That's right! Defenseman Ryan Whitney was shipped to Anaheim this afternoon in exchange for Powerforward Chris Kunitz and prospect Eric Tangradi. The move was prompted by Shero by the recent funk the team has been in and it's obvious lack of production from the Wingers.
I LOVE this trade. Absolutely. Chris Kunitz is what the Penguins have been missing. I even said last night that we need a "Matt Cooke with better offensive skills" and BAM! Chris Kunitz. Kunitz is a gritty character who plays the puck and cycles well. He's not afraid of contact either, racking up 148 hits so far this season. His numbers are down from previous season only scoring 16 goals and assisting on 19 others for 35 points, compared to his two seasons before where he scored 21g-29a-50 points in 2007-08 and 25g-35a-60 points during the Ducks' run for the Cup in 2006-07. However, Kunitz has been lacking the support that Malkin, Crosby, and Staal will undoubtably provide him. I think Kunitz will excel as a Penguin and I'm excited to see his debut!
Whitney, on the other hand, has been absent most of this season allowing younger players such as Letang and Goligoski show their talent, which is abundant. Since coming back Whitney has been a little behind and not handling the puck as well as before, especially on the PowerPlay where he had no success on the cross-ice passes that Crosby would feed him from below the slot that worked so many times last season. His passes have been errant and costly, notably in the 5-2 spanking they recieved in Washington. A change of scenary will help Whitney I believe, and he should fit in well in that system, but he will have to adapt to a more defensive style.
Great move again by Shero!
--
In other news the Penguins have recalled forward Tim Wallace and have re-assigned Janne Pesonen to Wilkes-Barre Scranton and have placed Chris Minard on waivers. If Minard clears waivers he will be re-assigned to Wilkes-Barre.
Not so sure Minard will clear waivers, but I hope he does. He had a great thing going on in WB Scranton with Bylsma as coach and I think he could get his game going under his regime with the Penguins. Oh well, let's hope Wallace will provide the spark he has before with his fast play and finishing hits.
Also, Sidney Crosby did not practice today, sitting out with a sore groin. He is day-to-day.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Islanders 0 - 1 Penguins
Marc-Andre Fleury and the Pens were sporting the baby blue as Fleury picked up a shutout in Mellon Arena last night. Petr Sykora picked up his 23rd goal late in the 3rd to help the Penguins to a 1-0 victory.
The Penguins dominated play early on and throughout the early parts of the second, but just could not finish. Malkin also looked very sluggish and incapable without Crosby out there providing a boost, maybe not Crosby, but he was missing something. Marc-Andre Fleury started to stand out later in the 2nd, denying the Islanders on some close range opportunities to keep the score at 0-0. The third period saw a rejuvenated Malkin and a focused Penguin squad. Passes started connecting, but again, shots were not being taken. Malkin started to heat up and really demanded the action with 10 minutes left. Eventually, even after a few missed PowerPlays, the Penguins found it in them to score with 2:38 left. Sergei Gonchar kept play alive and took it down the right wing boards, firing it in front. After a deflection (I couldn't see if it hit Yann Danis' glove or if Petr Sykora knocked it down), the puck laid at Sykora's stick with a gaping net to shovel it into, easy stuff. The Penguins then completed the victory by keeping the Islanders at bay in the remaining minutes.
My 3 stars:
1 - Marc-Andre Fleury - 21 saves, shutout
2 - Yann Danis - 27 saves, 1 GA
3 - Petr Sykora - 1g-0a, GWG
The Penguins dominated play early on and throughout the early parts of the second, but just could not finish. Malkin also looked very sluggish and incapable without Crosby out there providing a boost, maybe not Crosby, but he was missing something. Marc-Andre Fleury started to stand out later in the 2nd, denying the Islanders on some close range opportunities to keep the score at 0-0. The third period saw a rejuvenated Malkin and a focused Penguin squad. Passes started connecting, but again, shots were not being taken. Malkin started to heat up and really demanded the action with 10 minutes left. Eventually, even after a few missed PowerPlays, the Penguins found it in them to score with 2:38 left. Sergei Gonchar kept play alive and took it down the right wing boards, firing it in front. After a deflection (I couldn't see if it hit Yann Danis' glove or if Petr Sykora knocked it down), the puck laid at Sykora's stick with a gaping net to shovel it into, easy stuff. The Penguins then completed the victory by keeping the Islanders at bay in the remaining minutes.
