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Thread: Pittsburgh Penguins

  1. #211
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    Default 3/3/12 @ Colorado Avalanche

    I wasn't able to watch the game against Colorado this evening, but I wanted to post something regardless. I've seen a few highlights on NHL Tonight and I've been scowering over the box-score for the past little while and a few things stand out to me from tonight's contest:


    - First of all, the Penguins were outshot 36-28 in tonight's game. The Penguins usually don't give up a ton of shots, and just glancing at the score (5-1) I'm guessing the Penguins went into a bit of a defensive shell in the 3rd period, and probably gave up a bunch of shots over the final 20 minutes. In any event, MAF was pretty outstanding just by the look of things, making 35 saves and only allowing a Matt Hunwick goal in the 3rd - on which Fleury had no chance after the puck trickled into the slot.

    - Matt Niskanen (as we all expected) was the major beneficiary of the Kris Letang concussion, and saw over 4+ minutes on the Penguins PP1 unit - skating with Malkin, Neal, Kunitz, Sullivan. Paul Martin, however, was the most productive Penguins blueliner, registering 2A / 2PIM / +3 in tonight's game. Don't sleep on Paul Martin, people. If he has another couple solid efforts, I wouldn't be surprised to see him assume the PP1 role currently filled by Niskanen. Stranger things have surely happened. Brooks Orpik also had 2A tonight (+2, 0 SOG).

    - This game was characterized by a lot of secondary scoring - for both teams. The Penguins received goals from Aaron Asham, Deryk Engelland and Richard Park (unexpected) also getting tallies from Malkin and Sullivan (not unexpected). Don't look now but Steve Sullivan is developing some serious chemistry with Jordan Staal; as Staal continues to pile up the points (1A, +3, 3 SOG tonight), Sullivan has also found his scoring touch as of late - scoring 10 points on a current 7-gm point streak. I would expect to see these guys flourish together down the stretch, if you need some F help in your league don't sleep in Sullivan.

    - Dustin Jeffrey, as well as Brent Johnson and Letang, were PIT scratches in tonight's game.

    - Evgeni Malkin scored again (38), giving him 80 points on the season. Steven Stamkos is "technically" the NHL-scoring leader w/ 80 points as well (47 goals) but Stamkos has played in eight more games than Evgeni Malkin. Geno's PPG pace (1.4) is higher than both Stamkos (1.23) and Claude Giroux (1.27). Malkin has been an absolute force this season, and for him to be able to step up like this, in the absence of Sidney Crosby, and take the team on his shoulders is nothing short of miraculous. Major, major props for the kind of season Malkin is putting together.

    - The Pittsburgh Penguins have now won 5 straight games. Without Letang in the lineup, it's going to be more and more difficult to pile up points down the stretch. At this point, making some kind of run at a playoff position higher than #4 is going to be next to impossible. The Rangers have a pretty decent lead in the Atlantic Division (8 pts with a game in hand), and the Pens will have a hard enough time fighting off New Jersey and Philadelphia. It's going to be a tough stretch of games coming up. Let's hope Letang makes a miraculous return before the playoffs. Otherwise it might just be Crosby or bust from here on out.

    Game Statistics:

    Penguins 5 - Avalanche 1

    SOG: 36-28 COL
    HITS: 26-26 tie
    FOW: 34-19 COL
    BLKS: 17-11 PIT
    Link to Boxscore @ NHL.com


    'Til next time. Hope you guys can get some value from these disjointed post-game thoughts.
    MounD - Double Threat FHL (18-19 champs)

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    LW: Marchand, Landeskog, Hertl, Marchessault
    RW: Stamkos, Tarasenko, Laine, Palmieri
    D: Carlson, Letang, Dumba, Weber, Pietrangelo, Ristolainen, Byfuglien*
    G: Bobrovsky, Holtby, Lehner, Greiss-Varlamov

    Farm: Turcotte, Cozens, Denisenko, Newhook // Sandin, Jokiharju, Dobson, K'Andre // Shesterkin

  2. #212
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    After Crosby re-injured himself against the Bruins on December 5th, Penguins started to struggle. The loss of their captain after just getting him back seemed to be the breaking point for this team. Penguins went 5-9 and for the first time in ages, they were out of playoffs seed. The 1-0 loss to Capitals on January 11th dropped the Penguins to 9th place on Eastern Conference and the team was on a 6 game losing streak in which they only scored 6 goals. Things weren't looking good for the Penguins. Enter the GM of the Penguins, Ray Shero:

    "We're making the playoffs, put it that way" Shero said. "Anything less is unacceptable."

