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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.

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.

“Energy Guys” Make Their Presence Known

Introducing Another Great Post by Guest Blogger Chaiwoman:

Sean Avery’s reunion tour with his old team seemed to put him face to face with just about every guy in a black and gold uniform on Saturday.  It was a gritty, scrappy, hard-hitting, nasty penalizing afternoon game against the New York Rangers (sans the blue jerseys), as the Pittsburgh Penguins treated fans to a win largely due to their “energy guys.”

Start with the brilliant tactics of Tyler “Mr.” Kennedy, who appeared to take Avery by surprise after a couple of test hits in a match that left Avery looking puzzled and Kennedy grinning like the Cheshire Cat.  Later, Kennedy would say that he and Avery talked about and agreed “to go”.  Kennedy’s sacrifice was brilliant for several reasons:

1. He took Avery’s agitation game out of commission for five minutes, giving his teammates one less pain to deal with;
2. It generated some momentum given how the scrap developed and who it was against;
3. The Penguins’ power play three minutes later was not affected by his absence since he is not a major contributor on special teams; and
4. Though they did not score on the power play, the energy was still high, and Maxime Talbot revved up for a great feed from Ruslan Fedotenko to put the Pens on the board.

Coach Bylsma talked after the game about Kennedy’s fight and the penalties in general saying that he was not so much concerned about how many penalties they take as he is about the kinds of penalties and when they occur.  He called Kennedy an “energy guy,” and the timing and make-up of his penalty created energy for the team.

As a matter of fact, Coach Bylsma has the luxury of four “energy guys,” in Tyler Kennedy (13G,16A), Matt Cooke (10G, 18A), Maxime Talbot (11G, 9A), and Pascal Dupuis (10G, 14A) for a total of 101 points thus far.  All have a similar skating style but run the gamut in levels of agitation against opposing players.  All have had stints up on the top line with Sidney Crosby and have provided sparks at various times, chipping in goals and assists at opportune times.  All have shown their utilitarian ability to skate on lines 1 through 4 with the same intensity, effort, and yes, energy.  In Saturday’s game, three of the four energy guys contributed for 2 goals and 2 assists in the win.  This is what you need heading into the playoffs.

With Matt Cooke up on the Malkin line for a second consecutive game, he scored the Pens’ second goal off a great effort that started with a Malkin feed and ended with both Cooke and Talbot creating havoc in front of Rangers netminder Henrik Lundqvist.  During Kennedy’s stint in the sin bin, Bylsma moved Pascal Dupuis up onto the Staal line with Fedotenko and Staal, and the line never missed a beat as Dupuis provided his usual style of quick feet and hard forechecking.  He and Cooke also figure in the strong and now offensively-minded Penguins penalty kills.

Their energy is infectious, and something about it on Saturday permeated the entire team even sparking Ruslan Fedotenko who earned the #1 star of the game with a solid three-point performance (1G, 2A) to break out of his slump.  It should be noted that in his two assists, Feds set up the goal scorers (Talbot and Crosby) in exactly the same way with crisp, well-timed tape-to-tape passes in a quick transition.  Riding high off his own goal-scoring contribution the previous game, defenseman Hal Gill seemed to have more jump as he involved himself with confidence in a short-handed rush.  In 18 games under Bylsma Gill has registered 16 shots on goal compared to his last 18 games under Therrien (7 shots), improving his shot production almost 2-1.

Bylsma has been very consistent in his basic line format with Talbot centering the 4th line and Dupuis flanking him on one side.  However, he does not shy away from plugging these two into other situations that create offensive opportunities and aggressive defensive back-checking.  All four of these energy guys add an important layer that positions a team like the Penguins for a deep run in the playoffs.

