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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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Pens Lose to Caps 6-5 in Shootout, But Regain 1st Place

The Pittsburgh Penguins suffered an overtime shootout loss to the Washington Capitals on Monday night in a spirited high scoring affair.  Despite the score, the Penguins were outshot 30-15 by the Capitals and were fortunate to pick up a point on the night to move them back into 1st place in the Atlantic Division.  Goaltender Dany Sabourin started in net for the Penguins, but was chased out after 4-goals in favor of Ty Conklin.  Conklin gave up 1-goal in regulation and 2 in the shootout, which cost the Penguins the additional point.  Evgeni Malkin (2G, 1A), Ryan Malone (1G, 2A) and Sergei Gonchar (3A) all had a great game and picked up 3-points each on the night.

In the 1st period, the Penguins got on the board first with a goal by Max Talbot at 4:30, his 8th on the year, as he walked out from behind the goal line and stuffed one in between Olaf Kolzig’s pads.  Jordan Staal and Erik Christensen were credited with the assists.  At 10:43, the Capitals struck back with a goal by Tomas Fleischmann, with assists by Boyd Gordon and Alexander Semin.  The Capitals found the net again at 16:04 as Viktor Kozlov beat Dany Sabourin.  Alexander Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom picked up the assists.  Just 45 seconds later, Evgeni Malkin scored his 25th on the year to even the game at 2-2.  Ryan Malone was credited with the lone assist.  During the period, Alexander Ovechkin rushed in and tried to level Evgeni Malkin as Malkin came around the back of the Caps’ net with the puck.  Ovechkin was only able to clip Malkin and sent himself back first into the boards.  Malkin let him know he didn’t appreciate it by bumping Ovechkin at the end of the shift.  The Penguins were 0-for-2 on the power play, and were outshot 9-6 in the first frame.  Jarkko Ruutu picked up a 2-minute unsportsmanlike penalty at the end of the period, giving the Capitals a power play to start the 2nd period.

At the beginning of the 2nd, Washington capitalized on the Ruutu penalty as Alexander Ovechkin chipped the puck past Dany Sabourin at 1:48.  Tomas Fleischmann and Nicklas Backstrom were credited with the assists.  At 3:34, with Washington’s Laich in the penalty box, Evgeni Malkin got his second of the night to tie the game at 3-3.  Ryan Malone and Sergei Gonchar were given assists on the play.  Then at 6:13 with Alexander Semin in the box, Petr Sykora scored a goal on a beautiful cross ice pass from Ryan Whitney to make it 4-3.  Sergei Gonchar got the other assist.  A little over a minute and a half later, Washington tied it again at 4-4 as Alexander Ovechkin picked up his second of the night, with assists by  Nicklas Backstrom and Milan Jurcina.  After the goal, Coach Michel Therrien pulled Dany Sabourin from net in favor of Ty Conklin.  The Penguins were outshot 10-5 in the second, but made hay with their powerplay, going 2-for-3 on the man advantage. 

In the 3rd, the Penguins put the power play to work again as Ryan Malone scored on the man-advantage at 5:04 to make it 5-4.  Sergei Gonchar and Evgeni Malkin picked up the assists.  But the lead wouldn’t last as the Caps, operating on the power play with Staal in the box (holding the stick), picked up the tying goal from Viktor Kozlov.  Matt Pettinger and Nicklas Backstrom were credited with the assists.  The Penguins were outshot 11-3 in the 3rd, but managed to hold on to the 5-5 tie to force the overtime.

In the overtime, the Penguins were given a golden opportunity as two Caps players took penalties giving the Penguins a rare 5-on-3 man-advantage in the sudden death.  But the Penguins were unable to score, and only managed 1-shot in the 5-minute overtime to force the shootout.

The Penguins put up Christensen, Letang and Ruutu for the shootout, while the Capitals countered with Kozlov, Ovechkin and Semin.  Kozlov, Christensen and Letang all missed on their shootout attempts.  As the second shooter for the Caps, Ovechkin scored.  Ruutu followed as the Penguins 3rd shooter and scored to keep the Penguins alive.  But Alexander Semin was the final shooter for the Caps and beat Ty Conklin to win the game. 

• VIDEO:  Video Highlights
• PHOTOS:  In-Game Photos
• AUDIO:  Post-Game Hotline
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Rosters
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Summary
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Boxscore
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Play-by-Play
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Shootout Details

The Penguins have a few days off before traveling to Philadelphia to take on the Flyers on Thursday night.  The game against the Flyers is their last before the All-Star break. 

Recchi Spoils Penguins Streak in Shootout

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Crosby Scores Winter Classic Shootout Winner!

