Man “Dis-”advantage?

During the holiday season, how could anyone look little Virginia in the eye and say, “Yes, there is a Santa Claus” when all we really, really, really wanted for Christmas was a power play, and he didn’t deliver? I don’t know about anyone else, but I wanted it just as badly as that bespectacled little boy in A Christmas Story craved, yearned, longed for that Red Rider BB gun.

Recent History…

I have had my share of frustration watching the Penguins’ power play over the past few seasons, but it finally reached the precipice of the point of no return on my sanity during the Sunday 5PM game against the Florida Panthers, when the Pens drew a juicy 4-minute penalty from Cory Stillman that would tick out the finish of the game. The Pens were down 4-2 at that point, but no worries, dude! We’ve seen it before with barely 2-minutes left when they work their collective magic to force an OT and increase their chances of a win or at least a coveted point for the effort.

I was hopeful. I was energized. Tons of time. Scads of time. If they got one in the first 2 minutes, there would still be the other 2 minutes to contend with and tie-up the game…at the very least. Am I right? Am I right?!! Like Charlie Brown, I believed that Lucy would not pull that blasted ball away at the last second and send me on my head for the umpteenth painful and humiliating time.

Lucy, you are a cold, cruel child.

Pop culture references aside, on the eve of the Calgary Flames game on Wednesday night, I no longer found it funny anymore. The Pittsburgh Penguins are a Stanley Cup-winning team with not only 2 “elite” players in Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, but a coveted 3-line deep and not too shabby 4th line team of solid players as well as two strong goaltenders. Yet they sat a befuddling 29th out of 30 (above only the Ottawa Senators) on the power play.

Here are some notable stats revealing that position prior to their road trip to western Canada:

• In 47 games, the Pens earned 196 power play opportunities, tied with the Dallas Stars who to that point played one less game than the Pens.
• In those 196 opportunities, they scored only 28 goals (14.3%).
• At home, they earned 98 opportunities over 23 games they hosted, scoring 18 goals (18.4%).
• On the road, they earned the other 98 opportunities over 24 games, scoring 10 goals (10.2%).

Maddening, isn’t it? With Crosby and Malkin in the points race, with Bill Guerin and Jordan Staal putting in improved and consistent offensive performances, these things beg the question of how? How is this possible?

It begins with a simple truth: in order to score, one must shoot.

Translation: The only chance of getting a puck in the goal is to send it in the direction of the goal.

That’s for starters, at the most basic level. The purpose of the power play is to score more easily because the team on the power play has the extra man. That’s the consequence of taking a penalty. Break a rule, commit an infraction, and the offender goes into the “sin bin” to serve his punishment, quaking in his skates, praying to the hockey gods that his transgression does not cost his team a goal.

As with fighting in hockey, power plays (at least successful ones) are designed as a deterrent, to control the nonsense because to commit a crime in the face of a team with an effective power play means there is  certainty of a high price to pay. There are consequences.

Conversely, an ineffective power play is no different than the parent who keeps threatening a consequence but never delivers. The result is an unruly child. There is no longer fear of committing penalties, of taking runs at guys, of chancing dirty and dangerous play because the chances are the offending team will be no worse off at the end of it. No one is shaking in his skates.

Teams awarded a power play are supposed to relish it, jump on it, put on their own form of additional punishment by taking it to the four poor slobs who drew first-watch guard duty in front of their stalwart netminder. These four guys are supposed to be run into the ice, rendered dead on their feet by the relentless barrage of shots as they bravely stand up under the seige. Moreso, this should be felt when staring across the ice at the likes of Malkin, Crosby, and Gonchar.

In short, the power play is not meant to be synonymous with a Saturday afternoon cotillion, and yet, the way the Pens have executed their power play for the better part of the last two seasons–a power play that four septagenarians on double-blades with walkers could defend, it seemed they were hell bent to fall on their own sword.

So, let’s look at the set-up.

The lead power play unit generally consists of Crosby, Malkin, and Gonchar as staples. Either Alex Goligoski or Kris Letang works opposite Gonchar, and Guerin generally serves as the third forward. But of late, the power play has comprised replacing Goligoski/Letang with Malkin on the left point, bringing Chris Kunitz (when healthy) or Matt Cooke up front. Gonchar runs the point, as he should. Crosby sets up on the right halfwall/circle opposite Malkin. Guerin trolls the front of the net with Cooke. The effect is an “umbrella” across the top near the blue line where Crosby, Gonchar, and Malkin connect the dots with passes.

It might work if the passes are quicker because again, the idea of shifting a puck laterally at speed forces the penalty-killers to have to shift back and forth, not unlike a squeeze play in baseball where a runner is trapped between bases, and the two field players toss quickly back and forth as the guy in the middle tries to find a way to either advance or get back to base. The effect of speed passing in alternately opposite directions on a power play is that after a while, the defenders get tired and no longer sync up with the passers, creating an opening for a shot. But if the passes are lackadaisical, PKers can follow it in sync all day long…and have.

The second problem is utilizing the slap shot too much. A slap shot requires a wind up. A wind up takes time and gives time to the defender to get in the shooting lane to block the shot. Snap shots require less wind up, but can deliver a pretty forceful shot, and there’s nothing wrong with a wrist-shot.

The third problem is with entering the zone. It’s a tricky thing because the forwards still have to time it with the puck-carrier so that they enter the zone with speed but do not commit an off-sides infraction. Still, the set-up and carry through neutral ice is entirely too slow. This was most starkly seen in the recent Penguins-Flyers game, and as painful as it is for me to admit that Philadelphia does anything better than Pittsburgh, they are the No. 1 power play in the league, and that bears some respect and some careful notetaking. Their set up and entry is fast, hard, and efficient on the stick of all people: the dreaded Scott Hartnell. If they lose the puck out of the attacking zone, they go get it, and they do so with controlled urgency.