    The team has responded greatly to Shero's statement. Penguins went on winning 8 straight games after that and has been 17-4-1 in the last 22 games since that. The Penguins are on a roll. The loss of Letang puts the Penguins on a tough spot, once again, but one thing is certain:

    In Ray Shero We Trust!
    ----

    On another news, Brian Strait has been called up.
    Last edited by Carcillo; March 5, 2012 at 11:31 AM.
    UHL Pittsburgh Penguins

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  3. #213
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    Default Pens Week in Review (Feb. 27 - Mar. 4)

    Hey guys, back again for the Pens Week in Review...

    Check out the latest over at HHH:

    "Pens Week in Review (Feb. 27 - Mar. 4)"

    Hope you guys enjoy, and as always check out the latest from my blogging partners when you get a chance.

    Cheers.
    MounD - Double Threat FHL (18-19 champs)

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    C: Bergeron, Barkov, Aho, Point, Kadri
    LW: Marchand, Landeskog, Hertl, Marchessault
    RW: Stamkos, Tarasenko, Laine, Palmieri
    D: Carlson, Letang, Dumba, Weber, Pietrangelo, Ristolainen, Byfuglien*
    G: Bobrovsky, Holtby, Lehner, Greiss-Varlamov

    Farm: Turcotte, Cozens, Denisenko, Newhook // Sandin, Jokiharju, Dobson, K'Andre // Shesterkin

  4. #214
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    Default The "Other" Centerman

    Hey guys check out the latest over at HHH:


    The "Other" Centerman


    An analysis of the oft-overlooked, underrated Jordan Staal.

    I hope you guys enjoy. Cheers.
    MounD - Double Threat FHL (18-19 champs)

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    C: Bergeron, Barkov, Aho, Point, Kadri
    LW: Marchand, Landeskog, Hertl, Marchessault
    RW: Stamkos, Tarasenko, Laine, Palmieri
    D: Carlson, Letang, Dumba, Weber, Pietrangelo, Ristolainen, Byfuglien*
    G: Bobrovsky, Holtby, Lehner, Greiss-Varlamov

    Farm: Turcotte, Cozens, Denisenko, Newhook // Sandin, Jokiharju, Dobson, K'Andre // Shesterkin

  5. #215
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    Default Pens Report 3/7/12

    Crosby obviously cleared for contact yesterday... This is without a doubt big news for the club, especially after Letang going down recently. This is a total gamechanger, and many fans (including myself) who had all but written the season off as a loss, are ready to throw their chips back down and label the Penguins as serious contenders.

    Pens Report via penguins.nhl.com :

    Coachspeak with Dan Bylsma:

    On how he’ll fit Crosby back into the lineup when he returns:

    It’s a great problem to ponder and to think about, where you fit in what line he would play on. Certainly (Chris) Kunitz, (Evgeni) Malkin and (James) Neal have played spectacular and has been possibly the best line in hockey for two-and-a-half months. The thought of putting Sidney Crosby in the mix there – having the best player in the world in that mix as well – is certainly a good thing to ponder. Sid has been working hard. There was always talk around the trade deadline that the Pittsburgh Penguins could get the best trade deadline acquisition in Sidney Crosby. Obviously, we’ve all thought about that (possibility happening at some point in time). We have won some hockey games, but we all know that being able to add him into our lineup would be the best acquisition anyone could make. The possibility for that would be certainly welcomed sooner than later.

    On if he’s thought of who will be Crosby’s linemates when he returns:
    I think it’s natural to have thought long before yesterday about where Sidney would play and what line he would play on. There’s certainly a lot of thought been given to that. Had (casual) conversations with Sidney about that as well. When we have a time where he’s going to be getting back to that, we’ll have a better idea. We’ll let you see what that might be when he does possibly get back.