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Penguins Find the Right Trajectory

The Pittsburgh Penguins appear to have finally found the right trajectory after beating the Atlantic Division leading New York Rangers 3-0 on Sunday afternoon.  Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 33-shots to post his 2nd shutout of the season, and 13th of his career.  With the win, the Penguins have managed to take 3 of their last 4 games after going an abysmal 6-13-1 between December 1st and January 10th.  During that span, the team suffered from inconsistent goaltending, a leaky defense, an unproductive offense, and (at times) ineffective coaching.  Contributing to their maladies, the Penguins have been burdened by more than their fair share of injuries, forcing the team to play as many as 5 AHL call-ups per game.  However, the Penguins have found success since facing off against the Flyers on the 13th by effectively employing a neutral zone trap, injecting the energetic Matt Cooke on the top line aside Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby, and utilizing the chemistry of their AHL call-ups on the lower lines.   They have also benefitted on the 2nd line by the return of Tyler Kennedy and the improved play of a freshly signed Jordan Staal.  While only time will tell if the team has literally turned the page from December, they are certainly on the right trajectory for a change. 

Sunday’s win was marked by a number of encouraging signs.  First, the goaltending of Marc-Andre Fleury was rock solid.  In fact, it was the second game in a row in which he lived up to his potential and skill level, after a month in which he has looked tentative and positionally out of synch.  Perhaps we expected too much from him when he returned from injury this season when compared to how he responded at the end of last season after recovering from a lengthy high ankle sprain.  While he hasn’t had to be brilliant in net, he has only given up 1-goal through 6-periods of play.  Hopefully this will help him regain the confidence that he has been missing.  Secondly, the team was committed to and soundly executed their defensive trap system with few breakdowns.  The excellent positional play of the Penguins enabled them to conserve their energy and increase their puck possession, rather than chasing the puck in their own zone.  By effectively clogging up the neutral zone, they denied their opponents easy entrance into the Penguins defensive zone.  Finally, the team played with a full 60-minutes of passion, focus, and attention to detail.  Passing was crisp, decisions were sound, and everyone seemed to be on the same page.  The Penguins were also disciplined as they gave up a man advantage opportunity to the Rangers just twice.  All of these factors contributed to their success, and will hopefully reinforce in their minds what they need to bring to every game. 

The Penguins have 2 more games in their current home stand before heading out on a 3-game road trip.  The Penguins will host the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night before facing off for a rematch against the New York Rangers again on Wednesday the 28th (after the All Star Game).  The Penguins will then have back-to-back  road games against the Devils and the Maple Leafs on the following Friday and Saturday nights to close out the month of January.

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Sabourin Victimized by Rangers in Shootout

The Pittsburgh Penguins coughed up a 2-goal lead to a New York Rangers’ rally on Wednesday night to force the overtime, and then lost the game 3-2 in the shootout.  The Penguins got goals from Mark Eaton (yes, you read correctly) and Jordan Staal in regulation, and Kris Letang in the shootout.  Sidney Crosby was held to a point and, in a rare moment, Evgeni Malkin failed to get on the scoresheet.  Dany Sabourin stopped 25 of 27 through 65-minutes of play for a commendable 0.923 save percentage, but turned to swiss cheese in the shootout where he was beaten mercilessly by all 3 Rangers’ shooters. 

In the 1st period the Penguins fired the puck relentlessly on Henrik Lundqvist, getting off 12-shots despite being short-handed for 4-minutes of play.  At 2:46, Mike Godard squared off with Colton Orr for an extended tussle.  While neither player landed any killer blows, Orr appeared to finish with a bit of an edge.  Then at 12:23, Brooks Orpik took 2-minor penalties for tripping and unsportsmanlike conduct as he retaliated against Orr for his physical work over on Sidney Crosby.  Fortunately for the Penguins, less than a minute into the first penalty, the Rangers were called for too many men on the ice.  In the ensuing 4-on-4 play, Sidney Crosby mesmerized the crowd by taking the puck around the back of the net and then passed the puck out to Mark Eaton who jumped up on the play.  Eaton took the pass and deposited into the empty side of the net at 13:56 as Lundqvist was caught hugging the post in anticipation of a Crosby shot.  For Eaton, it was a rare goal on a memorable night as he skated in his 400th career NHL game.  The Penguins outshot the Rangers 12-6 in the first, and were 0-for-2 on the powerplay.

