New Year&#8217;s Retrospective

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Tags: Alex Goligoski, Brent Johson, Brooks Orpik, Chris Kunitz, Dan Bylsma, Evgeni Malkin, Jay McKee, Jordan Staal, Kris Letang, Marc-Andre Fleury, Max Talbot, Michel Therrien, Ryan Whitney, Sergei Gonchar, Sidney Crosby, Tyler Kennedy

Turn the Page

December 27, 2009 by Paul
Filed under Analysis, Features, Opinion

Nearly halfway into the season, the Pittsburgh Penguins have managed to do what has historically been difficult for a team coming off from a Stanley Cup win…turn the page. With the summer parade and hometown Cup celebrations with friends, families, and mentors behind them, the Penguins have quickly regrouped to start the new season focused on one thing…winning again. So far, it has paid off. With 38 games behind them, the Penguins find themselves just 1 point out of the league lead despite experiencing a challenging rash of early season injuries to much of their offensive and most of their defensive lines.

Credit the young coach/hockey veteran, Dan Bylsma, and his staff for getting the young minds back on the right page from day one and managing through the early adversity of this season’s injuries. Credit the seemingly veteran Captain, Sidney Crosby, for his burning and infectious desire to “do it again”, and not be content with accomplishments of the past. Credit the Penguins’ young players and veterans alike for sharing their Captain’s desire, for not forgetting what it takes to win, and for not letting the glory of last season’s Cup win spill over into an attitude of entitlement this season. And lastly, credit the depth of the organization and the AHL players for their energy, skills, and ability to step up into the big league and fit seamlessly into the Penguins’ system. The Penguins have indeed assembled a winning organization from top to bottom, and despite the commercial cheesiness of the “Defy Ordinary” marketing campaign, the tagline has very aptly and succinctly defined the identity that the Penguins players themselves seem to have embraced. This is no ordinary hockey organization.

Quickly dispelling the thoughts of a Cup hangover in Pittsburgh, the Penguins jumped out to an impressive 11-3-0 record in October, outscoring their opponents 48-31-0. That included 4 overtime shootout wins, putting an exclamation point on their ability to find ways to win games and showcasing Marc-Andre Fleury’s and Brent Johnson’s ability to close the door. November brought a cascade of injuries that slowed the Penguins down, as they fought through a 4-game losing streak and finished the month 8-6-0, being outscored 46-44. During the month, the Penguins saw no less than 65 man-games lost due to injury, including 5 of their 6 regular defensive starters. The maelstrom of injuries included Alex Goligoski (missed 7-games), Sergei Gonchar (missed 7-games), Tyler Kennedy (missed 11-games), Chris Kunitz (missed 9-games), Kris Letang (missed 9-games), Evgeni Malkin (missed 5-games), Jay McKee (missed 6-games), Brooks Orpik (missed 4-games), and Max Talbot (missed 7-games). So far during the month of December, the Penguins have managed to return to health and have recorded a 7-2-1 record by outscoring their opponents 32-19 as they head into tonight’s game against the Maple Leafs.

Despite their winning record and success at overcoming injuries in the first half of the season, the Penguins are noticeably lacking in one area of their game, proving that not quite everything has “defied ordinary”. In fact the Penguins’ powerplay, the least effective in the league at just 15%, has downright defied belief. There are few explanations to account for this utter lack of performance coming from a team that possesses the firepower of the Penguins. However, one might recall that the Penguins struggled on the powerplay in the first half of last season as well, and recovered quite nicely down the stretch. At least during the first half of last season they had a viable excuse with Sergei Gonchar, the team’s most effective powerplay Quarterback, out of the lineup. There has been no such easy excuse this season. Recent changes by the coaching staff on the Penguins’ powerplay seem to offer a glimpse of hope as they move forward, however. Most noticeable is the move of Crosby and Malkin to opposite sides of the ice. This combination has opened up the ice, provided more options and less predictability, and seems to be yielding some results. Now if they can just get some consistent traffic in front of the net, they might just become the powerplay juggernaut that they have the potential to be.

It appears that the Penguins’ biggest foes in the Eastern Conference as we near the halfway point are the uber defensively minded New Jersey Devils and the offensively laden Washington Capitals. The defensively stingey Buffalo Sabres also bear watching, as do the Boston Bruins (if the Bruins can ever find a way to regain their offensive punch). What remains to be seen is how all of these teams (including the Penguins) will perform in the second half of the season, especially given the upcoming Olympic break. Will the Olympics prove to be too big of a distraction to maintain the momentum of the league’s current leaders? What about injuries, and how will that affect the road ahead? Can the Penguins maintain the pace they have been on given their two consecutive back-to-back short off-seasons? How will the trade deadline change the landscape of the current challengers?

The only thing certain at this point is that the Penguins have effectively turned the page from last season’s triumph and have successfully avoided the pitfalls of a Stanley Cup hangover. The rest lies in the hands of the Hockey Gods.

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Tags: Alex Goligoski, Brent Johnson, Brooks Orpik, Chris Kunitz, Dan Bylsma, Evgeni Malkin, Jay McKee, Kris Letang, Marc-Andre Fleury, Max Talbot, Pittsburgh Penguins, Sergei Gonchar, Sidney Crosby, Tyler Kennedy

Keys to Losing

November 11, 2009 by Chaiwoman
Filed under Analysis, Features, News, Opinion

At a time when the Pittsburgh Penguins were off to a red hot start, hovering at the top of the league with only three losses in their first 14 games, some might wonder critically why the focus here would be on losing. The answer is no more evident than in the back-to-back losses over the weekend on the West Coast, that upped the loss column to 5, and the very recent loss to Boston, bringing the tally to 6.

Lessons are best learned from failure moreso than from success, and it is never too late to look at why, in the midst of so many wins, the now six losses should be examined closely.

Foresight is 20/20. In those few losses, some disturbing patterns have emerged, and while they are disturbing, they are correctible. No doubt, teams around the league are looking just as closely at those keys to the Penguins’ losses as they are analyzing and breaking down what makes the 2008-2009 Stanley Cup team a formidable winner. It could be argued that, particularly from the San Jose game, the Sharks made a special study of it. Of all the teams that handed Pittsburgh a loss thus far, the Sharks lived up to their name, and with cold, methodical, unrelenting precision–and an otherworldly goaltender in Evgeni Nabokov–they were the first team to make Pittsburgh look truly vulnerable.