My 3 stars:
1 - Marc-Andre Fleury - 21 saves, shutout
2 - Yann Danis - 27 saves, 1 GA
3 - Petr Sykora - 1g-0a, GWG
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Sid, Whitney out versus Islanders
Sidney Crosby is listed as day-to-day after participating in scheduled practices after Sunday's game in Washington. Crosby has a sore groin and does not want to stress the injury further, which may sound like something to "tough up" against and play through, but groin injuries are one of the most severe injuries a hockey player can continually agitate and ignore. Smart decision to rest it (look at Marc-Andre Fleury last season and earlier this year).
Whitney has to attend to personal matters back home and will rejoin the team against Chicago Friday night.
Whitney has to attend to personal matters back home and will rejoin the team against Chicago Friday night.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Penguins 2 - 5 Capitals
The Penguins brief 2 game winning streak came to an abrupt halt early Sunday afternoon as Alexander Ovechkin and the Capitals swarmed the Penguins into submission. Easily outplayed in the 2nd and 3rd, the Pens were lucky to keep this 5-2.
It was 2-1 after one period (again missed the 1st period, dang early games). Semin and Ovechkin each had a PowerPlay goal, and Max Talbot scored on a rebound.
The second started off with a turnover by Ryan Whitney and Jordan Staal that ended up in the back of their net after a Sergei Federov slapshot. The next few minutes were fine for the Penguins as they skated into the zone and created chances, eventually leading to a PowerPlay goal by Sergei Gonchar. Momentum never swung to the Penguins side however and the Capitals continued to surge. The dam finally broke with 8 minutes left in the second as Shoane Morrison scored a soft goal that Fleury thought was going wide. However, it caught the inside of the post and behind the surprised goalie. Mere seconds later Brooks Laich got a fortuitous bounce to the corner and just threw it to the net. Fleury scrambled to cover the side but the puck managed to squeeze through and go over the line by an inch before Gill swept it away. This led to Fleury being pulled in favor of Garon. Garon came in and played well stopping all shots he faced, including a few Ovechkin dandies.
The 3rd period saw intensified hitting, but just more standing around by the Penguins in their own zone. They played a collapsing defense, but the point of this is to collapse, then expand and put pressure on the puck carriers. This was poorly executed as they would just collapse and stand still hoping to clear the puck out of the zone. It was clear that exhaustion and fatigue played a huge role in the disappointing loss. 5-2 was the end result.
My 3 Stars:
1 - Jose Theodore - 31 saves, 2 GA
2 - Sergei Federov - 1g-1a, GWG
3 - Alexander Ovechkin - 1g-1a, 9 shots
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
It was 2-1 after one period (again missed the 1st period, dang early games). Semin and Ovechkin each had a PowerPlay goal, and Max Talbot scored on a rebound.
The second started off with a turnover by Ryan Whitney and Jordan Staal that ended up in the back of their net after a Sergei Federov slapshot. The next few minutes were fine for the Penguins as they skated into the zone and created chances, eventually leading to a PowerPlay goal by Sergei Gonchar. Momentum never swung to the Penguins side however and the Capitals continued to surge. The dam finally broke with 8 minutes left in the second as Shoane Morrison scored a soft goal that Fleury thought was going wide. However, it caught the inside of the post and behind the surprised goalie. Mere seconds later Brooks Laich got a fortuitous bounce to the corner and just threw it to the net. Fleury scrambled to cover the side but the puck managed to squeeze through and go over the line by an inch before Gill swept it away. This led to Fleury being pulled in favor of Garon. Garon came in and played well stopping all shots he faced, including a few Ovechkin dandies.
