Brief Season in Review

Before we move on to the NHL’s 2^nd season, the more important one, let’s take a moment to look at some final stats, highs, lows, and other miscellaneous tidbits that have the Pens sitting in 4^th in the Conference.  If you’re really bored, check out my season predictions and laugh at how off I was on some of these things:  http://crosbyftw.blogspot.com/2011/10/pens-season-preview-2011-2012.html

Win/Loss:

Record:  51-25-6, 108 pts.  2^nd in the Atlantic, 4^th in the East (though, 4^th in the NHL)

Home: 29-10-2 (4^th in NHL)

Away: 22-15-4 (7^th)

Shootouts: 9-3 (7^th)

Goals:

Goals For: 282 (1^st)

Goals Against: 221 (12^th)

Differential: +61  (2^nd)

Special Teams:

Power Play: 19.7% (5^th)

- Power Play Opportunities: 289 (7^th)

- Short-Handed Goals Allowed: 10 (26^th)

Penalty Kill: 87.8% (3^rd) *Franchise Record

- Times Shorthanded: 270 (15^th)

- Short-Handed Goals: 11 (3^rd)

Geno may have led the team in scoring, but these 3 were integral parts of the PP's success.

Random:

Hits: 2058 (6^th)

Blocked Shots: 1065 (22^nd)

Missed Shots: 1088 (2^nd)

Giveaways: 498 (28^th)

Takeaways: 439 (30^th)

Faceoffs: 50.4% (13^th)

- The Pens won 45.7% of the games in which they allowed the 1^st goal, the highest % in the NHL.

Transactions:

- Marc Letestu was traded to Columbus for a 4^th round draft pick.

- Chris Kunitz received a 2 year extension for $3.725 mil./yr.

- James Neal received a 6 year extension for $5 mil./yr. 

Neal became a part of the "core" of this team this year.

  

Season Highlights:

- Opening Night, 10/6: 4-3 (SO) win over Vancouver.  Led by a shocking 2 goal performance from the new Matt Cooke, the Pens won in Vancouver to start off the season with a playoff type win (minus the shootout)

- 10/27: 3-2 (SO) win over NYI: The Pens extended their winning streak to 5 games to take their record to 8-2-2, tops in the NHL early on.

- 11/21: 5-0 win over NYI:  Sid’s Return Part I.  Crosby came back from his concussion in dramatic fashion, scoring the 1^st goal of the game and putting up a 4 point night to dazzle the NHL in his long-awaited return.

Everyone was all smiles as Crosby skated around the corner with a big
"F*ck Yeah!!"

- 12/27: 4-2 win over Car:  The culmination of a 4 game win streak which saw the PK return to perfection and the PP score 6 goals in 4 games. 

- 1/31: 5-4 (SO) win over Tor:  The Pens 8^th win in a row, 5 of which had come in OT, 4 of which had been in a shootout.  Fleury started every game of the streak and simply had all the answers when he needed them most.

The shootout may be a gimmick, but Fleury has perfected it.

- 3/15: 5-2 win over NYR:  Sid’s Return Part II.  The Pens were on the tail end of an 11 game win streak which would see them streak towards the top of the Conference and they were just getting healthy as they had their captain return yet again.  They would win their next game before losing the streak to Philly.

- 4/7: 4-2 win over Phi:  Though the game was meaningless, the Pens still managed to finish the season on a 3 game win streak and beat the Flyers for the first time in Consol Energy Center.

Season Lowlights:

- 11/19: 3-2 loss to Fla:  The Pens hit a rough stretch, losing 3 of 4 games to Car, TB, and Fla, and watching the powerplay hit a 1 for 21 slump while the PK allowed 2 goals for the 2^nd game in a row.

- 12/5: 3-1 loss to Bos:  The loss to Boston was tough, but the bigger loss was Crosby re-injuring himself from a multitude of collisions, sending him off with concussion like symptoms yet again.

- 12/16: 6-4 loss to Ott:  The 4^th loss in 5 games since Crosby went out, and the 6^th straight game the PK let up a goal.  Panic began to take over Pens nation after this Friday night loss.

BJ wasn't himself and the D didn't help.

- 12/29: 4-2 loss to Phi:  In the much anticipated return of Talbot and Jagr to Pittsburgh, the Flyers watched both of them score to end the Pens 4 game win streak, and send them into what turned into a very rough losing streak.

- 1/11: 1-0 loss to Was:  The Pens went on a major goal scoring drought, scoring just 6 goals in 6 games, all losses highlighted by a frustrating 1-0 loss to the rival Caps.  The Pens outshot every team during the losing streak, and only received 14 powerplays through the streak, easily a 6 game low.

- 3/29: 5-3 loss to NYI:  The Pens lost their 2^nd straight game to the Isles, by 5-3 in both games and panic set in for what was supposed to be an unbeatable team.

- 4/1: 6-4 loss to Phi:  In a game that simply turned into a disaster at the end, the Pens played poor defense and then got into a line brawl to end the game off of clean hit.  Peter Laviolette and Tony Granato got into a shouting match in between the benches and were both fined for the mess.

This may be the defining point of the season in the end.

