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
Hornqvist’s hat trick leads charge in Game 1 victory
In his first career NHL playoff start, Pittsburgh Penguins backup goaltender Jeff Zatkoff played lights-out hockey and helped the Penguins (1-0) nab the 5-2 win against the New York Rangers (0-1) at Consol Energy Center in the first game of the series. Zatkoff finished the game with 37 saves. The Rangers were able to keep the game close heading into the final period, tightening the score to a 2-1 Penguins lead. But goals by rightwingers Tom Kuhnhackl and Patric Hornqvist further separated the ... Read More
Bennett powers Pens past Avalanche
Beau Bennett might finally have found a spot in the Penguins top six. Playing in the spot alongside Sidney Crosby and Chris Kunitz that was recently vacated by the retirement of Pascal Dupuis, Bennett cashed in with a pair of third period goals that helped the Pens turn a one-goal deficit into a 4-2 victory over the Colorado Avalanche in Denver on Thursday night. For Bennett, the beleaguered former first-round pick, it was a relief to finally be rewarded for his hard work, and even more ... Read More
Penguins welcome back Bylsma with a 4-3 victory
The Pittsburgh Penguins welcomed back former Head Coach Dan Bylsma as the Buffalo Sabres came to town. The team provided a touching tribute video highlighting his years with the team and he received a standing ovation from the crowd. The Penguins walked away with a 4-3 win, finishing the night with a perfect special teams record by stopping both chances against them and scoring on their own opportunity. The Sabres outshot the Penguins 53-29, much of that coming during the 3rd period as the ... Read More
Pens start strong, but fall in overtime
The Pittsburgh Penguins came into Wednesday night knowing that they needed to improve in the poor first period starts that had resulted in no goals and just 13 shots over the first three games. The Penguins turned that trend on its ear in Game 4, scoring the opening goal for the first time in the series, and dominating the Rangers through the first 20 minutes, but came away with just a 1-0 lead. The Penguins’ failure to improve their early advantage was crucial as the Rangers came back to win ... Read More
Another poor start dooms Penguins in Game 3 vs. Rangers
For the third straight game, the New York Rangers scored the opening goal, as they quieted a boisterous Consol Energy Crowd by taking an early lead and taking the life out of the building with a slow, defending style that lead to few scoring chances for either side and a 2-1 victory for the visiting Rangers. The start of the game was especially slow-going. Neither team had a shot on goal in the first five minutes of the game. A pair of Penguins miscues – an Evgeni Malkin turnover while ... Read More
Johnston to coach while mourning
Penguins head coach Mike Johnston will be coaching this afternoon with a heavy heart, as he deals with the loss of his mother Sheila Johnston, who passed away on Friday in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. Mrs. Johnston was 81 years old. Coach Johnston is expected to coach both of the team’s games this weekend before returning to Canada for the funeral on Tuesday. After Sunday, the team does not play again until Wednesday. “The Penguins offer their deepest sympathy to Mike and his family during this ... Read More
Pens recall Pouliot; Malkin and Hornqvist skate
The Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled defenseman Derrick Pouliot from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League, it was announced by general manager Jim Rutherford on Tuesday morning. Pouliot, 21, has already played in 26 games for Pittsburgh during his rookie season, scoring two goals and adding three assists. In 31 games with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, he has scored seven goals and seventeen assists. The native of Weyburn, Saskatchewan, was the Penguins first pick – eighth overall – in ... Read More
Penguins look to get back on track against Stars
The Penguins are back out west this week, as their three-game road trip takes them to Dallas tonight to take on the Stars in a 9:00 p.m. faceoff. The Pens need to get back on track, after a two-game sweep at home last weekend and a lackluster 2-0 loss in New Jersey on Tuesday has handed them a three-game losing streak in which they’ve scored only one goal. One player that could spark the offense is left-winger Chris Kunitz. The veteran forward has been struggling lately. He has only one ... Read More
Fleury earns his ninth shutout as the Pens blank the Kings
On the night when legendary Kings forward Luc Robitaille had his statue unveiled at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, it was the goaltenders that stole the show. Through three periods of regulation and 1:44 of overtime on Saturday night, it seemed as if goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury and Jonathan Quick would never give up a goal. The Pittsburgh Penguins and Los Angeles Kings had held each other to just 48 shots and it seemed certain that a shootout would be needed to settle the score. That ... Read More