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Pens Fall to Avalanche 3-2: Game Recap

The Pittsburgh Penguins lost a hard fought battle against the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night, despite taking a 2-0 lead after the first period on a pair of goals by Sidney Crosby.  The Avalanche, winning by a score of 3-2, kept their home unbeaten streak alive at 6 games to match a Franchise record set set in 1994-95, while the team was still in Quebec.

Unlike many games so far this season, the Penguins came out looking very much ready to play in the first period.  Despite being outshot 12-9 in the period and having to kill off a lengthy 5-on-3 on penalties to Staal and Crosby, goaltender Dany Sabourin really shined and kept the puck out of the Penguins net.   The Pens bounced back after the shorthanded situation and were able to net 2-goals off from the stick of Sidney Crosby.  The first goal came at 10:21 with Crosby streaking down the right side of the rink.  He shot the puck in on net, but it deflected to the sideboards and then back on to his stick enabling hum to throw a backhander across the goal mouth.  With Ryan Malone driving to the net, the puck deflected off from an Avalanche skate and into the far side of the net past Jose Theodore.  Sergei Gonchar and Mark Eaton picked up the assists.  At 18:07, the Penguins struck again on the man advantage and kept their power play streak alive.  The Penguins, who came into the game 3rd in the league in power play effectiveness, have at least one power play goal in every game they have played so far this season.  From the middle of the slot, Sidney Crosby took a beautiful pass from Evgeni Malkin along the boards and slapped the puck past Theodore to put the Penguins ahead 2-0.  Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar assisted on the goal.  The Penguins were 1 for 1 on the power play in the first and were perfect on the kill. 

Midway through the second period, the Penguins fate changed after committing a too many men on the ice penalty.  The Avalanche made the Penguins pay for the all too often error when John-Michael Liles drove the puck into the net on the power play at 10:26.  Joe Sakic and Ryan Smyth were credited with the assists.  The goal proved to be the spark the Avs needed to swing the momentum in their direction.  They capitalized again just 41 seconds later at 11:07 with Jose Theodore pulled from the net on a delayed penalty call to Sidney Crosby.  Wojtek Wolski put the goal in the net to even the score at 2, with assists by Ian Laperriere and Ben Guite.  Even though the goal negated the delayed penalty call on Crosby, he picked up an additional 2-minutes unsportsmanlike call for telling the referees what he thought of the original call.  The Penguins were able to kill that penalty, but gave up a 3rd consecutive goal less than a minute after it expired.  At 13:56, Ben Guite scored on the wrap around attempt despite Sabu hugging the post tightly.  Assists went to Wyatt Smith and Ian Laperriere.  The goal put the Avs up 3-2 and ended up being the game winner after a scoreless third period.  The Avs outshot the Pens 14-7 in the second, but were outshot by the Pens in the third  12-7. 

Despite the outcome, the Penguins played a very good road game against a tough team that was unbeaten at home.  The Penguins mistakes midway through the second proved to be the key difference in the game, and Crosby’s unsportsmanlike call only served to extend the momentum gained by the Avalanche, which ultimately led to their game-winning goal.  In the third, the Avs got a break late when Joe Sakic shot the puck into the crowd and was not called for the delay of game penalty.  Had he been called, as he should have, it would have been the 2nd such call against Sakic in the period.  Penguins Defenseman Ryan Whitney left the game in the 3rd period with a groin injury, and Maxime Talbot took stitches above his right eye after taking a puck to the face in the second period. 

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The Pittsburgh Penguins travel to New York where they will take on the Islanders Saturday night, November 3rd, at 7PM.  Be sure to check back here for the game preview report on Saturday morning.  Yours truly is heading to the Caps-Flyers game on Friday night in DC with his family in honor of “Safety Patrol” night for my son.  Looking for some good hockey action to keep us all entertained. 

