I’m going with a new format to my blog this year. No full recaps, you can read a recap anywhere and I’m guessing if you’re reading this, you watched the game too. So I’ll give you the goal scorers, Top 3 and Bottom 3 players (in my eyes), random statistics, injury report, and 3 takeaways from the game. Also, go back a post and read my Season Preview to get an idea of what my initial thoughts were if you haven't yet.
Pens win 4-3 (SO) over the Canucks
Goals: Neal (1) (PP) from Malkin, Letang
Cooke (1) (PP) from Dupuis
Cooke (2) (SH) from Staal, Letang
Shootout Goals: Letang (1), Malkin (1)
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| We're still the Western Conference Champs, We're still the Western Conference Champs |
Top 3:
1) Matt Cooke. Everyone was wondering how he would bounce back from his suspensions and if he could play cleanly in the NHL. Well, he is off to a fantastic start. Cooke played very well on both ends of the ice and scored both powerplay and shorthanded goals. He needed positive attention desperately, and this will get it fast.
2) Kris Letang. Aside from one ugly shift where he turned the puck over twice and took a penalty, Letang put together a complete game both offensively and defensively. He broke up a few passes, was flying all over the ice, and contributed a couple of assists. Tonight was a flashback to early last season, which is a great sign for the Penguins.
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| Be careful, she might take half of your future Norris Trophy. |
3) James Neal. Talk about getting a monkey off your back. Neal and the powerplay took a lot of heat to end last season, and it took all of 5 minutes for Neal to score on the powerplay tonight. Aside from scoring a powerplay goal, Neal had a few chances at even-strength and did a good job of getting to the net. If he plays like he did tonight, the goals will certainly come.
Bottom 3:
1) Zbynek Michalek. Michalek had a very forgettable night as he was on the ice for all 3 goals against, and then took a holding penalty after Vancouver tied it that almost led to a go-ahead goal for the Canucks. He looked a little slow to react on the ice and hesitant to jump on the puck. Actually, he looked stronger in the offensive zone than the defensive zone, and that’s not what you want to see from your stay at home defenseman.
2) Jordan Staal. This could easily be an aberration as Staal ended up leaving the game early due to dehydration and cramps, but Staal was not the defensive force we are used to in this one. He was partially at fault on the Ballard goal (Vancouver’s 2nd) as none of the forwards (Asham or Adams either) opted to cover the streaking defenseman. Staal also got caught watching the puck 2 other times but was bailed out by nice saves by Fleury. We’ll just blame it on the heat for now.
3) Evgeni Malkin. I hate to do this after Malkin had such a strong preseason, but tonight was not his night. Malkin was held without a shot (13th time in his career), took a bad elbowing penalty, and generally seemed to be trying too hard to be a game changer. He did get an assist on the Neal PP goal, and he also scored on Luongo to end the shootout, but I was not impressed with his 65 minutes of play. He will need to utilize his teammates better than he did tonight to have a successful comeback campaign. Tonight was a very emotional Malkin, and I expect that he will play better on Saturday without the spotlight of the opener.
Random Statistics:
- Add 1 to the “Blown 2 goal leads” column, as the Penguins blew a 3-1 lead even though they still came away with the win in a shootout.
- Similarly, add 1 to the shootout wins that don’t count as playoff tiebreakers. It’s obviously Game 1, but the Pens were high in this category last year as well. It’s not a good trend to set.
- Michalek was a team worst -3.
- Letang and Martin were both on the ice for over 27 minutes apiece.
- Staal was the best faceoff man, going 12 for 21 (57.1%)
- On the other hand, Malkin was a dismal 4 for 16 (25%) in the faceoff circle
Injury Report:
Jordan Staal left the game with about 5 minutes left in the 3rd period and did not return. Bylsma said he was suffering from dehydration and cramps (insert female joke here), but he should be fine for the next game.
Takeaways:
1) Special Teams makes winning easier. The powerplay went 2 for 3 and moved the puck exceptionally well down low, especially compared to last year. Meanwhile, the penalty kill went a perfect 3 for 3 and even added a goal of their own. The Pens won’t have many games where special teams look flawless, so it’s great that they came out with a win to take advantage of it.
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| If you could just shoot into this 4x6 inch area instead of the 4x6 ft one behind it... |
2) Fleury will always be Fleury. This game was a microcosm of Fleury’s normal seasons. He let up a horrible goal from behind the goal line when the Pens had all the momentum, and then seized momentum right back from Vancouver with a beautiful glove save on a wraparound by Daniel Sedin. The story with MAF continues to be a mix of disappointing goals and great key saves. Let’s just hope the latter outnumbers the former as it usually has so far.
3) We might actually have wingers. I realize it’s only the opener, but the wingers on each of the scoring lines played very well tonight. Neal and Sullivan look like great matches for Malkin, and Sullivan’s speed will help create a lot of chances for that line. Kunitz and Kennedy will get plenty of chances with Staal, though they could not bury any tonight. The third line was possibly the best tonight with Dupuis and Cooke flanking Letestu and doing a great job on the forecheck. Adams and Asham struggled on the 4th line as they were on for 2 goals, but if my biggest concern is our 4th line wingers, I think we might be okay.
Pens Record: 1-0-0, 2 pts.
Next Game: Sat 10/8 @ Calgary, 10pm
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