The 3rd period saw intensified hitting, but just more standing around by the Penguins in their own zone. They played a collapsing defense, but the point of this is to collapse, then expand and put pressure on the puck carriers. This was poorly executed as they would just collapse and stand still hoping to clear the puck out of the zone. It was clear that exhaustion and fatigue played a huge role in the disappointing loss. 5-2 was the end result.
My 3 Stars:
1 - Jose Theodore - 31 saves, 2 GA
2 - Sergei Federov - 1g-1a, GWG
3 - Alexander Ovechkin - 1g-1a, 9 shots
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Penguins 5 - 4 Flyers
Unfortunately I thought this was the 2:00 game so I missed the entire first period! Flyers led 1-0 after one.
The start of the second period was electrified by a quick wrist shot by Sidney Crosby over Martin Biron's shoulder to tie 1-1. It was all Penguins after that. Around 7 minutes later Evgeni Malkin scored on the PowerPlay after Gonchar took a slapshot from the point which was deflected first by Petr Sykora, then once more by Malkin. This made it 2-1 Pittsburgh. Ruslan Fedotenko scored on a great passing play off the rush to make it 3-1, Crosby and Dupuis on the assists. 3-1 after two.
Third period play was more than frantic, seeing 5 goals scored (reminiscant of last game). It all got started on a shorthanded goal scored by, who else, Mike Richards, his 7th shorthanded goal this season. After this, the Flyers tied it 3-3 on a Slapshot by Braydon Coburn. He was able to score after Hal Gill broke his stick and Matt Cooke had to swap his to Gill, allowing the Flyers to pass it across the ice without any pressure, resulting in a blast that hit Scuderi's stick and hopped over Fleury's shoulder. Quickly back, however, the Penguins' Ruslan Fedotenko scored his second of the game after being set up by Crosby and Dupuis once more, 4-3. Another broken stick, right off of the face-off, allowed the Flyers to score once more, Mike Knuble cashing in on the easy goal as a result. Gonchar's stick failed on him right off the draw, leaving Mike Richards ample time to set up Knuble across the crease with no Penguins able to defend, since Talbot had reached to give Gonchar his stick, both were out of position leaving the middle wide open. Again, another unfortunate event led to a 4-4 tie. A stroke of luck finally hit the Penguins with 2:45 left in the 3rd. Dupuis was sprung on a long lead pass to the blue line, allowing him in on a breakaway. Biron saw the forecoming trouble and raced out of his net to break up the play. He was successful, but was too far out of the net to cover the puck, or else he would have been whistled for a Delay of Game penalty. Knowing this, and after a motion from Dupuis indicating Biron was smothering the puck, Biron tossed the puck behind him out of his glove. The puck got caught in his webbing however and Dupuis was able to grab the loose puck and throw it towards the goal. Only one Flyer was back and able to make a play, but before he could Sidney Crosby snuck a backhand in and deflected it past the defender into the yawning net. 5-4 Pittsburgh. The game would end this way after the Flyers failed to get set up in the zone even after pulling Biron.
My 3 Stars:
1 - Ruslan Fedotenko - 2g-1a - Played great and made the most of his opportunities
2 - Sidney Crosby - 2g-2a, GWG
3 - Mike Richards - 1g-2a, SHG (7)
Great result for the Penguins, another HUGE, HUGE two points!
The coaching staff appears to have re-energized this squad, and Bylsma has been mixing the lines well, sometimes double-shifting Malkin and Crosby. The results are on the scoreboard as it is paying off, offensively, for the Penguins. Great stuff, it's refreshing to see them play so passionately again. Now all they need is a little tightening up on D, and a few less broken sticks and they can make a strong push into the PlayOffs.
Let's go Pens!
