.  He is 7-points ahead of Sidney Crosby who is 2nd in the scoring race, and 10-points ahead of 3rd place Alexander Ovechkin.  Despite beating a team near the bottom of the league standings, the Penguins relished the much needed win after losing 4 of their last 5 games.  Although the win was decisive on the scoreboard, the Penguins were outshot 31-20 in the game and were a bit sloppy in their own end as they gave up 7 turnovers.  Marc-Andre Fleury was outstanding in net and showed no signs of the groin injury that has kept him out of the lineup for over a month. 

In the 1st period, the Penguins hopped out to a quick lead as they scored at 5:32.  Taking advantage of a Thrashers’ player who broke his stick on a shot, the Penguins moved the puck quickly out of their zone and up the ice.  Jordan Staal moved the puck to call-up Tim Wallace who found Matt Cooke streaking toward the blueline with a nice cross ice pass.  Cooke protected the puck as he skated into the Thrashers’ zone and let a quick snap shot that beat Ondrej Pavelec on the short side.  Then at 9:40, Evgeni Malkin embarrassed Todd White as he just walked right through him by the side of the goal to put the puck into the empty side of the net.  Petr Sykora assisted on Malkin’s 13th goal of the season to make it 2-0.  At 19:21, however, the Thrashers cut the lead in half as Marty Reasoner was credited with a goal that caromed recklessly off from sticks and bodies to beat Fleury.  Ilya Kovalchuk and Chris Thorburn were credited with the assists that made it 2-1 after one.  A scuffle in front of the net ensued after the goal as Brooks Orpik and Sidney Crosby roughed it up with Boris Valabik, who had fallen awkwardly onto Orpik’s leg during the play.  The 2-on-1 scuffle led to a pair of penalties to the Penguins to send them into the 2nd period shorthanded.  The Penguins were outshot 9-6 in the period and were 2-for-2 on the penalty kill.  Despite being outshot, Marc-Andre Fleury made a number of beautiful saves including a great glove save on Colby Armstrong to keep the Thrashers in check.

In the 2nd, the Penguins managed to kill off the carryover penalties to Orpik and Crosby before getting a man advantage of their own just 3-minutes into the period, thanks to a holding call on Joseph Crabb.  The Penguins needed just 31-seconds on the powerplay to score on a blast by Evgeni Malkin that appeared to deflect into the net off from Jordan Staal’s leg to make it 3-1.  The powerplay goal was originally given to Malkin, but then later changed to Staal with assists by Malkin and Crosby.  Then at 4:27, former Penguin Colby Armstrong got called for high sticking Evgeni Malkin.  Although it appeared that Malkin showed the referee that there was some blood, Armstrong was assessed a 2-minute minor.  With a little over 30-seconds left on the powerplay, Miroslav Satan found himself all alone in front of goaltender Pavelec and on the receiving end of a beautiful centering pass by Jeff Taffe.  Satan moved the puck to his backhand and easily beat the netminder to make it 4-1.  Ruslan Fedotenko picked up the other assist on the poweplay goal.  At 7:32, with Mark Eaton in the penalty box for hooking, the Thrashers again cut the lead in half as Bryan Little wristed a shot past Fleury to make it 4-2.  Todd White and Vyacheslav Kozlov made the assists on the powerplay goal.  However, just 32-seconds later, the Penguins stole it back on a blistering slapshot by Philippe Boucher to make it 5-2.  Evgeni Malkin picked up his league leading 39th assist on the play along with Petr Sykora.  The goal ended up chasing Pavelec out of the net in favor of former Penguin netminder Johan Hedberg.  The Penguins ended the period being outshot by the Thrashers 10-9, were 2-for-3 on the powerplay and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill.  Fleury was again fabulous in net and made a beautiful kick save and glove save on Eric Perrin with 7:07 left in the period.

Into the 3rd period, the Penguins had to hold off a surging Atlanta Thrashers team as they were outshot 12-5 in the final frame.  The Thrashers came within 2-goals of the Penguins after Miroslav Satan errantly passed the puck to Colby Armstrong loitering all alone in the Penguins zone at 14:55.  Armstrong picked his spot and beat his former teammate Fleury with a slapper to make it 5-3.  But that was the closest they would come as Fleury went on to shut things down despite seeing plenty of rubber in the period.  Late in the period, the Thrashers pulled Hedberg out for the extra attacker but were unable to get one by the Penguins.  With 27-seconds left on the clock, Rob Scuderi moved the puck to Sidney Crosby up the wall who had the chance to put the puck into the empty net, but dished off to Evgeni Malkin instead who easily skated it into the open goal mouth to make it 6-3.  Scuderi and Crosby picked up the assists on the final tally of the game.   