So what’s this team to do? Let me revisit two arguments I’ve made since last season:

1. Get Sid down on the goal line and off the right half wall! A guy with his speed and his hands in tight spaces is the perfect person to madden goalies and literally take out the trash on nearly every shot on net. Miles of footage exist where he has managed some amazing stick work in close, showing his almost superhuman hand-eye coordination. He’s an explosive player who can get the biscuit in the basket in the middle of a scrum before a goalie can bat one eye. Putting Sid on the right circle wastes his talent. It also causes him to fall into this semi-quarterback role where he will slow that puck down to a crawl and look everything over, thinking pass ahead of shot. That’s not his forte’. Additionally, while Malkin has improved as Gonchar’s other half on the point, he is not comfortable on the left side and cannot set-up for that killer one-timer that he can bury from the right side.
2. The Penguins have most arguably the toughest, shut-down 3rd line that manages a bucketload of points, especially this season. They run a sustained cycle in the offensive zone better than anybody while peppering the opposing goalie. This would serve a power play well in two ways. First, they still manage to get off several shots, which is sorely needed on the power play, AND, probably even more importantly, when they shoot, they still manage to be first on the puck to keep it in the offensive zone, rarely letting a puck take off past the Pens’ blueliners for a break the other way. Short-handed goals against the power play this year have become embarrassing. Utilizing the 3rd line this way would curtail that.

Of course, this second suggestion begs the question of what to do with Crosby and Malkin. Have them follow as the second unit. It’s not a demotion; it’s a brutally effective strategy, sending them in for the mercy-killing. If the Staal line manages to wear down a PK unit, a quick change bringing the Crosby-Malkin-Guerin line on has an excellent chance of resulting in a goal. Even strength, last season, the Staal line was followed by Crosby with Malkin and did result in goals against tired legs.

Do these suggestions bear out? YES! Guess what?

• In the game against the Calgary Flames, the Malkin-Crosby-Guerin line was out with Gonchar and Goligoski on the blue line. Both Guerin and Crosby were buzzing the goal line, driving Flames goalie Miika Kiprosoff to distraction. Gonchar took his characteristic slap shot and Guerin guided it in as both he and Crosby stood in front of the net. Perfect.
• In the game against the Edmonton Oilers, it was the second power play unit that got the job done, and that unit was 2/3 of the Staal line, comprising Staal and Cooke (who got the goal off Staal’s helper) and Ruslan Fedotenko (instead of Tyler Kennedy), supported by Kris Letang and Mark Eaton. They ran the cycle and broke down penalty killers and the goalie.
• In the recent game against the Islanders, the Pens scored their first 5-on-3 goal of the season with Malkin firing a one-timer from the right circle as Staal screened the goalie. In the same game, Bill Guerin scored a man-advantage goal with a new, but effective wrinkle: Crosby set up in the “box” area between the circles. He drew people to him when he got the puck, faked a close shot on his forehand, which froze the goalie, and flipped a quick backhand pass to Guerin, resulting in Guerin’s backhand goal in the open net behind Dwayne Roloson.

The good news seems to be that the Pens are coming around to these kinds of configurations, utilizing the strengths and talents of their players. What is worrisome is that it seems they are loathe to stick with it for very long. In one of their recent games, the Pens were ending a second period in the power play that would extend into the first 40 seconds or so of the third period. The first 1:20 at the end of the second period was strong with the Malkin-Crosby-Guerin scenario as the latter two ran the goal line and Gonch and Malkin alternated teeing up shots from their comfort zones. It was refreshing. Then the third period started, revealing Crosby on the right circle up high and Malkin on the left side. GEEZ OH MAN, BOYS, WHY?! And it went right back to that lazy, hazy, summer-breeze day.

The Penguins coaching staff needs to settle on the new formats and stick to them until they don’t work anymore. They have worked, and without a working power play, this team will be hard pressed to get far in the play offs, and that’s not acceptable for a team with the kind of individual talent and collective chemistry that this great bunch of hockey players has. They do seem to be working on it and getting comfortable with a few different looks, and as of their last win in which they scored on a power play, the Pens are 22-2 when they score at least one power play goal. All of this  gives the fans something to smile hopefully about.

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Opening Salvos

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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Third “Line’s” a Charm

It is now official.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have not one mystical, magical two-headed monster, but TWO of them.

It’s no secret that Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have become the two-headed monster, but in the final, intense run to the playoffs, another two-headed monster reared up in the form of Jordan Staal and Tyler Kennedy. Don’t blink because on the lead PK, the monster transforms to the tandem of Staal and Matt Cooke who have been unleashed, and all three players could conceivably be the “X” Factor for a successful playoff conclusion, the kind that eluded the Pens last year.

Time and again, in games when the team struggled during the birth of its new identity, the third line, most consistently comprised of Staal, Kennedy, and Cooke, has emerged to hit hard, start cycles in the offensive end, wear down opponents, and put some points on the board.

Case in point: in their last game against the New York Islanders, if a tertiary assist existed, it would have gone to the Staal line on the Bill Guerin goal at 11:08 in the third period. Staal and company mercilessly ground down the Islanders’ defensemen with crisp, swift passes around the net, cycling on both circles, and wheeling the puck out to the blue-liners only to start all over again…and again…and again for what had to be one of the longest sustained cycles of the season.

By the time the Crosby line got on the ice, a too-short clear of the puck kept the Isle’s defensemen stranded on the ice. They put up a fight, but it was clear that their legs had turned to lead, and Guerin made them pay for it.

That’s the value of the Penguins’ third line, and under Dan Bylsma, they have methodically honed their craft. With each successive game they play in the Bylsma era, their cycles start sooner, last longer, and really free up the ice for their teammates. They are hitting their stride as a unit at the right time, and truth be told, the third line is the most in-sync unit.

