---

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.

Penguins Struck by Lowly Lightning, Shut-Out 2-0

As a Pittsburgh Penguins’ fan, you are undoubtedly beside yourself with frustration after watching your hockey team lose to the last place Tampa Bay Lightning (8-16-9).  If that weren’t depressing enough, they were outshot 29-15 and shut-out 2-0 by a team that normally gives up 33.5 shots and 2.88 goals per game.  Granted the Penguins were playing the second night of back-to-back games, but this was a game that they were “supposed to win”.  These are the games that you can’t lose if you are going to be competitive in the league and be a contender.  Unfortunately, tonight’s loss extends the struggles of a team that had one of their best starts in years, but has fallen prey to a 4-6-1 record during the month of December.  Last season, the Penguins found their glue and played some of their best team hockey as they struggled through seemingly insurmountable injuries to key players.  This season, a series of injuries to role forwards, top defensemen and the #1 goalie has created a more predictable outcome in which the Penguins have (at least temporarily) lost their way.  They appear to have lost their confidence as well which is a hard thing to recover, especially in a tough schedule like the Penguins have had in December. 

Some observations from tonight’s game. 

Offensively, the Penguins have got to start putting traffic in front of the net and shooting the puck.  It is hard to score on a goaltender in today’s NHL if he can see the shot, especially if most of the shots are coming from the outside.   The Penguins also need to stop the fancy pass attempts in the offensive zone and just shoot the puck.  Too many shooting opportunities are being given up in favor of a passing play.  Too many blind passes are being easily picked off and turned over because nobody is home.  The Penguins gave the puck away 11 times tonight.  If the Penguins start thinking shoot instead of trying to make the perfect passing play, they are apt to create more scoring chances off from rebounds rather than wasted puck possession time and turnovers.  The one place where the passing play could be used more effectively is on the breakout through the neutral zone and getting into the offensive zone.  Too often the Penguins are relying on the dump-and-chase.  If you are going to play that game, you need to be able to win the race to the puck in the corners, and that hasn’t been happening.  As a result, it becomes a game of dump and chase it back into your own defensive zone as the opposing team gains possession and heads down the ice.  In the 3rd period tonight, the Penguins fell prey to the Lightning trap and couldn’t find a way past it.  As a result, and despite playing from behind in the 3rd period, the Penguins didn’t register their first shot until 11-minutes in.  They need to find a way to break through the trap or they will be victims of it all season long.  Finally, the Penguins did seem snake bit tonight as they missed the net on the few excellent opportunities that they did have. 

Defensively, the Penguins are leaving the goaltender out to hang too often.  It is unacceptable for one (or sometimes two) opposing players to find themselves open in front of the net with the puck multiple times during a game.  With Hal Gill out of the lineup, this has become much more noticeable lately and tonight was no exception.  Poor decisions were also made with defensemen trying to play the puck when they should take the body, and vice versa.  The Penguins also struggled clearing the puck out of their own zone.  Marc-Andre Fleury did his part as he stopped 27 of 29-shots for a 0.931 save percentage.  Ryan Whitney was back in the lineup for his first game and played quite well given the long layoff with just one AHL conditioning game under his belt. 

So the Penguins finish up 4-games in 6-nights with a 2-2 record.  The remainder of the month won’t be any easier for the Penguins as they take on the Devils on the road on Friday and then the Canadiens at home on Saturday before finishing the month at home against the Bruins on Tuesday.  Somehwere in all of this, they need to find a way to start consistently putting together some wins.  With teams like New Jersey, Philadelphia and New York surging in the standings, the Penguins can ill afford to stay in a funk much longer.