In the first two losses, Sergei Gonchar, Evgeni Malkin, Tyler Kennedy, and Kris Letang were all present. In the last three losses, those players were out, and the Boston game claimed yet another blueliner in Brooks Orpik who left the game in the 1st period and did not return. The Penguins have dealt with this kind of adversity before with Sidney Crosby and Marc-Andre Fleury sidelined during one season. They have managed to bear down and forge ahead. They are still that deep and have a stable of hungry young guys who are being given golden opportunities to shine. Injuries aside, here are the keys to losing that occur no matter who is on the ice and who is injured because it comes down to basics:

Allowing the opponent to have the boards. In each of the losses, the Penguins came out flat, and instead of dominating the boards from end to end separating their opponents from the puck, they allowed their opponents to drive them off the puck, winning the puck-possession battles. Likewise, they moved away from using the boards effectively as an “extra man” to advance the puck quickly and accurately either out of the danger of their defensive zone or into the offensive zone. While the stretch pass is a nice addition to their toolbox, the Hal Gill-style of a forceful ricochet is lacking.
Too many and too poorly-executed passes. Lateral passes instead of the North-South kind, including being too cute up the middle (and in front of one’s own net!), forced unnecessary giveaways. The purpose of the pass is the advantage of speed and the forcing of the opponent to have to awkwardly change direction in the hopes of exposing a weakness that can be just enough to result in a goal. Poor execution also falls to the goalie. When Marc-Andre Fleury is on, he’s a beast. When he’s off, he’s cooked, and it starts with his handling of the puck around his own real estate. Puck-handling has always been something he has had to work at, and in the past season and the beginning of this one, he has looked more confident–not of late. Add to that in the Sharks game the fact that the Sharks would only wait so long for the likes of Alex Goligoski and company to hold the puck behind their net to set up for a break-out before they boldly stormed in and disrupted. On more than one occasion, the Sharks broke up the break-out to the point where the first pass to the second defenseman could not be cleanly executed from behind the net. That leaves Fleury stuck with one D-man still behind the net, and the other on the half-wall harried by a Shark as he tries to collect the pass and get it up ice.
Lack of communication. The Pens have already been marked as the team that communicates the most on the ice by the hockey pundits. When they don’t, it shows, and never more starkly than in the losses to the L.A. Kings and the San Jose Sharks. In the Kings game, the forwards time and again pulled a criss-cross as they approached the Pens’ defensive end, and the Pens’ blueliners fell all over themselves trying to figure out whether to follow their man or stay at home. It resulted in getting the puck behind the Pens defense, leaving Fleury to fend for himself.
Befuddled by neutral zone traps. The Pens are fast, but trying to single-handedly carry the puck through a clogged neutral zone is ill-advised whether you are a first-line phenom or a fourth-line role-player. In one of the losses, the opposing team lined four players across their defensive blue line with one defenseman back, breaking up the Pens’ attempts to bust through, sending odd-man breaks the other way. In the New Jersey Devils game, the neutral zone was staked out up the middle and on the boards–hockey’s version of the tar pit is their calling card–boring but very effective. In the San Jose game, the Sharks just came at the Pens before they could get out of their own defensive end–period. Time and time again, it has been discussed that the way to break a trap is to Murphy dump the puck to force the opposing team’s defense to turn around and make a play. Then, the forecheckers come in and battle to win the puck and set-up their cycle. Sometimes a hard shot to the corners will break it, but in the San Jose game, that method was ineffective because the Sharks beat the Penguin forecheckers easily to the puck.
NOT hitting with their best shot. While the hits from the Pens remain in the mid-20s to mid-30s on the stats sheets, it’s hard to believe they are so “not memorable.” In each of the Pens’ wins, they came out hitting AND winning the puck from the hit as a result of true, forceful, legal separation. In the losses, they did not appear to have their hearts in it, and as a result they were not able to gain the puck as successfully after a hit.
Running the goaltender. Particularly in the West Coast games, teams were having their lawless way with Marc-Andre Fleury, and quite honestly, he should be spitting nails at his defense for it. Too many runs on Fleury were happening, throwing him horribly out of position. How does one stop that? Make the other team pay on the Pens’ power play, speaking of which…
The power(less) play. The powerplay continues to be poor under Mike Yeo. One could argue that the loss of Gonchar (and now Letang) is having a deep impact, but Goligoski is a deft set-up man IF he does not waste too much time bringing the puck up. The Sharks, once again, got in the face of the Pens’ set-up guy, not at their blue line, BEYOND the blue line into the Pens’ face-off circles. That shows they have no fear. In the five losses, the Pens have registered 22 shots on 19 power plays! In the Boston game, they had one powerplay and 0 shots. When a power play is as ineffective as the Penguins’ man-advantage, teams will run all day on the goalie and gladly take the penalty because chances are excellent that it won’t cost them the game. That only changes when the Pens get serious about putting pucks on the net. Sid on the half-wall (or occasionally on the point) is a complete waste of time. It gives him entirely too much to think about and second-guess where he wants to place the puck. This often results in him throwing another pass that gets broken up for a short-handed situation, rather than taking a shot. This wastes the efforts of Guerin, Kunitz, and even Jordan Staal who are set up in front of the net creating a ton of traffic. Where should Sid be? Down low, just out of the goalie’s line of peripheral vision. When placed there last year, Sid was able to set up the guys in close on the net, make the opposing goalie twitchy, and even sneak in for his own score. Word on the street (a November 10 discussion between sports talk radio host Mark Madden and hockey writer Rob Rossi) is that everyone wants Sid to play there, but Sid doesn’t want to play there. This seems selfish and out of character for Sid, but hey, if that is the case, then Dan Bylsma could take a page out of Steeler Coach Mike Tomlin’s playbook and pull a Mendenhall…

This may sound harsh, but as Madden pondered, maybe Sid is not built for the power play, that methodical set-up kind of situation. He’s a run and gun, quick direction change in tight spaces kind of player.