In the 2nd period, the Penguins widened their lead to 2-0 at 9:35.  With traffic in front of the Rangers’ net, Rob Scuderi blasted a shot from the blueline.  Towering in front of the net, Jordan Staal got his stick on Scuderi’s shot and deflected the puck past Lundqvist.  Matt Cooke was credited with the other assist on the play.  Just a minute and a half later, however, the Penguins were dealt a similar hand as Scott Gomez unleashed a hard shot that was deflected past Sabourin by Nikolai Zherdev to make it 2-1.  Wade Redden picked up the other assist on the play.  The Rangers came on stronger late in the period and managed to outshoot the Penguins 9-7.  Both teams were 0-for-1 on the powerplay.

In the 3rd period, the Rangers kept coming as they managed to score the game-tying goal on a wrister at 14:03 from Petr Prucha.  Scott Gomez and Wade Redden were again credited with the assists, their second of the night.  The Penguins were dealt a blow as both Mike Zigomanis and Tyler Kennedy left the game with undisclosed injuries and did not return.  The Penguins continued to battle on and got numerous scoring chances, but were unable to beat King Henry.  Dany Sabourin posted some important saves late to send the game into overtime, and guarantee a point.  The Rangers edged the Penguins in shots in the 3rd period 10-9. 

After a scoreless overtime in which the Penguins outshot the Rangers 3-2, the game went to the shooout for the final decision.  The Rangers chose to shoot first and put Markus Naslund up front.  Naslund skated in and beat Sabourin with the backhand high glove side.  The Penguins then inexplicably fielded Miroslav Satan who has cooled off and is 0-for-3 on the shootout this season…..make that 0-for-4 now.  Next, the Rangers put up Nikolai Zherdev who had the team’s first goal of the night, and he beat Sabourin with a backhander as well.  In a must score situation, the Penguins put up sniper Kris Letang.  Letang came in and roofed a snap shot that beat Lundqvist quite handily and gave the Penguins a thin lifeline on the game.  But it just wasn’t meant to be as Fredrik Sjostrom came in and wristed the 3rd consecutive shootout goal past Sabourin to clinch the game 3-2, just as he did in their last matchup in October.  Despite playing a decent game in regulation, poor Sabu just got taken to the cleaners in the shootout.  

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• PHOTOS:  In-Game Photos
• Game Rosters
• Game Summary
• Boxscore
• Faceoff Summary
• Shot Report
• Shootout Summary
• Penguins Ice Time Report

Jordan Staal, Max Talbot, Ruslan Fedotenko and Kris Letang all registered 4-shots on goal, while Evgeni Malkin posted 3 and Sidney Crosby had 2.  In the faceoff circle, the Penguins were horrible.   While Max Talbot was 67% (2 of 3), Jordan Staal was the next best at 47% (9 of 19).  Sidney Crosby was just 31% (5 of 16) and Evgeni Malkin was 17% (1 of 6).  Mike Zigomanis, who leads the NHL in faceoffs, was just 33% (2 of 6) before leaving the game with injury.  Evgeni Malkin led all forwards with 23:23 of ice time, while Kris Letang led the team with an impressive 26:25.  Marc-Andre Fleury and Philippe Boucher remained off the roster with injuries. 

The Penguins make a quick trip down to Carolina overnight where they will take on the Hurricanes on Thursday evening.  It is uncertain who will play in net for the Penguins.  Marc-Andre Fleury is traveling with the team and practicing, but no return time has been announced.  John Curry is also traveling with theteam and was tonight’s backup.

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Penguins Lose 2-Goal Lead in 3rd Period, Lose in Shootout

After playing a very strong 40-minutes of play, the Pittsburgh Penguins pulled another 3rd period disappearing act on Saturday night.  The Penguins allowed the Rangers to outshoot them 18-2 in the final frame and score 2-goals, including the game tying goal with just 9-seconds left.  After skating a scoreless 5-minute sudden death overtime, the game was settled by a shootout where Fredrik Sjostrom netted the only goal and won the game for the Rangers, 3-2.  It was the 5th overtime appearance for the Penguins in just 9-games played this season, and 2nd shootout.  The Penguins have won 3 and lost 2 of their overtime opportunities.

In the 1st period, the Penguins outshot the Rangers 10-8.  While the Penguins failed to score on their lone powerplay opportunity, they found the net just 3-seconds after it expired.  Darryl Sydor let a slap shot go from the high circle area that deflected off from the legs of a Rangers’ defensemen and into the net behind Henrik Lundqvist.  Tyler Kennedy and Kris Letang picked up the assists on the play.  The Penguins played a very disciplined first period and took no penalties.