Comment on this post: - (1) Posts

Penguins Beat Lightning 3-2 in Penalty Filled Matchup

Despite being outshot 39-24, the Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender duo of Dany Sabourin and John Curry stopped all but 2-shots to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 on Monday night.  In what could have been billed as a battle of mostly third-line players, there were 5-fighting majors, a boarding major, 3-game misconducts for a total of 101-minutes in penalties.  The Penguins beat the Lightning on goals by Kris Letang, Max Talbot and Tyler Kennedy.  Kris Letang contirbuted with 2-points (1G, 1A), as did Alex Goligoski (2A).  Letang and Goligoski played very well with good chemistry together. 

The Lightning struck early as Jussi Jokinen scored the first goal of the game on their first shot just 46 seconds in on a feed by Evgeny Artyukhin, beating Dany Sabourin.  The early goal spurred some much anticipated emotion amongst the largely rookie lineups and ultimately resulted in a fight between Zenon Konopka and Aaron Boogard at 2:06.  The Penguins subsequently failed to convert on two power play opportunities as Evgeny Artyukhin took back-to-back penalties at 4:16 and 7:09.  However, as they say, the third time is a charm.  At 14:36, with Paul Szczechura in the box for tripping, Kris Letang tipped in a shot by Alex Goligoski to tie it up 1-1.  The Penguins failed to convert on another power play opportunity late in the 1st as Ryan Malone sat for a high stick.  But at 18:!9, Max Talbot put the Penguins ahead 2-1 on a nifty even-strength backhander that beat the Lightning’s Olie Kolzig.  Ruslan Fedotenko and William Thomas picked up the assists.  Less than a minute later, Zenon Konopka continued his quest for a fighting hat trick by taking on Danny Richmond.  A total of 30-minutes in penalty time was called in the period, including 20-minutes in fighting majors.  The Penguins were 1-for-3 on the power play, and 1-for-1 on the penalty kill.  Despite the extra man advantage opportunities, the Penguins were outshot 15-9. 

In the 2nd period, the Lightning found the back of the net at 2:56 as former Penguins Michel Ouellet let a wrister go that beat Dany Sabourin.  Dana Tyrell and Ty Wishart got the assists.  With 10:15 left to go in the period, Coach Therrien swapped goalies and put John Curry in net.  At 14:32, David Koci and Paul Bissonnette squared off and each picked up a fighting major.  At 16:59, Ruslan Fedotenko was given a 5-minute major for boarding Janne Niskala.  The Penguins went 0-for-1 on the power play and were 2-for-2 on the penalty kill, including the 5-minute major to Fedotenko.  The Penguins were again seriously outshot by 17-6.   

At 4:12 of the 3rd period, the referees got to doll out the penalties as David Koci slashed Paul Bissonnette and all hell broke lose.  Koci and Bissonnette quickly squared off, while Zenon Konopka was eager to get his fighting hat trick by squaring off with Adam Henrich.  When the dust settled, all four players picked up 5-minute majors for fighting.  Additionally Koci and Bissonnette each got a 10-minute game misconduct.  Zenon Konopka also picked up a mandatory game misconduct for his third fighting major of the game.  In all, 52-minutes in penalties were handed out at this stoppage in play to 4-players.  When play finally resumed, it only took the Penguins 42 seconds to convert the emotion into a goal as Tyler Kennedy beat Kolzig with a wrister from Kris Letang and Alex Goligoski.  The teams finished the period with 5-shots aside. 

• NHL Official Game Summary
• NHL Official Rosters
• NHL Official Event Summary
• NHL Official Play-by-Play
• HockeyFights.com Fight Log
• PENS PODCAST:  Phil Bourque Interviews Ryan Malone
• PENS PODCAST:  Phil Bourque 1st Intermission Report
• PENS PODCAST:  Phil Bourque 2nd Intermission Report
• PENS PODCAST:  Phil Bourque Post-Game Wrap

The Penguins return home to Pittsburgh where they will face off against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday night.  It was reported by Phil Bourque that there will likely be a big cut in the Penguins’ training camp roster announced sometime on Tuesday.  In other news, Sergei Gonchar is expected to get an MRI this week to further evaluate the shoulder injury he received in Saturday night’s pre-season opener.