Interesting notable: in a delayed penalty situation that brought Fleury out of the net and an extra attacker on, the Pens actually set up and moved the puck incredibly, resulting in a goal. There’s hope. Additionally, the Pens should look at the tape on the Sharks’ power play. They moved the puck with deft authority anywhere they wanted it and peppered the net.

Here’s a repeat of a plea made last year: What’s wrong with approaching a man-advantage situation like a 5-on-5 cycle? Why does cycling the puck stop when the power play is on? Jordan Staal’s line could manage it even without Kennedy by using Pascal Depuis, Chris Kunitz (who meshed immediately with Staal upon his arrival last year) or even Craig Adams who can play center or wing and has the energy and quickness to carry it off. If they become the lead power play unit and grind down the PK unit (maybe even getting the odd goal), Bylsma can bring on a second unit of a Crosby, Kunitz, and Guerin (or Mike Rupp) and wreak havoc on some tired bodies.

There are a lot of games left and as injuries heal, the team will re-form. However, every player needs to keep it simple: communication, puck separation from hard hits, quick and clean passes with effective use of the boards, more shots on net with traffic in front, quick dumps and fast forechecks to set up the cycle. All of these things can be achieved by every player on the team regardless of star status or skill.

The Pens are a resilient, tight, proud bunch. Teams are gunning for them, and knowing that, they need to settle down, take a breath, and get back to the keys to winning.

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Tags: Alex Goligoski, Bill Guerin, Boston Bruins, Brooks Orpik, Chris Kunitz, Craig Adams, Dan Bylsma, Evgeni Malkin, Evgeni Nabokov, Hal Gill, Jordan Staal, Kris Letang, L.A. Kings, Marc-Andre Fleury, Mark Madden, Mike Rupp, Murphy dump, neutral zone trap, Pascal Depuis, Phoenix Coyotes, Pittsburgh Penguins, Power Play, Rob Rossi, San Jose Sharks, Sergei Gonchar, Sidney Crosby, Tyler Kennedy

Fleury of Wins Continue Against Lightning

October 18, 2009 by Paul
Filed under Features, Highlights

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The Pittsburgh Penguins improved their record to 7-1-0 on Saturday night as they beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 at Mellon Arena. The early season success of the Penguins has been bolstered by the excellent play of Marc-Andre Fleury, who remains unbeaten at 7-0 in what is his career best start to date. Fleury’s league leading 7 wins, 0.922 save percentage and 2.09 Goals Against Average have been vital to the Penguins’ early flurry of wins. They are tied in points (14) for the League and Eastern Conference lead with the red hot New York Rangers. It isn’t just Fleury, however, as the Penguins’ defense has looked magnificent and the offense is getting contributions from across the roster. Everything seems to be clicking right now for the Penguins who are showing no signs of a Stanley Cup hangover.

On Saturday night, the Penguins got goals from Sergei Gonchar, Mike Rupp, Pascal Dupuis, and Bill Guerin. Sidney Crosby had 2 assists, and Malkin contributed with an assist. Newcomer Jay McKee continued his role on the Penguins’ defense with a game-leading 7 blocked shots, while Brooks Orpik dished out the most candy with 4-hits. Alex Goligoski kept up his torrid pace with another assist, his 5th assist and 6th point in 8-games; he leads the team with a +8 rating. The one area the Penguins didn’t fare so well on Saturday night was the faceoff circle where they only managed to win 41% of their faceoffs. The Penguins powerplay continued to be somewhat anemic as they went 1 for 7 on the powerplay.

The Penguins get a few nights off before returning to the ice on Wednesday night against the St Louis Blues, the 2nd of their 5-game homestand at Mellon Arena. The game will be televised on Versus, so unless a miracle happens between now and Wednesday night, DirecTV fans will once again be left out in the cold. If you are affected by the DirecTV/Versus issue, plase feel free to sign the petition to DirecTV.

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Tags: Alex Goligoski, Bill Guerin, Brooks Orpik, Evgeni Malkin, Jay McKee, Marc-Andre Fleury, Mike Rupp, Pascal Dupuis, Sergei Gonchar, Sidney Crosby

Opening Salvos

October 16, 2009 by Chaiwoman
Filed under Analysis, Features, Highlights, News, Opinion

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The Pittsburgh Penguins opened their 2009-10 season with their first back-to-back set of games, and their double-dose of New York opponents were chomping at the bit to get at the Kings of the Hill.

A home-opener of cosmic proportions ensued with the raising of the Stanley Cup banner for the last time in the Igloo. It was electrifying. It was nostalgic. And there were many “snapshots” one could call memorable:

the roar of the crowd when Max Talbot came on the ice, the Game 7 hero;
the look of sheer pride on Mario’s face;
the ovations for Crosby, Malkin, Staal, and Fleury;
the table holding up under the weight of the many coveted trophies earned through blood, sweat, perhaps some tears, and a whole lot of heart, bruises, and teamwork, or
maybe it was watching that banner make its slow ascent to the rafters.

It was all good. Then the games began…

Quick Recap…
It was time for the teams to start lining up, a la the 2009-10 schedule, to see who could be the first to hand a loss to the Penguins. In their 3-2 win over the New York Rangers, despite some early jitters, the team settled down and got to work, and it promised to be a physical game with the Pens recording 41 hits, 10 more than the Rangers, but the most memorable “hits” came from a beauty of a fight between heavy-weights Donald Brashear and Eric Godard. The standard had been set.

In the second game, closing the first of 16 scheduled back-to-back games in the Pens’ schedule, the New York Islanders came out like they meant business, and it was a slug-fest to the bitter shoot-out end with the Pens prevailing. Everything was rocking and rolling.

Maybe it was the distraction of the Phoenix Coyotes’ administrative problems. Maybe it was the Coyotes’ well-executed neutral zone trap that took away the boards off of which the Pens love to race. Maybe, it was just a hiccup. The bright spot in the Pens’ first unceremonious 3-0 home loss was Jordan Staal’s face-off prowess, winning an impressive 12 of 13 draws (92%). That was about all that Coach Dan Bylsma had to smile about, except he wasn’t smiling. On the bench, as Evgeni Malkin slammed his stick and Jordan Staal looked to the heavens for answers from the hockey gods, Bylsma stood behind the duo surveying the ice with a look of ultimate disapproval.