The NHL’s Amped Winter Classic was just that;  the players and fans were amped, it was definitely winter weather, and it turned out to be a real classic!  The Pittsburgh Penguins needed 65-minutes of skating and a shootout, but they beat the Buffalo Sabres at Ralph Wilson Stadium on New Year’s Day by a score of 2-1.  As if scripted by NHL marketeers, the game went all the way to a shootout and the deciding goal was scored by none other than Sidney Crosby. 

It was a game that saw almost everything Mother Nature could whip up for a nice winter’s day.  With temperatures hovering around the freezing mark and winds blowing 15-20 mph, there was a little bit of rain, some sleet and snow to add to the challenges on ice.  The scene really could not have been more idyllic.  The weather conditions resulted in a lot of unscheduled mid-period resurfacing of the ice, as accumulating snow granules caused the puck to slow and bounce around.  The league did a pretty good job of keeping the ice clear after the first cleaning during the first period.  There were also several stoppages of play to correct some on-ice divits.  This resulted in a game that did not have the normal flow of an indoor NHL game. 

The Penguins stunned the crowd of 70,000+ fans as they scored on their very first shift of the game following a power drive to the net by Sidney Crosby that resulted in a goal by Colby Armstrong.  Crosby flew down the boards and around a Sabres defenseman to pull up in front of goaltender Ryan Miller.  Crosby was unable to put the puck past Miller, but the rebound landed on the stick of Colby Armstrong who threw it into the net, just 21 seconds into the game.  It looked like the beginning of an offensively loaded game for the Penguins, but it would be their only regulation goal of the game.  Pittsburgh had 3 chances on the power play in the 1st period, but was unable to convert.  They did manage to kill off their only short-handed situation as Colby Armstrong sat for goaltender interference.  Taking advantage of the man-advantages, the Penguins outshot the Sabres 11-9 in the 1st period. 

In the second period, the Buffalo Sabres scored quickly on a goal by Brian Campbell at 1:25, after he found himself alone near the circle and drilled the puck past Ty Conklin.  Tim Connolly and Daniel Paille were credited with the assists.  After the goal, the Sabres went to work and outplayed the Penguins for the remainder of the period.  The Sabres outshot the Penguins 14-2, with Ty Conklin coming up big in net to keep them in the game. 

In the 3rd, the Penguins offense returned to form as they outshot the Sabres 12-7.  But neither team was able to get one past the goaltenders despite several close calls.  In the last second of the 3rd period, Colby Armstrong was called for a hooking penalty in front of his own net, putting the Penguins at a man-disadvantage for the first 2-minutes of the sudden death overtime.  The Penguins managed to weather the penalty kill in overtime, and hung on to force the shootout after being outshot 7-0 in the extra frame. 

In the shootout, Ty Conklin gave up a goal to the first Sabres shooter, Ales Kotalik, before shutting the door on Tim Connolly and Maxim Afinogenov.  For the Penguins, the shooters were predictably Erik Christensen, Kris Letang and Sidney Crosby.  Christensen lost the puck and missed on his chance.  Kris Letang made it a perfect 4 for 4 on the shootout as he deked and beat the Sabres tender stick side.  Then, with the game on his stick, Sidney Crosby skated in on Ryan Miller, anticipated the poke check and let off a quick wrister that slipped through the five-hole of Miller to win the game.

• VIDEO:  Winter Classic 2008 Video Highlights 
• PHOTOS:  Winter Classic 2008 Photos
• AUDIO:  Mike Lange Highlights
• AUDIO:  Post-Game Hotline
• OFFICIAL NHL:  Game Rosters
• OFFICIAL NHL:  Game Summary
• OFFICIAL NHL:  Boxscore
• OFFICIAL NHL:  Play-by-Play
• OFFICIAL NHL:  Shootout Summary

The win improves the Penguins record to 21-16-2 and an impressive 13-5-0 since Thanksgiving.  The Penguins return home to host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday, January 3rd, at Mellon Arena. 

Penguins Lose to Canadiens in Lengthy Shootout: Game Recap

The Pittsburgh Penguins managed to eek a point out of the matchup with the Montreal Canadiens after a miserable first 21-minutes of play left them down 3-0.  The Penguins Marc-Andre Fleury was pulled from the net in favor of Dany Sabourin and the Penguins struggled back to tie the game, kept it notted through the overtime frame, and finally lost in an extended shootout on a goal by the Canadien’s 8th shooter.  Rookie call-up Tyler Kennedy had an impressive first game despite getting any points.  His presence was very noticeable and provided a lot of energy to the Penguins re-engineered 4th line. 