Comment on this post: - (1) Posts

Penguins Lose Pre-Season Opener in Shootout

The Pittsburgh Penguins battled back from a 3-1 defecit, but ultimately lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in a shootout when #1 draft pick Steven Stamkos scored the deciding goal on Saturday night.  The Lightning, under new head coach and former ESPN color analyst Barry Melrose, sat many of its veterans for the pre-season opener, including Vinny Lecavalier and Martin St Louis.  Also missing from the lineup were former Penguins’ Ryan Malone, Gary Roberts, Mark Recchi, and Adam Hall.   Pittsburgh played many of its young stars, to include Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal and Marc-Andre Fleury.  They also played newcomer Miroslav Satan, but sat Ruslan Fedotenko in favor of Janne Pesonen who picked up an assist.

The game started with Jordan Staal netting a quick goal just 51 seconds into the first period.  Staal’s goal was assisted by Evgeni Malkin and rookie defesneman Ben Lovejoy.  It was the only goal of the first period as Marc-Andre Fleury turned aside all 10 of the Lightning shots.  The Penguins put up 9-shots.  Defensemen Sergei Gonchar left the game in the first and didn’t return after being hit by 6′6″ heavyweight David Koci.  Gonchar will be evaluated today, but reportedly suffered a shoulder injury.  In response, Eric Godard took Koci’s number and squared off with him in the games’ first fight of the night at 11:54, sending both to the box for 5-minutes (Georges Laraque take note, wherever you are). 

In the second, Marc-Andre Fleury and the Penguins gave up 3-straight goals to the Lightning as Janne Niskala, Wyatt Smith, and Brandon Bochenski all converted at even strength in a span of just under 5-minutes.  The Penguins finally hit back late in the second as Petr Sykora notched a 5-on-3 power play goal at 15:18 to draw within 1.  Miroslav Satan and Jordan Staal picked up the assists.  Ryan Stone stepped into a fight early in the period, but was outmatched against the heavier Zenon Konopka.  After a slow start to the period, the Penguins finished by outscoring the Lightning 12-9. 

In the 3rd period, it was Petr Sykora striking on the power play again as he notched his 2nd of the night at 10:11 during 5-on-4 play.  Janne Pesonen and Alex Goligoski were credited with the assists on the play.  At 12:51, Kris Beach was given a 5-minute major and a game misconduct penalty for boarding, setting up an extended short-handed situation for the Penguins.  However at 17:07, Sidney Crosby notched the go-ahead goal with an unassisted, short-hander.  Unfortunately, with just over a minute to go, Brandon Bochenski scored his second of the night to tie it back up.  Shots were 9-8 Tampa. 

After a scoreless overtime period, the game went to the shootout.  Jussi Jokinen and  Steven Stamkos both converted on the shootout, while Miroslave Satan and Evgeni Malkin were thwarted to give the Lightning the win. 

 

• NHL Official Game Summary
• NHL Official Game Rosters 
• VIDEO:  Janne Pesonen Interview
• VIDEO:  Sidney Crosby Interview
• VIDEO:  Coach Therrien 

The Penguins match up against the Lightning again on Monday night in Tampa Bay.

Comment on this post: - (2) Posts

Penguins Beat Lightning 4-2

The Pittsbirgh Penguins scored 2-quick goals in the opening minute of the 3rd-period to beat the down-and-out Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2 on Thursday night.  Evgeni Malkin picked up 2-points (1G, 1A) to record his 99th point of the season, and fell just short of his 100th on an empty net goal by Marian Hossa that came just after the buzzer sounded to end the game.  The win ties the Penguins in points with the New Jersey Devils who have a game in hand.  The Penguins will have a chance to put themselves ahead of the Devils when they meet on Saturday at Mellon Arena and again on Tuesday in New Jersey. 