Whatever was said in the space of time between the end of that game and the start of the next, the team regrouped to take on the hated Philadelphia Flyers. The game did not disappoint…ok…well…maybe it disappointed the Flyers’ fans as the Pens emerged victorious, but the Pens were back on track,…except for this nasty new habit of committing a ton of penalties.

The game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, who looked like a stronger team in the pre-season, displayed some of the Penguins’ abilities including a red-hot power play that notched 3 goals in their 5-2 win.

The Ottawa Senators were up next, and they exhibited signs of being a serious contender as Milan Michalek and Bill Guerin exchanged goals at the end of the 1st period within less than a minute of each other. That is until, Tyler Kennedy blazed 2 more goals past netminder Pascal Leclaire, and linemate Jordan Staal stuck the dagger in for his 3rd goal in 3 games, giving Pittsburgh a 4-1 win.

The latest game against the Carolina Hurricanes promised to be a dogfight as these teams met for the first time since the playoffs when the Pens swept the ‘Canes. The stats looked about as even as they could be in just about every category through 2 periods of play. But Eric Staal did not seem himself on the ice. The ‘Canes tried the Coyotes’ trick of putting on the neutral zone trap and stacking bodies across their defensive blueline, but the Pens, better prepared than before, stuck to the plan and chipped away to force a shoot-out win. Ray Whitney was a force to be reckoned with, and Cam Ward put on just as much of goalie clinic at his end as Marc-Andre Fleury did at the other, denying Bill Guerin’s sure goal from what looked like inches.

What Needs to Change…
The biggest, most glaring anomaly emanating from the Penguins team that fans have come to know and love is the profusion of penalties. In the first 4 games alone, the Penguins committed 36 penalties for 92 minutes, which translates into over 4 periods of riding the sinner’s pine. Forty minutes consisted of 7 fighting majors (5 minutes) from Eric Godard, Craig Adams, Mike Rupp, and Jay McKee as well as 2 misconduct penalties of 10 minutes each for Jay McKee and Chris Kunitz. Those guys aside, Evgeni Malkin surprisingly led the way with the most penalties (6), followed by Sidney Crosby and Brooks Orpik, each with 4 apiece. This hardly showed the disciplined play for which the team had become known.

The Good News…
There’s a lot more on the positive side even at this early stage in the season. Continuing with the penalty situation, in the last 3 games, the Pens have whittled down their wreckless infractions by more than half with 17 penalties for a total of 43 minutes. Only 3 fighting majors (5 minutes each) committed by Godard, Adams, and Rupp. Malkin managed only one trip to the sin bin as did Crosby, and Orpik avoided it altogether.

Face-offs–Clearly, the art of the draw has been discussed and worked on to the extent it can be in a non-real-game situation. Some set plays on the face-off have been incorporated, and with the vast improvement of the centers on the dot, puck wins have led to puck-possession and either some very good chances in the offensive zone or the ability to clear or transition out of the defensive zone. Of particular note among those taking the most draws:

Sidney Crosby has won 88 out of 142 attempts (62.0%). He leads the league in the number of face-offs taken. His highest percentage so far came in the game against the Flyers where he won 21 of 24 (88%).
Jordan Staal has won 53 out of 106 attempts (50.0%). His highest percentage came in the loss to Phoenix where he won 12 of 13 (92%).
Craig Adams has won 37 of 70 for 52.8%.

Power Play–Really, the team is off to a decent start, picking up from where they left off in the playoffs. The Pens’ home power play conversion is 14.3% (2 home games), and their away conversion rate is 19.0% (5 games). Noticeably, they are moving the puck more swiftly, taking good shots, multiple shots, and getting one and sometimes two men in front of the net. Bill Guerin and Jordan Staal have both shared duties as the guy to set up on the netminder’s doorstep. Having Sergei Gonchar in the line-up from the get-go doesn’t hurt either, and he and Kris Letang continue to mesh from the blue line.

Penalty Kill–The Penguins have gotten off to a decent start with a respectable 84.6% kill percentage at home and 82.6% on someone else’s ice. As they reduce their time in the box, these stats should improve and break 90%. Bylsma continues to encourage the aggressive short-handed style with the likes of Staal and Cooke, Adams, Depuis, and even Crosby getting in on the fun.

Board Domination–In just seven games, the Penguins have notched 190 hits on opponents with a game high total so far of 41 hits at the expense of the New York Rangers. In the wrecking crew department, the team is averaging 27 hits a game from an average of 12 players per game. Chris Kunitz, Brooks Orpik, and Matt Cooke lead the way on a regular basis. And while hits are exciting to watch, the Pens are making a point of taking the body to separate man from puck and ultimately gain back possession. They are improving on that technique.

Protecting the Netminder–In blocked shots, the Pens are no less impressive. Through 7 games, they have blocked 127 shots, led by Jay McKee with 21 blocks and Brooks Orpik with 14. The team is averaging 18 blocked shots per game from an average of 9 players an outing. Speaking of netminding, Fleury looks like he only took a week off from the play-off form he was in this past spring. Already, he has made some spectacular point-blank robberies from opposing snipers. Most notably, he has improved on his puck movement. In the ‘Canes game, he looked extremely comfortable coming out of the safety of the crease to redirect play up ice, shortening the distance for his teammates, which saves legs. Particularly in this game, his play was reminiscent of Tom Barrasso during the Mario years, and that’s a very good thing.

Final Musings–The new acquisitions of McKee and Rupp have been good ones as they have clearly meshed quickly and easily into the Penguins’ system. They’ve chipped in with contributions in most areas of the game, making this team very deep and versatile through four lines of offense and three lines of defense. The scary thing about the Penguins is that they continue to get goal production from a wide range of players, not just from Malkin and Crosby. When this happens, it makes it very difficult for teams to strategize against them because literally every player on this team has to be considered a potential goal-scorer. So far, it’s been very exciting, especially with the team’s new record of 5 consecutive road wins. That kind of momentum is a confidence-booster, especially given the fact that they have a West Coast road trip coming up.