    On if he sees a noticeable improvement in areas of Fleury’s game since he has coached here:
    I think the first thing that comes to mind about Marc-Andre Fleury is going on runs in ’08-09 when guys were injured and the team was close to .500. Going on runs in February and March and doing that for his team, the ability to make a huge save and to have that dynamic save has always been a part of Marc’s game and on the highlights and a part of his career. But the consistency of which he’s played in the last two years especially, and again this year for us, has been really the big difference in his game and in his progression as a goalie. His consistency day-to-day, his consistency in the net, how he makes saves, his control in the net, control in the game, controlling rebounds, has been really a big part of the success over the last two years for our team and for Marc-Andre Fleury being able to get that many wins. He still has the ability to come out and do a two-pad stack on Martin Hanzal the last game and have that dramatic save. He’s acrobatic. He’s very athletic. But the consistency in how he’s played and in the net has really been solid. Making those saves for our team really gives our team a ton of confidence that we can win hockey games, whether it’s having to kill a big penalty or having to play a tighter game. He’s been that goalie for us. That’s been a real big development for Marc over the past 2-3 years.

    On if he makes any adjustments playing a coach who emphasizes matching lines:
    Yes. There is certainly a flow to the game that our players expect. But there’s also a flow to the game that can be disrupted if they are looking to match lines. That can be something that does happen throughout the course of the game. You can somewhat sometimes control those and who’s going on the ice for them by the line you put out. But we’re not a team that really works extremely hard to get a matchup. Our players somewhat expect a certain rhythm in the game. That’s probably more important than any type of matchup we would be looking for for our team.
    Some interesting tidbits in there about where Crosby will play when he makes his return to the lineup. Let's take a look at the current lines from today's practice, and then we can speculate as who Sid will line up with:

    Kunitz-Malkin-Neal
    Sullivan-Staal-Dupuis
    Cooke-Vitale-Kennedy
    Asham-Adams-Park
    I don't see the Penguins breaking up the Kunitz-Malkin-Neal trio. Arguably the best line in hockey throughout the course of the year, this line brings too much to the table to just break up for Crosby's sake. As for the Sullivan-Staal-Dupuis line, I think they have some security as well - at the very least I think Staal-Sullivan will be kept together as their recent chemistry has solidified some secondary scoring for the club. I would imagine that Dupuis will probably be moved off the 2nd line, and play on the wing with Crosby and Tyler Kennedy. This would leave the Penguins with the following "tentative" lines:

    Kunitz-Malkin-Neal
    Kennedy-Crosby-Dupuis
    Sullivan-Staal-Cooke
    Asham-Adams-Vitale(Park)

    I guess we'll see how things turn out. We all know very well at this point that Sidney Crosby will line up with Malkin/Kuni/Neal + Niskanen(Letang) on the PP. The fact of the matter is that Crosby has proven over his career that he has the ability to play - and create chemistry - with any player who lines up alongside him. It really doesn't matter where you put him, so I don't see the Penguins making any major changes to the top two lines in order to fit him in. Crosby is like one of those weird, stretchy elastic hats: no matter who you put him with, it fits.

    See you guys later on for some Pens/Leafs thoughts.
    Last edited by mounD; March 7, 2012 at 3:05 PM.
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    G: Bobrovsky, Holtby, Lehner, Greiss-Varlamov

    Farm: Turcotte, Cozens, Denisenko, Newhook // Sandin, Jokiharju, Dobson, K'Andre // Shesterkin

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    practice updates:

    Pens Inside Scoop ‏ @PensInsideScoop
    #Pens topp PP unit using Crosby and Letang on points with Kunitz, Neal and Malkin up front -SK

    Pens Inside Scoop ‏ @PensInsideScoop
    #Pens Kris Letang has joined his teammates on the ice for practice -MC

  7. #217
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    It's Christmas time for Pens fans! Both Crosby AND Letang back in the lineup tonight!
    UHL Pittsburgh Penguins

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  8. #218
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    Things have been really looking up for the Penguins recently, but alas I haven't been around to report on anything for you guys. For that I apologize, but I must explain myself a bit. I've been going through so much work for school - writing my thesis, finishing up classes, preparing to take the lsat exams - in addition to other writing obligations and what not, so the past few weeks have been pretty up and down. All this and heaped on to the pile perhaps the worst illness I've had in several years. I was pretty much in bed every day last week, writhing in pain in the delirium of fever. Fun times...