In the 1st period, the Penguins got on the board first as Jarkko Ruutu jumped on a rebound from a Brooks Orpik shot and notched his 4th goal of the season at 14:20.  Max Talbot was credited with the other assist.  After he put the puck in net, Ruutu took a high stick to the face from Dan Boyle.  Boyle was only assessed a 2-minute penalty despite the fact that Ruutu was bleeding and required 10-15 stitches before returning to the game.  Shots were even at 8 in the 1st, and both teams failed to convert on one man-advantage opportunity.

In the 2nd, the Lightning evened the score at 4:18 on a Vincent Lecavalier powerplay goal as Jarkko Ruutu sat for a boarding call.  Jussi Jokinen and Filip Kuba picked up the assists on the play.  Evgeni Malkin put the Penguins back in the lead at 10:05 as he scored his 42nd of the season on a bad-angle backhander that he lifted above a sprawling Mike Smith.  Ryan Whitney had the lone assist.  The Penguins were outshot 6-4 in the 2nd, went 0-for-1 on the powerplay, and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill.

In the 3rd, the Penguins scored twice in the 1st minute of play to put the game out of reach for the Lightning.  The first goal came at 0:35 as Jordan Staal buried a rebound off from a Pascal Dupuis shot for his 12th goal of the season.  It was Staal’s 3rd-goal and 4th-point in the last 5-games.  Pascal Dupuis has been on fire for the Penguins as he recorded his 7th assist in the last 4-games.  Just 16-seconds later, Petr Sykora netted his 26th of the season off from a feed from Evgeni Malkin and Ryan Malone.  A minute later, the Lightning got the final tally on a powerplay goal by Filip Kuba as Petr Sykora sat for slashing.  Martin St. Louis and Jussi Jokinen picked up the assists.  The Penguins outshot the Lightning 11-7 in the final frame and were 0-for-1 on the powerplay and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill. 

• VIDEO:  Game Highlights
• VIDEO:  Post-Game Press Conference w/Coach Therrien
• VIDEO:  Post-Game Locker Room Interviews
• PHOTOS:  In-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:  Play-by-Play 

Evgeni Malkin’s 99th point puts him 3-points behind Alexander Ovechkin in the NHL scoring race, with a game in hand.  The Penguins host the New Jersey Devils in a Eastern Conference showdown at Mellon Arena on Saturday night. 

Crosby & Fleury Help Penguins Take Over Eastern Conference

The Pittsburgh Penguins scored a late 3rd period goal to break a 0-0 tie and then grabbed an empty netter to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-0 on Tuesday night.  It was a triumphant return to the ice for Captain Sidney Crosby who assisted on the game-winner after missing 21-games to a high ankle sprain.  Marc-Andre Fleury turned aside 35-shots, including a Vinny Lecavalier breakaway, to record his 10th career shutout and put a punctuation mark on his second start (and win) since returning from injury.  The win propels the Penguins into sole posession of the Eastern Conference lead, 1-point ahead of the New Jersey Devils who also won on Tuesday. 

Through the first 2-periods, the Penguins were outshot 24-10 and failed to convert on 2-power play chances.  They managed to kill off their only penalty of the game, a 1st-period interference call to Brooks Orpik.  Marc-Andre Fleury was ready for the task, however, stopping everything that came his way and playing a very strong positional game.  On the other end of the ice, Lightning goaltender Mike Smith stood tall in net as well, stopping breakaways on both Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby and a penalty shot by Petr Sykora.  Jordan Staal left the game in the 2nd period with an apparent bruised rib injury after he fell awkwardly and was then run into by a Tampa Bay player. 

In the 3rd period, the Penguins were late to get back on the ice, trailing the coaching staff by a couple of minutes.  When they did come out, the Penguins played a much stronger offensive game, outshooting the Lightning 13-11 in the period.  The Penguins finally solved Smith at 17:13 as Sidney Crosby made a cross-crease pass to Max Talbot.  The puck deflected off from a Lightning defender’s skate, but Talbot was able to gather it in and slide it past the outstretched leg of Smith for the goal.  Pascal Dupuis picked up the other assist on the play.  With 1:10 left to go in the period, the Lightning pulled their goaltender for the extra man.  Sidney Crosby just missed a backhander empty net goal from the blue line, but with 5-seconds left on the clock, Evgeni Malkin took a pass from Maxime Talbot and skated it all the way into the empty net to end the game 2-0. 