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• PHOTOS:  In-Game Photos
• Game Rosters
• Game Summary
• Boxscore
• Shot Summary
• Faceoffs Summary
• Pittsburgh Ice Time Report

Evgeni Malkin picked up 4-points (2G, 2A), while Jordan Staal (1G, 1A), Sidney Crosby (2A) and Petr Sykora (2A) each had 2-points.  Matt Cooke (1G), Miroslav Satan (1G), Philippe Boucher (1G), Tim Wallace (1A), Ruslan Fedotenko (1A), Jeff Taffe (1A) and Rob Scuderi (1A) all contributed with a point.  Petr Sykora led the team with 4-shots on net, while Evgeni Malkin and AHL call-up Ryan Stone each had 3-shots.  Jordan Staal (13/22) led all Penguins with a 59% faceoff win percentage, but collectively the team was outplayed in the faceoff circle winning only 44% of the draws.  The Penguins out-hit the Thrashers 23-17.  Evgeni Malkin led all players with 24:23 of ice time and Rob Scuderi led all Defensemen with 24:00 in ice time.  The active Penguins defense blocked 15-shots on net. 

The Penguins return to Mellon Arena on Saturday night where they will take on the Toronto Maple Leafs.

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Penguins Win Shootout, Take Atlantic Lead

The Pittsburgh Penguins jumped out to an early lead but ultimately needed a shootout to beat the Atlanta Thrashers on Sunday afternoon, 3-2.  Marc-Andre Fleury, playing in his first full start since returning from his high ankle sprain injury, turned aside all three shots in the shootout to capture the win.  Kris Letang scored the lone shootout goal for the Penguins.  The win puts the Penguins solely in the lead of the Atlantic Division, and in 2nd place in the Eastern Conference behind Montreal.  Montreal and Pittsburgh both have 81-points, but Montreal has a game in hand against the Penguins.   

In the 1st period, it looked like the Penguins were going to walk away with the game quite quickly, as they scored 2-goals in the first 2:09 of the game.  The first goal came just 50 seconds into the game as Ryan Malone dug the puck out of the pads of a floundering Kari Lehtonen and backhanded it into the open net.  The goal was Malone’s 23rd of the season, and marks a career high.  Sergei Gonchar and Evgeni Malkin picked up the assists on the goal.  Then, at 2:09, Max Talbot made a nifty move to skate around a Thrashers’ defensemen and then backhanded the puck past Lehtonen for his 9th of the year.  Jarkko Ruutu and Alex Goligoski were credited with the assists on the play.  At 14:29, the Thrashers got back in the game when Jim Slater beat Marc-Andre Fleury with a slap shot.  Eric Boulton and Joel Kwiatkowski were given assists on the play.  The Penguins outshot the Thrashers 10-8 in the first, were 0-for-1 on the power play and killed off 2-penalties of their own. 

There was no scoring in the second as the Thrashers outshot the Penguins 13-11.  The Penguins were 0-for-1 on the power play and successfully killed off 3-penalties. 

In the 3rd, the Thrashers scored early on a carryover penalty to Evgeni Malkin (interference).  Vyacheslav Kozlov scored on the wrister to tie the game 2-2, with assists by Colby Armstrong and Joel Kwiatkowski.  The Penguins outshot the Thrashers 10-9, and were 0-for-1 on the power play.  The score remained tied through the end of regulation, and again through 5-minutes of sudden death overtime with 3-shots being registered per side.  In the shootout, the Penguins put up Petr Sykora, Kris Letang and Jarkko Ruutu.  Sykora nd Ruutu missed, but Letang used his signature move (the “Donkey Kick”) to beat Lehtonen.  The Thrashers put up Erik Christensen, Eric Perrin and Ilya Kovalchuk, none of whom were able to beat Fleury. 

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• VIDEO:  Post-Game Press Conference w/Coach Therrien
• VIDEO:  Post-Game Locker Room Interviews w/Ryan Malone, Marc-Andre Fleury, Kris Letang, Petr Sykora, Pascal Dupuis, Max Talbot
• PHOTOS:  In-Game Photos
• AUDIO:  Mike Lange Highlights
• AUDIO:  Rink Rat Report
• AUDIO:  Hotline
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Rosters
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Summary
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Boxscore
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Play-by-Play
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Shootout Summary

In other news, FSN Pittsburgh showed Sidney Crosby and Gary Roberts both practicing with the team today and looking good.  It was mentioned that Roberts also suffered a high ankle sprain along with the fracture.  No timetable was given for their return, but you just get the feeling that Crosby will be back soon.  There is speculation that he will make the road trip this week with the Penguins and may play next weekend. 