    In any event, I'm going to be back with a vengeance on some Penguins coverage this week although tomorrow night's coverage will likely have to wait until later on. I won't be able to watch much of the game as I have prep courses and night class; however, I will be viewing some and bringing you some post-game thoughts. Something closer to the "usual" coverage.

    In any event, I've compiled another Week in Review article over at HHH if you guys really need a Pittsburgh Penguins fix. Don't forget to check out the other contributors at the blog, and follow us on Twitter.

    Pens Week in Review: Mar. 19-25

    Enjoy. Cheers.
    MounD - Double Threat FHL (18-19 champs)

    10-Team Yahoo daily H2H Dynasty
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    G, A, +/-, PPP, SHP, SOG, FW, HIT, BLK // W, Sv, GAA, Sv%, SHO

    C: Bergeron, Barkov, Aho, Point, Kadri
    LW: Marchand, Landeskog, Hertl, Marchessault
    RW: Stamkos, Tarasenko, Laine, Palmieri
    D: Carlson, Letang, Dumba, Weber, Pietrangelo, Ristolainen, Byfuglien*
    G: Bobrovsky, Holtby, Lehner, Greiss-Varlamov

    Farm: Turcotte, Cozens, Denisenko, Newhook // Sandin, Jokiharju, Dobson, K'Andre // Shesterkin

  9. #219
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    Default Letang + other D-man updates

    https://twitter.com/#!/JoshYohe_Trib...64957353332736

    Bylsma: Lovejoy had surgery on knee. OUt 3-4 weeks. Letang lower-body injury, day to day
    https://twitter.com/#!/JoshYohe_Trib...65414796705793

    Letang flexed his legs when returning to the game in the second period. Probably shouldn't have been playing.
    So it looks like Letang might miss a couple games. Good thing the Pens play the Islanders twice over the next few days, should be a good opportunity to rest up.

    https://twitter.com/#!/JoshYohe_Trib...65034851500032

    Niskanen and Vitale are day to day. Johnson needs to progress, but getting closer
    MounD - Double Threat FHL (18-19 champs)

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    C: Bergeron, Barkov, Aho, Point, Kadri
    LW: Marchand, Landeskog, Hertl, Marchessault
    RW: Stamkos, Tarasenko, Laine, Palmieri
    D: Carlson, Letang, Dumba, Weber, Pietrangelo, Ristolainen, Byfuglien*
    G: Bobrovsky, Holtby, Lehner, Greiss-Varlamov

    Farm: Turcotte, Cozens, Denisenko, Newhook // Sandin, Jokiharju, Dobson, K'Andre // Shesterkin

  10. #220
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    Default 3/29/12 @ New York Islanders (Recap):

    Suffice it to say it's been quite a rough week for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Entering the week just one point back of the New York Rangers for 1st overall in the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference, the Penguins and their fans were indeed licking their chops with two games upcoming against the "lowly" New York Islanders - surely an easy task, right? Wrong.

    Instead of capitalizing on an incredible opportunity to pick up two wins and close the gap with the Rangers (possibly reaching top spot in the East) the Penguins surrendered a pair of 5-3 losses. While tonight's game was a whole different animal from Tuesday, a couple of things were specifically apparent tonight that are recent trends for the club - the first of which being the absence of Kris Letang.

    I am thoroughly convinced at this point that Kris Letang is the most important player to the success of the Pittsburgh Penguins. He plays crucial minutes at EV strength and on the PP and PK on a nightly basis for the Penguins, and his strength is unrivaled by other NHL'ers of his stature. Without even mentioning his elite ice-vision and his puck moving ability and PP quarterbacking skills, Letang is an asset to this team but with all those things considered he is absolutely essential to the Penguins' success. In 2011-12 the Pittsburgh Penguins currently hold an 11-9-1 record against Atlantic Division opponents - very important games when considering playoff seeding. Of these division games, the Penguins have played 12 games with Kris Letang (10-1-1) and 9 games without him (1-8-0).