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

Sidney Crosby skated 23-shifts in the game and had 22:07 of ice time in his first game back.  All in all, he played a very strong game.  One could sense that he was holding back just a bit from his normal 120%, but certainly gave 100%+.  I imagine after a few games, he will likely be unstoppable once again.  Marc-Andre Fleury picked up the game’s #1 star, and Maxime Talbot with a goal and assist picked up the 3rd star. 

The Penguins continue their road trip on Thursday as they travel to Sunrise, Florida, to take on the Florida Panthers. 

Sidney Crosby Injured in 3-0 Loss to Tampa

The Pittsburgh Penguins lost much more than a game on Friday night.  They lost their Captain and one of the league’s leading scorers as Sidney Crosby was injured in the 3-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.  The high ankle sprain that has plagued the Penguins this season appears to have claimed another victim, as Crosby slid akwardly into the end boards early in the 1st period.  Crosby gingerly tried to put weight on his right foot as he made his way off the ice, and ultimately had to be helped down the runway into the locker room.  He was unable to return to the game, and in the post-game wrap-up it was announced he will miss 4-weeks.  A high ankle sprain is an injury to the large ligament that connects the two biggest bones in the lower leg, the tibia and fibula.  A more serious injury than the traditional twisted ankle, it is not uncommon for a high ankle sprain to sideline an player for a month or more.  Max Talbot and Marc-Andre Fleury have both spent extended time on the Injured Reserve list this season with the same injury.

In the 1st period, the Tampa Bay Lightning struck quickly as Kyle Wanvig put a wrister past Ty Conklin at 4:34.  Andre Roy and Chris Gratton were credited with the assists.  Three minutes later at 7:37, Sidney Crosby was slashed by Paul Ranger as he drove to the net with the puck.  After the slash, Crosby fell to the ice and took another swipe at the puck as he slid hard into the endboards with his attention focused on the puck.  His right foot got caught akwardly and twisted under as it took the brunt of collision with the boards.  At first, it didn’t appear to be anything more than a tweaked ankle.  But as Crosby made his way towards the bench, it became clear that the injury was more serious and he was unable to put any appreciable weight on it.  As he entered the tunnel to the Penguins locker room, he appeared to be in much more pain and had to be helped down the runway by a couple of staff members.  At 10:51, the Lightning struck again on backhander by Chris Gratton that beat Ty Conklin 5-hole.  Andre Roy and Shane O’Brien picked up the assists.  The Lightning outshot the Penguins 16-10 in the first, taking advantage of multiple bad turnovers by the Penguins.  Both teams were 0-for-2 on the power play. 

There was no scoring in the 2nd-period as the Penguins battled without their Captain to outshoot the Lightning 10-4.  The Penguins could not solve the excellent goaltending of Johan Holmqvist, who picked up the game’s 2nd star. 

In the 3rd, the Lightning poured it on again outshooting the Penguins 14-7 with one getting past Ty Conklin to seal the fate of the game.  Andre Roy scored for the Lightning at 5:32 with assists by Brad Richards and Martin St. Louis to put the game out of reach for the Penguins.  The Penguins killed off 2-shorthanded situations in the third and had no power play opportunities of their own.  Andre Roy’s goal gave him 3-points on the night (1G, 2A) and the game’s 1st star.  Vinny Lecavalier was held pointless for the 4th consecutive game. 

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

Sidney Crosby will be re-examined Saturday by team doctors.  It seems certain that he will miss the Jan. 27 All-Star game in Atlanta.  Crosby has only missed 4-games in his first 2-seasons, and the team is 0-2-2 without him in the lineup.  The loss is the first regulation loss in nearly a month (Dec 21st against the Islanders), and is the first regulation for Ty Conklin.  