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Tags: Bill Guerin, Brooks Orpik, Cam Ward, Carolina Hurricanes, Chris Kunitz, Craig Adams, Dan Bylsma, Donald Brashear, Eric Godard, Eric Staal, Evgeni Malkin, Jay McKee, Jordan Staal, Kris Letang, Marc-Andre Fleury, Mario Lemieux, Matt Cooke, Mike Rupp, Milan Michalek, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Ottawa Senators, Pascal Depuis, Pascal Leclaire, Philadelphia Flyers, Phoenix Coyotes, Pittsburgh Penguins, Ray Whitney, Sergei Gonchar, Sidney Crosby, Tom Barrasso, Toronto Maple Leafs, Tyler Kennedy

Penguins Lackluster in Loss to Coyotes

October 8, 2009 by Paul
Filed under Analysis, Features, Highlights

The Pittsburgh Penguins looked like a team that failed to prepare for what the Phoenix Coyotes threw at them on Wednesday night. The Coyotes put on a clinic and bogged down the Penguins in the offensive and neutral zones, preventing Pittsburgh from gaining any momentum. In fact, the only momentum that the Penguins could generate was tilting the ice towards backup netminder Brent Johnson who, despite giving up 2 goals (the 3rd tally was an empty netter), performed exceptionally with a couple of highlight reel saves. In the end, the Penguins were dealt a 3-0 shutout and their first loss of the season at the hands of the Coyotes. It was a lackluster performance, the likes of which haven’t been seen since the waning days under Michel Therrien.

In watching the game, I couldn’t help but think that the Penguins underestimated just how well the Coyotes would play. Perhaps they were too focused on tonight’s game against the division rival Philadelphia Flyers, and were looking beyond the Coyotes. Whatever the case, their play suffered from a lack of focus and inability to establish any presence in the offensive zone and was further hampered by a rash of penalties, nine of them to be exact. To their credit, the Coyotes capitalized on 2 of the 9 power-play attempts, including a beauty of a goal from Petr Prucha while he was on his back in the crease. Evgeni Malkin took a double minor in the first period for an inadvertent high stick that drew blood. The ensuing Coyote power play also drew blood, as veteran Ed Jovanoski found the back of the net to put them up 1-0. In the 2nd period, the Penguins’ frustration and penalty troubles mounted as Sidney Crosby took 2 separate penalties for slashing, Matt Cooke took two seperate penalties for interference and roughing, and Brooks Orpik took a hooking call. Cooke’s interference call negated the only goal that the Penguins might have gotten as the call was made before the puck went into the net. Orpik’s penalty resulted in the Prucha powerplay goal. The Penguins went on to take 2 more penalties in the 3rd period, and despite getting a total of 5 powerplay opportunities themselves in the game they were unable to convert. Despite only being outshot 25-24, the Penguins were clearly out-hustled and out-played through most of the game.

Sidney Crosby had a night that he would probably just as soon forget. In addition to taking 2 frustration-fueled slashing penalties in the 2nd, he was a dismal 5 for 17 (29%) in the faceoff circle. He also had 4 giveaways. When your star center and team Captain plays like that, you can’t expect much else to go your way. Let’s hope whatever was affecting his play last night is out of his system, and that he returns to form against the Flyers this evening.

If there were a few bright spots to take away from the game, it would have to be the play of Brent Johnson and Jordan Staal. Brent Johnson turned aside 22 of 24 shots, including a spectacular glove save on Shane Doan. One of the two goals he gave up came through a screen and he never had a chance to see it. The other goal came at the end of a scramble in the crease where the defense failed to clear the puck and Johnson lost track of it. Jordan Staal had a monstrous night in the faceoff circle winning 12 of 13 for a 92% faceoff percentage. Whatever he has done to improve his faceoff performance, he now needs to apply to his shooting accuracy. Jordan Staal has already proven his immense defensive prowess and now needs to tap into his enormous offensive potential.

It will be interesting to see how Coach Bylsma responds to just his 2nd regulation loss in the regular season since taking over as head coach in Feb 2009. There will be little time for him to make a teachable moment out of last night’s performance. He needs to quickly get his team re-focused for tonight’s battle against the Philadelphia Flyers, who have been shot out of a cannon this season. The Flyers are 3-0 so far this season with a qhopping 13 goals for and just 7 goals against. The Penguins will need to mount a big turnaround from last night’s game if they want to come out of Philadelphia with a win.

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Tags: Brent Johnson, Brooks Orpik, Dan Bylsma, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, Matt Cooke, Phoenix Coyotes, Pittsburgh Penguins, Sidney Crosby

TK on Malkin’s Wing for Day 1 of Practice

September 13, 2009 by Paul
Filed under Features, Highlights, News

On-ice practice began this morning at Mellon Arena for the Pittsburgh Penguins 2009/10 Training Camp. The most notable news from today is that Tyler Kennedy was the first player to be paired up with Evgeni Malkin and Ruslan Fedotenko. I am sure that this is just one of many pairings that will be evaluated on that line over the next few weeks after the departure of Petr Sykora/Miroslav Satan and the absence of Max Talbot while he is recovering from off-season surgery. Coach Dan Bylsma noted that he is looking for a tenacious player that can add a “forechecking and puck-pursuit presence” to the Malkin line. Based on what we saw from Tyler Kennedy last season, he would seem to be a natural fit. He certainly brought those skills to the Staal line last season, where his development was quite noteworthy. Pascal Dupuis back-filled Kennedy’s normal spot on the Staal line.

New acquisition Mike Rupp played on a potential fourth line with Craig Adams and Eric Godard. Eric Tangradi played on a line with Wyatt Smith and Chris Connor, while Luca Caputi was on a line with Mark Letestu and Nick Johnson. Free Agent Left Wing Ryan Bayda (formerly of the Carolina Hurricanes) was invited to camp/practice as a tryout. Also at camp on a tryout is former UND goaltender Jordan Parise, Zach Parise’s older brother.

As far as top defensive pairings, it was Mark Eaton – Kris Letang, Brooks Orpik – Sergei Gonchar, and Jay McKee – Alex Goligoski. Ben Lovejoy was paired with Brian Strait.