Players Overrated Going Into the Season:

Paul Martin – I don’t think I have to write much about this, it’s safe to say that everyone has been disappointed in his performance from top to bottom.  Not enough offense, weak shot, poor defense, pinches too much….just pick a complaint.  His final stat line was: 73gp, 2g, 25a, +9, 18 PIM.  It really isn’t a bad stat line…until you consider his $5 mil contract and if you’ve watched him play.

This was the story of Paul Martin:  missing.

Brent Johnson – Johnny may have set the expectations a little too high when he saved Fleury at the start of the season.  He had a rough go for most of the season, though he came up very strong towards the end for the Pens.  His final stat line: 16gp, 6-7-2, 3.11 GAA, .883 Save %.  It will be interesting to see if the Pens want to retain him for next season.  He’s a great locker room guy, cheap, and Thiessen doesn’t look ready to me, but we shall see.

Tyler Kennedy – Coming off of a career year, he was one of the bigger question marks going into last offseason.  Without top PP and top line time this year though, he was a disappointment after last year.  His final stat line:  60gp, 11g, 22a, +10, 29 PIM.  Hidden disappointing stat: 5.6 shooting %.  He finished 5^th on the team in shots on net, but 15^th in shooting %.  That pretty much sums up his disappointing year.

Players Underrated Going Into the Season:

This section literally could be half the roster, so I’ll try to keep it short, I know I left players out.

Pascal Dupuis – No one saw Dupuis breaking out like this, having a career year in all aspects.  He put up a 17 game point streak to end the season and was simply fantastic all year.  His final stat line:  82gp, 25g, 34a, +18, 34 PIM.  Dupuis finished 4^th on the team in scoring, raise your hand if you saw that coming.

Dupuis has turned into the ultimate spark plug and threat.

Matt Cooke – It was hard to know what Cooke would do coming off of his season ending suspension last year.  He had the talent, but would he use his brain?  He did.  Final stats:  82gp, 19g, 19a, +5, 44 PIM.  Big 2 for me: 82gp and 44 PIM.  Very impressive numbers for Cooke and a true inspiration for change.

James Neal – After Neal slumped his way out of everyone’s hearts through the playoff run last year, predictions were all over this year.  Guess what, it didn’t matter what anyone predicted, he beat them all.  Final stats:  80gp, 40g, 41a, +6, 87 PIM.  I could have done without some of those 87 PIM, but 40 goals from Neal is success no matter how you look at it.  18 of those goals were on the PP too, helping a dismal PP from last year.

It took him far too long to get on the roster, but he surely deserved it.

Steve Sullivan – Sullivan seemed like a good bargain and depth signing going into the season.  What he turned into was a durable powerplay specialist that the Pens badly needed.  Final stats:  79gp, 17g, 31a, -3, 20 PIM.  21 of his 48 points came on the PP as he joined Neal to help that unit out greatly.  The 79gp are still a shock to me for the former Masterton winner who has missed well over 100 games in his career due to injuries.

Evgeni Malkin – I’ll end this with a player that everyone knew was great but no one was sure how great he would be this season.  I can certainly tell you I did not predict Malkin would score 50 and put up a Hart worthy season as he led this team without Sid for much of the year.  Final stats: 75gp, 50g, 59a, +18, 70 PIM.  He took fewer stupid penalties, scored more goals, and simply kept his head in the game throughout most of the season.  He literally grew up in front of our eyes this year into a league MVP (though not official yet).

Time to push for Conn Smythe #2! 

Individual Stats Leaders:

Goals:  Malkin (50)

Assists:  Malkin (59)

Pts:  Malkin (109)

+/-:  Letang (+21)

PIM:  Neal (87)

Avg. Time on Ice: Letang (24:50)

Shots:  Malkin (339)

Shooting %:  Staal (16.8%)

Staal found his scoring touch from his rookie season again.

Hits: Orpik (259)

Blocked Shots: Michalek (144)

Missed Shots: Neal (123)

Giveaways:  Malkin (73) *Next Highest: Martin (39)

Takeaways:  Malkin (52) *Next Highest:  Staal (39)

Faceoff %: Vitale (55.7%)

Faceoffs, Fights, PK, Joe Vitale demonstrated he can do it all this year.

- Asham and Engelland led the team in fights with 8 each

- Malkin was on for the most goals for, 132

- Martin and Orpik were on for the most goals against overall, 81 for each

- Interesting stat on Martin: He is a +14 against the Atlantic, but a -5 against other divisions

- Malkin was the team shootout leader, going 8 for 11.

Team Awards:

Baz Bastien Memorial “Good Guy” Award (Media Cooperation) – Fleury & Dupuis

NHL Masterton Nominee (Dedication to Hockey) – Cooke

A.T. Caggiano Memorial Booster Club Cup (Most 3 Star Votes) – Malkin

Player’s Player Award (Leadership) – Orpik

Edward J. DeBartolo “Community Service” Award (Charity Work) – Malkin

Defensive Player of the Year (Best Defensively) – Orpik & Fleury

MVP (Best Overall) - Malkin

Now, ON TO THE PLAYOFFS!!!

Torts Angry, Pens Win and Clinch 4th!

Main Storylines:

- The Pens get to face the Rangers without Lundqvist for the 2^nd straight game as this one is meaningless to NYR and Lundqvist wants to rest a sore arm

A day off to help him work that "rugged" look.

