Dallas Stars (11-3, 5-2 Road) at Penguins (9-3-3, 4-1-1 home), CONSOL Energy Center, 7:00 p.m. EDT
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For just the second time in the last 20 days, the Pittsburgh Penguins will play a hockey game at CONSOL Energy Center on Friday night. And before the season started, more folks likely circled the 11/11/11 matchup as a possible Sidney Crosby comeback debut than as a contest between the Eastern and Western Conference’s two top seeds.
But that’s what we’ll have at 7:00 pm EDT when the puck drops at CONSOL on Veteran’s Day. The Pens lead the East with 21 points in 15 games and the Stars head the West with 22 points in just 14 contests.
No one in the NHL league offices will be calling for a realignment that includes these two teams in the same division, based upon their geographical differences. In fact, the Pacific Division-leading Stars and Pens have met just four times since the NHL lockout.
Two things are certain for Friday: One, Crosby won’t be playing, and two, Crosby won’t be getting into another fight with Matt Niskanen, who played for the Stars on Nov. 3, 2010 when Dallas beat Pittsburgh, 5-2, in Texas.
Niskanen, James Neal and Alex Goligoski switched sides Feb. 21, 2011 and the results have proven favorably for both teams. Niskanen has slid into a regular slot on the Pens’ blue line, averaging about 18 minutes per game. An offseason workout program seemed to boost his game and his performance reflects his new-found confidence.
Neal leads the NHL with 64 shots and holds a 25.9 shooting percentage mark at home. He has seven goals in six CONSOL contests. Including last year’s super-slump, the Penguins power forward has totaled 20 points (10, 10) in 35 regular-season games for Pittsburgh.
The Cup-winning Alex Goligoski made the Pens look statistically bad after the deal, ringing up five goals and 15 points in 23 games for Dallas in 2010-11. He’s cooled off a little bit this season, compiling six points (2, 4) in 14 games.
Much was made about Neal’s strong starts throughout his career, but Goligoski has more points (27) in October than in any other month, too.
*****
The Stars’ top line of Loui Eriksson-Jamie Benn-Michael Ryder has combined for 45 points through 14 games. Eriksson has leads the team with eight goals, Benn has a team-best 18 points (5, 13), and Ryder has come out of the shadows to put up 11 points and a plus-9 rating. The loss of Brad Richards hasn’t had the intended result many thought it would.
Michael Ribeiro (1G, 9A) and Brenden Morrow (2G, 5A) are still around and dangerous.
Morrow stated earlier in the week that he would let up on hitting Crosby, but he won’t have to face that dilemma Friday night.
For those wondering why Goose Goligoski might not be putting up big numbers despite a great team start, look no farther than Sheldon Souray, who returned from a one-year minor league exile. Souray has already rung up four goals and 13 points. He’s working his magic despite seeing less overall ice time than Goligoski (22:11 to 20:57) and power-play time (3:22 to 2:46).
*****
Morning Skate Line Units
Sullivan-Malkin-Neal
Kunitz-Staal-Dupuis
Cooke-Park-Asham
Tangradi-Vitale-Adams
(Crosby, Kennedy)
Tyler Kennedy is out but could return Saturday in Carolina. It’s good to see the progress he’s made, considering the nature of concussions.
The Penguins promoted Eric Tangradi from Wilkes-Barre on Thursday. He scored a pair of goals Wednesday (one was an empty-netter) and has seven scores for the Baby Pens. It will be interesting to see whether the team gives him any power-play time, as his ability to serve as a net-front presence will help determine what type of career he has in the league.
*****
Probable Starting Goalies
Kari Lehtonen leads the NHL with 11 wins and Marc-Andre Fleury is second with eight wins. Dallas backup, Andrew Raycroft, has lost both of his two starts and actually has more losses than Lehtonen (2 to 1, respectively).