    It is apparent that although the Penguins have been able to adjust to injuries to their biggest stars over the past two seasons (Crosby, Malkin, Staal etc.) the one player (besides Marc-Andre Fleury) that the team certainly can't live without is Kris Letang.

    On a related note, the next aspect of the Penguins recent woes is the Powerplay - sans Kris Letang. The Penguins have been experimenting with a forward-laden powerplay and it really hasn't been working out for the best. At times the powerplay has used 5 forwards - with Sullivan accompanying Crosby, Malkin, Neal, and Kunitz - but Paul Martin has seen his share of PP duties over the past couple games. Tonight the Penguins were victimized late in the second period while on the PP when Malkin was unable to corrale a puck at the blue line and Josh Bailey scored to establish a two-goal lead for the Islanders. There really haven't been a whole lot of positives in the past couple games, and yet another negative - at least in my own opinion - is the overmixing and overmatching of line combinations.

    Over the past couple games the Penguins have gone back to a more "historic" approach to their line combinations. Crosby has been playing with Kunitz and Dupuis, Malkin has been playing with Neal and Sullivan, and Staal has been playing with the Cooke and Kennedy - most definitely the line-combinations HCDB had in mind before the season began. Well, it hasn't really been working out as Crosby was held pointless against a team that he usually scores a billion points-per-game against, and the reunion with Cooke/Kennedy hasn't exactly been game-changing for Jordan Staal. Malkin and James Neal continue to plug along putting up points, but the overall dominance of three powerhouse lines has faded of late. I'm not necessarily criticizing the decision by Dan Bylsma to reunite these "classic" Penguins lines because they have worked to great effect in the past. I just think at the very least he should have maintained the "firing line": Kunitz-Malkin-Neal. They have really been too good to mess with that magic. I wonder if we will see a return to the lines the Penguins used during their 11-game winning streak; I think it could serve this team well to stick with a good thing.

    In any event, let's get to some recap. I wasn't able to watch most of the first two periods so I'll try to keep it brief:

    - Marty Reasoner opened the scoring 11:07 into the first period, scoring his 1st goal of the season - assisted by Streit and Bailey (who is emerging as a Penguins-killer the past two games). The Penguins were a pretty flat team in the first period. I believed that after being outplayed on Tuesday by the Isles, there would be a huge response and the Penguins would come out buzzing but that wasn't the case. The Pens only registered 2 SOG over the first 14 minutes of the hockey game, and only came out with 7 shots in the 1st period. At the first intermission the Islanders held a 1-0 lead.

    - The Penguins really didn't come out much better early on in the 2nd period, but almost 9 minutes in they were able to pull even 1-1 with the Islanders on a Pascal Dupuis SHG, his 24th tally of the season. Honestly, this might be the most remarkable story that nobody is talking about right now. Super Duper Pascal Dupuis is currently riding a 12-game point streak, the longest of any player in the NHL this season (tied with Tavares, E. Staal). If Pascal Dupuis manages to point against the Buffalo Sabres, he will be enshrined in the record books for 2011-12 with the longest points streak of the season. That, my friends, is a truly remarkable accomplishment for the only player left on either team - ATL/WPG and PIT - from the 2007/08 Marian Hossa trade. Ok, back to the recap. The Pens continued to struggle to create chances in the second period, although James Neal seemed to mishandle or be slightly away from pucks in the slot all through the 2nd. The puck luck was not with Real Deal in tonight's contest. At 16:36 Kyle Okposo scored his 19th of the season to give the Islanders back the lead, and Josh Bailey's late period SHG came exactly two minutes later while the Penguins powerplay was poised to strike. Bailey's marker was certainly the turning point of this hockey game. Going into the second intermission the Penguins trailed the Islanders 3-1.