Here are the full training camp team lineups as reported by Sam Kasan on the 2009 Training Camp Blog (click name for player profile):

TEAM A
Forwards:
Ruslan Fedotenko – Evgeni Malkin – Tyler Kennedy
Mike Rupp – Craig Adams – Eric Godard
Joey Haddad – Casey Pierro-Zabotel – Nick Petersen
Ryan Bayda – Zach Sill

Defensemen:
Mark Eaton – Kris Letang
Chris Lee - Deryk Engelland
Jonathan D’Aversa

Goaltenders:
Brent Johnson
Jordan Parise

TEAM B
Forwards:
Matt Cooke – Jordan Staal – Pascal Dupuis
Eric Tangradi – Wyatt Smith – Chris Connor
Wade Brookbank – Joe Vitale – Keven Veilleux
Nathan Moon

Defensemen:
Brooks Orpik – Sergei Gonchar
Brian Strait – Ben Lovejoy
Simon Despres – Robert Bortuzzo

Goaltenders:
Marc-Andre Fleury
Brad Thiessen

TEAM C
Forwards:
Chris Kunitz – Sidney Crosby – Bill Guerin
Luca Caputi – Mark Letestu – Nick Johnson
Paul Bissonnette – Dustin Jeffrey – Tim Wallace
Aaron Boogard

Defensemen:
Jay McKee – Alex Goligoski
Lane Caffaro – Nathan Guenin
Jamie Hunt – Alex Grant

Goaltenders:
John Curry

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Tags: Aaron Boogard, Alex Goligoski, Alex Grant, Ben Lovejoy, Bill Guerin, Brad Thiessen, Brent Johnson, Brian Strait, Brooks Orpik, Casey Pierro-Zabotel, Chris Connor, Chris Kunitz, Chris Lee, Craig Adams, Deryk Engelland, Dustin Jeffrey, Eric Godard, Eric Tangradi, Evgeni Malkin, Jamie Hunt, Jay McKee, Joe Vitale, Joey Haddad, John Curry, Jonathan D'Aversa, Jordan Parise, Jordan Staal, Keven Veilleux, Kris Letang, Lane Caffaro, Luca Caputi, Marc-Andre Fleury, Mark Eaton, Mark Letestu, Matt Cooke, Mike Rupp, Nathan Guenin, Nathan Moon, Nick Johnson, Nick Petersen, Pascal Dupuis, Paul Bissonnette, Pittsburgh Penguins, Robert Bortuzzo, Ruslan Fedotenko, Ryan Bayda, Sergei Gonchar, Sidney Crosby, Simon Despres, Tim Wallace, Training Camp, Tyler Kennedy, Wade Brookbank, Wyatt Smith, Zach Sill

Never Say Die

June 10, 2009 by Chaiwoman
Filed under Analysis, Features, Highlights, News, Opinion

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It was do or die for the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Detroit Red Wings, and the Penguins, rebounding from a 5-0 blasting in Detroit on Saturday, live to fight one more day.

After Game 5 and in the two days leading up to Game 6, the Penguins absorbed Detroit’s onslaught, as well as criticism and faltering faith by the media and fair-weather fans. They still believed. They took responsibility for their poor performance and moved on, preparing for the game that would determine their fate.

Detroit brought their “A” game in spurts and at times for nerve-wracking duration in the Pens’ defensive zone, only to be stymied by the stellar play of Marc-Andre Fleury, including toe saves, repelling point-blank shots on break-aways, and incredible grace under the pressure of a post bounce and a sliding puck that ended up neatly on the front side of Fleury, trapped between his padded legs.

Taking Fleury’s early Game 5 exit personally, every player in front of him in Game 6 gave him the kind of help he needed and then some. Forwards back-checked hard. Defensemen fought in front of the net to keep Fleury’s vision clear. Strong penalty-killing and puck clearing, including the ever-effective Murphy Dump and strong forechecking added to Fleury’s confidence. The ultimate gesture of all-for-one-and-one-for-all came in the final minute of play. A crazy scramble in front of the Penguins’ net found Fleury down and helpless to the left of his post. An ever-vigilant Rob Scuderi as legal tender sprawled in front of the net to make at least three monumental saves in blinding and furious traffic.

From the start, this game was expected to be a close one, easily one goal to separate the victor from the vanquished. The second period has proven to be a rough one for the Penguins, particularly in Game 5, but they came out determined to make it a strong period. Sure enough, with :51 left in the period, Jordan Staal found his second momentum-changing goal of the series as he wisely chose to shoot instead of pass on a 2-on-1 breakaway with a distracting Matt Cooke flanking to his left. Wings goalie Chris Osgood made the initial stop, but the deflection found the quick stick of Staal who hit his own rebound behind Osgood glove-side as Staal’s own momentum was carrying him quickly past the net.

A two-goal cushion is always preferable, and Staal’s regular linemate, Tyler Kennedy, came through at 5:35 in the third period. It would prove to be gold as the Wings answered almost two and a half minutes later off a Kris Draper shot. The scoring ended there and was enough to bring the series to a 3-3 tie and force a Game 7 on Friday in Detroit. The Keeper of the Cup had to put away his polishing rag and pack it in because the Cup was not making the rounds just yet.

Additional Notables

Pens back to breaking through 30 shots on net (31). Bill Guerin and Tyler Kennedy led the team with 6 shots each; followed by Jordan Staal and Ruslan Fedotenko with 3 shots each.
35 hits by 13 Penguins versus Detroit’s 26, and they were bone-jarring. Chris Kunitz and Matt Cooke as the Bash Brothers led the team with 5 hits each followed closely behind by Fedotenko, Brooks Orpik, and Sergei Gonchar with 4 each.
11 takeaways versus Detroit’s 5.
Early dictation of the pace of play as well as puck-possession.
Disciplined play–keeping to only 2 penalties, both questionable calls.
Dead even with Detroit, winning 50% of their face-offs.
Strong play by the Staal line.
Inspired steals by Evgeni Malkin.
Even strength goals–something that had been of concern for the talking heads.
Zetterberg, Franzen, Datsyuk, Holmstrom, and Hossa were not only kept scoreless, they were kept pointless.