In the 2nd period, the Penguins struck again at 15:59 as Sidney Crosby whacked home a puck that had trickled between the legs of Henrik Lundqvist following a shot by Alex Goligoski.  Evgeni Malkin also got an assist on the play, which extended both his and Crosby’s scoring streak to 5-games.  The Penguins got into penalty trouble shorthly thereafter, however, as Brooks Orpik (slashing) and Mike Zigomanis (interference) took simultaneous minors at 16:36.  Marc-Andre Fleury and the Penguins penalty kill were outstanding, and they shut the door on the Rangers and killed off the 2-minute 5-on-3.  The Penguins were 0-for-1 on the powerplay in the period.

The 3rd period caught the Penguins looking too comfortable with their 2-point lead, especially as the Rangers came out looking hungry and aggressive.  The Rangers proceeded to outplay the Penguins for the final 20-minutes of the game, outshooting them 18-2.  The Rangers first goal came at 5:09 on the powerplay as Jordan Staal sat for a hooking minor.  It took the inefficient Rangers powerplay just 7-seconds of man advantage time to score, as Marcus Naslund took a Scott Gomez feed from behind the net and quickly beat Fleury to make it a 1-goal game.  Chris Drury picked up the other assist on the powerplay goal.  The Penguins continued to hang on through the remainder of the 3rd, and had an opportunity to score on the empty net, but Sidney Crosby’s backhand bounced wide of the net.  With the Penguins’ forwards in the offensive zone looking for the empty net insurance goal, Marcus Naslund quickly moved the puck up ice and found Nikolai Zherdev who unleashed a quick shot that flew over Fleury’s shoulder and into the net with just 9-seconds left.  The goal tied the game at 2 and sent it into overtime.

In the overtime frame, the Penguins put pressure on Lundqvist, but came up empty despite outshooting the Rangers 4-2.  In the shootout, Kris Letang, Petr Sykora and Sidney Crosby were all stopped by Lundqvist.  Marc-Andre Fleury, who played very strong all night and gave up 2-goals on 44-shots, stopped Nikolai Zherdev and Nigel Dawes before Fredrik Sjostrom connected on a goal that slipped in under his pads.  The loss was surely a disappointing one for the Penguins who had a 3-game wining streak going and were riding a 2-0 lead going into the 3rd.

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• PHOTOS:  Game Photos
• Rosters
• Game Summary
• Faceoff Summary
• Shots Summary
• Play-by-Play
• Shootout Details

Ruslan Fedotenko led the Penguins with 5-shots on goal, while Sidney Crosby and Mike Zigomanis followed up with 4-each.  Evgeni Malkin had 2-attempts go wide of the net and didn’t record a shot.  Maxime Talbot continued his mastery of the faceoff winning 5-of-8 for a 63% win %.  Mike Zigomanis went 5-for-9, or 56%.  Jordan Staal (6 for 12) and Sidney Crosby (7 for 14) both won 50% in the faceoff circle.  Brooks Orpik continued to be the hitting machine, with 6 hots and Kris Letang followed up with 5.  Ruslan Fedotenko added 3 hits of his own. 

The Penguins continue their road trip on Tuesday when they face the Sharks in San Jose, CA.

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Ranger Prospect Cherepanov Dies During KHL Game

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Penguins Finish Rangers in OT

The Pittsburgh Penguins finished off the season of the New York Rangers in overtime on Sunday as they beat them 3-2 to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.  The Penguins will have the home ice advantage as they face the cross-state rival Philadelphia Flyers in the Eastern Conference Championship series.  After carrying a 2-0 lead into the 3rd period, the Penguins gave up 2-quick goals to the New York Rangers to force the overtime period.  Marian Hossa scored the game winner in overtime, his 2nd goal of the night, to finish the series.  The Penguins extended their post-season record to 8-1.

In the 1st period, the Penguins outshot the Rangers 10-7 but neither team was able to score as both Henrik Lundqvist and Marc-Andre Fleury were perfect in net.  The Penguins went 0-for-1 on the powerplay and successfully killed off 2 penalties of their own.

