Goal Assessment: Game 38 - Rangers 6 Pens 1

Link to Game 38 Thoughts:  The PensNation



+/- Assessment

1st Goal Against (Boyle): - for

• Kunitz – puts the team on the PK with a slashing penalty
• Murray – fails to clear the puck at his feet
• Engelland – fails to clear the puck at his feet
• Dupuis – gets a piece of Richards’ shot but it glances off of him and bounces past Fleury

2nd Goal Against (McDonagh): - for

• Glass – failed chip to clear the puck on the boards, then doesn’t attack the puck carrier later
• Morrow – failed chip to clear the puck on the opposite side boards
• Murray – gets drawn completely out of position which causes confusion with Niskanen
• Niskanen – backs away from the net and McDonagh instead of trying to block the shot or get in his way

3rd Goal Against (Clowe): - for

• Orpik – loses the puck to Stepan’s forecheck without any attempt to clear it or pass it away

4th Goal Against (Brassard): - for

• Malkin – in the penalty box for slashing

1st Goal For (Dupuis): + for

• Despres – feeds the puck up to Dupuis in the neutral zone
• Morrow – runs interference to let the puck get to Bortuzzo at the point
• Bortuzzo – takes a long shot from the point that creates a rebound
• Dupuis – dumps the puck in around the boards, eventually puts the rebound past Lundqvist

5th Goal Against (Clowe): - for

• Cooke – in the penalty box for tripping
• Sutter – doesn’t rotate down quickly enough to get a strong stick on Clowe

6th Goal Against (Moore): - for

• Vitale – loses a puck battle on the boards
• Cooke – doesn’t get out to his man at the point and deflects the puck on its way to Fleury
• (also a soft goal for Fleury to let up)

Season +/-:  Click here for the Season +/- Spreadsheet

Goal Assessment: Game 34 - Pens 1 Habs 0

Link for Game 34 Thoughts: The PensNation
Also - check out the Morrow/Murray trade thoughts here.



Easiest goal assessment ever!

+/- Assessment

1st Goal For (Crosby): + for

• Orpik – shovels a rebound from the crease area to the boards in the defensive zone
• Kunitz – retrieves the puck from the boards and makes a long cross-ice pass to Crosby entering the offensive zone
• Crosby – snipes a shot past Price’s blocker

Season +/-:  Click here for the Season +/- Spreadsheet

Goal Assessment: Game 30 - Pens 2 Bruins 1

Link for Game 30 Thoughts:  The PensNation

+/- Assessment

1st Goal For (Crosby): + for

• Dupuis – beats Chara to the puck behind the net and spins away from him, passing to Kunitz
• Kunitz – makes a quick pass across the slot to Crosby
• Crosby – shoots the puck past Rask, who was sprawling out of position

1st Goal Against (Seguin): - for

• Eaton – extended sequence begins when Eaton clears it up the middle directly to Boston so everyone starts scrambling in coverage, eventually covers the same guy as Sutter leaving Seguin by himself
• Cooke – not playing anywhere near the points for defensive coverage
• Kennedy – not playing anywhere near the points for defensive coverage
• Sutter – slides towards Eaton’s position where neither one of them adjusts

2nd Goal For (Vitale): + for

• Orpik – makes the lead pass from the defensive zone up to Vitale
• Adams – takes a shot that Rask can’t handle with his glove that leads to a rebound
• Vitale – drops puck off for Adams, skates in for the rebound and puts it over Rask

Season +/-:  Click here for the Season +/- Spreadsheet

Goal Assessment: Game 28 - Pens 3 Leafs 1

Link for Game 28 Thoughts:  The PensNation

+/- Assessment

1st Goal Against (Bozak): - for

• Crosby – bad line change leads to an uncovered defenseman entering the Penguins zone
• Dupuis – bad line change leads to an uncovered defenseman entering the Penguins zone
• Kunitz – releases coverage on Bozak when he’s unsure of what to do with the open man

1st Goal For (Dupuis): + for

• Martin – moves the neutral zone faceoff win over to Niskanen
• Niskanen – slaps the puck in around the boards for Kunitz forechecking on the other side
• Kunitz – wins the forechecking battle and feeds the puck to Sid at the faceoff circle
• Crosby – makes a ridiculous backhanded spin pass to Dupuis
• Dupuis – turns the pass to his forehand and scores