There’s a lot of debate among coaches, players, and pundits about momentum shifts at this stage in the season, but if the momentum has not shifted even slightly in the Penguins’ favor heading into Detroit, at the very least this win has given the Red Wings pause. The Penguins show time and again that they can take the hardest of hard knocks and come back more resilient than ever. They have now gone past last year’s benchmark. This is uncharted territory “fer sure” but they’re not trepidatious. They are boldly going where they haven’t gone before, and they’re loving it.

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Tags: Bash Brothers, Bill Guerin, Brooks Orpik, Chris Kunitz, Chris Osgood, Detroit Red Wings, Evgeni Malkin, Game 5, Game 6, Game 7, Henrik Zetterberg, Johan Franzen, Jordan Staal, Kris Draper, Marc-Andre Fleury, Marian Hossa, Matt Cooke, Pavel Datsyuk, Pittsburgh Penguins, Rob Scuderi, Ruslan Fedotenko, Sergei Gonchar, Stanley Cup Finals, Tomas Holmstrom, Tyler Kennedy

Race to 4 in High Gear

June 5, 2009 by Chaiwoman
Filed under Analysis, Features, Highlights, News, Opinion

A Penguin win in Game 4 of the Stanley Cups Finals Thursday night changes the complexion of the series. The fourth game in six nights seemed to take its toll on the Detroit Red Wings, but it could be argued that the Wings were beginning to feel the effects back in the latter part of Game 3.

Game 3 was not the Penguins’ best game and lacked consistency. They will tell you this, but they got what they needed: a solid effort by netminder Marc-Andre Fleury who weathered a barrage of 14 Wings shots on net in yet another troubling second period, holding their opponent scoreless.

Game 3 Notables–while a bit ugly, a win is a win, and it had elements in it that showed the character of the team as well as their depth:

Hits–a staggering 36 hits executed by Penguins on Red Wings. Chris Kunitz led the way with a Herculean personal effort, laying 11 hits on the opponent. Both Matt Cooke and Brooks Orpik chipped in for 5 hits each, and while these three guys had the lion’s share of it, they were by no means the only ones. No less than 14 of the 18 players had at least one hit.
Blocked Shots–Penguins had a total of 18 blocked shots; Jordan Staal led the way with 3 and 13 other team mates had at least 1 blocked shot, showing their total commitment to protecting Fleury.
Second Line Gellin’–Something about Mad Max Talbot has ignited linemates Evgeni Malkin and Ruslan Fedotenko. Talbot managed 2 goals, and he keeps the line loose. As Geno congenially noted about Max in the press conference, teasing: ”little bit bad hands…missed lots of chances…has summer to learn,” but the big Russian center gave his recent winger high praise for his energy and work ethic. Clearly, this line is clicking.

On to Game 4

Thursday night’s second home game of the series for the Pens picked up where the previous game left off as the Penguins scored yet another power play goal. Play was much more consistent from first period to last with surges by the Red Wings, particularly when they managed a late first period goal to draw even, and then opened the second period with a go-ahead goal. That was the last time they led in the game.

Notables

Special Teams #1 (Power Play)–The one special teams element that had been plaguing this crew all season long and early in the playoff run has awakened, and that’s dangerous for the Red Wings who fall in the middle of the NHL pack on penalty killing. So far in this series, the Penguins power play is humming along at 45.5%.
Special Teams #2 (Penalty Kill)–Not to be outdone was the Pens’ penalty kill unit. After the Wings had gone up 2-1, Malkin rallied the troops with a short-handed break-away that Chris Osgood managed to turn back, but that was only the first wave. The Penguins’ PK continued to battle hard and both Talbot and Staal broke loose. Talbot laid a perfect pass to Staal who took off, drew even with Wings’ defenseman, Brian Rafalski, turned on the jets with his characteristic left-handed power move and drew Osgood off his line, deking him for a great short-handed goal that pulled the Penguins even at 2 and turned the tide.
A Flurry of Fleury, Part II–Marc-Andre Fleury hit his stride in this game, turning in an even more spectacular performance as he turned away 39 shots, broken down by period: 19/9/11. His stick handling around the back of the net was less nerve-wracking and more sure, and his team gave up the body on 15 shots led by defensemen Brooks Orpik and Rob Scuderi who stopped 3 each.
Hits, Hits, and More Hits–The Penguins’ hit total stayed in the 30s (32), and the Wings pulled themselves up and matched the Penguins’ physicality with 33 hits for a game total of 65 hits. Thus far, these two teams have exchanged 267 hits, averaging 33 per game, and yet, the Pens continue to look fresh and ready to lay on more with mustard.
Tic-Tac-Toe–The cherry on top, as if the previous three Penguins’ goals could not be bested, was the textbook tape to tape (to tape) passing from Chris Kunitz, across to Sidney Crosby, and back again to Tyler Kennedy who buried a one-timer blocker side before Osgood had a chance to finish tracking Kunitz’ pass.

Prior to tonight, Marian Hossa had consistently scored 2 goals in Game 4 of each round of this season’s playoffs. The Penguins got the memo, keeping Hossa pointless on 6 shots. It is noticeable that Hossa does not have the same first-step quickness he possessed in the first two games.

As a whole, where the Wings looked gassed at the end of Game 3, they were showing signs of not being able to sustain surges for very long, starting after their early second period goal. These surges became fewer and for shorter duration as the game wore on. It was very apparent in the last part of the third period as the Penguins imposed their will, wearing down the clock and making Detroit come the full 200 feet with the puck.

Game 4 is an encouraging sign that the Pens are for real and real serious. The fact that they are heading into Detroit’s house on Saturday seems less of a factor than it did in the first two games. It is as if the team, like Jordan Staal according to Coach Dan Bylsma, needed to get a feel for the style of the Wings’ play after coming off seven games against the Caps’ style. It seems they have acclimated.