    - Nearly 6 minutes into the third Kyle Okposo tickled the twine again to reach the 20-goal plateau for the season. Still some big upside there for sure after a horrendous start to the season - to say the least. Somehow the Penguins suddenly found their offense after going down 4-1. After only registering 14 shots over the first 40 minutes, the Penguins made a final aggressive push registering 15 shots in the final period. As the Islanders went into somewhat of a defensive shell, the Penguins were able to add a crucial goal from Jordan Staal (24th) at 8:20 to give the team some life. The Penguins were buzzing but were largely unable to convert their chances until late in the period while Marc-Andre Fleury was pulled from the cage. At 18:29 Evgeni Malkin tied his career-high in Goals, scoring his 47th of the season (100th point) on a seeing-eye wrist shot to slash the Islanders lead to a goal with some time left on the clock. The Penguins had some quality chances over the final minute again with the extra attacker - perhaps the best of which came on a one-timer from Sidney Crosby with plenty of net to shoot at, but he fanned on the shot - but were unable to tie the game and instead surrendered an EN-goal to Josh Bailey to seal the deal. Penguins lose 5-3 with Marc-Andre Fleury surrendering 4 goals on 23 shots, turning in another mediocre game this week. After going on quite an outstanding run and overtaking the league-lead for Wins, Fleury has stumbled a bit over the past couple games.


    Game Statistics:

    Penguins 3 - Islanders 5

    SOG: 29- 24 PIT
    FOW: 23-22 NYI
    HITS: 28-18 PIT
    BLKS: 13-7 NYI
    Box-Score for Additional Stats

    Three Stars:

    1. Josh "Penguin-killer" Bailey followed up his three-point outing on Tuesday night with the game of his career. Bailey scored 2 Goals (one EN), added 3 Assists, and put up 2 PIM, 2 SOG, and finished the contest with a +2 rating in a mere 16:35 TOI (2:49 PP). No doubt the first star of tonight's game.

    2. Kyle Okposo has really turned up his game over the past month or two and tonight was a perfect example. He scored two goals after the Penguins had tied the game 1-1, and reached the 20-goal plateau. Okposo also registered 2 PIM, 3 SOG, and a +1 rating in a paltry 12:42 TOI (2:39 PP).

    3. Paul Martin seriously deserves some love from Penguins' fans. This guy gets such a bad rap for basically no reason and tonight he was one of only seven Penguins to finish the contest with a +plus rating (+1). Martin racked up 2 Assists on goals from Dupuis and Staal and registered 1 SOG - and people say he never shoots . In addition to picking up a couple points and salvaging a +plus rating, Martin was the Penguins' ice-time leader with 27:07 TOI and playing in all situations (3:30 PP // 3:58 SH). This guy is underrated as all hell among Pittsburgh Penguins' fans, but dammit if he didn't earn this third star honor tonight.
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    Quote Originally Posted by mounD View Post
    ...a couple of things were specifically apparent tonight that are recent trends for the club - the first of which being the absence of Kris Letang.

    I am thoroughly convinced at this point that Kris Letang is the most important player to the success of the Pittsburgh Penguins. He plays crucial minutes at EV strength and on the PP and PK on a nightly basis for the Penguins, and his strength is unrivaled by other NHL'ers of his stature. Without even mentioning his elite ice-vision and his puck moving ability and PP quarterbacking skills, Letang is an asset to this team but with all those things considered he is absolutely essential to the Penguins' success. In 2011-12 the Pittsburgh Penguins currently hold an 11-9-1 record against Atlantic Division opponents - very important games when considering playoff seeding. Of these division games, the Penguins have played 12 games with Kris Letang (10-1-1) and 9 games without him (1-8-0).

    It is apparent that although the Penguins have been able to adjust to injuries to their biggest stars over the past two seasons (Crosby, Malkin, Staal etc.) the one player (besides Marc-Andre Fleury) that the team certainly can't live without is Kris Letang.
    I have noticed this throughout the season as well. If not for injuries I think that Letang would be the Norris Trophy winner this season. He is so important to the Penguins. The Penguins have shown that they can deal with an injury to Crosby but losing Letang really stiffles this team. He just helps create so much offense and when the puck gets turned over he can speed down the ice to get back and defend. Some of his defensive plays this season have been marvelous. Like this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR44t8iRGAw. I really hope he's okay as he is such a big cog in our team.