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
The start of the second period was electrified by a quick wrist shot by Sidney Crosby over Martin Biron's shoulder to tie 1-1. It was all Penguins after that. Around 7 minutes later Evgeni Malkin scored on the PowerPlay after Gonchar took a slapshot from the point which was deflected first by Petr Sykora, then once more by Malkin. This made it 2-1 Pittsburgh. Ruslan Fedotenko scored on a great passing play off the rush to make it 3-1, Crosby and Dupuis on the assists. 3-1 after two.
Third period play was more than frantic, seeing 5 goals scored (reminiscant of last game). It all got started on a shorthanded goal scored by, who else, Mike Richards, his 7th shorthanded goal this season. After this, the Flyers tied it 3-3 on a Slapshot by Braydon Coburn. He was able to score after Hal Gill broke his stick and Matt Cooke had to swap his to Gill, allowing the Flyers to pass it across the ice without any pressure, resulting in a blast that hit Scuderi's stick and hopped over Fleury's shoulder. Quickly back, however, the Penguins' Ruslan Fedotenko scored his second of the game after being set up by Crosby and Dupuis once more, 4-3. Another broken stick, right off of the face-off, allowed the Flyers to score once more, Mike Knuble cashing in on the easy goal as a result. Gonchar's stick failed on him right off the draw, leaving Mike Richards ample time to set up Knuble across the crease with no Penguins able to defend, since Talbot had reached to give Gonchar his stick, both were out of position leaving the middle wide open. Again, another unfortunate event led to a 4-4 tie. A stroke of luck finally hit the Penguins with 2:45 left in the 3rd. Dupuis was sprung on a long lead pass to the blue line, allowing him in on a breakaway. Biron saw the forecoming trouble and raced out of his net to break up the play. He was successful, but was too far out of the net to cover the puck, or else he would have been whistled for a Delay of Game penalty. Knowing this, and after a motion from Dupuis indicating Biron was smothering the puck, Biron tossed the puck behind him out of his glove. The puck got caught in his webbing however and Dupuis was able to grab the loose puck and throw it towards the goal. Only one Flyer was back and able to make a play, but before he could Sidney Crosby snuck a backhand in and deflected it past the defender into the yawning net. 5-4 Pittsburgh. The game would end this way after the Flyers failed to get set up in the zone even after pulling Biron.
My 3 Stars:
1 - Ruslan Fedotenko - 2g-1a - Played great and made the most of his opportunities
2 - Sidney Crosby - 2g-2a, GWG
3 - Mike Richards - 1g-2a, SHG (7)
Great result for the Penguins, another HUGE, HUGE two points!
The coaching staff appears to have re-energized this squad, and Bylsma has been mixing the lines well, sometimes double-shifting Malkin and Crosby. The results are on the scoreboard as it is paying off, offensively, for the Penguins. Great stuff, it's refreshing to see them play so passionately again. Now all they need is a little tightening up on D, and a few less broken sticks and they can make a strong push into the PlayOffs.
Let's go Pens!
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Fleury, save of the week - Amazing stuff
Check this out folks:
http://www.nhl.tv/team/console.jsp?id=34002
Marc-Andre Fleury in the game against Toronto (unless you have NHL Network-us you missed this) robs Jason Blake of the hattrick. Just a ridiculous save.
http://www.nhl.tv/team/console.jsp?id=34002
Marc-Andre Fleury in the game against Toronto (unless you have NHL Network-us you missed this) robs Jason Blake of the hattrick. Just a ridiculous save.
Canadiens 4 - 5 Penguins
Let me start off by saying, what a game. The first two periods weren't much for show, but the third period had enough action in it to compensate. Huge win for the Penguins, great confidence boost for the new coaching staff, congratulations Dan Bylsma on your first NHL coaching win.
Penguins got on the board first with a delicate shot over Carey Price's left shoulder by Petr Sykora, Minard and Malkin assisting. The Penguins skated into the 1st intermission with a 1-0 lead and only allowing Montreal 3 shots. The second period was more of the same, with a few more pucks crossing the line. Tomas Plekanec snapped a shot by Fleury in the second, only to be answered a minute later by Miro Satan who deflected a Ryan Whitney blast from the point. Again, however, Montreal came back to tie it 2-2 after a wicked slapshot by newly acquired Mathieu Schneider on the PowerPlay beating Fleury over the blocker.