The statistics also show the growth of these three players both individually and as a collective. An analysis of the last 24 games played under Michel Therrien and the 24 games played prior to their last against the Montreal Canadiens under Dan Bylsma shakes out as follows:

• Jordan Staal–Under Therrien: 4 G, 6 A (10 points), 40 shots on net with a 10% shot percentage. Under Bylsma: 7 G, 10 A (17 points), 61 shots on net with an 11.4% shot percentage.
• Matt Cooke–Under Therrien: 4 G, 2 A (6 points), 28 shots on net with a 14.3% shot percentage. Under Bylsma: 5 G, 6 A (11 points), 35 shots on net with a 14.3% shot percentage.
• Tyler Kennedy–Under Therrien: 4 G, 5A (9 points), 65 shots on net with a 6.2% shot percentage. Under Bylsma: 6 G, 9 A (15 points), 57 shots on net with a 10.5% shot percentage.
• Collectively–Under Therrien: 12 G, 13 A (25 points), 133 shots on net with a 9% shot percentage. Under Bylsma: 18 G, 35 A (43 points), 153 shots on net with an 18% shot percentage.

Staal’s shot production has increased considerably (+21), Cooke moderately so (+7), and while Kennedy’s shots on net have decreased (-8), his shot selection has evolved to create better chances to score, increasing his percentage by 4.3%. Under Bylsma, they have 6 more goals, 22 more assists, 20 more shots on net, and they’ve impressively doubled their shot percentage from 9% to 18%.

Watching them individually as well as collectively, these three skate with more confidence and authority. They punish opponents on the boards as they fight for possession of the puck, and each knows innately exactly where the other two are at all times.

Tyler Kennedy’s spark plug style makes him hard to track as one moment he’s on one side of the net, and the next, he’s in the opposite corner, breaching the distant to the puck before the first defenseman arrives, and gaining possession. He has a keen sense of where he is on the ice at all times in relation to Staal and Cooke even when his back is turned, showing very quick visual perception.

Matt Cooke adds the gritty, instigatory element to the line and to the team by extension, and he has really made a study of his role. The turning point was against the Tampa Bay Lightning some games back when he managed to out-best the old salty dog king tormentor and former Penguins forward, Gary Roberts. Cooke managed to get under Roberts’ skin, causing the 40-plus-year-old veteran to pull a rookie mistake and retaliate. Cooke’s brand of physical, scrappy play is to a point now where he is managing to spend less time in the penalty box, showing that he is mastering the subtler points of the art of institgation–and loving it.

Finally, big center man, Jordan Staal, is proving Ray Shero’s theory of creating a strong core from Sid through the lines to Fleury. Staal’s efforts, paired with Matt Cooke, have elevated the PK to a shade above 87%, and in 5-on-3 situations with the fantastic play of defenseman Rob Scuderi, this unit will prove both valuable and formidable in the playoffs.

Even more importantly, Staal’s confidence has sky-rocketed. He now lugs the puck from his defensive end into the offensive zone not as quick to get rid of it as in weeks past. Now, he looks not just to make a play but to generate a sustained play. Confidence is allowing him to “see” options as if he has all the time in the world within a span of mere seconds, and his linemates are operating on the same frequency.

Staal has developed some signature moves that reveal his strength and the true extent of his reach. The most striking thing he added to his repertoire was a few games ago when Kennedy fed him a puck some distance above the left circle just inside the blue line, clearly out of his usual comfort zone of the interior hash mark on the same side. Staal ripped a slap shot that scored. What this shows is a young player who is now ready to challenge himself a little more, to try something new when the opportunity arises. It makes one wonder what his stats might have been, and more importantly where he would be now in his own development, under a full season of Dan Bylsma.

It’d be nice to find out.

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Dupuis and Sykie Both Get Tricky as Pens Blowout Isles 9-2

The Pittsburgh Penguins exploded for 9 goals on Thursday night as they buried the troubled New York Islanders 9-2 at Mellon Arena.  Petr Sykora netted his first career hat trick after going 44 multi-goal games without one, the longest such streak in NHL history.  Pascal Dupuis also cashed in on his first career hat trick, uncorking his dry spell to double his season total in just one game.  Philippe Boucher, playing in his first game after missing 6 to injury, also scored for the Penguins as did Evgeni Malkin and Miroslav Satan.  In all, 9-Penguins players had a multi-point night and the team collectively had a +25 rating.  John Curry had another good night in net as he stopped 24 of 26 for a 0.923 save percentage.

In the 1st period, the Penguins jumped to a decisive lead as they outshot the Islanders 19-5 and outscored them 4-1 on the board.  Pascal Dupuis kicked it off with his 4th goal of the season after taking a cross-ice pass from Miroslav Satan and getting off a hard blast from the top of the circle that trickled through Islanders’ netminder Joey MacDonald.  Sidney Crosby followed the puck into the net for good measure.  Miroslav Satan and Rob Scuderi picked up the assists on the goal at 6:25.  The Islanders then got into severe penalty trouble as they took 4 sequential penalties, 3 coming in a span of less than 2-minutes to set up some 5-on-3 time for the Penguins.  Playing with a 2-man advantage at 13:49, Miroslav Satan collected a cross-crease pass from Sidney Crosby and quickly moved it to his forehand to wrist it into the net to make it 2-0.  Matt Cooke joined Crosby on the assist.  Then at 16:54, Matt Cooke went off for a tripping call and the Islanders converted on a hard slap shot by Mark Streit through traffic.  Doug Weight and Trent Hunter collected the assists on the powerplay goal.  The Penguins bounced back just 11-seconds later as Petr Sykora collected a cross ice pass from Evgeni Malkin and blasted a slapper past MacDonald to make it 3-1.  Ruslan Fedotenko combined with Malkin on the assists.  Then at 18:19, Philippe Boucher scored his first goal as a Pittsburgh Penguin as he launched a slapshot through traffic from near the blueline that deflected off from an Islanders defender.  Sidney Crosby and Miroslav Satan picked up assists on the Boucher goal.  The Penguins outshot the Islanders 19-5 in the period, went 1-for-4 on the powerplay and 0-for-1 on the kill.   