The Penguins travel to Montreal to take on the Canadiens on Saturday night before returning home to host the Capitals on Monday night.  With Crosby most certainly out of the lineup, the Penguins will be looking for more contributions from the likes of Jordan Staal, Ryan Malone, Colby Armstrong, Max Talbot and Tyler Kennedy.  These players will have to really step up their games to compensate for the loss of the league’s most potent around player.

Staal and Conklin Power Pens Past Lightning

The Pittsburgh Penguins made it 8-wins in a row on Thursday night as they beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 and continued their domination of the Southeast Division.  Jordan Staal awoke from a deep slumber to post 3-points (2G, 1A) and Ty Conklin made 35-saves to continue his unbeaten streak for his 9th consecutive win.  The win snapped Pittsburgh’s 12-game losing streak against Tampa Bay, who has been struggling this year.  The marquee matchup between the reigning Art Ross Trophy winner Sidney Crosby and NHL current scoring leader Vinny Lecavalier ended unceremoniously for both players, as neither of the superstars recorded a point.

In the 1st period, the Lightning outshot the Penguins 13-8 but neither team was able to put the puck in the net.  Ty Conklin was once again a stone wall in the net, making a particularly impressive glove stop on Vinny Lecavalier.  Both teams were 0-for-1 in the period on the power play as Ryan Whiteney and Martin St Louis each picked up tripping penalties.  

In the 2nd, the Lighthning struck first at 4:11 on an even strength goal by Paul Ranger.  Brad Richards and Mathieu Darche  were credited with the assists.  The Penguins responded 8-minutes later with a deflection by Jordan Staal off a hard shot by Petr Sykora that caught the upper left hand corner of the net.  Defenseman Kris Letang picked up the other assist.  Staal was uncertain as to whether he touched the puck, but he was credited with the power play goal.  Then at 14:11, Jordan Staal struck again.  Playing along the wall, Petr Sykora threw the puck to the side of the Lightning net.  The puck bounced back off the net and onto Staal’s skate, which he used to kick the puck to his stick and then he slipped it through the five-hole of the goaltender Karri Ramo, avoiding a poke check in the process.  Ryan Malone picked up the other assist on Staal’s 2nd goal of the night.  The Penguins outshot the Lightning 10-9 in the 2nd and were 1-for-1 on the power play.  The Penguins killed off their only penalty of the period.

Just 1:28 into the 3rd period, the Tampa Bay Lightning were given a golden opportunity to even the score when Maxime Talbot, playing his first game since missing 13 for a high ankle sprain, was called for a double-minor high stick infraction.  The only problem, it was actually a fellow Lightning teammate’s high stick and not Talbot’s.  The Penguins battled through the adversity of the bad call and Ty Conklin kept the puck out of the net.  At 17:21, Ryan Malone notched his 10th of the season, an insurance marker from Petr Sykora and Jordan Staal.  Then, with just 12-seconds left in the game, Evgeni Malkin took a pass from Sergei Gonchar and netted his 20th of the season into the empty Tampa Bay net to complete the scoring at 4-1.  Ty Conklin turned aside 14-shots in the 3rd as the Penguins were outshot 14-11. 

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

Petr Sykora picked up 3-assists in the game.  Sidney Crosby failed to earn a point and ended a 9-game scoring streak.  Erik Christensen and Tyler Kennedy both missed the game due to the flu.  Ryan Stone and Max Talbot stepped up in place of the two.  The Penguins extended their record to 25-16-2 for 52-points and are undefeated in January.  They have now gone 18-5-0 since their Thanksgiving Day win over the Ottawa Senators.  They still trail the New Jersey Devils by 1-point for the Atlantic Division lead after the Devils beat the Hurricanes 4-1 on Thursday.  The Penguins travel to Atlanta to take on the Thrashers on Saturday evening at 7PM.