The third period saw 5 goals in the first 7:18 of the 3rd period. Pittsburgh jumped right out and got a goal from Malkin after recieving a one-touch, cross-ice pass from Crosby. Malkin had to dive to make contact (and was impeded briefly) and tapped it by Price. The Pens went on to lead 4-2 after Max Talbot shoveled a loose puck in front easily past Carey Price while a scrum continued to the side of the net, only 3 minutes in still. Merely 13 seconds later Kostitsyn took a wrist shot that hit the bullseye, beating Fleury by squeeking it in on off of the far post. Three minutes later and Plekanec added his 2nd of the night, tying the game at 4-4. Not to be outdone, the Penguins were right back on the issue. Sergei Gonchar released a laser from the point just 47 seconds later and took the lead 5-4 for the Penguins. After that there were countless odd-man rushes and great chances at both ends, eventually the Penguins stood their ground and walked away with 2 points in regulation.
My three stars:
1 - Sergei Gonchar 1g-0a, GWG
2 - Tomas Plekanec 2g-1a
3 - Evgeni Malkin 1g-1a, +3
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
Penguins got on the board first with a delicate shot over Carey Price's left shoulder by Petr Sykora, Minard and Malkin assisting. The Penguins skated into the 1st intermission with a 1-0 lead and only allowing Montreal 3 shots. The second period was more of the same, with a few more pucks crossing the line. Tomas Plekanec snapped a shot by Fleury in the second, only to be answered a minute later by Miro Satan who deflected a Ryan Whitney blast from the point. Again, however, Montreal came back to tie it 2-2 after a wicked slapshot by newly acquired Mathieu Schneider on the PowerPlay beating Fleury over the blocker.
The third period saw 5 goals in the first 7:18 of the 3rd period. Pittsburgh jumped right out and got a goal from Malkin after recieving a one-touch, cross-ice pass from Crosby. Malkin had to dive to make contact (and was impeded briefly) and tapped it by Price. The Pens went on to lead 4-2 after Max Talbot shoveled a loose puck in front easily past Carey Price while a scrum continued to the side of the net, only 3 minutes in still. Merely 13 seconds later Kostitsyn took a wrist shot that hit the bullseye, beating Fleury by squeeking it in on off of the far post. Three minutes later and Plekanec added his 2nd of the night, tying the game at 4-4. Not to be outdone, the Penguins were right back on the issue. Sergei Gonchar released a laser from the point just 47 seconds later and took the lead 5-4 for the Penguins. After that there were countless odd-man rushes and great chances at both ends, eventually the Penguins stood their ground and walked away with 2 points in regulation.
My three stars:
1 - Sergei Gonchar 1g-0a, GWG
2 - Tomas Plekanec 2g-1a
3 - Evgeni Malkin 1g-1a, +3
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Michel Therrien Fired
That's right. Pittsburgh coach Michel Therrien has been relieved of his duties as the Penguin's head coach. Taking over as interim head coach is Dan Bylsma, head coach of the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, Pittsburgh's AHL counterpart.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=3909857
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=3909857
10 of 13 on the road
If you're a Penguin fan, you know we're on the outside looking in, and at the same time, you're scratching your head trying to figure out what's going on. Times are not about to get easier. The Penguins must play 10 of their next 13 games on the road (11 of 14 including last night's game against Toronto).
The Penguins kickstarted the road-ridden stretch with a 2-6 beat-down versus lower-ranking Toronto, which, I'm guessing, was no help to the team's overall confidence, even with Sergei Gonchar and Ruslan Fedotenko back into the line-up.
I will say this, Gonchar is just getting back into the groove and will need a few games to get his game-legs, but it shouldn't take too long. I expect that with a 95-100% Gonchar and the healthy squad they have, the Penguins could earn 16-20 points during that stretch, if they play the way they have played against the League's Best lately such as Detroit, San Jose, and the Rangers.