In the 2nd period, the Islanders started with Yann Danis in goal to replace Joey MacDonald, but he too would would soon fall prey to the hungry Penguins.  At 2:12, Evgeni Malkin fed Alex Goligoski who fired a hard wrister and then Evgeni collected the juicy rebound and beat Danis from the side of the net to make it 5-1.  Petr Sykora joined Goligoski on the assist as Malkin collected his 12th goal of the season.  The Penguins kept rolling after Bill Guerin took a slashing penalty at 7:07, as Petr Sykora took a feed from Alex Goligoski and wristed a shot past Danis from between the circles to make it 6-1.  Max Talbot collected the other assist on Sykora’s powerplay goal.  Then, a few minutes later it appeared that Petr Sykora had finally scored the elusive first hat trick after 44 multi-point games as the puck was clearly poked into the net before the whistle sounded.  However, the referee waved it off saying he had lost sight of it and was preparing to blow the whistle before the puck went in.  The video replay showed that had it counted, it was probably scored by Ruslan Fedotenko.  After receiving some condolences from his teammates, Sykora finally picked up his first career hat trick on the powerplay at 15:42 as he wristed the puck into the net from between the circles again on a laser pass from Sidney Crosby to make it 7-1.  Jordan Staal joined Sidney Crosby on the assist.   At 19:29, an ever-hungry Pascal Dupuis picked up his 2nd goal of the night as he came streaking into the zone late and took a beautiful wrap pass from Jordan Staal and drove it into the net.  Rob Scuderi picked up the other assist as the Penguins finished the 2nd period leading 8-1.  The Penguins outshot the Islanders 14-10 in the 2nd and were 2-for-4 on the powerplay and 1-for-1 on the kill.

In the 3rd period, the Penguins had to be careful as the Islanders started to get a bit chippy with the game fully out of reach.  At 11:33, Evgeni Malkin and Ruslan Fedotenko got into a scuffle with Andy Hilbert and they all sat 2-minutes for roughing with the Islanders getting the benefit of a powerplay.  At 12:55, however, Doug Weight got called for hooking to even the advantage for some 4-on-4 play.  The Islanders finally found some offense with the open ice at 13:06 as Andy Sutton found a way to beat John Curry to make it 8-2.  But it was far too little, and far too late for the Islanders.  At 16:48, Pascal Dupuis took a beautiful feed from Matt Cooke and drove home his 3rd goal of the night to join Petr Sykora for his first career hat trick.  Brooks Orpik joined Matt Cooke on the assist, and the Penguins won the game 9-2 amid the crowd chanting “We Want 10, We Want 10!”.  It was an electric night at the Mellon Arena!  The Islanders ended up outshooting the Penguins in the final frame 11-5,

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• VIDEO:  Coach Therrien Post-Game Press Conference
• VIDEO:  Petr Sykora Post-Game
• VIDEO:  Sidney Crosby Post-Game
• VIDEO:  Pascal Dupuis Post-Game
• VIDEO:  John Curry Post-Game
• AUDIO:  Mike Lange Highlights
• PHOTOS:  In-Game Photos
• Game Rosters
• Game Summary
• Boxscore
• Shots Summary
• Faceoff Summary
• Penguins Ice-Time Report

Petr Sykora picked up 4-points (3G, 1A), while Pascal Dupuis (3G), Miroslav Satan (1G, 2A) and Sidney Crosby (3A) all had a 3-point night.  Evgeni Malkin (1G, 1A), Matt Cooke (2), Alex Goligoski (2A), Jordan Staal (2A) and Rob Scuderi (2A) all had 2-points.  Philippe Boucher (1G), Max Talbot (1A), Brooks Orpik (1A) and Ruslan Fedotenko (1A) each collected a point and rounded out the 13-Penguins players to find their way on to the scoresheet.  Pascal Dupuis led the game with 6-shots on net, while Petr Sykora, Kris Letang, Miroslav Satan and Sidney Crosby each had 5.  Evgeni Malkin fired 4 on net.  Tim Wallace and Mark Eaton each connected for 3-hits.  Kris Letand led all Penguins with 23:53 in ice time, while Sidney Crosby led all forwards with 21:33. 

The Penguins head to Philadelphia on Saturday for a 1PM matinee game.  The Flyers posted a 6-5 come from behind victory against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night after falling behind 5-1.

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Malkin and Crosby Loom Large in 3rd Period Comeback

In the 1st period, the Islanders got on the scoreboard with a 5-on-4 powerplay goal at 7:45 as Mike Zigomanis sat for a goaltender interference call.  Hal Gill had just left the box 6-seconds prior to the goal after the Penguins managed to kill off 21-seconds of a 5-on-3.  Doug Weight was credited with the goal, but the replay showed that after Dany Sabourin stopped the puck, he inadvertently kicked it into his own net as he tried to close his legs on the puck.  Trent Hunter and Mark Streit picked up the assists on the play.  Then, just over a minute later, Trent Hunter backhanded a goal past Dany Sabourin to make it 2-0.  Hunter beat Kris Letang after taking a chip pass that landed in the feet of Letang, and then surprised Sabourin with a quick backhander.  Assists were given to Andy Hilbert and Joshua Bailey.  At 9:38, Eric Godard picked up a fighting major with Mitch Fritz.  Fritz managed to get Godard tied up in his jersey and neither player was able to do too much damage before being sent to the box;  it wasn’t enough to get the Penguins going.  The Penguins were outshot 12-10 in the first and were 0-for-2 on the man advantage and 1-for-2 on the kill. 