- A win here will clinch 4^th in the conference and home ice advantage in the 1^st round for the Pens

- The Pens are sitting some big guys tonight: Niskanen (upper body), Sullivan (lower body) and Neal (lower body).  Dustin Jeffrey still can’t crack the lineup though

Result:

Pens  5  Rangers  2

Goals:  Kunitz (25) from Letang, Malkin

            Kennedy (11) from Staal, Michalek

            Park (7) from Dupuis, Tangradi

            Malkin (49) from Kunitz, Crosby

            Letang (10) (SH) from Staal

Stats/Milestones:

- Pascal Dupuis extended his career high point streak to 16 games.  It is a shame the regular season has only one more game because it would be wonderful to see how far he could push this continuously.

- Chris Kunitz recorded his 200^th career NHL assist on Malkin’s goal                   .

- Marc-Andre Fleury tried Barrasso’s franchise record for wins at 226.

- Evgeni Malkin hit a career high in points and now has 107.

The Good:

- Hey, a win over the Rangers is a win over the Rangers, no matter the circumstances.  Also, how fun is it to piss of John Tortorella off based on that postgame rant?

Whine Whine Whine

- The defense looked much better in this game than they had in the previous 2 weeks, though there is still work to do.  It’s a big step forward with the playoffs looming ever so close.

Evgeni Malkin – Malkin had gone quiet for a couple games and wasn’t playing bad, but also wasn’t being his enigmatic self.  Tonight he reverted back to the norm and appeared to have a jump in his step.  He scored goal #49 and based on his postgame interview, he will be gunning for 50 hard on Saturday.  As long as Geno stays healthy, life is good.

Marc-Andre Fleury – Fleury looked much better in this game than he had in the previous week, stopping 35 of 37 shots and making some very acrobatic saves like when he was on his hot streak.  He also finally got his franchise record-tying 226^th win on his 4^th try after that mark appeared to be getting into his head.  It’s great that Fleury got a game in like this before the playoffs started, and while I would expect him to start vs. Philly on Sat anyways, this puts less pressure on Bylsma to start him looking for a spark.

The Bad:

- For all the crap Tortorella said after the game, it’s funny that he didn’t mention his team had 6 powerplays and the Pens only had 1.  Mind you, they all came of different varieties.  The “hooking” penalty on Cooke was garbage as there was no hook and no one was held up either.  I have no clue how that was called.  Kunitz took 2 minors which is why I kept him off of the good list.  He’s gotta ease up on the stupid penalties he’s been taking in the 2^nd half.  Then you have the Orpik 5 min major…I’ll get to the in the next section. 

Deryk Engelland – Engelland was the only defenseman that slipped up more than a couple times as far as I could tell.  He missed Dubinsky on the Rangers first goal that tied the game and he had trouble with his slot coverage a few other times, but none of those resulted in a goal luckily.  I would like to see Engo use the body a little more in front since he is generally bigger than most guys he faces on the crease.  It will be a fine line for him to work through the playoffs with.

Engo knew that was on him..and knowing is half the battle.

The Ugly:

- Since I’m doing this so late, we all know Orpik didn’t get any extra penalties for his kneeing penalty (a 5 minute major and game misconduct).  The knee was definitely a dirty hit, he stuck it out though I highly doubt his intentions were to injure.  He was basically just trying to run interference for a guy about to get past him it looked like.  Personally, I would have been okay with the nominal $2,500 fine and lesson learned.  But I’ll certainly take less!

- Tortorella went CRAZY after the game and ranted about Crosby and Malkin being whiners, the organization being arrogant, and how Orpik’s hit was dirty and the Pens are a dirty team.  The NHL opted to fine him $20,000, most likely for the part where he implied that watching the league deal with Orpik would be comical.  Tortorella’s comments are generally ridiculous and overzealous, but they were smart.  No one has spoken about his team losing 5-2 or about his team at all.  He deflected all of the attention from his loss and probably got his team fired up as well.  I don’t believe he should have been fined for speaking his mind, but hey, whatever the NHL decides to do.

I assure you the Pens didn't want to see this either.

Thoughts:

- The playoffs are set for the Penguins, they clinched the 4^th seed and are locked into a 4-5 matchup with the Flyers.  Saturday’s game likely won’t be the chaos everyone is expecting.  Both teams know it’s the week after that matters and won’t want to risk injuries or suspensions.  Both also want to send a message with game play.  Expect a very tight game, but not as dirty as the media may suggest.

Pens Record: 50-25-6, 106 pts, 2^nd in the Atlantic, 4^th in the East

Next Game:  4/7 vs Phi, 4pm

Pens Awaken as Playoffs Approach, Beat Buffalo 5-3.

Main Storylines:

- The Pens have now lost 3 out of their last 4 games and look nothing like the team that dominated the NHL over the last month.  Sloppy defense and poor puck possession seem to be the biggest issues, along with horrible special teams.  They have allowed an avg of 5 goals per game over the past week.

- Brent Johnson, Joe Vitale, and Matt Niskanen all return to the lineup.  Bylsma suggested that Johnson might get one more start this season, so eye up April 3^rd @ Boston for that one.  Simon Despres and Eric Tangradi sit down for the other returns.

If Johnson doesn't start again, I'm sure the Pirates have spots open in the outfield.