2nd Goal For (Dupuis): + for

• Crosby – gets a clutch stick deflection on a Leafs cross-crease pass in front of Fleury in the D zone (puck deflects to the glass and rolls up the boards)
• Kunitz – retrieves the puck off the boards in the D zone and takes it into the O zone, pulls up and feeds the puck to Dupuis in the high slot
• Dupuis – takes a quick snap shot that beats Scrivens

3rd Goal For (Adams): + for 

• Adams – blocks a shot, gathers the puck, and shoots it into an empty net from his own zone

Get the full season +/- here:  Season +/- Spreadsheet

Game 27 - Penguins 3 Bruins 2: Goal Assessment

Link for Game 27 Thoughts:  The PensNation

+/- Assessment

1st Goal Against (Chara): - for

• Crosby – too many men penalty: he was the 6th man and easily could have / should have seen Kunitz go on a couple steps before him
• Martin – fails to retrieve the puck in the corner and then shifts a little high, leaving 2 guys on the crease for Orpik
• Orpik – doesn’t even attempt to keep Bergeron from screening Fleury

2nd Goal Against (Seguin): - for

• Cooke – has Bergeron on the crease and releases on his coverage as Bergeron skates behind the net to open himself up for a pass
• Letang – has Seguin on the crease and releases on his coverage as Seguin goes to provide an outlet for Marchand, then leaves the crease area to go after Bergeron once he receives the pass behind the net
• Kennedy – is left with coverage on Seguin due to above abandonments by Cooke and Letang, but doesn’t follow Seguin closely or try to tie up his stick

1st Goal For (Kunitz): + for

• Engelland – gives Letang a passing option and feeds the puck back to him
• Letang – gives Kunitz a perfect pass to one-time
• Dupuis – skates the opposite direction of Kunitz to pull Chara completely out of position with him
• Kunitz – does the forechecking job to retrieve the puck and pass it back to Letang on the point, then gets into shooting position on the other side of the ice and scores on a one-timer

2nd Goal For (Sutter): + for

• Bennett – carries the puck into the offensive zone and passes it to the left to Neal
• Neal – pulls the puck to the right to move a defender towards him and then passes it to the left to Sutter with an open shooting lane
• Sutter – made the initial pass off the boards in the neutral zone to spring Bennett and then took Neal’s pass and shot it past Khudobin

3rd Goal For (Sutter): + for

• Crosby – forces the defender to drop to the ground to cover a pass on the 2 on 1
• Sutter – intercepts the puck inside the offensive zone and rips it past Khudobin

Get the full season +/- here:  Season +/- Spreadsheet

Game 25 - Penguins 5 Maple Leafs 4 (SO): Goal Assessment

Full thoughts here:  The PensNation

+/- Assessment:

1st Goal For (Neal): + for

• Malkin – wins the faceoff
• Letang – passes over to Niskanen
• Niskanen – shoots the puck, which gets blocked, but makes it to Neal
• Bennett – provides traffic and a screen in front of Reimer
• Neal – fires the loose puck past Reimer

1st Goal Against (Van Riemsdyk): - for

• Bennett – in the penalty box for a high sticking penalty
• Orpik – nowhere close to JVR on the crease to even get a stick on him

2nd Goal For (Crosby): + for

• Bennett – sends the breakout pass to Letang
• Letang – rushes the puck into the offensive zone, gets a shot on Reimer and picks up his own rebound which he throws at the net off the post
• Crosby – corrals the puck off the rebound off the post and shoots it into an open net

3rd Goal For (Martin): + for

• Orpik – pinches in slightly to keep the puck in the zone
• Neal – provides support to keep the puck in and whacks it past 2 defenders
• Malkin – picks up the loose puck and throws it across to Martin
• Bennett – draws Gunnarsson’s attention on defense, which leads to him putting the puck into his own net
• Martin – takes the shot which glances off of some sticks and into the net

2nd Goal Against (Franson): - for

• Crosby – in the penalty box for tripping
• Letang – stands next to JVR in front of Fleury, adding to the screen Fleury tries to look around unsuccessfully

4th Goal For (Dupuis): + for

• Kunitz – forechecks in the corner to win the puck battle
• Crosby – forechecks in the corner to win the puck battle and passes it up to Orpik
• Orpik – passes the puck over to Martin
• Martin – gets the puck deep into the zone to Dupuis
• Dupuis – originally kept the puck in the zone to start the sequence, gets a shot on Reimer, grabs his rebound, and banks the puck in off of Fraser’s skate