In the 2nd period, the Penguins continued to be outplayed by the Islanders as they were outshot 7-6.  At 9:27 with Evgeni Malkin in the box for a high sticking penalty, the Islanders powerplay connected again as Bill Guerin beat Dany Sabourin to make it 3-0.  Joshua Bailey and Mark Streit picked up the assists.  After the the 3rd goal on 14-shots, Coach Michel Therrien pulled Dany Sabourin and gave rookie John Curry his NHL debut.  Curry stopped all 5-shots against him in the remainder of the period.  As the period wound down, defenseman Brooks Orpik stepped into a slapshot with 19-seconds left that beat the Islanders netminder Joey MacDonald and gave the Penguins something to build on as they entered the 3rd period.  Pascal Dupuis picked up the lone assist on Orpiks 2nd goal of the season.  The Penguins were 1-for-2 on the kill in the period and were afforded no man advantages. 

In the 3rd period, Coach Michel Therrien reunited Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby on the Penguins’ top line.  At 6:18, it paid off as Malkin fed a beautiful cross ice pass through traffic to Crosby who snapped it into the empty side of the net to beat MacDonald and make it 3-2 with plenty of time left in the game.  Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang picked up the assists.  Then at 11:03, Sidney Crosby returned the favor as he drew 3-Islanders to the boards and fed Malkin streaking through the center of the ice.  Malkin walked in unchallenged and beat MacDonald with a quick wrister to tie the game 3-3.  Brooks Orpik picked up the other assist.  Then, just 50-seconds later, Sidney Crosby undressed an Islanders’ defensemen who was looking to set up a play from behind his own net.  Crosby stole the puck at the side of the net and looked as if he was going to shoot on MacDonald.  Instead, he made a perfect blind backhanded pass to the slot.  Malkin, reading the play perfectly, had jumped in from the blueline and made a diving shot that beat MacDonald 5-hole to gain the 1-goal advantage.  Finally, with 18-seconds left and MacDonald pulled for the extra attacker, Evgeni Malkin completed the hat trick with his 10th goal of the season, an empty netter to seal the game 5-3.  Rob Scuderi picked up the lone assist on the play.  The Penguins’ domination in the 3rd period was evident in the 14-6 shot total.  The Penguins were 0-for-1 on the powerplay in the final frame.  John Curry stopped all 6-shots in the 3rd to pick up his first career NHL win. 

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• Game Rosters
• Game Summary
• Boxscore
• Shots Summary
• Faceoff Comparison
• Penguins Player Ice Times

Sidney Crosby led all Penguins with 5-shots on net, and had 3-points (1G, 2A).  Evgeni Malkin had 4-shots and picked up 4-points (3G, 1A) to maintain his lead in the NHL points race with 35-points, 5-points ahead of 2nd place Simon Gagne.  Malkin also leads the league in assists with 25, 5-ahead of 2nd place Sidney Crosby and Boston’s Marc Savard.  Max Talbot was a perfect 2-for-2 on faceoffs before he left the game with an apparent foot injury after taking a hard shot to the skate.  Talbot appeared unable to put any pressure on the skate as he left the ice with the help of the team trainer.  Tyler Kennedy won his single apearance in the faceoff circle, while Sidney Crosby (12/28) won just 43% and Mike Zigomanis (8/19) and Jordan Staal (8/19) each won 42%.  Sidney Crosby led the team with 24:39 of ice time, while Malkin registered 21:29.  Amongst defensemen, Brooks Orpik led with 22:09 of ice time with Philippe Boucher following close behind with 21:43.

The Penguins will get Thanksgiving Day off before playing against Buffalo on the road on Friday evening.  They will then return back to Mellon Arena to face the Devils on Saturday night.

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Ruutu Powers Pens Past Islanders 3-1

The Pittsburgh Penguins avenged their recent loss to the New York Islanders by beating them 3-1 on Thursday night to take over 1st place in the Eastern Conference.  Sidney Crosby returned to round out Pittsburgh’s offensively laden top-2 lines, but it was Jarkko Ruutu who put up the points by scoring a short-handed goal and two assists to power the Penguins into the Eastern Conference lead over an idle Montreal Canadiens.  Despite the win, the Penguins were yet again dealt adversity as Marian Hossa left the game in the 3rd period with an unspecified upper body injury after being hit from behind.  Hossa briefly left the game in the 2nd period after taking a hip-check to his previously injured knee, but returned and appeared to be fine. 

In the 1st period, Evgeni Malkin notched his 45th goal of the season to put the Penguins up 1-0 at 6:53.  Jarkko Ruutu and Georges Laraque picked up the assists on the play.  The goal was Malkin’s 103rd point of the season to draw him within 4-points of Alexander Ovechkin in the race for the NHL scoring title.  At 16:31, the Islanders tied it up on a goal by Josef Vasicek that eluded Marc-Andre Fleury.  Bill Guerin and Freddy Meyer were credited with the assists.  Shots were 11-10 in the first period in favor of the Penguins, who were 0-for-1 on the power play.

In the 2nd period, Jarkko Ruutu made a beautiful play to fool the Islanders’ goaltender and then scored on the wraparound with an unassisted short-hander.  It was a penalty laden period with a total of 14 infractions being called between the 2-teams for 40-minutes in penalty time.  The Penguins outshot the Islanders 11-5 in the period.

At 6:40 of the 3rd period, Georges Laraque took a nice breakaway pass from Jarkko Ruutu and chipped the puck past the Islanders’ tender to make it 3-1.  Despite being out of a playoff position, the Islanders didn’t give up and outshot the Penguins 13-7 in the final period.  Marc-Andre Fleury managed to weather the storm, and despite having 1:10 of empty net time, the Penguins failed to connect for a 4th goal.