The Penguins dominated the 2nd period of play, outshooting the Penguins 17-4 with the Rangers failing to register a shot during the final 14:50 of the period.  Early in the period, Chris Drury took an accidental stick to the face from Ryan Malone that opened up a gash on his cheekbone and covered the ice with blood.  Play was stopped while the ice was cleaned up, but no penalty was called as the referees missed the play.  Drury eventually returned to the game after recieving stitches.  At 8:45, the Penguins got on the board as Marian Hossa converted on the powerplay while Michal Rozsival sat for tripping.  Working from near the goal line, Sidney Crosby threw the puck to Ryan Malone at the center of the ice.  Faking the shot, Malone froze Lundqvist as he passed the puck to Marian Hossa on the weak side of the net.  Hossa then whipped the puck into the empty side for his 4th goal of the post-season.  At 12:40, Evgeni Malkin took a pass from Kris Letang in his own zone and carried it all the way down the ice.  Malkin tried to make a move around one of the Rangers’ defensemen, but the puck failed to go through.  Malkin stopped and turned onto his backhand and lifted the puck past Henrik Lundqvist to make it 2-0.  Ryan Whitney and Kris Letang picked up the assists on Malkin’s 6th goal and 14th-point of the post-season.  The Penguins finished the period 1-for-4 on the powerplay and 2-for-2 on the penalty kill.

Image details: New York Rangers v Pittsburgh Penguins – Game Five served by picapp.com

In the 3rd period, the Rangers scored two quick goals to get themselves right back in the game.  The first goal came at 2:03 as 2004 1st round pick and minor league callup Lauri Korpikoski managed to beat Marc-Andre Fleury, as he played in his first NHL game.  Michal Rozsival and Chris Drury were credited with the assists on the play.  Then, a little over a minute later at 3:25, Nigel Dawes connected on his 2nd goal of the playoffs to tie it 2-2.  Scott Gomez and Ryan Callahan picked up the assists on the play.  The Rangers continued to press through the remainder of the period and outshot the Penguins 11-7, but failed to get another one by Marc-Andre Fleury.  Late in the period, the Penguins were given an opportunity as Chris Drury took a 4-minute high sticking call at 18:42.  Despite a full court press, the Penguins failed to score in the time remaining in regulation and the game and powerplay time were extended into overtime. In overtime, the Penguins had the advantage of playing the first 2:42 with a man-advantage on freshly prepared ice.  Despite the advantage, the Rangers managed to kill off the remainder of Drury’s 3rd period double minor.  Play continued until 7:10, when Marian Hossa collected a deflected pass from Sidney Crosby and whipped it on net beating a stunned Henrik Lundqvist.  The goal, Hossa’s 2nd of the night and 5th of the playoffs, was assisted by Sidney Crosby and Pascal Dupuis.  The game winner sent Penguins fans to their feet and players scrambling to join their team in celebration along the glass.  After a few minutes clustered around Hossa, the Penguins moved to center ice to partake in the traditional post-series handshakes with Rangers players.

• VIDEO:  Video Highlights
• VIDEO:  Post-Game Press Conference w/Michael Therrien
• VIDEO:  Post-Game Player Interviews
• PHOTOS:  In-Game Photos
• AUDIO:  Mike Lange Highlights
• AUDIO:  Post-Game Rink Rat Report
• AUDIO:  Post-Game Hotline Show
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Rosters
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Summary
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Boxscore
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Play-by-Play

Despite winning the series 4-1, the Rangers-Penguins matchup was closer than it would appear at first glance.  The Penguins will take away some good lessons from this series that should help them in the next round.  First, they had to overcome adversity and battle back from a 3-0 defecit in game 1 to beat the Rangers.  They managed to do so and came back in game 2 with a shutout.  They also had to battle back from a shutout loss to the Rangers in Game 4 by igniting their offense against one of the league’s best goaltenders.  Finally, the had to go into overtime and take back a game that they had led by 2-goals through 2-periods.  The New York Rangers put up a great battle, but in end the Penguins oppressive special teams performance and the stellar play of Marc-Andre Fleury sealed the deal for the Penguins.

