Pens beat Isles 3-2 (SO)
Goals: Kunitz (3) from Dupuis, Letang
Neal (9) from Kunitz, Malkin
SO Winner: Malkin
Top 3:
1) Marc-Andre Fleury. Flower didn’t face too much action on the night, only dealing with 19 shots, but he came up big when it mattered. He stopped a couple of semi-breakaways and continued to be the backbone of the penalty kill, looking fantastic in the 3rd period. The 2 goals he did allow during regulation were hardly his fault, as they both occurred on defensive breakdowns around the crease. He finished off the night by stopping all 3 Islanders shooters in the shootout, securing 2 points for the Penguins. Though he continually scares us with his puck-handling attempts, it’s safe to say Fleury is at the top of his game right now…his game just clearly doesn’t include puck-handling.
2) Chris Kunitz. I called Kunitz out last game, and he came to play in this one (I’m aware I have zero influence on this, I don’t care). He got off to another slow start in the 1st, but came up big with his play on the crease and in the slot, scoring the Penguins first goal and setting up Neal for the game-tying goal. Kunitz also put 5 shots on net, which is something he had gotten away from early in the season. Let’s hope he catches Neal’s shooting fire and scores in the same manner.
3) Evgeni Malkin. Malkin alternated between Bottom 3 and Top 3 for me all game. He looked dominant at times with his puck possession and skating skills. He also looked like a moron at times as he threw out blind passes for turnovers and lost the puck. In this game, his skill trumped his stupidity as he got an assist on the game-tying goal and also scored the shootout winner. Malkin has scored on 4 out of his last 6 shootout attempts, demonstrating that his overall game is on the rise. This was another game where he played without his usual uncontrolled emotions. I like that.
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| A rare picture of DiPietro healthy enough to be on the ice...or maybe grabbing his hamstring. |
Bottom 3:
1) Deryk Engelland. While Engelland wasn’t necessarily at fault for both goals, he certainly did not help for either one. One would think with Engelland and Orpik paired up, the Islanders wouldn’t be crashing the crease and scoring goals from a foot out. Well, one would be wrong. Engelland was on the crease and not touching his man on both goals, not something a man of his size should be allowing. He finished the night with a -2.
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| Not pictured: Deryk Engelland, wildly out of position. |
2) Steve Sullivan. It’s one thing that Sullivan isn’t scoring when he puts together a complete 2 way game and dominates in other aspects. It’s another thing when Sullivan is turning over the puck at the blue line, fanning on shots and passes, and generally not doing anything. This was amongst the worst games that I’ve seen Sullivan play because it was the first time I’ve seen him hinder the Pens more than help them. At this point, you have to think he’s trying too hard and pushing too hard (exactly like Neal last spring?). When he’s on, he’s a great asset on the point for the powerplay. But when he’s off...it’s a huge, unnecessary risk.
3) Brooks Orpik. Orpik ends up here for the same reasons Engelland did. He was on for both goals and seemed to have difficulty figuring out who to cover with Engelland. He wasn’t supposed to be covering the goal scorers in either situation, but it was clear that both players weren’t communicating well. I put more of the onus on Orpik for this, as he is the veteran presence and should be the more vocal one. I’ll get on the D pairings a little more in a bit.
Random Statistics:
- The Pens last 2 goal comeback was 2 seasons ago
- Neal led the team in shots again, with 6 (and another 4 missed)
- Martin played another quiet , solid game in the defensive zone, leading the team in blocked shots (3)
- All of the Pens won a majority of their faceoffs, with Vitale winning an outstanding 7 out of 8.
- Fleury is now 10-0-2 in his last 12 against NYI
- The Pens have lost 42 man-games to injury this year, the highest amount in the NHL
Random Thoughts:
- In regards to the no goal call in the 1st…it looked like crap to me. But I will give the official credit for one thing - it was decisive and not discussed. It’s much harder to argue a call when the official is sure of himself.
- The Penguins stayed amazingly calm, even after facing a 2 goal lead. The confidence that this team has in each other is something special right now
- The team appeared to be flat for the first 2 periods, leading some in the crowd (which was also flat) to wonder if there was going to be a fight. Last year’s Pens – drop the gloves. This year’s – push the tempo and score.
- The Letang to Malkin to Kunitz to Neal goal was absolutely beautiful. Letang deserves a 3rd assist for that one. I don’t think they can even pull that off in practice as well.
- After the buzzer to end the 2nd period, Ben Lovejoy skated out to Fleury and gave him a tap on the pads and some words before heading into the locker room. No clue what he said, but I like the idea behind it.
- Matt Cooke and Brian Rolston of the Islanders also had some words after the 2nd period at center ice, but this also ended calmly and with mutual stick taps. Same thoughts as the last one.
- The Pens wore pink/purple jerseys for practice and the pregame skate today to support hockey fights cancer. For as much as I hate the pink puck bunny jerseys, these ones were solid looking.
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| Hockey may fight cancer...but it can't color coordinate. |
Injury Report:
- Kennedy (concussion), Crosby (concussion), Strait (hyperextended elbow), and Michalek (finger) all remain out.
- There was some talk about Crosby, as Shero stated he would like to start him off at home when he’s comfortable (and the rumors of 11/11 are starting to pick up very quickly).
Takeaways:
1) Career Years. As the Penguins continue on their hot streak, it is a blurry line between determining whether this team just has it all right now or if this is truly a streak. Many players are performing at or near their career bests, including Fleury, Staal, Neal, Park, and Dupuis. This is even more impressive for the forwards because most of them are facing tougher situations and competition than they normally would with Geno in and out of the lineup and Crosby out (counterpoint – they are getting more playing time.) It’s going to be interesting to see how some of these paces continue and how this team reacts to a slump.
2) Defensive Pairings. Going into the game, I was not pleased with the D pairings. I’m adamantly against using Orpik-Engelland together, and love the Orpik-Letang line for balance. Phil Bourque suggested that Letang-Martin played together to keep continuity between the powerplay and regular shifts. I don’t buy into that, the powerplay does not constitute enough of the game to warrant that change in pairings. I’m not sure what the coaches saw, but can we get back to the regular pairings? Orpik-Engelland lacks puck skills and mobility in the worst ways.
3) Hockey Culture. As most know by now, the NHL Draft will be held in Pittsburgh on June 22-23rd at Consol. Hockey has changed this city in many ways, beginning with Lemieux in ’84, continuing with the Cups in ’91 and ’92, reviving with Crosby in ’05, and peaking with the Cup in ’09. It is also interesting to see how players and the coaches have changed this city as well. I notice more and more that people on radio shows and talking about the team in general refer to players by their #’s rather than their names. Where did that come from? Coach Dan Bylsma and his press conferences and pregame speeches of course. We are lucky as a generation to see the Cup Finals in ’08, win the Cup in ’09, host the Winter Classic in ’11, host the Draft in ’12, and I’m sure the All-Star game will not be far behind. This may always be a football city first…but the Penguins are making a run at it as hard as they can.
Pens Record: 8-2-2, 18 pts.
Goals For: 36
Goals Against: 24
PP %: 20% (10 for 50)
PK %: 97% (36 for 37)
Next Game: 10/29 @ Tor, 7pm LET’S GO PENS!!!
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