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• VIDEO:  Post-Game Press Conference w/Coach Therrien
• VIDEO:  Post-Game Locker Room Interviews w/Jarkko Ruutu, Georges Laraque, Marc-Andre Fleury
• PHOTO:  In-Game Photos
• AUDIO:  Mike Lange Highlights
• AUDIO:  Rink Rat Report
• AUDIO:  Post-Game Hotline
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Rosters
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Summary
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Boxscore
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Play-by-Play

Marc-Andre Fleury recorded his 6th consecutive win and his 8th win in 9 starts since returning from his high ankle injury.  Jarkko Ruutu recorded his 4th goal and 6th point in the last 6-games.  The Penguins took a step closer to clinching the Atlantic Division title by expanding their lead to 6-points over the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers who are locked in a battle for 2nd place.  The Penguins host the surging New York Rangers in a Sunday matinee, the first of a back-to-back, home-and-home series with the Rangers.   

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Ty Conklin Stops 50-Shots as Penguins Beat Isles 4-2

The Pittsburgh Penguins capped an emotional trade day by beating the New York Islanders 4-2, despite being undermanned in the early going and being outshot 52-20.  Ty Conklin had a stellar night in net as he turned aside 50 shots while Marc-Andre Fleury looked on from the bench.  The Penguins appeared to be playing with a Hossa hangover for much of the game, giving up numerous chances to the Islanders and committing 10-penalties.  But it was the Penguins special teams that had the edge by scoring 2 power play goals and killing off 9-of-10 short-handed situations.  With Colby Armstrong and Erik Christensen out of the lineup and on their way to Atlanta, the Penguins started the game 2-players short while they waited on call-ups Connor James and Jason Smith to arrive at the arena from Wilkes-Barre.   

In the 1st, the Penguins got on the board first as Evgeni Malkin scored his 36th goal of the season from Petr Sykora and Jeff Taffe at 10:50.  Malkin managed to circle around from behind the net to low circle and lifted the puck over Rick DiPietro to make it 1-0.  While on the power play at 17:52, Jeff Taffe picked up his 4th goal of the season as he poked in a rebound that was lost between the legs of an Islanders’ defenseman to the right side of the net.  Tyler Kennedy and Kris Letang were credited with the assists.  Despite leading 2-0 at the end of the period, the Penguins were woefully outshot in the 1st by 23-6.  The Penguins were 1-for-3 on the power play and killed off 4 of their own. 

In the 2nd, the Islanders got back into the game on a goal poked in by Frans Nielsen at 10:26.  Assists were given to Jeff Tambellini and Frederick Meyer.  The Penguins were outshot 11-4 in the 2nd, as they successfully killed off 4-penalties.  The Penguins had no power play opportunities in the period.

In the 3rd, it was Jordan Staal who finally converted on a chance as he picked up his 9th goal of the season on a beautiful feed from Evgeni Malkin at 12:55.  Petr Sykora picked up the other assist.  Then at 16:58, all the way from Wilkes-Barre, it was Connor James picking up his first NHL goal on the power play after taking a dead-on saucer pass over the stick of an Islander defenseman from Ryan Whitney.  At 17:03, a fiesty Tyler Kennedy took on Mike Comrie in a short bout in which Kennedy appeared to finish with the upper hand.  Finally, at 18:43 with Evgeni Malkin in the box for a tripping call, the Islanders’ Ruslan Fedotenko put up the final goal from Josef Vasicek and Trent Hunter to make the score 4-2 Penguins.

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• BONUS VIDEO:  Ray Shero Trade Press Conference
• PHOTOS:  In-Game Photos
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Rosters
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Summary
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Boxscore
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Play-by-Play 

The win capped an emotional day for the young Penguins who lost 2-close friends and teammates to the trade just prior to the deadline.  It was a likely distraction for the team as they didn’t have a great deal of time to adjust to the news before having to take the ice.  Despite the lack of offensive dominance, the Penguins took advantage of their chances.  Evgeni Malkin returned to the scoring sheet by picking up 2-points (1G, 1A) and regaining the league lead.  Petr Sykora netted 2-assists before leaving the ice late in the 3rd with an unspecified injury.  Jeff Taffe picked up 2-points (1G, 1A), extending his scoring streak to 3-games.  The Penguins extended their February record to 8-2-3, picking up 19-of-24 available points so far, and drew within 1-point of the Eastern Conference leading New Jersey Devils who picked up a point in an overtime loss.  The Penguins overtook the Ottawa Senators by a point tonight as the Senators lost to Boston. 

The Penguins travel to Boston on Thursday night to take on the Bruins.  New acquisition Marian Hossa is expected to join the team for the game.  “I’m really looking forward to joining this group,” he said. “You look at the centermen and you have Sid, Malkin and (Jordan) Staal. They are some really strong, great young players. They have good goaltending and good moving defensemen.  They create lots of offense. I am really looking forward to playing with these guys.”  It is presumed that Hal Gill and Pascal Dupuis will also be joining the team on Thursday. 

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Pens Beat Isles, Tie Flyers for Atlantic Lead

The Pittsburgh Penguins continued their solid play on Thursday night by beating the New York Islanders 4-3 and advancing past the Devils to tie the Flyers for the lead in the very tight Atlantic Division.  The Flyers have one game in hand against the Penguins and Devils.  Defensman Ryan Whitney, singled out by Coach Therrien in Monday night’s loss to the Devils, answered the call by scoring 3-points (2G, 1A) against the Islanders.  Ryan Malone and Kris Letang also scored and Ty Conklin stopped 29 shots as the Penguins improved their record to 30-19-5.