- Buffalo provides a very formidable opponent right now.  Ryan Miller is 10-1-2 this month and the Sabres are fighting the Caps for the last playoff spot in the East.  Miller generally has not done well against the Pens, but he is on another level right now.

Result:

Pens  5  Sabres  3  

Goals:  Malkin (48) (PP) from Sullivan, Crosby

            Crosby (5) from Sullivan, Dupuis

            Neal (38) (PP) from Crosby, Malkin

            Sullivan (15) from Dupuis, Crosby

            Staal (25) (EN) from Orpik

               

Stats/Milestones:

- Evgeni Malkin recorded a new career high for goals at 48.

- Pascal Dupuis extended his point streak to a career high 13 games with an assist on Crosby’s goal.  He also added to his career high point total, making it 54 now.

- Sidney Crosby became the 7^th youngest player in NHL history to hit 600 career points.  Just imagine what he could have done if he didn’t miss a year with that concussion…

- James Neal added to his career high totals in goals (38) and points (79).

- Brooks Orpik recorded his 100^th assist on Staal’s empty netter.

The Good:

- After a game in which the special teams was downright horrible, they were the big reason for tonight’s win.  The powerplay went 2 for 3 and the penalty kill was 2 for 2 as we learned a couple lessons.  First, the powerplay seems much better on the rush than when situated in place.  Movement is the key for a group of 5 forwards and they appear to play much worse when they are settled into the zone, go figure.  As for the penalty kill, the forwards were much more aggressive on the points and boards tonight and Buffalo had trouble getting chances because of it.  It was a great game by both units (though I still want to see Dupuis on the 2^nd PP).

- The Pens were also much less predictable in terms of forcing “stretch” passes and their puck possession was much better.  If you take a look at a majority of the rushes, the Pens implemented a lot of weaving to open up players rather than just try to look for a long pass (same on the PP rushes as well).  This helped them a) get the puck into the zone and b) have more players in to forecheck by the time a puck was behind the opposing net.  It worked very well at times, though the Sabres also got some quick rushes the other way because of it.  Regardless, it was a nice change of pace and worked tonight.

"This isn't weaving for weaving's sake"  It's clearly to get Neal wide open.

- It was great to see Brent Johnson get a win and get some confidence back in his game.  He admittedly started very shaky, which will keep him off the list below, but he looked better and better as the game went on and was back to his normal self in the 3^rd period.  That’s the Brent Johnson that we all know as a very dependable backup.  His ability to shake off the bad start and move forward makes him a very valuable veteran (woo alliteration) to this team.

Sidney Crosby – His 3^rd four point night of the season (points 598-601) let us know that he will simply own Ryan Miller no matter the circumstances.  Sid didn’t even score a nice goal, Miller simply let up an awful 5-hotel shot (oddly familiar).  But anyways, Crosby looked like his normal self, making absurdly perfect passes on his backhand and he had some good jump in his skates tonight as well.  No ill effects from that puck to the face appear to be present.

Steve Sullivan – Sullivan scored on a beautiful “chip” from the slot and also had the primary assist on the first 2 goals.  He makes a big difference on the 1^st powerplay as he looks far more comfortable on the point than either Crosby or Malkin.  The big aspect to his game that I did not expect this late in the season is his speed and agility.  I honestly thought he might be dead for the season by this point.  His fluid play and stellar passing have made him a great linemate for all of the stars on this team so far and tonight he shined brightest with it.

Based on the pic, I'm pretty sure Sulli scored this with his mind.

The Bad:

- Both goaltenders were just plain awful in the first period.  Miller’s 5 hole seemed to score on himself when Crosby shot the puck for the Pens 2^nd goal.  Meanwhile, Johnson’s first goal allowed was no gem either.  Many Pens fans will argue that it should have been goalie interference…I’m on the fence, that’s a tough call.  But regardless, Johnson should have gloved and controlled that rebound so it wouldn’t have mattered anyways, that goal is still on him.  His 2^nd goal allowed was even worse as he clearly got caught anticipating a pass and Ennis beat him with on a 5 hole the size of...(inappropriate joke).  Miller and Johnson rebounded very nicely as the game went on though.

Crosby is Miller's kryptonite, no clue how this became a goal.

- How about a broken stanchion to stop the play and tack on almost 2 minutes to the 3^rd period as both teams went to intermission early.  Seen that before?  Actually, that wasn’t bad, just odd.  The bad part was Steigerwald laughing about it and asking whether they would continue play as a 10 year old girl sat behind cracked glass.  Not often that I say Bob Errey is a professional, but he absolutely was in reporting that they would probably go to intermission early and continue the game in the 3^rd because it had to be fixed.

The Ugly:

- I still don’t know how the Sabres 3^rd goal happened.  The puck was cleared up off the boards…no it wasn’t, it bounced somehow off the boards directly in front of Johnson, where only Tomas Vanek was standing.  Root Sports AND MSG cameras all missed it as did 10 out of 12 players on the ice.  Only Vanek and Johnson saw it and Vanek then beat Johnson all alone.  Talk about crazy.

Can't blame BJ on this one.