In the first period, it was all Montreal as they outshot the slumbering Penguins 14-6.  The Penguins got off on a bad foot after a quick hooking penalty to Adam Hall at 0:49.  The Penguins penalty killing unit was able to prevent the league’s leading power play on that chance, but it had the effect of tilting the ice towards the Penguins net.  At 7:13, the Canadiens capitalized on their momentum with an even strength goal by Mathieu Dandenault, with assists by Kastsitsyn and Komasarek.  At 10:42, it was Jordan Staal who took a trip to the penalty box for elbowing, and this time the Canadiens wasted no time in reminding everyone of their dominance on the man-advantage.  Just 11 seconds into the power play, Andrei Markov put the puck past Fleury to put the Canadiens up 2-0 halfway through the first.  Higgins and Koivu were credited with assist.  The Canadiens went 1 for 3 on the man advantage in the first, while the Penguins were unable to convert on their lone opportunity.     

Just 49 seconds into the second, the Montreal Canadiens struck again on an even strength goal by Michael Ryder that beat Fleury high on the glove side.  Fleury, who allowed three goals on 15 shots, was then pulled by Penguins coach Michel Therrien and replaced by backup tender Dany Sabourin.  Then, a minute later at 1:49 of the second, Montreal’s Alexei Kovalev hit Evgeni Malkin from behind driving him headfirst into the boards along the sidewall.  The hit elicited a fiesty response from the Penguins Captain who jumped on Kovalev in defense of Malkin.  The action sparked the crowd, and more importantly the Penguins players who had not been mentally in the game up to this point.  Kovalev took a double minor for boarding & roughing and Crosby took a penalty for roughing, setting up the Penguins for the man-advantage.  At 3:03, while still on the power-play, the Penguins got on the board with a goal by Petr Sykora that was assisted by Adam Hall and Evgeni Malkin.  “I think we need to play with more emotion and I think that goal and that power play certainly lifted us a bit and got us back in the game,” Crosby said. “I think we rolled on from there.”  A little over 5 minutes later, Sidney Crosby scored a goal of his own at even strength on a nice up ice rush, tic-tac-toe passing play with Evgeni Malkin and Ryan Whitney.  With the score now 3-2, it put the game in reach for the Penguins who finally found their legs and were getting good backstop action from netminder Sabourin.  The Penguins outshot the Canadiens 10-7 in the second and were 1 for 2 on the power play, while the Canadiens went 0 for 2. 

In the third period, both teams played a very tight game with only 10 shots registered between the two.  The Penguins were given an opportunity in the final 4 minutes of the game when the tired Canadiens team made a couple of mistakes that put them a man-down for two consecutive penalty calls.  The Penguins capitalized at 18:08 on a power play goal by Ryan Whitney off from a beautiful feed by Evgeni Malkin to tie the game and send it into overtime.  The play was also assisted by Petr Sykora.  For Malkin, a dominating force on the ice, it was his 3rd assist of the night.  He was credited with the game’s 1st star for his outstanding play. 

In the overtime period, it looked bleak as the Penguins’ Ryan Malone took a hooking call just 15 seconds into overtime.  But the Penguins’ penalty killing unit did a fabulous job in the 4 on 3 and kept the Canadiens to the outside.  The Pen’s held the Canadiens to 3 shots in the 5-minute OT, while only putting up 1 shot of their own, and forced the game into a shootout. 

In the shootout, the Penguins failed to convert despite getting 8 chances against Canadiens’ netminder Cary Price.  Despite facing 8 Pittsburgh Penguins in the shootout, the rookie Canadiens netminder had to only make 3 saves.  Erik Christensen, Petr Sykora, Jarkko Ruutu, Ryan Whitney and Mark Recchi all missed the net and Sergei Gonchar had the puck poke-checked by Price.  The only shots that made it to the net and required a save by Price were from Crosby and Malkin.  “It didn’t feel like I had to touch the puck that much,” Price said. “That’s part of being a goalie, trying to make yourself look big and try to make them hit a small target. Hopefully they either miss the net or hit me.”  Surprisingly, Coach Therrien left productive forward Maxime Talbot sitting on the bench during the shootout.  It was the 8th Canadien shooter who finally found the twine behind Dany Sabourin to win the shootout and the game.  “He made a good move. I thought he was going to go far side,” said Sabourin, “That was a great shootout, both goalies made some great saves. It’s too bad we didn’t get out with the win.”  Sabourin was fantastic in net on the shootout, despite the loss.

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• Click Here for the Pittsburgh Penguins Rink Rat Report (AUDIO:  Mike Lange)
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• Click Here for the Post Game Press Conference (VIDEO: Coach Therrien)
• Click Here for Post Game Locker Room Interviews (VIDEO:  Crosby, Whitney, Sabourin)

The Penguins hit the road for a 4-game road trip starting Tuesday night in Minnesota against the Wild, followed by the Colorado Avalanche, New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils. 