PENGUINS
Marc-Andre Fleury
2011-12 8-2-1, 1.95 GAA, .931 save percentage, one shutout
Career vs. Dallas 4-0-0, 1.96 GAA, .927 save percentage
Shootout Attempts/Goals 11-2 (shootout attempts/shootout goals allowed)
Special Teams Saves
.923 (21 GA on 250 shots at even strength)
1.000 (38 shots on 38 shots during Pgh power play)
.900 (short-handed – 9 saves on 9 chances while Pgh short-handed).
STARS
Kari Lehtonen
2011-12 11-1, 2.13 GAA, 936 save percentage, no shutouts
Career vs. Pens 7-3-2, 2.77 GAA, .913 save percentage, no shutouts
Shootout Attempts/Goals 11-2 (shootout attempts/shootout goals allowed)
Special Teams Saves
.951 (15 GA on 308 shots at even strength)
.871 (74 saves on 85 shots during Dallas power play)
1.000 (short-handed -- 14 saves on 14 chances while Dallas short-handed)
Hidden Stats
Kari Lehtonen is undefeated on the road, going 5-0 with a 1.77 GAA and .949 save percentage in the first month of the season.
Marc-Andre Fleury has never lost to the Stars (4-0-0).
*****
Pens-Stars: By the Numbers
Goals For/Against per game
Pens 2.80 – 2.13
Stars 3.07 – 2.36
5-on-5 For/Against
Pens 0.89
Stars 1.47 (1st in NHL)
Penalty Kill/Short-Handed
Pens 93.2/19.3 (Pens PK 1st in NHL)
Stars 82.9/19.2
Shots per game/Shots allowed per game
Pens 32.1/28.5
Stars 27.5/33.1
Blocked shots/Missed Shots/Takeaways/Giveaways/Hits
Pens 200/212/97/115/333 in 15 games
Stars 243/161/85/110/400 in 16 games
Penalties
Pens 9.0 minutes per game (2nd lowest)
Stars 15.6 minutes per game (4th most)
Faceoffs
Pens 50.6 percent
Stars 49.6 percent
Pens have fallen from 5th in faceoffs to 14th in the last 2-3 weeks
*****
Injury Roll Call
PENGUINS
Sidney Crosby -- Out, won't play Friday or Saturday, according to coach Bylsma.
Tyler Kennedy -- Out, was expected to be game-time decision but Pens have ruled out.
Jordan Staal -- Probable, returned to practice during the week and skated Friday morning.
Kris Letang -- Probable, practiced this week after serving as game-time decision on trip.
Zbynek Michalek -- Out, skated Friday before the team took part in game-day skate.
STARS
Steve Ott -- Out, will miss Friday as he recovers from a hip pointer.
*****
RINK LINKS
Alex Goligoski talks about facing the team he won a Cup with for the first time, the
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
"I’m sure it will be weird. It’s not too weird coming to the building but playing against the guys, it’s going to be kind of weird. Just being with them for so long, I kind of know what they’re going to do before they do it. They probably think the same thing about me. It might be a little weird for a few shifts there."
The Penguins Report, with updated game-day information, courtesy of the
Penguins’ Web site.
"Today is Friday, so that means it's time for the Pens Vault! This week is a classic featuring one of the greatest Pens of all time: Darius Kasparaitis." Hmmm.
Celebration of Veteran’s Day & Activities via the Penguins organization, as per the
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
Mario Lemieux signed autographs for some veterans during the team’s morning skate Friday.
Crosby refuses to speak about his return, the
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports.
“Crosby may not address his status again until he is clear on a return date, said the senior member of Shero's hockey operations staff.”
What made Crosby change his stance toward talking with the media the last couple days?
Mark Letestu, after his first game (and power-play goal) Thursday for the Columbus Blue Jackets.
“It’s nice to get one, especially on the power play. The results make it pretty bittersweet. Our focus came unglued. We finished the game real strong. Losing can be a habit. It takes time. The group’s focused. We get a chance to turn this around. It’s different, there’s some frustration in this room.”
*****
Thank you veterans,
JT
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