Let's go Pens!
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Penguins 2 - 6 Maple Leafs
The Maple Leafs scored 6 unanswered goals and the Penguins start their road trip with a big loss. Thomas scored shorthanded and Cooke scored early to earn a 2-0 lead after 1. After that it was all downhill. The Leafs dominated play and led in scoring chances and shots easily. Again, I could not watch the game, so I couldn't get a gauge of how Gonchar and Fedotenko did on their returns into the line-up.
Either way, the Penguins got spanked. Let's hope this embarrassment fades and we can get serious about hockey again.
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
Either way, the Penguins got spanked. Let's hope this embarrassment fades and we can get serious about hockey again.
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
Pittsburgh-Toronto
Well, once again GameCenter decided that if games are being played on NHLN-us (NHL Network) then they are blacked out nationwide for GameCenter users and local broadcasts. Which is just ridiculous.
So anyway, won't be able to watch this game, however things are going well so far. Bill Thomas and Matt Cooke have both scored and it's 2-0 after 1.
So anyway, won't be able to watch this game, however things are going well so far. Bill Thomas and Matt Cooke have both scored and it's 2-0 after 1.
2 Penguins return, another has surgery
Good news! Ruslan Fedotenko .. AND (drum roll, please) Sergei Gonchar will be on the 20-man roster against Toronto this evening. The only bad news is that Philippe Boucher is the latest Pens D-Man to have surgery. Boucher had foot surgery and is out indefinitely.
Gonchar has not played this season and Fedotenko has not played since going down with a broken hand, suffered during a fight against Colby Armstrong, January 6th versus Atlanta.
Gonchar has not played this season and Fedotenko has not played since going down with a broken hand, suffered during a fight against Colby Armstrong, January 6th versus Atlanta.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Sharks 1 - 2 Penguins (SO)
The Penguins topple the top team in the West, a huge win for the Penguins psyche and confidence. The first goal wasn't scored until 18 minutes and 26 seconds into the 2nd period. It was a bounce off of Rob Blake's stick between Brian Boucher's pads. Bill Thomas got the goal after he threw it from behind the net in an attempt to hit Staal or Satan (both driving to the net), and got the deflection back through the five hole. It was Thomas' first goal as a Penguin, and it's a relief to see him get that goal. Miroslav Satan started the break by finishing his check on Rob Blake at the point in the Penguin's zone then retrieving and maneuvering the puck to the Shark's zone and flipping it up to Thomas in the middle making it 1-0 Penguins after 2 periods.
Pavelski tied the game at one with 8:53 left in the 3rd. Dan Boyle wheeled around the right wing side, behind the net and tossed it to the circle, the puck got deflected in front and then popped out of the pile right to Pavelski's blade with an open net from the left wing.
Marc-Andre Fleury and Brian Boucher were fantastic. They were the reason this game was only 2-1 and not 7-6. Fleury made 36 saves, Boucher 35. Each team played fantastic hockey but these guys really stole the show.
In the end, the game was decided on a shootout and the lone goal came in the third round off the stick of Sidney Crosby. Quickly deking and going five-hole all in one continuous motion, the puck didn't stay still for a full 2 seconds and Boucher, not surprisingly, was beaten easily. Dan Boyle then tried his luck and feigned a shot, took it to the backhand, but was denied by the seemingly Stretch-Armstrong-like right pad of Fleury doing the splits.
Over the past games you can notice a trend of some decent scoring by the Penguins, but still playing under .500 because of the struggles in net. Fleury seems to have found his groove lately and really looks like he's ready to take-off down the stretch, his focus is great right now, and the Penguins need this more than ever. With the return of Gonchar and the surgence of play in net by Fleury, the Penguins should be gearing up for a play-off run. However, it's not going to come easy, the next 11 of 14 games are on the road for the Penguins.