Thoughts:

- This game had the intensity of a playoff game and it’s about time the Pens reached that intensity after the 2 flops against the Isles.  Some people see the daunting schedule ahead (Flyers, Bruins, Rangers, Flyers) and question whether the Pens can keep the 4^th seed and if they are prepared.  I disagree with that line of thought.  This is the perfect schedule to ramp up into playoff mode and prepare for the grueling journey that is the NHL playoffs.  By the time Game 1 starts, most likely against the Flyers, they will be battle-tested, ready, and already in playoff mode.  That’s what you want, not a team going in after a bunch of layups. 

- The Buffalo crowd, though seemingly half Pens fans, was simply magnificent to listen to on tv.  I hope one day Consol can have a crowd like that.  The crowd seriously made the game more enjoyable on tv, much like the Leafs, Canadiens, and Jets crowds are capable of.  Pens fans need to take notice and make the effort in their own arena to build that kind of atmosphere.

- I meant to include this in my last recap, but it works even better here.  I'm calling BS on everyone that says the Pens struggle without Letang.  I understand he is incredibly important to this team, and undoubtedly makes the Pens much better, but he isn't the cause of their lack of defense over the past week.  The Pens played fine without him a few weeks ago and even tonight.  Letang is a stellar defenseman, I won't dispute that, but the Pens' problems are/were on account of their decision making and execution, not their personnel.  The easy answer isn't always the right one, and that's the case in saying this team can't win without Letang as many did after 2 losses to the Isles.

- Time to look at Sunday, a 12:30pm matchup at home on NBC vs. the Flyers.  First off – I’m never moving to the West Coast because can you imagine watching the Pens at 9:30am every other week?  But moving on, this game is essentially the battle for 4^th place.  Beat the Flyers, and it’s a big 4 point swing that won’t clinch 4^th, but makes it pretty easy to finish off.  Lose it, and every game is a battle the rest of the way.  The Flyers play Saturday vs. Ottawa, so the Pens need to come out extremely hard.  Bryzgalov is not expected to start against the Pens, which is a huge bonus.  Tonight may have been like a playoff game, but Sunday will demonstrate whether the Pens are playoff ready or not.

Pens Record: 48-24-6, 102 pts, 2^nd in the Atlantic, 4^th in the East

Next Game:  4/1 vs Phi, 12:30pm

Defense Optional, Pens Let Up 8 in a Loss.

Main Storylines:

- Brad Thiessen gets the start tonight as Fleury rests up for a big Atlantic Division matchup against the Devils tomorrow.

- With the Rangers losing to the Sabres last night, the Pens have a chance to take over 1^st place in the Conference tonight.  The Rangers do play the Leafs though, so no matter what happens the Pens will have one less game played after tonight and be in striking distance of 1^st.

- Tangradi and Lovejoy get back into the lineup as Park gets a healthy scratch and Niskanen sits out with an upper body injury.  Vitale remains hurt as well.

Result:

Sens 8  Pens 4

Goals:  Cooke (18) from Engelland

            Cooke (19) from Crosby, Martin

            Kennedy (9) from Sullivan, Staal

            Crosby (3) from Asham, Dupuis

Stats/Milestones:

- Matt Cooke added to his career high goals total, making it 19 now.  He’s had 7 goals in his last 6 games with Crosby.

How do you score over a 6'7 goalie??

- Pascal Dupuis added an assist to extend his career high scoring streak to 9 games

               

The Good:

- The game is over and the Pens get a chance to rebound immediately against the Devils at home tomorrow night.

- Honorable mention to Engelland and Lovejoy, who didn’t do anything spectacular, but I felt played very solid and responsible games on a night where no one else felt like doing that.  Also, it was very nice to see Sid get his first goal in his 2nd comeback.

One of the rare reasons for everyone to smile tonight.

Matt Cooke – Another 2 goal game for Cooke, his 3^rd since Crosby’s return, has him vying to become the 6^th Penguin to hit the 20 goal mark this season.  He pretty much has kept it simple with Sid, either going directly to the net or getting the puck to the net.  It’s a shame he got called for a complete BS penalty, but that hardly nullifies his new found scoring prowess.

The Bad:

- Forwards in their own end.  Everyone got caught up with watching the puck in the zone on three of the Ottawa goals.  There were signs of this in the Nashville game as the Preds certainly had their chances from in close.  The Pens are going to have to start watching closer for players on the backside sneaking in looking for passes.

- The powerplay.  Ottawa played a very energetic and aggressive large box setup against the Pens and it disrupted them completely.  The powerplay couldn’t complete passes, got very few chances, and allowed a shorthanded breakaway goal to Daniel Alfredsson as well.  This powerplay is simply too talented to get caught by Ottawa’s aggressiveness like they did.  We need to see more instinct and less thinking in those situations.

- Odd Man Rushes.  The Pens allowed a disgustingly high amount of odd man breaks and breakaways to the Sens.  Thiessen surely didn’t bail them out on anything, but the defensive was pretty much horrible in providing support.  There were 2 breakaway goals and 2 odd man rush goals against the Pens tonight.  That’s absolutely pathetic.  You can add another goal to that list where an Ottawa player skated in 1 on 3, got through 3 Penguins, and slid the puck over to a wide over Alfredsson.  A horrible effort on defense by the Pens.

A goal celebration covering half the zone shouldn't be this devoid of Penguins.

- Steve Sullivan left at some point in the late 2^nd or early 3^rd period (I didn’t catch when clearly).  Reports seem to be that whatever injury has is minor, but we shall see tomorrow.

