Pressure makes people do funny things.
In the National Hockey League, pressure can make a defenseman whiff as he tries to chip the puck out of the zone, a goal scorer fire a shot high and wide at an open net, or a goaltender blink as a slap shot comes sizzling in from the point.
In the NHL playoffs, pressure is everywhere, but some teams feel it more than others. In 2014, the with a Stanley Cup mandate from ownership and the coaching staff’s jobs on the line, the Penguins collapsed under the weight of that pressure.
In 2015, the Penguins are now the plucky underdogs. With little expectation of success, the loose Pens skated to a split at Madison Square Garden, while the Rangers gripped their sticks tightly in a 4-3 upset on Saturday night.
“It’s been some really good hockey,” Rangers forward Derrick Brassard said. “I don’t think we’ve played our best yet in the two games. We’re lucky enough to be tied in the series. We’re here in Pittsburgh to try to get our ‘A’ game back on track. We’re not really happy with the way we played.”
EVEN UP: Despite seven opportunities on the power play in Game 2, the Rangers could only cash in once, a rebound goal by Derrick Brassard early in the third period on Saturday.
The Rangers have scored just two 5-on-5 goals in the series, and the Penguins have outscored them 3-1 at even strength since New York opened the series with a goal 28 seconds into Game 1.
“We feel that at 5-on-5, we’ve had a good series,” Penguins head coach Mike Johnston said.
THE 4077: Defenseman Christian Ehrhoff did not participate in morning skate, and his recovery from an upper-body injury has suffered a lack of progress over the last few days.
“He just sort of flat-lined in his recovery and hasn’t been progressing from there,” Johnston said.
Defenseman Derrick Pouliot was a full participant in morning skate, but did not take part in line rushes. He also stayed after practice for some extra work with assistant coach Gary Agnew, along with healthy scratches Scott Harrington, Craig Adams, and Beau Bennett.
Bennett’s presence in the after-practice group lead to speculation that he may be replaced by rookie winger Scott Wilson, but Johnston would not commit to a lineup. Bennett and Wilson alternated on the left wing of the Penguins’ third line alongside Brandon Sutter and Steve Downie.
FROM THE OTHER SIDE: Rangers defenseman Kevin Klein (arm), who has yet to play in the series, skated with the team at morning skate today, but is still expected to miss tonight’s game.
Fellow defenseman Keith Yandle did not participate in morning skate, as he was held out with an illness. Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault expects Yandle to be in the lineup this evening.
BIG SCREEN: The Penguins will be hosting their big screen watch party downtown this season, in conjunction with the City of Pittsburgh. Tonight’s watch party will take place in Market Square and will be hosted by Tall Cathy of Kiss-FM and Katie O’Mally of the mayor’s office. Wednesday’s party will be in PPG Place.
SCOREBOARD WATCHING: The New York Islanders took a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series with the Washington Capitals on Sunday afternoon.
60 minutes wasn’t enough to settle matters between the Metropoitan Division squads, as goals by Kyle Okposo and Nicklas Backstrom left the teams tied 1-1 after regulation. Islanders captain John Tavares didn’t waste any time in the extra period, as he beat Washington goaltender Braden Holtby just 15 seconds into overtime.
MINOR MATTERS: The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins finished their regular season with a win on Sunday in a game that had no bearing on the team’s playoff seeding.
The Penguins beat the Lehigh Valley Phantoms 5-1. Five different goal scorers found the mark for Wilkes-Barre: Jayson Megna, Tom Kuhnhackl, Jean-Sebastien Dea, Bobby Farnham and Sean Escobedo.
It was Escobedo’s first American Hockey League goal. Megna now has four goals over his last two games. Kuhnhackl has 11 points in his last nine games.
Wilkes-Barre released two players from amateur try-outs today; forward Jaden Lindo and defenseman Danny Federico. Lindo is Penguins property and will return to Owen Sound of the OHL for his final junior season in 2015-16. Federico is a free agent.
Photo credit: AP Photo