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
Pavelski tied the game at one with 8:53 left in the 3rd. Dan Boyle wheeled around the right wing side, behind the net and tossed it to the circle, the puck got deflected in front and then popped out of the pile right to Pavelski's blade with an open net from the left wing.
Marc-Andre Fleury and Brian Boucher were fantastic. They were the reason this game was only 2-1 and not 7-6. Fleury made 36 saves, Boucher 35. Each team played fantastic hockey but these guys really stole the show.
In the end, the game was decided on a shootout and the lone goal came in the third round off the stick of Sidney Crosby. Quickly deking and going five-hole all in one continuous motion, the puck didn't stay still for a full 2 seconds and Boucher, not surprisingly, was beaten easily. Dan Boyle then tried his luck and feigned a shot, took it to the backhand, but was denied by the seemingly Stretch-Armstrong-like right pad of Fleury doing the splits.
Over the past games you can notice a trend of some decent scoring by the Penguins, but still playing under .500 because of the struggles in net. Fleury seems to have found his groove lately and really looks like he's ready to take-off down the stretch, his focus is great right now, and the Penguins need this more than ever. With the return of Gonchar and the surgence of play in net by Fleury, the Penguins should be gearing up for a play-off run. However, it's not going to come easy, the next 11 of 14 games are on the road for the Penguins.
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
Gonchar cleared by team doctors
Sergei Gonchar has been cleared to dress for the Penguins. Coach Therrien concluded that when the right time to return would be left up to Sergei and that no one would pressure him.
Well Sergei, we sure could use you in the line-up, eh?
This is, obviously, great news as the Penguins, despite winning big against Columbus, have been struggling mightily. They've needed this presence on the point that, despite best efforts, Ryan Whitney nor Kris Letang can fill on the PowerPlay and why it has been so inconsistent this season.
Oh right, good news, Internet is back online (stupid Verizon turned down my connection speed and with it being shared by so many people it was on life support and slow as a slug). So I'll be able to watch the game tonight and give a full report.
Sharks just handed the Bruins a 5-2 loss in Boston. The Bruins struggled on the PowerPlay and Joe Thornton noted that it allowed the Sharks to get back into the game (trailing 2-1 after two periods) and go on to a regulation win.
What can we take of this? TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE POWERPLAY!
Simple hockey = good hockey. Keep it simple and Let's Go Pens!
Well Sergei, we sure could use you in the line-up, eh?
This is, obviously, great news as the Penguins, despite winning big against Columbus, have been struggling mightily. They've needed this presence on the point that, despite best efforts, Ryan Whitney nor Kris Letang can fill on the PowerPlay and why it has been so inconsistent this season.
Oh right, good news, Internet is back online (stupid Verizon turned down my connection speed and with it being shared by so many people it was on life support and slow as a slug). So I'll be able to watch the game tonight and give a full report.
Sharks just handed the Bruins a 5-2 loss in Boston. The Bruins struggled on the PowerPlay and Joe Thornton noted that it allowed the Sharks to get back into the game (trailing 2-1 after two periods) and go on to a regulation win.
What can we take of this? TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE POWERPLAY!
Simple hockey = good hockey. Keep it simple and Let's Go Pens!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Busy Busy
Been a busy week, but here's the recaps of the Penguins games against Montreal and Tampa Bay:
Montreal 4, Pittsburgh 2
The Penguins looked like a team that had run 475 miles to Montreal rather than fly. They could not get to loose pucks and could not create any turnovers. Montreal hammered them from the get-go despite the Penguins jumping out to a 1-0 lead.
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
Tampa Bay 3, Pittsburgh 4 (OT)
What a 3rd period the Penguins had to pull off, after being down 3-0 going into it. Evgeni Malkin looked like a man possessed. The Penguins, again, started off shaky. Allowing shots to get to Fleury and an abundance of them. They started to play tighter in the 2nd, despite allowing 2 goals (on just 5 shots). The second period success (again, despite 2 goals) and Malkin's doggedness really propelled the Penguins to their comeback victory. You could tell they smelled blood in the water and started to go into a frenzy. Something we haven't seen since the 6-2 victory over the Rangers. Malkin finished with 2 goals and an assist increasing his total towards the Scoring Title, two goals which included a great one-timer goal from a feed by Staal behind the net with mere seconds remaining in Overtime (another period the Penguins dominated).