The Penguins hit the road to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday night and the Florida Panthers on Thursday night before traveling to Washington, DC, on Sunday to take on the Capitals.   

Penguins Fall to Thrashers 4-1

The Pittsburgh Penguins lost to the Atlanta Thrashers 4-1 on Wednesday, one night after beating the New Jersey Devils 4-2.  The Penguins outshot the Atlanta Thrashers 30-27, but were only able to put 1 (legitemately) past Kari Lehtonen on a chip shot by Ryan Whitney midway through the 3rd period.  Despite giving up 4-goals and being replaced by Dany Sabourin after letting in 2 early in the 3rd, Ty Conklin made some great saves to keep the Penguins in the game through the first 40-minutes of play.  

In the 1st period, the Thrashers scored twice,  The first goal came during even strength play on a backhand shot by Bobby Holik at 7:08.  Assists went to Chris Thorburn and Eric Boulton.  At 16:42, while Jeff Taffe sat for 4-minutes on a high stick infraction, the Thrashers scored again on a slapshot by Ilya Kovalchuk.  Steve McCarthy and Marian Hossa picked up the assists.  The Penguins outshot the Thrashers 9-7 in the first, but found themselves down 2-0.  Pittsburgh was 0-for-1 on the powerplay and gave up a goal during the double-minor penalty. 

Early in the 2nd, Jarkko Ruutu made knee-on-knee contact with Ilya Kovalchuk as he was trying to finish a check along the boards by the Thrashers’ bench.  Kovalchuk fell to the ice in pain.  Steve McCarthy objected to the hit and jumped Ruutu and began punching him repeatedly.  Ruutu never dropped his gloves or threw a punch, but somehow was called for a 5-minute fighting major.  He was also given a 5-minute major for kneeing and a game misconduct.  “I meant to finish my check,” Ruutu said. “He ducked away and I barely hit him. I didn’t change direction. I just went for a hit.  I got five minutes for fighting and I didn’t even throw a punch. I had my gloves on the whole time.”  McCarthy picked up a fighting major, a 2-minute instigator, and a 10-minute misconduct.  Kovalchuk went to the locker room, but returned to skate a single shift before leaving the game for good.  Late in the period, a goal by Nathan Smith was disallowed after an extended video review concluded that he directed the puck into the net with a slight forward movement of the skate, which was ultimately determined to be a kicking motion.  The goal would have been Smith’s first NHL tally, and could have likely altered the outcome of the game by getting the Penguins back into it before the star tof the 3rd.  But it wasn’t meant to be.  Shots were even in the 2nd at 10-apiece, with the Penguins going o-for-2 on the man advantage.  The Penguins managed to killed-off 7:20 in short-handed play in the 2nd period.

In the 3rd, the Thrashers got an early unassisted, short-handed goal by Eric Perrin at 1:32 to give the Penguins a 3-goal defecit.  They followed it up with another goal at even strength at 3:46 to put the game firmly out of reach for the tired and injury-riddled Penguins.   Mark Recchi assisted on the Jim Slater backhanded tally that beat Ty Conklin and sent him to the showers early in favor of Dany Sabourin.  At 8:42, the Penguins did manage to finally get one by Lehtonen when Ryan Whotney chipped a shot over his glove hand.  Erik Christenden and Max Talbot got the assists on the lone Penguins goal.  The Penguins outshot the Thrashers 11-10 in the final frame, and were 0-for-1 on the powerplay and 1-for-1 on the penalty kill.

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• PHOTOS:  In-Game Photos
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Rosters
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Summary
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Boxscore
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Play-by-Play

The Penguins return to Pittsburgh where they will take on the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday night before heading back to New Jersey for a game against the Devils on Monday night. 

Recchi Spoils Penguins Streak in Shootout

The Pittsburgh Penguins lost their first game in 9-outings on Saturday night to the Atlanta Thrashers, but still managed to pick up a point in the 3-2 overtime shootout loss.  As if scripted by the hockey gods, it was former Penguin Mark Recchi, the Thrashers’ 4th shooter, who scored the game winning goal in the extended shootout.  The overtime loss ends the Penguins’ winning streak at 8-games and red-hot goaltender Ty Conklin’s undefeated streak at 9-games.  It was Conklin’s first loss as a Penguin, despite an outstanding performance against Atlanta.