This is the last play I recall seeing Sullivan, maybe overextended something?

The Ugly:

- The anthems before the game were seriously horrendous.  The singer sounded like Ms. Piggy, botched the words, and held both anthems out to a total of over 6 minutes.  She even paused at one portion to ask the crowd to get into it.  The Pens bench was laughing the whole time and it was seriously just an embarrassment to both countries.  I won’t even give you a youtube link because you deserve better than that.

- The Penalty Kill was uncharacteristically inattentive tonight.  Both powerplay goals were scored on cross-ice passes where the Pens simply weren’t watching the backside.  There was just a serious lack of focus by the Pens in the defensive end.  I am just going to call it a lapse in judgment for the night and leave it at that.

Orpik/Michalek – By far the worst pairing of the night, they put up a -4 and simply never got to their styles.  Orpik wasn’t very physical and got caught in the offensive zone a few times, including on Spezza’s breakaway from his own blue line.  Meanwhile, Michalek was wandering too far away from the crease looking for stick checks and checks instead of doing his usual good job of blocking passes and shooting lanes.  Both players simply did not stick to their strengths and Thiessen is the one who paid for it.

Uh yeah, one of you should probably cover the future Hall of Famer.

Brad Thiessen – Speaking of Thiessen, his effort wasn’t exactly sharp either.  He had issues controlling rebounds and simply looked small in the net.  I can’t blame him solely for this game as the Pens gave him no help, but he also has to come up with a couple more big stops along the way.  20 saves on 28 shots looks bad for pretty much anyone.

Thoughts:

- I didn’t want to see Bishop injured for Ottawa necessarily, but after the major dive he took when Cooke skated past him, you couldn’t help but think the Hockey Gods were getting him back for that move.  Especially since Ottawa scored on that powerplay they never should have had.

- This team can clearly score.  This team clearly has a Cup winning goalie in Fleury.  But the defensive effort over the past week has been all over the place.  Winning the Cup requires defensive consistency just as much as goaltending and probably moreso than scoring.  So while this team can light it up, the kind of effort they showed tonight is the type of effort the Caps showed in previous years with early exits in the playoffs.  This needs to be fixed immediately.

- The Pens looked more tired/sluggish than the Senators did today even though Ottawa played last night.  With the Sens slumping, I wonder if the team got caught being a little too excited about the Nashville win and looking ahead to NJ tomorrow night.

- Everyone get over Thiessen getting the start.  The argument that the Pens could get first place is not a reason to start Fleury for every game for the rest of the season.  The playoffs are more important than first place, so Fleury will need to sit sometimes.  He will likely sit March 29^th as well.  Johnson looks to be healthy again, so I’m pretty sure this was Thiessen’s last start and Johnson will get the nod on Thursday.  Regardless, if Fleury goes out in the playoffs, all is lost anyways.  So protect him, not a chance at first place.

Guess what, not many goalies are stopping one timers from the crease

Pens Record: 46-22-6, 98 pts, 2^nd in the Atlantic, 4^th in the East

Next Game:  3/25 vs NJ, 7pm

Crosby Returns, Pens win their 10th in a Row!

Main Storylines:

- SIDNEY CROSBY IS BACK!!!  Easily the biggest headline.  Here’s #2: KRIS LETANG IS BACK!!!  On a lesser note, welcome Paul Martin back to the lineup as well.  Crosby will start with Cooke and Kennedy. But I expect him to take the ice with pretty much everyone.

No more comeback games, okay?  Just continue playing!

- The Pens have won 9 in a row coming into this game, and are chasing the Rangers hard for 1^st place in the conference.  This is as big as games get in the regular season.

- This will be just the 7^th time in the past 157 games that the Pens have Crosby, Malkin, Staal, Letang, and Fleury in the lineup.

Result:

Pens  5  Rangers  2

Goals:  Cooke (13) from Kennedy

            Malkin  (39) from Neal

            Cooke (14) from Kennedy, Staal

            Kunitz (21) from Crosby, Neal

            Dupuis (19) from Letang, Martin

               

The Good:

- Make it 10 in a row!!! The Pens gain 2 points on the Rangers.  They are now 4 points behind New York, with one less game played and one more game against the Rangers ahead.  This will be a tight race to the finish, and don’t look now, but the Flyers are right on the Penguins’ tails as well.

- Staal extended his career high points streak to 9 games with the assist on Cooke’s 2^nd goal

Injury Returns:  Crosby came back with an assist and a +3 in 16 minutes of ice time.  He also was 11 for 21 on faceoffs.  He was able to get into the gritty areas and take hits while showing no ill-effects.  Let’s hope this continues more smoothly than last time.  The bigger story tonight was probably Letang though.  Letang put up a +5 and an assist in 24 minutes of ice time.  He was superb tonight in the defensive end, especially when he was left out to dry for three 2 on 1’s against him, none of which ended in a goal.  Oddly enough, adding 2 of the best players in hockey back to the lineup tends to be a good thing.

He didn't get much help, but he didn't need it.  Letang was flawless.

Marc-Andre Fleury – Flower made some simply defiant saves, to the point that it looked like he was teasing people.  He made at least 4 saves while he was flat on the ground by getting his glove or blocker up just in time.  He ended up stopping 29 of 31 shots and ensured that the Rangers would not get an easy goal to try for a comeback.  As Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo’s Puck Daddy put it: “John Mitchell, sitting alone in the corner, rocking back and forth chanting "Fleury... Fleury ..."” 