3rd Goal Against (MacArthur): - for

• Niskanen – hesitates as MacArthur comes in and neither steps up to him nor goes for the shot block

4th Goal Against (Kessel): - for

• Martin – doesn’t follow Kessel moving to open space while everyone else has a guy/spot covered, tries to take Niskanen’s defensive position

Season +/-:  Click here for the Season +/- Spreadsheet

Game 24 - Penguins 5 Flyers 4: Goal Assessment

Get the post-game thoughts here:  The PensNation

+/- Assessment:

1st Goal Against (Voracek): - for

• Neal – in the penalty box for elbowing (a soft call, but he still put himself in position for it unnecessarily)
• Martin – had no clue Voracek was sliding down from his point position
• Orpik – didn’t adjust to Simmonds going down low, leaving Martin to cover Simmonds and the back side

1st Goal For (Kunitz): + for

• Crosby – steals the puck at the blue line from Couturier and passes it to Letang
• Letang – puts the puck into the slot/crease area
• Kunitz – picks up the puck in front and scores

2nd Goal Against (Rinaldo): - for

• Niskanen – not back into the play yet after serving an interference penalty
• Crosby – doesn’t go out to the point after the faceoff (miscommunication with Kunitz)
• Kunitz – doesn’t go out to the point after the faceoff (miscommunication with Crosby)
• Engelland – leans on Rinaldo, but releases when the puck gets to the net

3rd Goal Against (Timonen): - for

• Engelland – stops abruptly in front of Fleury, creating a screen instead of following the puck out to Timonen
• (also Fleury’s fault, he should have had it)

4th Goal Against (Voracek): - for

• Neal – in the penalty box for slashing
• No One Else – there were 3 bad bounces that worked against the Pens in about 4 seconds

2nd Goal For (Dupius): + for

• Kunitz – keeps the puck in on the first clearing attempt
• Orpik – gets the puck at the blue line and fires it to the net
• Crosby – takes the puck behind the net and gives Dupuis a perfect saucer pass
• Dupuis – scores on a wide open net

3rd Goal For (Neal): + for

• Bennett – takes the puck away from Simmonds in the offensive zone
• Malkin – draws Coburn’s attention on the crease and pulls him further away from Neal
• Neal – puts the puck towards the net and it banks in off of Coburn

4th Goal For (Kennedy): + for

• Sutter – dumps puck in, tries to put it on net, and provides a screen in front of Bryzgalov
• Cooke – keeps the puck in with a forecheck and then sets up Kennedy
• Kennedy – keeps the puck in with a forecheck and then finds open space to one-time Cooke’s pass into the net

5th Goal For (Kunitz): + for

• Dupuis – takes the puck away from Timonen at the defensive blue line, chips it up to Kunitz
• Crosby – sets up Kunitz for the goal
• Kunitz – passes the puck to Crosby and then gets into a shooting position to score the game winner

Season +/-:  Click here for the Season +/- Spreadsheet

Penguins - Canadiens: Goal Assessment

Better late than never, right?  Here's the breakdown for the Canadiens game.

+/- Assessment:

1st Goal Against (Prust): - for

• Orpik – doesn’t slide down to the crease to cover the area in front with Letang behind the net
• Adams – meanders around and behind the net without going after the puck or a guy

1st Goal For (Sutter): + for

• Niskanen – breaks the puck out of the defensive zone
• Bennett – moves the puck through the neutral zone to Sutter
• Letang – takes the shot that glances over to Sutter
• Sutter – passed the puck to Letang, and scores as Letang’s shot deflects to him

2nd Goal Against (Pacioretty): - for

• Jeffrey – fails to help Letang’s clearing effort out at the blue line
• Letang – over-pursues the puck and then doesn’t recover
• Orpik – under-pursues the puck and doesn’t make a play on it

2nd Goal For (Kunitz): + for

• Engelland – gets a takeaway in the defensive zone and pushes it up to Kunitz
• Crosby – takes the shot on net and feeds Kunitz from behind
• Kunitz – moved the puck to Crosby and then takes his pass and banks it in off of Price

3rd Goal For (Cooke): + for

• Letang – great keep at the blue line, passes to Orpik
• Orpik – moves the puck to Cooke
• Neal – screens Price on the crease
• Cooke – wrist shot finds its way into the net