Either way, a HUGE-HUGE win, however, it would have been nice to take at least a point in Montreal. The Penguins still find themselves in 10th place, tied with a Florida team with 1 less game played than the Penguins.
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
In other news, Gonchar and Fedotenko have both been skating and doing light workouts with the squad. Fedotenko still lacks some of the strength in his hand and could be another 2-4 weeks. Gonchar should be expected to lace up within the coming month.
Montreal 4, Pittsburgh 2
The Penguins looked like a team that had run 475 miles to Montreal rather than fly. They could not get to loose pucks and could not create any turnovers. Montreal hammered them from the get-go despite the Penguins jumping out to a 1-0 lead.
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
Tampa Bay 3, Pittsburgh 4 (OT)
What a 3rd period the Penguins had to pull off, after being down 3-0 going into it. Evgeni Malkin looked like a man possessed. The Penguins, again, started off shaky. Allowing shots to get to Fleury and an abundance of them. They started to play tighter in the 2nd, despite allowing 2 goals (on just 5 shots). The second period success (again, despite 2 goals) and Malkin's doggedness really propelled the Penguins to their comeback victory. You could tell they smelled blood in the water and started to go into a frenzy. Something we haven't seen since the 6-2 victory over the Rangers. Malkin finished with 2 goals and an assist increasing his total towards the Scoring Title, two goals which included a great one-timer goal from a feed by Staal behind the net with mere seconds remaining in Overtime (another period the Penguins dominated).
Either way, a HUGE-HUGE win, however, it would have been nice to take at least a point in Montreal. The Penguins still find themselves in 10th place, tied with a Florida team with 1 less game played than the Penguins.
NHL.com Recap
NHL.com Boxscore
In other news, Gonchar and Fedotenko have both been skating and doing light workouts with the squad. Fedotenko still lacks some of the strength in his hand and could be another 2-4 weeks. Gonchar should be expected to lace up within the coming month.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Penguins 4 - 5 Maple Leafs
The Pens continued their away stretch with a 5-4 loss in regulation last night against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Unfortunately, since the game was airing on the NHL Network, it was blacked out on NHL.com's GameCenter (which I still don't get), so I listened to it via Mike Lange and Phil Borque. The Maple Leafs jumped out to a 3-1 lead over the Penguins through 2 periods, but the Penguins came surging back in the 3rd. Crosby struck right off the face-off and made it 3-2. Toronto answered a few minutes later, but not to be outdone, Evgeni Malkin made it 4-3 three minutes after the Toronto goal. Just a minute and a half later, Tyler Kennedy took a slapshot that caught Toskala by surprise and tied the game up at 4-4. Halfway through the period however, Jason Blake slipped one through back-up goaltender, Mathieu Garon (in his 1st start for the Penguins) and sealed the deal as the Maple Leafs walked away with a 5-4 win.
I wish I could have seen it, it sounded like the Penguins really came together in the 3rd and starting creating their magic. Unfortunately we came up short. Let's keep our heads up, because the 2 points in Montreal are possibly the biggest 2 points of the season. (We win, we move forward, we lose, we question).
STEELERS 17, Cardinals 7 Halftime
Go STEELERS!!! (Although I must admit the Cards are my 2nd favorite and always have been)
I wish I could have seen it, it sounded like the Penguins really came together in the 3rd and starting creating their magic. Unfortunately we came up short. Let's keep our heads up, because the 2 points in Montreal are possibly the biggest 2 points of the season. (We win, we move forward, we lose, we question).
STEELERS 17, Cardinals 7 Halftime
Go STEELERS!!! (Although I must admit the Cards are my 2nd favorite and always have been)
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