Matt Cooke – What’s Sidney Crosby doing on the 3rd line? Wait, maybe it’s what’s Matt Cooke doing on the 3rd line? His first goal was simply odd and lucky as a blocked shot went off the crossbar, a Ranger, and in the net. His second was just beautiful chemistry from the line of Staal-Cooke-Kennedy. Gotta give Cooke credit, he really can adjust to any situation, defensively or offensively, to contribute to this team.

Cooke shouts as Crosby tries to cannibalize a goal from him.

The Bad:

- I will give this one time, but at first glance the powerplay isn’t going to work out when it’s built as a hero line.  All 5 players are tremendously talented and a line of Kunitz-Neal-Malkin-Crosby-Letang has more potential than any line you’ll see, but it doesn’t seem to have a leader.  The nice thing about Sullivan at the point was he took control and quarterbacked the powerplay, allowing Letang to get into a shoot first mentality and the forwards to just do their jobs.  With this set of 5, no one really takes control and it leads to many awkward and unselfish passes/questionable shots.  We shall see how it evolves though. (0 for 4 tonight)

Orpik/Michalek – I had gotten so used to putting them under The Good section, but they simply couldn’t handle the matchup against Gaborik’s line tonight.  They were frequently caught out of position and chasing that line around.  The biggest problem with that matchup was simply pure speed as Michalek and Orpik don’t have that, but Gaborik and Hagelin can skate around anyone.  It was a smart matchup for Tortorella to exploit rather than have his top line against a fleet-footed Letang.

The Ugly:

- Only one shift stuck out in my mind for this, and that was when Girardi, Boyle, and Prust all hit Malkin at various times, leading to Malkin trying to line up guys and missing.  The Rangers clearly wanted to take a page out of the playbook entitled knock Malkin off of his game.  He was solid tonight, so it didn’t work, but I hope he can be consistent with that as it will happen more and more through the playoffs.

Thoughts:

- Bylsma went nuts with the lines, basically trying every combination that was possible for 12 forwards on 4 lines.  I imagine over the next week or so, we will see even more of that as Crosby gets back up to speed and the coaches look for who gels best together.  Remember, Kunitz-Malkin-Neal and Sullivan-Staal-Dupuis are great together, but there is nothing that says another set of 3 can’t be better.  Tonight showed me that Bylsma won’t be complacent with his hot lines, but will keep trying to improve, and that’s a great sign.

Just look at them, you can't keep Sid and Kunitz apart!!!

 - Next 2 games are against a New Jersey team that is cooling down on Saturday and a red hot Flyers team on Sunday.  If Thiessen is getting a start, it will certainly be on Saturday.  I have a hard time seeing Bylsma not using Fleury in both games though.  The division is certainly in reach and I’m sure the team wants it.  As much as I worry about Fleury’s games played going into the playoffs, it’s impossible to say stop doing what is working right now.

- No Rangers really took a run at Crosby, which I was rather surprised by.  I think if Callahan had been in the lineup, he probably would have been the one to pester Sid.  New Jersey doesn’t really have a player or line that is going to rough Sid up either.  His biggest physical test will certainly be Sunday, when all of Philly tries to kill him.

- It’s a shame that the Rangers had to go without Lundqvist in this game.  The Pens look great, and are hot, but the true test would have been to go against the best goalie in the NHL right now.  I look forward to our last meeting with them to see the massive collision of talent there.  And if you aren’t quite sure where Lundqvist stacks up right now, here’s an article I did on thehockeywriters.com that includes his (and other’s) numbers: http://thehockeywriters.com/kings-quick-making-a-strong-case-for-vezina/  They are mind-numbing.

  

Pens Record: 43-21-5, 91 pts, 2^nd in the Atlantic, 4^th in the East

Next Game:  3/17 @ NJ, 1pm

Pens Extend Streak to 8!!

Main Storylines:

- The Pens have won 7 in a row heading into tonight against the Panthers

- Evgeni Malkin’s next point will be his 500^th in the NHL

- Two droughts to watch:  James Neal has gone 8 games without a goal, since the day before he signed his contract extension.  Also, the powerplay has not scored a goal since Letang went out a week ago.

- Paul Martin looks to be out with an “illness” and Simon Despres has been called up to replace him in the lineup.  Before you cheer wildly, here’s a stat for you: Martin is a +6 since he was split up from Michalek (who is a +7 in that time).

Welcome back to the NHL, Simon!

Result:

Pens  2 Panthers  1 (SO)

Goals:  Sullivan (14) from Staal, Dupuis

           SO Goals: Neal, Malkin

               

The Good:

- The Pens tie their season high win streak with their 8^th in a row!  This was also their 8^th win this season when trailing after 2 periods, tying Tampa Bay for the league lead.  The last time the Pens had this many come from behind victories was in 08-09, when they set the franchise record at 11.  We all remember 08-09….

- Evgeni Malkin scored his 8^th shootout goal of the season (tying the franchise high for a season w/ Crosby and Christensen). Remember when he was bad at those?  His was also the 100^th shootout goal in franchise history.  Hooray stats that don’t count for anything!

Shame it couldn't be his 500th point though.