4th Goal For (Cooke): + for

• Neal – breaks puck into the zone
• Cooke – wrist shot beats Price again

3rd Goal Against (Gionta): - for

• Kennedy – not back into the play yet from the penalty box

4th Goal Against (Subban): - for

• Orpik – ices the puck with 7 seconds left
• Letang – gets caught chasing the puck behind the net
• Neal – doesn’t follow Subban from the point to the crease

5th Goal Against (Desharnais): - for

• Engelland – fails to clear the puck
• Jeffrey – fails to help Engelland with the clear, then doesn’t cover Desharnais on the crease

5th Goal For (Kunitz): + for

• Dupuis – keeps puck in the zone
• Letang – skates puck below the goal line and passes across to Crosby
• Crosby – passes to Kunitz in the high slot
• Kunitz – scores on a one-timer

6th Goal For (Crosby): + for  

• Kennedy – backchecks to cause a turnover in the defensive zone
• Kunitz – takes the puck through the neutral zone
• Letang – takes the puck deep into the zone and tries to get it on net
• Crosby – skates in and shoots a loose puck past Price

6th Goal Against (Gionta): - for

• No One – that goal is on Vokoun completely

7th Goal For (Sutter): + for

• Despres – breaks the puck through the neutral zone and lets it go for Neal
• Neal – pulls a defender away and passes to Sutter
• Sutter – takes the puck around a defender and beats Price with a wrist shot

Pens Player Power Rankings - Week 5

The Penguins went 3-0 this past week as they waved goodbye to Eric Tangradi, welcomed in Beau Bennett, cheered on heroes Craig Adams and Paul Martin, and questioned slumping Evgeni Malkin.

Rank	Player (Last Rank)	Last Week's Performance
1	Marc-Andre Fleury (2)	The numbers say it all - even with 2 bad goals vs Ottawa, Fleury has been outstanding lately (3-0, 2.01 GAA, .932 Save %)
2	Sidney Crosby (4)	He's only one point behind Vanek for the NHL scoring lead and is the only one producing consistently (2g, 5a, 41/72 faceoffs)
3	Brooks Orpik (10)	Has looked stronger and more efficient since the blue line returned to health (2a, 6 hits, 6 blocks)
4	Paul Martin (1)	Put an exclamation point on his season of redemption so far with the game winner against Buffalo (1g, 2a, 3 blocks)
5	Pascal Dupuis (3)	Still undervalued somehow, but producing on the scoresheet and contributing in all 3 zones (3g, 1a, 6 hits, 3 blocks)
6	James Neal (8)	Still getting it done mostly on the powerplay, but goals are goals (3g, 1a)
7	Craig Adams (14)	Well-rewarded for his hardwork this season with 2 goals against the Jets. Contributing as expected elsewhere (2g, 5 hits)
8	Matt Niskanen (Inj)	Appears to be improving each game since his return and will likely challenge 7 and 44 for top Dman this week (4 hits, 7 blocks)
9	Kris Letang (Inj)	Needed a game to adjust his timing but has gotten his skating back. Decrease in PP usage is an interesting twist (2a, 7 blocks)
10	Chris Kunitz (7)	Continues to play physical and clear room for Crosby to do his work all over the ice (0g, 3a, 7 hits)
11	Joe Vitale (18)	Outstanding in the faceoff circle and finally helped a strong 4th line get on the scoresheet (1a, 18/26 faceoffs, 4 blocks)
12	Evgeni Malkin (5)	Doing the little things right but struggling to put up points. Appears to be missing the net more lately (0g, 1a, 11/31 faceoffs)
13	Matt Cooke (16)	Playing better on the 2nd line but only talked about for the Karlsson accident - It was an accident (1a, 3 hits, 4 blocks)
14	Tanner Glass (17)	Forechecking and penalty kill specialist keeps doing his job with the added purpose of defending teammates (9 hits)
15	Brandon Sutter (11)	Playing strong defensively as usual but the 3rd line may get passed up by the 4th for offensive production soon (19/37 faceoffs, 5 blocks)
16	Deryk Engelland (9)	Quietly doing his job as a dependable 3rd pairing defender (1a, 4 hits)
17	Tyler Kennedy (19)	Demonstrating improvement as of late but still needs to get on the scoresheet asap (8 hits)
18	Simon Despres (12)	Played well but was scratched for Bortuzzo vs Buf. May return to the lineup on Wed. (2 hits, 2 blocks)
19	Beau Bennett (NA)	Looked jittery, yet NHL capable in first 2 games. Will surely move up quickly with more ice time. (2 shots, 1 hit, 2 blocks)
20	Zach Boychuk (20)	Has become the new healthy scratch and may not stay in the organization with Bennett's call up (1 hit)
21	Robert Bortuzzo (6)	Only played in the Buffalo game and made a mistake that led to a goal. Probably will be the odd man out again (-1)
22	Tomas Vokoun (15)	Having a solid season but it's Fleury's team and MAF earned all of the starts last week (Did Not Play)
23	Dustin Jeffrey (21)	#FreeDustinJeffrey (Did Not Play)