Pens Stop Canes in Shootout 4-3; Game Recap

The Pittsburgh Penguins put an end to the Carolina Hurricanes 3-game winning streak tonight, but it took until the last shot in the first round of the OT shootout to decide the game.  Sidney Crosby’s shootout goal proved to be the game winner after Dany Sabourin made the only save of the shootout against Ray Whitney, the last shooter for the Hurricanes.

The Hurricanes got on the board first with an early power play goal by Ray Whitney at 0:59 of the first, while Sergei Gonchar sat for a hooking call.  Matt Cullen and Rod Briand’Amour assisted on the goal.  The Penguins evened the score on a late period even strength goal by Petr Sykora, his 250th career goal, at 18:58.  Crosby made a power move from behind the net on the wraparound attempt, while protecting the puck against two defenders.  The rebound came out to a streaking Sykora who backhanded it over Cam Ward’s shoulder high on the glove side.  Mark Recchi picked up the other assist.  At the end of one, the shots were nearly even with Carolina maintaining an 11-10 advantage.  The Pens went 0-3 on the power play, while the Hurricanes were 1-3. 

In the second period, it looked like the Canes might pull ahead for good as they built a two goal lead.  The Canes scored their second at even strength from Trevor Letowski at 3:57 with assists by Justin Williams and Rod Brind’Amour.  Their third goal was an unassisted even strength tally by Justin Williams at 15:20, after the Pens failed to score on the power play.  Hurricanes winger Scott Walker left the ice with 2:34 to play in the second and was taken to the hospital with what was described as a torso injury.  While skating to the bench during a stoppage in play, Walker fell to his knees.  A stretcher was brought out and play was delayed for several minutes, but Walker ultimately skated off slowly with the aid of team personnel.  After the stoppage in play, the Penguins battled back by picking up a late goal by Adam Hall at 17:54 from Jarkko Ruutu and Maxime Talbot to draw within one.  They then drew two Canes penalties less than a minute apart against Commodore and Brind’Amour for holding and hooking to get the 5-on-3 advantage.  Petr Sykora took advantage of the opportunity and scored the game-tying goal on the backhand with just 6 seconds left in the period.  The goal was an exact replica of his first goal of the night, and was assisted by Sergei Gonchar and Sidney Crosby.  The shots were again 11-10 (advantage Carolina) in the second, and the Pens were 1-4 on the power play, while the Canes were 0-2. 

The third period was scoreless as both teams put up 7 shots and were 0-1 on the power play.  Penguins goaltender Dany Sabourin made some clutch saves, as did the Canes’ Cam Ward.  Likewise, the sudden death overtime ended in a tie with 3 shots rendered by the Canes and 2 by the Pens to force the shootout. 

In the shootout, it was Christensen, Sykora, and Crosby against Cullen, Hamilton, and Whitney.  The first five shooters, including all three Pens players, made some great moves in close to put the puck in the net.  This forced a must score situation for the 6th shooter, Ray Whitney, to force another round of the shootout.  Fortunately, Dany Sabourin made a great glove save on Whitney and sealed the game for the Penguins bringing them back to 0.500. 

The game was an inspirational win against the Southeast Division leader and the NHL’s fourth ranking team in goals-against average.  Petr Sykora picked up two goals plus a goal in the shootout and was named the game’s first star.  Sidney Crosby, with 2 assists and the winning goal in the shootout, was named the games second star.  Penguins backup goaltender Dany Sabourin stopped 29 of 32 shots in regulation and had the only save in the shootout to give the Penguins the win, his first as a Penguin.  Evgeni Malkin’s point streak ended at 5 games, with no points scored in tonight’s game despite an impressive on-ice presence.  The Penguins defense looked much better tonight, but still had momentary lapses.  Dany Sabourin represented himself and the team well as the backup tender making some key saves to keep the Penguins in the game, and gave them the chance to pick up 2 points.  Really good, entertaining game tonight!

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• Click Here for the Penguins Hotline Game Summary Audio (includes Mike Lange’s calls)

Fortunately, my prediction on the game’s outcome was wrong again tonight.  I did pick Sykora to score a goal, and he netted two.  I also picked Jordan Staal to get on the board, but we will have to wait at least another game before the Gronk puts one in the net.  Perhaps tomorrow! 

The Penguins hit the road for Washington, DC, where they match up against the Capitals on Saturday night at 7PM.  I will be there with my 10-year old son and will have camera in hand.  We are seated in Section 116, Row O, seats 9 and 10 (behind the net the Penguins shoot at twice).  If you are at the game and in the vicinity, please stop by and say hello!  I am expecting a large Pittsburgh fan base turnout, and would love to meet some fellow fans.  I will try and get the Caps game preview up in the morning.  Go Pens Go!