    On a side note, nice recap. Very well writen. I didn't get to watch this game because I had to write a stupid paper for a class.
    Last edited by letangerang58; March 30, 2012 at 1:54 AM.
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    Quote Originally Posted by bigmamadog317 View Post
    I have noticed this throughout the season as well. If not for injuries I think that Letang would be the Norris Trophy winner this season. He is so important to the Penguins. The Penguins have shown that they can deal with an injury to Crosby but losing Letang really stiffles this team. He just helps create so much offense and when the puck gets turned over he can speed down the ice to get back and defend. Some of his defensive plays this season have been marvelous. Like this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR44t8iRGAw. I really hope he's okay as he is such a big cog in our team.

    On a side note, nice recap. Very well writen. I didn't get to watch this game because I had to write a stupid paper for a class.
    Thanks very much, I appreciate it. If you ever feel compelled to offer some thoughts of your own go right ahead. This is really just one big discussion here anyway.
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    Default 4/1/12 v. Philadelphia Flyers

    Huge game at home against the Flyers this afternoon, the Penguins are currently 3 points up on the Flyers, 5 back of the Rangers and with two more games against Philly on the sked the points will be of enormous importance. Good news today is that Letang is back in the lineup, perhaps the team's MVP.

    Line Combinations:

    Pens' line combos...

    Kunitz-Malkin-Neal
    Sullivan-Crosby-Dupuis
    Cooke-Staal-Kennedy
    Asham-Vitale-Adams

    Martin-Letang
    Orpik-Michalek
    Niskanen-Engelland

    Fleury in goal. As expected, Sergei Bobrovsky gets the nod for Philly as Ilya Bryzgalov recovers from a chip fracture in his right foot he sustained last week.
    Game on shortly.
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    Default 4/1/12 v. Flyers (1st Period)

    -Sullivan scores early after some great work by, you guessed it, Sidney Crosby. On a shot that Sullivan fanned on, the puck almost went in - as Edzo described - as a field goal, fluttering in over the head of Bobrovsky. 1-0 Pens at the 1:14 mark. Sullivan, assisted by Crosby and Dupuis.

    -Jagr feeds Matt Carle less than a minute later and he fires a puck glove side off the post past MAF. Close call early on.

    - The Sullivan/Crosby/Dupuis line looks very threatening early for the Penguins. Crosby is just feeding Dupes and Sully all over the place, and the work ethic of that line isn't being matched by the Flyers.

    - James Neal scores his 39th goal of the season on a great feed from Malkin out behind the net at 4:58. Some great cycling work from Kunitz and support from Evgeni Malkin allowed Neal to slide open in the slot who beat Bobrovsky high, blocker side. 2-0 Penguins. Timeout Philadelphia.

    -Penguins go to the PP after Danny Briere is guilty of interference at 6:58 of the 1st. Penguins top unit didn't look very threatening, and gave up a couple SH chances against, as per the usual recently. I'm not sold on the 5-forwards PP setup for the Penguins. I prefer Crosby, Malkin, Neal, Sullivan, Letang as my top Unit and Kunitz-Staal-Kennedy etc. as second unit. It's just too dangerous right now. Flyers able to kill the penalty rather easily.

    - Eric Wellwood has had a couple good chances, the latter of which came nearly 12:30 into the period on a feed from Kubina. Firing a snapshot from the slot, MAF played the angle effectively and blocked the chance.

    -Giroux slinks around in the zone and fires a puck from the blueline that squeaks through MAF with some traffic in front at the 15:09 mark of the period. His 28th goal of the season - assisted by Jagr and Hartnell - was not a great one for MAF. Cuts the Penguins lead to one. 2-1 Penguins.

    -Matt Niskanen is guilty of holding at 16:36 and the Flyers go on their first PP chance of the afternoon. Simmonds has a good opportunity walking out from the corner early in PP, but MAF stands tall. Penguins 3rd ranked PK is able to kill off the chance without much threat.

    -Malkin and crosby combined for some good chances late in the period. One off the rush with Kunitz, and the next after some good work in the Flyers zone between the two. It's so great for Bylsma to be able to create so many different matchup combinations, especially when the Penguins have the benefit of last change.

    Penguins go into the intermission with a 2-1 lead and 15-8 SOG advantage.