Stanley Cup Finals - Detroit Red Wings v Pittsburgh Penguins - Game Four

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Tags: Brian Rafalski, Brooks Orpik, Chris Kunitz, Chris Osgood, Dan Bylsma, Detroit Red Wings, Evgeni Malkin, Game 3, Game 4, Jordan Staal, Marc-Andre Fleury, Marian Hossa, Matt Cooke, Maxime Talbot, Pittsburgh Penguins, Rob Scuderi, Ruslan Fedotenko, Sidney Crosby, Stanley Cup Finals, Tyler Kennedy, Washington Capitals

A Date with Destiny

May 30, 2009 by Chaiwoman
Filed under Features, News, Opinion

Hearken back…

Stanley Cup Finals (2008)…

The Pittsburgh Penguins found themselves like Cinderella at the ball, in the Stanley Cup Finals facing the storied and formidable Detroit Red Wings. For me, it might as well have been USA versus USSR in the 1980 Olympics, it was that gut-wrenching.

We all felt the overwhelming crush of the first game and then the second when our boys found themselves slapped around the ice much like they were in the first round against the Senators the previous season. We stood behind them, willing them to fight to stay alive, and out of sheer will they scratched and clawed to make it a brave game.

We stayed up through the multiple overtime sets when Petr Sykora joked during an intermission that he’d score the sudden-death game-winner–and did.

Maybe, like me, you were one of the ones who got an interesting e-mail the next day from a friend with a doctored photo of Babe Ruth calling his shot superimposed by Petr Sykora at the plate, signaling with his hockey stick. It was inspiring.

Our boys had a chance.

Back in the ‘burgh, home ice, for Game 6 and a chance to even the series at 3 apiece. I never felt sicker than when that final horn blared the death knell of one hell of a season. It was hard to watch them, stunned, drained, shredded, slumped on the ice, backs against the boards. An epic denouement. Lord Stanley’s Cup was in our house but not in our hands. The photo of Evgeni Malkin standing alone near the Stanley Cup Finals ice stamp was a haunting and compelling image. The scene as all those whited-out Penguins faithful, with class, stayed and stood for the victor as the Red Wings relished in holding the Cup. We felt the sting as if we had been in those skates and sweaters, too.

And we vowed we’d be back.

Stanley Cup Finals (2009)

The path this year began in a high-powered, promising way with one of the best starts in franchise history, and then like that, the bottom fell out. Through 82 games of soul-searching, fumbling, struggling, but never saying die, they pulled themselves up by their skate laces. If nothing else can be said about this team (from the first to last guy), it is one seriously cohesive unit.

In the face of critics and nay-sayers and hand-wringers, they have managed to let it all roll off of broad, matured shoulders. Old souls in young bodies.

They had to earn their way into a playoff spot–unlike last season where they shot to second seed in the conference and home ice.

They had to fight and rally through two physically demanding rounds–unlike last season where they sailed through the first three rounds.

They have progressed steadily but quickly under Dan Bylsma who has shown his ability to read his players individually and collectively, leaving them confident and well-prepared–unlike last season when they didn’t really know any better and really hadn’t an idea just what THAT level of hockey was all about. Detroit was only too happy to initiate them and maybe to their own present and future peril.

At last season’s end, fans and pundits worried out loud about the loss of Hossa, Roberts, and Malone, but as Mark Madden pointed out in his radio talk show on Friday, if Hossa stayed, we might be looking at key players with much shorter contracts and the possibility of Malkin going to another team.

Instead, the loss has paid dividends thanks to Ray Shero’s shrewd dealing:

To join Sidney Crosby (who when his contract was due took less to make room to keep others in the future), contracts of 4 or more years for Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, and Marc-Andre Fleury completed the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, giving the Pens a solid corps, and defensive insurance in Brooks Orpik.
Add to that the late season acquisitions of Bill Guerin, Chris Kunitz, and Craig Adams.
What you find is depth from 1st line to last, especially as the prodigal son Miroslav Satan arose from AHL purgatory to show some of his best work all season in the playoffs.

Let’s not forget that every guy who played this year contributed mightily whether for every game or for a short stint.

When Gonchar was down, Goligosky answered the bell. Philippe Boucher continues to sniper with a Howitzer.
Cooke and Kennedy meshed with Jordan Staal to become one of the best shut-down third lines that could generate a spark with their grinding cycle work.
Max Talbot and Pascal Depuis played anywhere they could be of service, getting time on every one of the four lines and contributing mightily in penalty-kill situations. An unfortunate injury sidelined Mike Zogomanis, but when healthy, he is one of the deadliest in the face-off circle.
Eric Goddard and Paul Bissonnette enforced when it was needed, but they made skilled contributions as well.
Ruslan Fedotenko has come on to be a force to be reckoned with in the playoffs and worked throughout the season to try to keep the team sparked and competitive.
Kris Letang has grown in confidence and skill. He is fearless, and not to be outdone is Mark Eaton whose defensive skill has also morphed into an offensive threat.
Rob Scuderi and Hal Gill have developed into a strong defensive pairing, facing the likes of Ovechkin and Eric Staal with little difficulty.

It’s scary just how calm and loose this year’s Pittsburgh Penguins team really is. And maybe it’s a little maddening for the reporters who try to get some juicy tidbit out of them in interviews. In the hopes of a spark, they ask about the re-match, feelings about Hossa, the adversity, back-to-back games or too much time between games, and always, they are left a little diappointed.

These players are even keeled, unflappable, and take it all in stride. It’s good to get back to the Stanley Cup Finals. They don’t think too much about the rivalry or how Hossa left. The adversity has made them stronger, and they know what they can do and the kind of character that’s in the locker room. Each knows he has a specific role to play and plays it with 110% intensity, stressing time and again the need to “play the right way.” Back-to-backs are the nature of the beast. They faced many during the regular season, faced them in the playoffs already. Not a big deal. And too much time? They’re glad it’s not a 10-day lay-off because, well, they’d rather be playing hockey.

They are a better, healthier, and more psychologically ready team than the Penguins of 2008, but they needed the early play-off spanking in 2007 to prepare them for the 2008 run, and they needed the 2008 finals defeat to prepare them for this run.

Yeah, that’s still hard to say (as a fan), but if we are going to be honest with ourselves as the Penguins have been with themselves, then we have to agree. This is going to be one hell of a series.

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