Penguins Wake Ovechkin Up, Proceed to Beat Him

Main Storylines:

• Ben Lovejoy was traded to Anaheim for a 2014 5th round pick.  Dylan Reese was recalled from WBS.
• Kris Letang will miss tonight due to an unknown ailment (I bet it’s a body injury, maybe even inner).
• Dylan Reese makes his Penguins debut, paired up with Simon Despres

Result:

Pens 5  Caps 2

Goals:  Malkin (3) (PP) from Crosby, Martin

            Dupuis (4) from Crosby, Kunitz

            Neal (7) (PP) from Kunitz, Malkin

            Cooke (2) from Sutter

            Crosby (5) (PP) from Malkin, Neal

ESPN Recap:  http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/recap?gameId=400442619

Stats:

• Most playing time: 28:08 for Paul Martin followed by 23:14 for Brooks Orpik
• Least playing time: 11:07 for Tyler Kennedy and then 11:38 for Zach Boychuk
• The Pens went 36 for 62 on faceoffs (Big 3 - Crosby: 12/23, Malkin: 10/16, Sutter: 8/13)
• Robert Bortuzzo led the team in hits (3) and penalties (2)
• The powerplay went 3/4 to increase their season total to 12/41 (29.3%)

The Good:

All smiles for the powerplay.

• Evgeni Malkin:  Geno seems to have shaken his KHL rust off completely at this point. Aside from his top corner snipe on Neuvirth and 2 powerplay assists, he’s demonstrating an increasing level of comfort in his skating and willingness to attempt various moves.  You can really tell when Malkin is feeling it based on his “swagger” on the ice, which tonight included a spin-o-rama shot (wide) and tape to tape passes.  I wouldn’t be surprised if this is the start of a goal streak for him.
• Powerplay:  While many of us (myself included) had suggested put Martin on the point and [foolishly] take Kunitz off the powerplay or split Malkin and Crosby up, Martin finally got his chance due to Letang’s absence tonight.  He ran the powerplay with poise and confidence and was certainly a factor in their 3 for 4 performance tonight.  The powerplay was clicking all over tonight as everyone made tape to tape passes and retrieved rebounds and pucks on the boards.  High skill + high effort + accuracy = lethal powerplay.  The usage of Crosby and Malkin across from each other on the left and right half boards (both had turns on each side) gave the Capitals fits and should be a fixture moving forward.
• Sidney Crosby:  All of a sudden, Crosby is tied for 3rd in points in the league and has put together a 6 game point streak.  Not bad for a guy that “started slow”, “would never return to form”, and “passed the baton.”  No matter what your feelings were going into the season, there is no doubt Crosby is playing at his elite level right now and wasn’t even slowed down by a puck to the face.  Good luck finding many players that scored the way he did tonight.  On a defensive note, his penalty killing has been quite strong too.
• Paul Martin:  As mentioned under the powerplay, Martin continues to move the puck with poise and has just simplified his game to a point of mastery.  He played a whopping 28:08 tonight, almost 5 minutes more than anyone else on the team.  Odds are you didn’t even notice it because he played that well.  I’m starting to run out of specifics to compliment Martin on because he has elevated his game that much.