Marc-Andre Fleury – Consol broke out into a total of one “Fleeeurrry” chant tonight.  Weak, crowd, weak.  MAF was a stud in net as usual, stopping 28 of 29 shots and stopping both shootout shots that he faced.  When the Pens couldn’t get anything going in the first period, Flower did his work as usual.  He may not have had any “spectacular” saves tonight, but one might argue that he’s been so solid positionally that he doesn’t have to as much anymore.  FLEURY FLEURY FLEURY!!!

Jordan Staal – Staal assisted on Sullivan’s goal to extend his point streak to a career high 7 games.  He was 15 for 20 in the faceoff circle and he’s definitely the key ingredient to a “2^nd line” that is playing some dominant hockey right now.  Staal’s hands look quick, his skating is strong, and his reach is unbeatable right now.  Just think about how many teams could use him as a #1 center right now.  (I do take away from him a little for losing Fleischmann on the only Panthers goal though, bad Jordan, bad.)

Look at the intensity, the reach, the wonder that is Jordan Staal.

Orpik/Michalek – I can’t emphasize the great play of this pairing enough as of late.  They combined for 4 shots, 8 blocks, 5 hits, and played the full PK time.  Michalek logged 28 minutes and Orpik played 25.  You really can’t ask for any more out of these 2 defensemen right now.  Also, give Orpik a lot of credit for helping Fleury on the partial breakaway stop.  Orpik’s persistence made it impossible for the shooter to make a move or do anything but take a shot into Fleury’s pads.  Textbook defense in that situation.

The Bad:

- Winning is awesome, but the shootouts may hurt the Pens in the end.  This was the 9^th shootout victory for the Pens this season.  The tiebreaker is non-SO wins.  Since we’re chasing the Rangers, note that NY has 39 non-SO wins and the Pens only have 32.  Yeah, losing that tiebreaker.  So while the Pens are only 4 points behind the Rangers, they might as well be 5 points out of first place.

A win's a win...except in the NHL. 

- Matt Niskanen’s ability to hit the net.  On 5 attempts he had 1 shot on net and 4 go wide.  Normally I wouldn’t make a big deal out of this, but a couple of those misses led to breakouts by the Panthers that hurt the Penguins momentum wise in a close game.

- The first line.  Malkin led the team in giveaways, Neal looked like he was pressing a bit, and Kunitz doesn’t seem to be able to contribute as much when the other 2 are off.  This line has definitely gone quiet for the time being.  Give Kunitz some credit though, he was a machine with stick lifts and disrupting plays in the defensive end at least.

The Ugly:

- Neal’s goalless streak extends to 9 games.  Neal looks like he’s trying to be too cute with the puck and trying to be overly impressive.  He needs to just relax and simplify his game.  His shot totals are dropping each game and I’d love to see him get back to just putting the puck on net.

Relax!!!

- Meanwhile, the powerplay continues to be worthless without Letang.  This has combined poorly with Neal's streak of course.  One thing to note though is that Malkin has stopped taking the full 2 minutes on powerplays.  The Pens trotted out a 2nd PP line of Cooke-Staal-Kennedy, with Dupuis-Despres on the points.  Let me spell that out (no offense to Staal and Dupuis who have been scoring very well), but that's 3 defensive guys who are great PKers, a rookie defenseman, and TK who is more likely to hit a fan in the upper level than score right now.  Forget the first PP line, the 2nd has to contribute at some point as well.

- The referees.  I’ll give them credit, they were at least consistent in calling nothing all game, but how is that going to help anything in the game of hockey?  Less PPs, less scoring, more obstruction, TALK ABOUT EXCITING!!

Thoughts:

- As I mentioned, the first line is struggling a bit right now.  I would love to see them broken up, but without touching Dupuis-Staal-Sullivan.  The impetus for this will likely be Crosby’s return.  It’s time to get over the idea that the line cannot be broken up though.  Keep Neal and Malkin together, but find a spark plug in that 3^rd spot (Cooke or Kennedy temporarily maybe?)

- Simon Despres was impressive in his return to Pittsburgh.  The thing that surprises me every time I see him play is just the sheer poise he shows in his game despite youth and lack of experience.  He looks and acts like he’s been there and plays with an incredible amount of confidence.  He’s ready to be here full time.

- Along with Despres, the whole defense has been stepping up a lot on the offensive side.  They combined for 8 shots on net and 8 missed shots as well, but hey, can’t score if you don’t shoot.  The only concern is the odd man breaks it may create (see: Michalek’s shot that was blocked and went for a partial breakaway).  If the D can be patient and smart, they will help a lot with the secondary scoring at this rate.

The downside to an active defense.

- Now begins the most intense part of Crosby watch as we wait to learn when he will come back.  He promised a day’s notice, so maybe we will hear tomorrow.  Personally, I would like to see Crosby wait another week.  The next 4 games: Boston at home, then on the road for NYR, NJ, and Philly for 3 games in 4 days.  After that, home against Wpg and Nash before going to Ott.  My point is this: Sid will still need to get up to game speed – practice only gets you so far.  Let him get up to game speed against lesser opponents, not those that want to decapitate him.  Just my two cents.

Pens Record: 41-21-5, 87 pts, 2^nd in the Atlantic, 4^th in the East

Next Game:  3/11 vs Bos, 12:30pm