Image details: New York Rangers v Pittsburgh Penguins – Game Five served by picapp.com

The Penguins now head into the Eastern Conference Championship series against the Philadelphia Flyers who are on a roll after beating the #1 seeded Montreal Canadiens in 5-games.  The Penguins will have the home-ice advantage against the Flyers, and will be looking to turn around the great play of Martin Biron and RJ Umberger.  In the first all Pennsylvania Conference Final, this is setting up to be a classic series between two cross-state rivals that do not like each other.  We expect a hard-hitting, in your face style of play for this “Keystone Classic” series.  The winner takes all in the East and gets to move on to the Stanley Cup Championship Series against the Western Conference Champions.  It promises to be an excellent series.  Let’s Go Pens!!

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No Sweep for Penguins as Rangers Win Game 4

After winning their first 7-games, the Pittsburgh Penguins lost their first of the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs to the New York Rangers on Thursday night 3-0. The Penguins put 29 shots on goal but were stymied at every chance by the stellar play of Henrik Lundqvist, who picked up his second career playoff shutout. At the other end of the ice, Marc-Andre Fleury had a very strong night in net as he stopped 31-of-33 shots. The final Rangers goal was scored on the empty net. The loss sends the series back to Pittsburgh on Sunday with the Penguins owning the 3-1 advantage.

In the 1st, the Penguins outshot the Rangers 8-6 in a tightly played defensive period. The Penguins went 0-for-2 on the powerplay and successfully killed off their only penalty, a holding call on Marian Hossa.

In the 2nd period, Jaromir Jagr put the Rangers on the board, scoring his 4th goal of the post-season at 12:45. Brandon Dubinsky and Fedor Tyutin picked up the assists on the play.  Right after he released the puck, Jagr was flattened by Brooks Orpik and he lay on the ice for a few moments before being helped up by the trainer.  Late in the period, the Penguins had an excellent chance to even the score. Evgeni Malkin had raced in on a breakaway, but he was hauled down and drove Lundqvist and the puck into the Rangers net. A video review was inconclusive as to whether the puck went into the net before it came off from its moorings, so there was no goal allowed. However, Malkin was awarded the penalty shot. Malkin came in very slow on the 1-on-1, moving the puck back and forth before wristing a shot that Lundqvist stopped easily on the glove hand. Taking advantage of 3-powerplay opportunities, the Rangers outshot the Penguins 11-9 in the period.

In the 3rd period, the Rangers struck at 0:44 on a carryover hooking penalty from the 1st period to Petr Sykora to make it 2-0. Brandon Dubinsky scored the goal from Martin Straka and Jaromir Jagr. With a 2-goal lead, the Rangers increased their defensive stance and further frustrated the Penguins offense. At 13:32, both Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby found themselves in the box for roughing after exacting retalliation on Daniel Girardi for what appeared to be a legal hit on Marian Hossa. It was at that point that Michel Therrien looked like he knew they would lose this game. The Penguins trailed by 2 through 19:46 of the period when the Rangers scored a powerplay empty net goal while Pascal Dupuis sat for high sticking and Marc-Andre Fleury rested at the bench. The game ended with pushing and shoving along the boards, but no real fight. The Penguins were outshot by the Rangers 17-12 in the final frame.

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

The Penguins, having stolen one game while in New York, will try to finish up the series again on Sunday and send the Rangers golfing. 

Image details: Pittsburgh Penguins v New York Rangers – Game Four served by picapp.com

 

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Penguins Take Commanding 3-0 Lead Over Rangers

The Pittsburgh Penguins beat the New York Rangers 5-3 at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals series. Marc-Andre Fleury was huge in net as he stopped 36-of-39 shots and Hart Trophy finalist Evgeni Malkin loomed large with 2 powerplay goals and an assist. The Penguins’ special teams were the difference, however, as they went 2-for-2 on the powerplay and killed off all 5 New York powerplays, including two 5-on-3 chances for the Rangers. The Penguins remain unbeaten in the playoffs, becoming just the 11th team in the NHL’s long history to win the first 7-games in a playoff. The last team to do so was the 1994 New York Rangers, who ultimately went on to win the Stanley Cup that year.