In the 1st period, the Islanders got on the board first on an easy goal by Mike Comrie, his 300th NHL point, at 4:31.  Ty Conklin went into the corner to clear the puck, but misplayed it and turned it over.  Bill Guerin and Andy Hilbert quickly moved the puck to Comrie, who put it into the yawning net.  At 9:04, the Penguins tied it up on a power play goal by Ryan Whitney, his 10th goal of the season.  Petr Sykora and Evgeni Malkin were credited with assists.  At 9:19, Mike Comrie and Max Talbot went for a dance and were given matching fighting majors.  The Penguins were outshot by the Islanders 11-9 in the 1st, and were 1-for-1 on the power play. 

In the 2nd, the Penguins scored first on Ryan Malone’s 16th goal of the season as he redirected a Ryan Whitney shot past Isles’ goaltender Rick DiPietro at 2:24.  The even strength goal was also assisted by Evgeni Malkin.  A little over 4-minutes later, the Islanders bounced back on a power play goal by Ruslan Fedetenko as newly re-acquired Kris Beech sat for a tripping call.  Trent Hunter and Frederick Meyer picked up the assists.  At 11:33, the Penguins got a power play goal of their own to regain the lead at 3-2 as Ryan Whitney took a feed from Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar and beat DiPietro again.  The Penguins outshot the Islanders 13-10 in the 2nd, were 1-for-2 on the power play, and 1-for 2 on the penalty kill.   

Midway through the 3rd, the Islanders’ Mike Comrie capitalized on a tripping call to Colby Armstrong and scored on the power play to tie it up.  Richard Park and Frederick Meyer had the assists on Comrie’s 2nd of the night.  At 16:21, however, Kris Letang put the Penguins ahead for good as he stepped up into the play and put the puck above DiPietro’s shoulder on the short side for an unassisted goal.  The goal was Letang’s 3rd of the season.  The Islanders outshot the Penguins 11-5 in the 3rd.

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• VIDEO:  Post-Game Press Conference w/Coach Therrien
• VIDEO:  Post-Game Locker Room Interviews w/Kris Letang, Ryan Whitney, Rob Scuderi
• PHOTOS:  In-Game Photos
• AUDIO:  Mike Lange Highlights
• AUDIO:  Post-Game Rink Rat Report
• AUDIO:  Post-Game Hotline
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Rosters
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Summary
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Boxscore
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Play-by-Play

Evgeni Malkin picked up 3-assists in the game to increase his points-total to 66-points (28G, 38A).  He has 8-points in his last 3-games, and has scored 18-points (8G, 10A) in 11-games since Sidney Crosby has been out of the lineup.  He is now in 6th place overall in the league in scoring, just 2-points out of 3rd and 7-points out of 1st.  The Penguins have gone 5-3-3 without Sidney Crosby, picking up 13 of 22 possible points (59%).  They have picked up 5 of 6 possible points so far in February. 

The Penguins will host the Los Angeles Kings at 1PM on Saturday afternoon and then host the Flyers in an Atlantic Division showdown on Sunday at 1PM.  The Flyers will also be playing a back-to-back game as they take on the New York Rangers on Saturday afternoon. 

In other news, Sidney Crosby practiced with the team on Friday in a no-contact status.  He did participate in shooting drills and exercised his ankle in some quick start skating and turning.  “I’m definitely not ready to play.  Hopefully with no setbacks or anything like that, I’ll probably re-evaluate over the next two weeks,” Crosby said. “Wishful thinking would probably be a couple of weeks, but I don’t know.”  Coach Michel Therrien noted that Crosby “is healing very fast, and that is a great sign”.  Therrien went on to point out that he is not ready to play yet, and that skating and battling are two different things.  “We have to make sure when he comes back he is 100 percent.”  Left wing Gary Roberts is looking to return to practice in the next 2 weeks.  While he is skating, Roberts said his leg is still sore.  Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury is getting closer to returning, but no date has been set yet.  Fleury traveled to New Jersey on Monday and worked out with the team before the game.  There is no update on Adam Hall who has been out with a groin injury. 

Right wing Tyler Kennedy, who traveled to New Jersey and participated in drills for the first time since being diagnosed with mononucleosis, was re-assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL today.  Kennedy stayed on the ice in New Jersey for an extra 20 minutes trying to get himself back into game shape.  It is likely that his return to WBS is intended as a conditioning tour as he tries to regain his strength.  We expect that Marc-Andre Fleury will be given a similar WBS assignment before returning to the Penguins lineup.

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Penguins Fall 4-2 in Weak Outing

The Pittsburgh Penguins lost to the New York Islanders on Saturday night at Mellon Arena by a score of 4-2 after giving up 2-goals midway through the 3rd period in a sloppy game.  In a bit of irony, the tie-breaking goal was scored by rookie Blake Comeau who was called up when Islanders’ forward Chris Simon was suspended 30-games for stomping on the leg of Penguins’ forward Jarrko Ruutu with his skate blade last Saturday.  Comeau, playing in just his 2nd game this season and the 5th of his career, beat Dany Sabourin inside the far post to give the Islanders the lead at 3-2.

For the Penguins, the schedule may have played a factor with the game coming on the heels of Thursday night’s win in Boston.  The team traveled back to Pittsburgh overnight and played their second game in as many nights, and 3rd game in just 4-nights.  When the Islanders scored the tie-breaking goal midway through the 3rd, the Penguins just didn’t have enough gas left in the tank to mount a viable comeback.  The Penguins were sloppy in their own end, had difficulty dealing with the bad ice surface and didn’t capitalize on their chances. 

