After a heartbreaking Game 1 loss Thursday night against the Washington Capitals, the Pittsburgh Penguins rebounded and pulled off the 2-1 win in Game 2. Matt Murray dominated in-between the pipes for Pittsburgh, giving his team the advantage on the defensive side of things. Washington didn’t play lightly, slamming the Penguins into the boards, but Pittsburgh was ready and countered with the speed and elusiveness needed to escape the Capitals’ physical nature. Murray's Fury Murray played ... Read More
Game 2 Preview: Penguins must respond like they have all season
Pittsburgh Penguins (4-2) The Penguins are coming off of a heartbreaking loss. While it looked like they were going to come back from an early deficit, Pittsburgh failed to convert on some prime opportunities and got roughed around a bit. Still, the Penguins’ offense looked as good as it has all season. The defense, however, didn’t look good, and it could prove to be Pittsburgh's biggest disadvantage for the remainder of this series. The Penguins will need to work on escaping hits and on ... Read More
Three up, three down: Positive and negative takeaways from Game 1
Both experts and fans are split on how the second-round series in the Stanley Cup Playoffs will unfold between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Washington Capitals. Game 1 didn’t help much in determining the eventual winner — the game went into overtime where the Capitals were able to just squeak by. Let’s take a look at what went right and what went wrong for the Penguins in Game 1. Three Up: Competitiveness Going into the game, there was a lot of uncertainty regarding whether the ... Read More
Game 5 Preview: Series victory within reach for Penguins
Pittsburgh Penguins (3-1) Last time out, Matt Murray dazzled once again on the big stage and recorded his first-career playoff shootout. The offense got the job done, as well, giving the team some breathing room, building on an early lead and finishing with a total of five goals scored. The special teams of Pittsburgh played at an elite level. Not only did the power-play score on three of five chances, the power-kill played even better, giving New York no chance to establish consistent ... Read More
Penguins can win series at home after decisive win
The Pittsburgh Penguins (3-1) dominated against the New York Rangers (1-3) and came one step closer to capping off the sweet revenge the Pens have sought for the last two years. Matt Murray got the start tonight in net and outperformed himself. Pittsburgh was able to put up an early 2-0 lead thanks to Eric Fehr and a Patric Hornqvist power-play goal. The 5-0 win by the Penguins puts Pittsburgh right in the driver seat of this series. The series will shift to Consol Energy Center, and with ... Read More
Mighty Penguins rebound and steal Game 3 from the Rangers
The Pittsburgh Penguins (2-1) played a stellar game to take back the lead in the series against the New York Rangers (1-2) at home, winning by a score of 3-1. Goaltender Matt Murray got the nod tonight — making his first career playoff start — and was a force in between the pipes for Pittsburgh. The Rangers squandered four power-play opportunities but played tough against the boards. However, this time, the Penguins didn’t show any signs of fatigue as they were able to put up 30 shots against ... Read More
Pittsburgh Penguins take on New York Rangers in crucial Game 3
Pittsburgh Penguins (1-1) Last time out, the Penguins weren’t able to get much past New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist. Pittsburgh’s goaltender Jeff Zatkoff was unable to perform at the same level he did in Game 1, but he didn’t do a terrible job, either. The Penguins’ offense was just overcome by a hard-hitting Rangers team that seemed to carry most of the game's momentum. Goaltender Matt Murray, who started in net for an injured Marc-Andre Fleury before Murray suffered from a ... Read More
Pens drop Game 2 to Rangers, 4-2
The Pittsburgh Penguins (1-1) suffered their first loss in the 2016 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs against the New York Rangers (1-1). The Penguins had an abundance of chances to keep the score close, but a series of goals by the Rangers kept Pittsburgh from picking up any momentum. Four straight goals by the Rangers sucked the life out of Consol Energy Center until the final stages of the third period when Pittsburgh began finding its first-period spark again. However, missed opportunities against ... Read More
In game two, Zatkoff looking to repeat strong performance
Pittsburgh Penguins (1-0) Jeff Zatkoff played not only played the biggest game of his career, so far, on Wednesday, he also played one of his best in game one of this opening playoff series against the New York Rangers. While the status of injured players like Marc-Andre Fleury, Bryan Rust and Evgeni Malkin is now listed as day-to-day, head coach Mike Sullivan seems very optimistic about having a fully healthy team soon. Although it is very unlikely for any of those players to play in ... Read More
Penguins face tough playoff test vs. Rangers for third-straight year
For the third time in as many years, the Pittsburgh Penguins (48-26-8) will play the New York Rangers (46-27-9) in the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs. The Penguins won the regular season series three games to one, with Pittsburgh scoring a combined 12 goals. Although Pittsburgh has crushed its competition as of late, this series will be the team’s biggest challenge since head coach Mike Sullivan took the reins in December. There is a sizable chance Sullivan's team will begin the playoffs with ... Read More