The Bad:

• 2nd Line:  While Neal and Malkin looked great on the powerplay, the 2nd line still needs some work.  Neal was pass-happy, no wait, make that blind pass-happy and had issues turning the puck over.  Boychuk still had great bursts of speed and looked very much in sync with Malkin but his puck control could use some help.  The line as a whole seemed to make far too many short passes (we’ll say less than 3 ft) that were either unnecessary or too tough for someone to handle.  This line still hasn’t found their rhythm yet and I still think Jeffrey will return to the lineup sooner than later.
• Brandon Sutter:  This is certainly nitpicky because Sutter wasn’t bad; he just wasn’t up to par either.  His flaws were masked by the 5-2 win and his perfect faceoff win on Cooke’s goal, but he has had trouble controlling the puck and getting it out of the zone.  To a degree, I trust Sutter more without the puck than with the puck in the defensive and neutral zone right now.  That being said, he is still a stud when it comes to covering guys and blocking shots.  He just needs to be stronger on the puck on clears and passes.

The Ugly:

Wasn't Oates supposed to "unleash" Ovi?

• The Caps:  I had nothing marked badly enough for the Pens to put in this section (heck, I nitpicked to make a “Bad” section), so let’s attack what was ugly – the Washington Capitals.  Many fans had a bad feeling going into this game.  The Caps always play the Pens well in Pittsburgh, they had a big point to prove, and they were looking for a revenge game.  It started out strongly for Washington with the Ribeiro goal (don’t blame the refs, don’t blame the rules, Orpik got his stick under Fleury’s mask and knocked it off - lack of awareness on both of their parts).  Then there were just bizarre moves.  Pulling Neuvirth after the 2nd goal seemed foolish (and indeed did backfire) even if it was a soft goal.  The Caps as a team looked disgruntled after that happened instead of showing a renewed energy.  Why didn’t Oates use his timeout instead of going to Holtby who had gotten destroyed just days ago?  Then, why didn’t he use it after Holtby got blitzed twice in 11 seconds?  I thought Ovechkin played a strong game and looked awake again but the team as a whole just looked frazzled after the 2nd goal and had no rallying point.  What is the identity of the Capitals?  I don’t think anyone knows right now.

+/- Assessment:

Just glad the puck didn't hit Fleury's head.

• 1st GA (Ribeiro): - for Sutter (knocked off puck), Cooke (too deep in D zone, not covering point), Orpik (gets under Fleury’s mask with his stick)
• 1st GF (Malkin): + for Martin (pass to Crosby), Crosby (pass to Malkin), Kunitz (interferes with Carlson), Malkin (goal)
• 2nd GF (Dupuis): + for Engelland (breakout pass), Kunitz (passes up to Sid), Crosby (pass to Dupuis), Dupuis (goal)
• 3rd GF (Neal): + for Malkin (stretch pass to Kunitz), Kunitz (pass to the goal line to Neal), Neal (goal)
• 4th GF (Cooke): + for Sutter (faceoff win), Cooke (goal)
• 5th GF (Crosby): + for Neal (passes to Malkin), Malkin (shot that creates rebound), Crosby (retrieved puck originally, goal)
• 2nd GA (Ovechkin): - for Orpik (penalty)
• Click here to get the Season +/- spreadsheet and totals

Thoughts:

Nice and simple debut.

• Lovejoy Trade:  As you likely know, Lovejoy was traded to the Ducks for a 5th round pick.  I think it’s a fair trade, and honestly a generous trade since Lovejoy likely would have been put on waivers.  The Ducks are tearing it up right now and Lovejoy would have been claimed before he made it to them.  Pittsburgh gains compensation and the Ducks pay for depth.  It’s a solid trade for both teams.
• Dylan Reese:  I was very impressed with Reese, who played over 14 minutes in this game.  He played smart and simple hockey to perfection.  He didn’t take a single risk in passing or shooting the puck, and even made some superb line changes (I’m serious).  I noticed twice that he refused to change until his other D partner had changed and the new defenseman had already shifted over to cover him for his change.  It sounds natural and simple, but natural and simple is what wins hockey games for 3rd pairing defensemen, so good for him.
• Robert Bortuzzo:  Bortuzzo played well as usual and I had to give him credit for showing absolutely no fear with Ovechkin in the 3rd period.  The second penalty he took was certainly interference and I could have done without that (kept him out of the good section) but the first penalty was a good one.  He clearly stood up to Ovi and got into his head.  Not only that, but I will take a Bortuzzo for Ovechkin trade to the penalty box any day of the week.  Bortuzzo has quickly acclimated himself to the NHL and is showing he really belongs.

Pens Record: 8-3-0, 16 pts

Next Game:  2/9 @ NJ, 1pm