Pittsburgh got on the board first by scoring at 5:23 of the 1st period.  Sidney Crosby was able to gather the puck up beside the net and quickly stickhandle it into the open side of the net past Kari Lehtonen for his 19th of the season.  Ryan Whitnery and Evgeni Malkin were credited with the assists on the even strength goal.  The Thrashers bounced back just 4-minutes later on a blistering power-play slapshot by league-leading goal scorer Ilya Kovalchuk that burned its way past Conklin.  Mark Recchi and Tobias Enstrom pitched in with the assists, as Darryl Sydor sat for hooking.  The Thrashers slightly outshot the Penguins 11-5, and were 1-for-1 on the powerplay.  The Penguins failed to convert on their lone man-advantage of the period. 

In the 2nd period, it was Sidney Crosby, playing like a man obsessed, that quickly scored his 2nd goal of the night at 5:06 to regain the lead.  Like a machine, Crosby set up the play inside the offensive zone and then circled back around into the slot to pick up a deflected shot and bury the puck in the back of the net.  Kris Letang and Colby Armstrong were credited with the assists.  The Penguins had a 13-10 advantage in shots in the 2nd and were 0-for-1 on the powerplay.  At the end of the period, the Penguins killed off the front end of a 4-minute double minor to Petr Sykora for a high stick that carried over into the 3rd. 

Early in the third, the Thrashers cashed in on the tail end of the 4-minute powerplay that carried over from the 2nd period.  Bobby Holik got the tip-in goal with assists by Marian Hossa and Vyacheslav Kozlov.  From that point on, the Thrashers largely dominated Pittsburgh offensively but were unable to get the go ahead goal past Ty Conklin, as they outshot the Penguins 14-6.  Regulation ended in a 2-2 tie, giving both teams a point in the standings and a chance to play for the extra point in overtime. 

The 5-minute sudden death overtime period ended without a decision to force the shootout.  The Penguins selected Petr Sykora, Kris Letang, and Sidney Crosby as the first 3-shooters, while the Thrashers selected Vyacheslav Kozlov, Marian Hossa, and Ilya Kovalchuk.  Lehtonen and Conklin stopped the first 3-shooters per side.  Former Penguin Mark Recchi came out as Atlanta’s 4th shooter and hesitated slightly before beating Conklin on the glove side.  Kari Lehtonen then stopped the final attempt by Pittsburgh’s 4th shooter, Evgeni Malkin, to end the game.

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• PHOTOS:  Game Photos
• AUDIO:  Mike Lange Highlights
• AUDIO:  Post-Game Rink Rat Report
• AUDIO:  Post-Game Hotline
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Rosters
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Summary
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Boxscore
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Shootout Details
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Play-by-Play

With the Devils winning on Saturday night, the Penguins lose a point to trail the Devils by 2-points for the Atlantic Division lead.  The Penguins return to Pittsburgh to host the New York Rangers Monday night in an Atlantic Division matchup that will be televised nationally on Versus at 7PM. 

Pittsburgh Thrashes Atlanta 5-0

After finding their confidence in a character win over the league leading Ottawa Senators on Thursday, the Pittsburgh Penguins put an exclamation point on their rekindled play by shutting out the Atlanta Thrashers 5-0 on Saturday night.  It was the second consecutive shutout for the Atlanta Thrashers, who were 11-5-0 coming into the game after losing the first 6-games of the season.  Marc-Andre Fleury was in net for the Penguins and bounced back to post his second shutout of the season after being pulled in the first period of Thursday’s game against Ottawa.  Despite the Penguins’ scoring melee, Evgeni Malkin’s 15-game point streak came to an end as he failed to notch a point in the game.  On the brite side, however, Jordan Staal finally notched a long overdue goal and played more like the rookie of last year putting 6 shots on goal and was named the 2nd star of the game.

The scoring was initiated at 3:38 of the first period by Jordan Staal as he maneuvered around an Atlanta defenseman in front of the net to poke a rebound past Thrashers rookie netminder Ondrej Pavelec.  The opportunity was created for Staal after Tyler Kennedy threw the puck to the back wall and Gary Roberts picked it up and was rejected on the wraparound attempt.  The goal, assisted by Kennedy and Roberts, was Staal’s 2nd on the season and 1st since October 20th.  The next goal came at 11:53 on the power play from the stick of Ryan Malone, his 3rd goal in 2 games.  Standing in front of the net, Malone collected the rebound from Sergei Gonchar’s point shot and turned to fire it into the open side of the net.  Sergei Gonchar and Kris Letang were credited with the assists.  The 3rd goal came at 15:09, as Colby Armstrong and Sidney Crosby rushed the net.  When the passing lane was closed off, Crosby was forced to shoot the puck.  Pavelec stopped Crosby’s attempt, but the rebound found its way to Armstrong who chipped the puck over the shoulder of Pavelec to put the Penguins up 3-0.  Sergei Gonchar and Sidney Crosby were credited with the assists on the goal, Armstrong’s 2nd of the season and 1st since the season’s home opener.  The Penguins outshot the Thrashers 15-10 in the first period and were 1 for 1 on the power play.  The Penguins killed the only penalty against them in the period, a holding call to Georges Laraque at 7:43. 