In the 1st period, the Penguins jumped out to a quick lead at 1:02 on a beautiful passing play by the Penguins top line. Sidney Crosby stripped the puck off from Jaromir Jagr in the neutral zone and passed it up to Pascal Dupuis. Crosby then rushed the net and redirected a hard shot by Dupuis onto the net. Henrik Lundqvist made a beautiful pad save on Crosby, but failed to control the rebound which came off of his pads and onto the stick of Marian Hossa. Hossa wasted no time as he buried it in the Rangers’ net to make it 1-0. The Rangers bounced back at 14:32 as Martin Straka took advantage of a mad scramble in front of the net and threw the puck over a sprawling Marc-Andre Fleury. Fleury had his hands full with Jaromir Jagr and two of his own teammates all in the crease and pushing on the net. The play was ultimately reviewed to confirm that the goal went into the net before it was dislodged. Jaromir Jagr and Paul Mara picked up the assists on the play. But less than 2-minutes later while playing on a line with Evgeni Malkin and Petr Sykora, Georges Laraque found the corner of the net over Lundqvist’s shoulder to make it 2-1. Malkin and Sykora got the asissts on the goal. The Penguins then found themselves on a 4-minute powerplay after a high-sticking call on Ryan Callahan for catching Hal Gill in the nose. The Penguins wasted little time as Evgeni Malkin blasted his 4th of the post-season into the net to make it 3-1. Sergei Gonchar and Marian Hossa set up the Malkin goal. At the end of the 1st period, the Penguins found themselves up 3-1, despite being outshot 15-9. The Penguins were 1-for-1 on the powerplay in the period.

In the 2nd period, the Rangers poured it on as they outshot the Penguins 14-4. Early in the period, the Penguins found themselves in penalty trouble as Sykora, Dupuis and Orpik all took back-to-back overlapping penalties that resulted in two 5-on-3 chances for the Rangers. But the Penguins were phenomenal on the penalty kill as they have been all series, and shutout the Rangers on the man advantage. As the period wore on, Jaromir Jagr and Martin Straka picked up their game to a frenetic pace to get themselves back in the game, and it worked. At 12:07, the Rangers finally managed to beat Marc-Andre Fleury as Ryan Callahan got his 2nd goal of the post-season from Scott Gomez and Sean Avery. Then at 13:11, Jaromir Jagr came around from behind the net and picked the high corner over Fleury’s right shoulder to tie the game 3-3. Scott Gomez and Martin Straka picked up the assists on the play. At this point in the game, the momentum had clearly shifted to the New York Rangers who were out-hustling the Penguins on every shift. Penguins’ coach Michel Therrien took a very wise timeout at this point in the game to slow the pace down and to chirp at his players. At 15:56 of the period, Ryan Hollweg took a bad boarding penalty on Petr Syokora that ultimately put the momentum back at the Penguins end of the ice. On the ensuing powerplay, Evgeni Malkin scored his 2nd of the night with another one of his signature blasts from the high circle area. Sergei Gonchar and Sidney Crosby picked up the assists on the play, as the Penguins restored a 1-goal lead.

Image details: Pittsburgh Penguins v New York Rangers – Game Three served by picapp.com

In the final period, the Penguins were outshot 10-4 but managed to score the only goal of the frame to make it 5-3. At 2:30, Kris Letang let a shot go from the point that was redirected between the legs of Henrik Lundqvist by Ryan Malone, who was left standing all alone 10-feet in front of net. Pter Sykora picked up the other assist on the play.The Penguins successfully killed off 2-penalties in the period, and were afforded no powerplay of their own, as they went on to win the game 5-3.

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

For the Penguins, Evgeni Malkin picked up 3-points (2G, 1A), Marian Hossa (1G, 1A), Sidney Crosby (2A), Sergei Gonchar (2A), and Petr Sykora (2A) all notched 2-points. Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 26-of-39 shots for a 0.923 save percentage.

The Penguins return to Madison Square Garden on Thursday night where they will be given the opportunity to sweep the series and keep their undefeated post-season record alive to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. The Penguins can thank their brilliant goaltending, solid defensive play, and pheneomenal special teams for their success so far this post-season. The Penguins have also found offensive contriubutions from all four lines. It is undeniable that this team has the momentum and the skill to go a long ways in this post season, as long as they continue to play their game.

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