As Dan Bylsma would say, eight is better than seven.
Behind Marc-Andre Fleury the Pittsburgh Penguins were able to notch their eighth straight win, defeating the New York Rangers 3-0 at Consol Energy Center, Saturday afternoon.
The Penguins dominated the opening period, got a lead, then locked down the Rangers in the final two periods.
Rookie forward, Beau Bennett, got the Penguins on the board just 1:30 into the game with his second goal of the season. Tyler Kennedy chipped the puck up the boards from the neutral zone. Bennett took the puck in stride, skated down the boards and fired a slap shot from the right wing circle that beat Henrik Lundqvist off the far post.
Pittsburgh continued to pour it on in the first period but Lundqvist was sharp and kept the Penguins off the scoresheet for the remainder of the period, despite being outshot 12-4. After Sidney Crosby hit the post, Lundqvist denied Pascal Dupuis of a chance in front.
The Rangers got their legs moving in the second period, outshooting the Penguins 7-2 through the first half of the period. But Fleury was there to deny every shot, with a few sparkling saves in between. Just 30 seconds into the second, Rick Nash came out from behind the net attempting to stuff the puck past Fleury. Nash quickly got the puck back and had a turn around shot that was, again, turned aside.
Moments later, Carl Hagelin’s shot hit Fleury in the shoulder and trickled towards the goal line. Fleury quickly pounced on the puck before it could squeak in the net.
Five minutes into the third period, Anton Stralman took a tripping penalty to put the Penguins on the power play. After the first power play failed to setup, the second power play unit produced a goal. Kris Letang fed Tyler Kennedy for a one-timer from the left wing circle and Kennedy’s slap shot beat Lundqvist on the glove side.
With the way the Penguins were playing defensively, two goals seemed to be enough even with 15 minutes remaining in the game. But the Penguins added a third goal just for good measure to bury the Rangers.
Less than a minute after Kennedy’s goal, Chris Kunitz led a two on one rush with Pascal Dupuis. Kunitz slipped the puck to Dupuis who waited for Lundqvist to go down before backhanding the puck from a sharp angle to put the Penguins up by three.
From there, the Penguins continued to lockdown the Rangers in the defensive zone. New York received zero second chance opportunities and no odd man breaks. The same team that appeared to lose its defensive edge around the same time last season, kept their opponent in check for a full 60 minutes.
By the end of the game, the 267th consecutive sold out crowd at Consol Energy Center let out a “Fleury” chant while Marc-Andre Fleury celebrated his franchise-leading 23rd career shutout.
- The Rangers have now been shutout for six full periods against the Penguins. They are 0-3 this year vs. Pittsburgh with three total goals.
- Marc-Andre Fleury has shut out the Rangers four times, the most in his career.
- After allowing four goals to the Maple Leafs last Saturday, the Penguins have allowed four goals in the their last four games.
Three Stars
- Marc-Andre Fleury
- Tyler Kennedy
- Dustin Jeffrey
Photo courtesy of NHL.com