In the 2nd period, the Penguins picked up another goal on the power play to make it 4-0 as Sidney Crosby put a blistering shot past Pavelec and into the Thrashers’ net at 8:59.  The play was assisted by Sergei Gonchar and Erik Christensen.  It was Sergei Gonchar’s 3rd assist of the night and his 12th point in his last 8 games to further separate him from the rest of the pack as the NHL’s defense scoring leader.  Gonchar was named the 3rd star of the game.  The goal was also Sidney Crosby’s 2nd point of the night, elevating him to 33-points on the season.  Crosby is tied for 2nd in league scoring with Atlanta’s Ilya Kovalchuk who was kept off the score sheet tonight.  Tampa Bay’s Vinny Lecavalier leads the league in scoring with 37-points after picking up 2-more points tonight.  The Penguins were 1 for 1 on the power play in the 2nd period, and successfully killed off their only penalty.  The THrashers outshot the Penguins 9-7 in the 2nd period. 

In the 3rd period, Ryan Whitney scored the lone goal playing at even strength at 5:01.  The play was assisted by Gary Roberts and Tyler Kennedy, who each picked up 2 assists on the night.  The pair of assists were Kennedy’s first career assists.  Sergei Gonchar left the ice in the 3rd period with a sore groin, and didn’t return.  Hopefully it was just a precautionary measure with the game fully in hand.  You certainly could not tell that Gonchar was hurting as his skating and footwork was again impeccable.  The Penguins were 0 for 1 in the 3rd on the power play, and killed off the only call against them as well, making them perfect on the penalty kill for the game.  The Penguins outshot the Thrashers 12-9 in the 3rd.   

Marc-Andre Fleury’s 28 saves assured his 9th career shutout and earned him the 1st star of the game honors.  Fleury was solid, but was not forced to make many spectacular saves.  His best save came on a deflection by Todd White early in the the 3rd period to keep his shutout alive.  The story of the night, however, has to be Jordan Staal and Colby Armstrong both ending their goal scoring droughts.  Their contributions are critical to balancing the team’s scoring to enable them to post more wins on the season.  Unfortunately, Evgeni Malkin’s 15-game scoring streak came to an end.  Malkin had 22-points (7G, 15A) in his last 15-games, the longest scoring steak by a Russian player in NHL history.  Not only was Malkin held scoreless for just the 3rd time this season, he was also held without a shot on goal.  Fortunately for the Penguins, Malkin’s inability to get on the scoresheet was of no consequence to the game’s outcome. 

• VIDEO:  Click Here for the Pittsburgh Penguins Pre-Game Press Conference with Michel Therrien
• VIDEO:  Click Here for “Inside the Locker Room” Pre-Game with Joe Sager and Phil Bourque interviews with Colby Armstrong and Jarrko Ruutu
• Click Here for the Official NHL Game Rosters
• Click Here for the Official NHL Game Summary
• Click Here for the Official NHL Boxscore
• Click Here for the Official NHL Play-by-Play
• PHOTOS:  Click Here for the Pittsburgh Penguins Game Photo Gallery
• AUDIO:  Click Here for the Pittsburgh Penguins Mike Lange Highlights (1:41)
• AUDIO:  Click Here for the Pittsburgh Penguins Post-Game Rink Rat Report with Mike Lange (2:23) 
• AUDIO:  Click Here for the Pittsburgh Penguins Post-Game Hotline with Bob Grove (49:29)
• VIDEO:  Click Here for the Post-Game Press Conference with Michel Therrien (2:28)
• VIDEO:  Click Here for Post-Game Locker Room Interviews with Sidney Crosby, Jordan Staal, Colby Armstrong, Marc-Andre Fleury (5:27)

The Penguins enjoy a rare 5-nights off before they host the Dallas Stars on Friday, November 30th.  Whereas a team normally enjoys a break, the Penguins probably woud prefer to keep the momentum going and keep playing.  Hopefully they will be able to keep their current style of play alive when the return to the ice next Friday.