The New York Islanders knew their effort would have to be better to avoid a repeat performance in Game 1 when they were whitewashed in a 5-0 Penguins victory. Playing against Sidney Crosby looked like it was going to be an uphill battle ten minutes into the first period. But the Islanders settled down and chipped away at a 3-1 Pittsburgh lead to come back and win Game 2. The Penguins looked a lot like the team that lost in six games to the Philadelphia Flyers a year ago. They turned the ... Read More
Off and running: Penguins dominate Islanders in 5-0 victory
What a difference a year makes. The Penguins got out to a 3-0 lead and, instead of losing in overtime as they did in Game 1 last year agains the Flyers, they added two more goals and defeated the New York Islanders 5-0 to take a 1-0 series lead. The shoddy defense and poor goaltending that led to the demise of the Penguins cup run last year was nonexistent. The Penguins shutout the Islanders, killing all four Long Island power plays and refusing to allow any odd-man chances. The speed of ... Read More
Time for the fans at Consol to do their part
The last time the Pittsburgh Penguins hosted a playoff game, they won in thrilling fashion, defeating the Flyers 2-1 to stay alive for one more game. Most notably, the electricity in the Consol Energy Center. No doubt, the crowd at Consol was the loudest in it's short history and the fans were engaged on every shift. The camera shook because of the crowd and the transformation from corporate luxury to hellacious bloodsport was completed. The question is, will there be a repeat ... Read More
A healthy Pens team is scary for the rest of the league
Sidney Crosby is set to meet with a doctor today to determine whether or not he can play in the Penguins’ first playoff game on Wednesday. If he is cleared, the Penguins will be healthy, well healthy enough to play, nobody is really 100 percent at this point of the season. It’s scary good how good they could be when all are healthy and on the ice together. If you remember Crosby got hurt in his first shift of the game against Tampa Bay. That was also Jarome Iginla’s first game in a Penguin ... Read More
Can Letang stay disciplined in the playoffs?
In Game 3 of last year's horrific quarterfinal matchup against the Philadelphia Flyers, Kris Letang had the most undisciplined game of his NHL career, and arguably his worst. The defenseman took a cross-checking penalty that led to a Flyers goal. Shortly thereafter, he got in a fight with Kimmo Timonen, then was ejected from the game. To make matters worse, he attempted to shush the Philadelphia crowd like Max Talbot did in 2009. Like the Penguins, he was unsuccessful. This all came ... Read More
The Pittsburgh Housewife: “I will get my hockey on!”
The Housewife has been absent. I know. Fortunately, I have a lot of good things happening in my personal life that has taken up 99% of my time in the past month. Onto hockey! The playoffs start on Tuesday, for the Pens it starts on Wednesday where they will be taking on the Islanders. I stand by what I said at the beginning of the half season that I don’t think there should be playoffs, but who listens to the Housewife? Not the NHL. Since it’s going to happen regardless of what I think all ... Read More
Neal’s hat trick routes Carolina
If this was James Neal's idea of a tuneup game before the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Penguins should be in excellent shape. Neal missed eight games with a concussion after getting elbowed in the head by Michael Del Zotto on April 5th. Sporting a new tinted visor, Neal scored a hat trick as the Penguins ended the 2013 truncated regular season on a high note with an 8-3 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes. Jussi Jokinen scored two goals to haunt his former team while Evgeni ... Read More
Devils down Penguins 3-2
The last two times the Pittsburgh Penguins lost back to back games, they went on winning streaks of fifteen and seven games, respectively. They'll expect to go on a similar run as the Stanley Cup playoffs start up next week. The New Jersey Devils defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2, Thursday night, overcoming an early 2-0 deficit. Travis Zajac, David Clarkson and Ilya Kovalchuk all scored for the Devils who will miss the playoffs a season after reaching the Stanley Cup. Matt Cooke ... Read More
Update to injured Pens
As the regular season winds down, the Penguins are starting to get their team back to full strength. Thursday, James Neal and Paul Martin practiced with the team during the morning skate. They were held out of Thursday's game against the New Jersey Devils but have a strong chance to come back for the season finale against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday. Neal has 18 goals and 14 assists with the Penguins this season. Despite missing seven games due to a concussion, Neal is still ... Read More
Rest the Stars
The Pittsburgh Penguins have clinched the number one seed in the Eastern Conference, and they have done so without quite of their star players in the lineup. For the most part of the last month they have been without players like Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, James Neal, Paul Martin, and Kris Letang. So I say that why even bring them back during the regular season when they are healthy and risk them getting re-injured. Let them take the time to get all the way back to one hundred percent ... Read More