 

Penguins Look to Outrun Avalanche: Game Preview

The Pittsburgh Penguins (6-4-1) head into game 2 of a 4-game road trip on Thursday night with a stop in Denver to take on the streaking Colorado Avalanche (7-4-0).  After notching a win against a depleted Wild on Tuesday, the Penguins will be looking to capitalize off the momentum gained in Minnesota to win their 2nd straight game and their 4th straight road game.  They will have their work cut out for them as they take on the Avs, who have not yet lost a game at home this season.   

Colorado is in the midst of a 3-game winning streak having beat Minnesota 3-1 on Sunday, and improved to 5-0-0 at the Pepsi Center for the first time since moving from Quebec in 1995.  Avs’ Winger Ryan Smyth, acquired via free agency over the offseason, has 7-points (3G, 4A) in the last 4 home games and has been the spark behind Colorado’s red hot home start.  Joe Sakic, who has 5-points (1G, 4A) in the last 5 games, has excelled against the Penguins on Avs’ ice.  In 16 home games against the Pens dating back to 1989, Sakic has piled up 32-points (14G, 18A).  Colorado is 7-2-0 with two ties against the Pens in its last 11 games in Colorado.

After being kept of the scoreboard in the season-opener in Carolina, Sidney Crosby has picked up at least 1-point in each of the 10 games since, with 17-points (5G, 12A).  He’s tied with Daymond Langkow for 5th in the league in scoring, just 5 points behind NHL scoring leader Henrik Zetterberg.  Sidney Crosby has played against Colorado just once in his career in Pittsburgh in Dec 2005.  Crosby posted an assist in that game to help the Pens win 4-3.  Evgeni Malkin, who trails Crosby by one with 16-points (5G, 11A), has been on fire of late accumulating 9-points (3G, 6A) in his last 4-games.  With his 2 goals against the Wild on Tuesday, Malkin now has 101 career points in just 89 games.  The only active player to reach 100 points quicker was Washington’s Alex Ovechkin, who hit 100 points in just 77 games in 2005-06.

Dany Sabourin, who stopped 28 of 30 shots in the 4-2 win against the Wild on Tuesday, has gotten the nod from Coach Therrien to start against the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday.  It will be Sabu’s 4th start of the season, but his first consecutive start.  Sabourin is 2-0-1 with a 2.06 goals-against average.  Marc-Andre Fleury, the Penguins #1 goaltender has struggled for consistency this season with a 5.99 GAA in his last two starts after giving up just 1 goal in 67 shots in the two prior games.

Penguins winger and man of steel Gary Roberts returned to the lineup against the Wild after missing Saturday’s game against Montreal due to an upper respiratory infection.  Rookie callup Tyler Kennedy played another good game in terms of speed and intensity and is expected back in the lineup on Thursday in place of Georges Laraque (groin). Left wing Jarkko Ruutu and defenseman Alain Nasreddine were healthy scratches against the Wild.  I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see Eric Christensen as a healthy scratch against the Avs.

Going head-to-head, the Avalanche have a slight advantage across the board except on the power play.  The Avs have averaged 3.2 goals per game versus the Pens 3.0, and have given up 2.8 goals per game versus the Penguins 3.1.  The Avs’ penalty kill has been slightly more effective at 85.7%, while the Penguins have kept 84% out of their net while undermanned.  The Penguins power-play has been dangerous, scoring a goal in every game.  The Pens are ranked 3rd overall in the league on the power play with a 24.6% effectuveness, while the Avs have struggled at 15.7%.

NHLPens.com Prediction:  This is a tough one to call.  The Avs are undefeated at home and have the numbers in their favor.  The Pens on the other hand are arguably coming off the team’s best performance of the season against Minnesota, albeit a wounded Wild.  The offense got rolling and the defense looked halfway decent for the first time this season.  The Penguins will also be riding the glove of Dany Sabourin who has found consistency in his last 2 games.  I anticipate that the Penguins will benefit from the team cohesion and focus of being on the road, and that coupled with their confidence building play of Tuesday will enable the team to come away with a squeeker of a win.  I am predicting a 4-3 regulation win by the Pens.  The most likely goal scorers for the Penguins include Mark Recchi, Sergei Gonchar, Maxime Talbot and Ryan Whitney. 

Go Pens Go!