    -Kris Letang led all Penguins with nearly 10 minutes TOI in the first period, with a +2 rating as well. Crosby skated over 8:30 TOI, Malkin only 6:06 (both with ~1:40 PP time) and both players registered 1 Assist, Crosby with 2 SOG.
    Last edited by mounD; April 1, 2012 at 1:32 PM.
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    Default 4/1/12 v. Flyers (2nd Period)

    - Max Talbot scores an early goal, just 1:35 into the period to tie the affair 2-2. Rinaldo's shot tipped very well by Talbot right out in front to bring the Flyers even, his 19th goal of the year - assists to Rinaldo and Couturier. Max Talbot 19 goals? Really?

    - Talbot's line doing really good work early in the second period against the Penguins scoring lines. Two shifts of Malkin's line hemmed down in their own zone, the first of which the Flyers scored on.

    - Wellwood with another great chance just under 6 minutes into the period. He has had a number of good opportunities, and rushing down the right wing almost uncontested Fleury was able to stop his streaking backhander. Pretty much all Flyers early in the 2nd period.

    - Deryk Engellend looking like Larry Robinson on the rush near the 13:00 mark. Going end to end, he nearly squeaked a chance through Bobrovsky on the short side. Good followup shift from the Vitale/Asham/Adams line, could be a useful momentum swing for the Pens, who hold a 21-11 SOG adv.

    - Crosby with a great chance near the 9:00 mark, streaking to the net uncontested after some beautiful passing by Letang moving through the middle. Crosby snapped a shot up high but Bobrovsky was up to the task.

    -Couturier with a great opportunity near the 13:00 mark against a tired Crosby unit but Fleury was able to make a stop through traffic as the rookie came from behind the goal line. Penguins are weathering the storm a bit right now.

    - Neal and Michalek combine for a good scoring chance of their own just moments after the 14:00 mark. Streaking down the right wing, Neal leaves the puck for Michalek who turns the corner around the net and pops into the slot for a good opportunity. Like MAF earlier, Bobrovsky is up to the challenge. Back and forth hockey in the latter half of the 2nd period.

    - Bourdon goes to the box for hooking at 14:20 and the Penguins go on the PP for the second time this afternoon. 5 forwards to start the man-advantage (Sid, Neal, Kunitz, Geno, Sullivan).

    - Giroux wins the opening faceoff on the PK, jumping into the rush and draws a quick tripping penalty on Steve Sullivan. Totally negated the PP for the Penguins, great play by Giroux.

    - Crosby abuses Giroux in the neutral zone during the 4-on-4 and ekes a puck to Malkin at the last second off the rush. Malkin slides into the middle and fires off a shot but Bobs makes a great stop, glove side.

    - Just before the 4-on-4 expires (around the 16+ minute mark) the Flyers are caught with too many men on the ice, and the Penguins will negate the impending Flyers PP (shortened) and receive one of their own on the backend. Good opportunity late in the second period after grabbing a little momentum with some sick Crosby/Malkin chances in the past couple minutes.

    - Penguins not very threatening on the PP chance. Again the first unit is getting exploited defensively, and the second unit is on the right track with their shoot-first mentality. TK will fire pucks all day long, you don't have to yell "shoot" to get through to this guy.

    - With 17 seconds left in the period, Brooks Orpik draws a hooking penalty on Eric Wellwood and the Penguins will have a late chance, and likely an abbreviated PP to begin the third period.

    - Crosby ROBBED in a goal-mouth scramble in the dying seconds of the period after Kunitz popped a rebound off the post. Bobrovsky with a flailing glove hand slips the puck off Sid's stick at the last moment. Wow.

    After 40 minutes the game is tied 2-2, but the Penguins hold a 30-14 advantage in SOG. Bobrovsky has pretty much been huge over the course of today's game, and the Penguins PP hasn't been able to change the tides.

    - Kris Letang leads all Pens through 2 period with 19:14 TOI. Crosby and Malkin have skated 16+ and 15+ minutes respectively, both around 3:30 on the PP (Crosby 4 SOG, Malkin 2 SOG). Neal and Kunitz are both 12+ minutes TOI (~2:20 on the PP) and have registered 3 and 2 SOG, respectively.
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