In the 1st period, the Islanders scored quickly off from a goal by Miroslav Satan at 0:44, with assists by Josef Vasicek and Brendan Witt.  The Penguins bounced back late in the first when Erik Christensen found the back of the net at 18:50 to tie it 1-1.  Working the boards behind the Islanders’ net, Georges Laraque backhanded the puck along the boards to Gary Roberts who attempted a quick wraparound on goaltender Rick DiPietro.  Roberts’ attempt was stopped, but the rebound popped out to Christensen who drove it into the empty side of the net to beat DiPietro.  With the assist, Gary Roberts was credited with his 900th career point. 

In the 2nd period, the Penguins scored first at 4:20 on the power play as the Islanders netminder mishandled the play, leaving the net wide open for Jordan Staal who scored just his 3rd goal of the season.  Sidney Crosby and Sergei Gonchar were credited with the assists.  It was Pittsburgh’s only goal in 6-power play chances, including a four-minute power play in the second.  They are just 2-for-25 with the man advantage in the last 5-games.  The Islanders managed to tie the game at 8:42 from Andy Hilbert.  Tim Jackman and rookie Blake Comeau were credited with the assists.

In the 3rd, the Islanders scored twice to beat the Penguins 4-2.  The tie-breaker came from the stick of Blake Comeau at 10:28 with an assist by Andy Hilbert.  The insurance goal came less than a minute later at 11:05 from Trent Hunter with assists by Mike Sillinger and Ruslan Fedetenko. 

Dany Sabourin stopped 20 of 24 shots and lost his 4th game in 5-starts.  “We expect him to be better,” said coach Michel Therrien, who may opt to use Ty Conklin against Boston again on Sunday.  

• PHOTOS:  In Game Photos 
• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• VIDEO:  Post Game Press Conference
• VIDEO:  Post Game Locker Room Report
• AUDIO:  Mike Lange Highlights
• AUDIO:  Post Game Rink Rat Report
• AUDIO:  Post Game Hotline
• Official Game Rosters
• Official Game Summary
• Official Game Boxscore
• Official Game Play-by-Play

Around the Atlantic, the Flyers and Rangers both lost on Friday night, enabling the Penguins to maintain 3rd place.  The Devils won to add another 2-points of separation from the rest of the tightly packed Atlantic Division, with just 4-points separating the 2nd and 5th place teams. 

The Penguins The Penguins play again on Sunday afternoon when they host the Boston Bruins at 3PM. 

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Kennedy’s 3-Points Powers Pens Past Isles 3-2

The Pittsburgh Penguins stopped a 2-game slide as they beat the New York Islanders by a score of 3-2 on Saturday night at the Nassau Colliseum, to pull within 3-points of the division leading Devils.  The Penguins who were playing without Marc-Andre Fleury (high ankle sprain), Sergei Gonchar (Flu), Max Talbot (high ankle sprain), and Erik Christensen (sore neck), outshot the Islanders 40-29 in the win.  Dany Sabourin was very strong in net for the Penguins, making 27 saves on 29 shots.   

In the first period, Sidney Crosby scored his 1st goal in 8-games at 2:48 on a botched play by defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron and goaltender Rick DiPietro.  Bergeron attempted to pass the puck behind the net, but hit the side of the cage instead.  Both Bergeron and DiPietro collided as they tried to play the mishandled puck, but gave it up to Tyler Kennedy who passed it to Crosby in the slot who put it into the open net.  “It feels good,” Crosby said. “You never take anything for granted. When you don’t get one for a few games, you just keep working hard to create your chances, but it’s nice to get one like that.”  Just 4-minutes later, Ryan Whitey added a goal to put the Penguins up 2-0 early in the game.  After hitting the post, Whitney got the puck back from Brooks Orpik and Tyler Kennedy and put a wrist shot through the open pads of a screened DiPietro.  At 14:21, Gary Roberts and Andy Sutton had a tussle that ended in 5-minute fighting majors for both, with Roberts maintaining the upper hand.  The Penguins outshot the Islanders 15-7 in the first, and were 0 for 2 on the power play.

In the second, the Islanders put in two quick goals to tie the game at 2.  The first came at 4:57 on the power play from Richard Park after Rob Scuderi took a call for cross-checking.  The play was assisted by Mike Comrie and Bill Guerin.  The penalty was served by Petr Sykora, however, as Scuderi had been hurt whil blocking a shot on the play.  Scuderi left the ice at the stoppage in play and did not return to the game.  The second Islanders goal came at 5:42 from Josef Vasicek, with assists by Miroslav Satan and Sean Bergenheim.  The Penguins broke the tie on the power play at 14:16 as Tyler Kennedy feasted on a rebound off from a Jordan Staal side of the net scrum.  “(Jordan Staal) made a great play to the net,” Kennedy said. “I made a power move to the net. I just sat on the back side waiting for it, and it came right out to me.”  Kris Letang also picked up an assist on the play.  The goal for Kennedy capped a 3-point night for the rookie (1G, 2A), who got to spend several shifts on the ice with Sidney Crosby and was named 1st star of the game.  “I like the way this kid plays,” Penguins coach Michel Therrien said. “I wanted to wait to put him with Crosby because I didn’t want him to get nervous. But then I decided to put them together on the second shift, and he was playing well.”  The Penguins outshot the Islanders 16-11 in the 2nd and were 1 for 3 on the powerplay. 

There was no scoring in the third, but with 6-minutes to go in the game the Penguins got a 5-minute man advantage after forward Chris Simon took a match penalty for stomping on Jarkko Ruutu’s foot with with his skate along the boards.  The infraction was called as an attempt to injure, which will be reviewed by the league for potential suspension action.  Despite having the man advantage, the Penguins played very passively and nearly gave up a short-handed goal to the Islanders.  Fortunately, Dany Sabourin was able to keep the puck out of the net to maintain the win. 

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

The Penguins travel to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday to take on division rival New York Rangers. 

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