Poll Results
Question: Should the Penguins trade Simon Despres for the Minnesota Wild's Devin Setoguchi?
In a very close vote, 55 percent of respondents would do the deal, while 45 percent would not. There are plenty of factors influencing the vote. Some folks may have already lost confidence in Despres. Others might believe that Pittsburgh’s pipeline is so strong, defensively, that he won’t be missed. Some just want to get a forward with an NHL track record. Certainly, solidifying the second line would make all of Pittsburgh’s line more stable. Finally, a number of the voters probably just feel like there are no answers currently on the team, so why not try Setoguchi.
On a side note, Beau Bennett has been sidelined for nearly a week with Wilkes-Barre and missed the AHL All-Star Game on Monday night.
Islanders (2-2-1, 1-1-1 Road) at Penguins (3-2, 0-1 Home), ROOT Sports, 7:30 pm ET
Goalies
Pens:
Marc-Andre Fleury:
2011-12 Overall: 42-17-4, 2.36 GAA, .913 save percentage, 3 shutouts
2011-12 vs. Isle: 4-2, 2.45 GAA, .906 save percentage, 2 shutouts
Tomas Vokoun:
2011-12 Overall: 25-17-2, 2.51 GAA, .917 save percentage, 4 shutouts
2011-12 vs. Isle: 0-2, 3.52 GAA, .887 save percentage, 0 shutouts
NYI:
Evgeni Nabokov:
2011-12 Overall: 19-18-3, 2.55 GAA, .914 save percentage, 2 shutouts
2011-12 vs. Pens: 1-1, 2.20 GAA, .935 save percentage, 0 shutouts
Career vs. Pens: 9-2, 1.76 GAA, .938 save percentage, 2 shutouts
Rick DiPietro:
2011-12 Overall: 3-2-3, 3.73 GAA, .876 save percentage, 0 shutouts
2011-12 vs. Pens: 0-0-1, replaced Nabokov in shootout & allowed 1 goal (Malkin) in 3
attempts
Career vs. Pens: 10-9-3, 3.21 GAA, .894 save percentage, 0 shutouts
Look for Marc-Andre Fleury to get the nod for the Penguins, as his track record against New York is much better than that of Vokoun’s.
Injuries:
Pens:
Matt Niskanen: Out, will miss Tuesday’s game with an injury to his right leg – could be ankle/knee.
Beau Bennett: Out, missed Monday’s AHL All-Star Game with undisclosed injury.
Islanders:
Travis Hamonic: Doubtful, suffered sprained ankle and is unlikely to play.
Josh Bailey: Out, has yet to play in 2013 due to a knee injury.
Jesse Joensuu: Out, not playing due to groin injury.
Calvin de Haan: Out, missing time with shoulder injury.
Lubomir Visnovsky: Out, attending to personal matter with a return expected mid-February.
With Niskanen sidelined, Simon Despres will likely get another chance to prove he belongs in the starting lineup. He’ll likely see time with Kris Letang. Coach Bylsma will keep him there if he does well and make in-game changes if he doesn’t.
Bailey had a couple of monster games against Pittsburgh in 2011-12 and will be sorely missed by the Islanders.
2011-12 Pens-NYI Season Series
Pens win, 3-0, on Long Island on October 25, 2011.
Marc-Andre Fleury was named the game’s No. 1 star, stopping 33 shots for the shutout. Pascal Dupuis scored one goal and assisted on a second. Richard Park and Jordan Staal also contributed with goals. Evgeni Malkin went pointless and Sidney Crosby didn’t play.
Evgeni Nabokov stopped 26 of 28 shots for the Islanders. Star defenseman, Mark Streit, was on the ice for all three Pittsburgh goals, Jonathan Tavares went pointless on four shots.
Pens win, 3-2, in Pittsburgh on October 27, 2011
Malkin scored the only goal in the shootout for the win. Chris Kunitz and James Neal scored third-period goals after New York took a 2-0 lead on goals by Frans Nielsen and Matt Martin. Fleury made 17 saves while Nabokov gave up two goals on 32 shots.
Pens win, 5-0, in Pittsburgh on Nov. 21, 2011
Rookie goaltender, Anders Nilsson, served as the Sidney Crosby’s sacrificial lamb for Crosby’s season debut. Two goals and two assists later, the Penguins captain announced his return to hockey. Coach Bylsma spoke about Sid’s showing.
“I don’t really have good words for it,” Bylsma said. “That was a special in a lot of ways.”
Dupuis tallied three helpers and Malkin posted a goal and an assist.
Lost in the contest was Fleury’s 29 saves for his second shutout of the season against the Islanders.
Islanders’ defender, Mark Eaton, suffered a sprained left MCL and did not return. He’s currently with the Baby Penguins of the AHL.
Pens win, 6-3, on Long Island on Dec. 10, 2011
Neal netted two goals for the No. 1 star, with four players – Tyler Kennedy, Kunitz, Malkin and Matt Niskanen – tallying a pair of assists. Fleury again nabbed another win with 24 saves.
Al Montoya allowed all six goals in 31 shots. Kyle Okposo had a goal and an assist for New York.
Islanders win, 5-3, in Pittsburgh on March 27, 2012
New York broke open a 2-2 tie with three straight second-period goals in a game many observers chalked up as an automatic two-points for Pittsburgh. Nielsen collected two goals and an assist while Bailey added three helpers for the Islanders. Nabokov made 30 of 32 stops through 40 minutes before leaving with injury. Montoya relieved and gave up one goal on 21 shots over the final 20 minutes.
Fleury gave up five goals on 18 shots before leaving after two periods. A
collision between Fleury and Paul Martin may have led to an injury or possible concussion for the Flower. In any event, he was never quite the same after this game.
Neal again scored two goals on a whopping 12 shots.
Islanders win, 5-3, on Long Island on March 29, 2012
In a game the Penguins had to have, one which woulda, coulda, shoulda helped them to the No. 1 overall seed in the East, New York had other plans. Bailey picked up a point on every Islanders’ score, scoring two goals and three assists. Okposo was named the No. 2 star for the second-straight meeting, adding two goals.
Fleury gave up four goals on 23 shots while New York’s Montoya stopped 26 of 29 for the victory.
Malkin, Staal and Dupuis scored for the Pens. Paul Martin added a rare, multipoint performance with two assists.
Individual Performances
Islanders:
Jonathan Tavares: No points in all six games, with a minus-6 rating.
Mark Streit: Three points, all assists, in six games, with a minus-4 rating.
Josh Bailey: Nine points, including two goals and seven assists, an even plus-minus.
Penguins:
Sidney Crosby: Four points, including two goals and two assists, all in his first game back. He went pointless in the two, late-March contests.
James Neal: Five goals and one assist in six games, with a minus-3 rating.
Kris Letang: Missed three meetings, had two assists and a plus-5 rating in the three games he did play.
Pen-Isles: By the Numbers for 2013
Goals For/Against
Pens: 2.80/2.80
Isle: 3.60/3.60
5-on-5 Goals For/Against Ratio
Pens: 0.89
Isle: 0.81
A 1.00 mark would be the Pens scoring the same number of goals as their opponents. Both teams have been outscored by opponents at 5-on-5 even strength situations.
Power Play
Pens: 20 percent, 1-for-5 (Home)
Isle: 28.6 percent, 2-for-7 (Road)
Penalty Kill
Pens: 87.5 percent, 7-of-8 (Home)
Isle: 91.7 percent, 11-of-12 (Road)
Hits-Blocked Shots-Missed Shots-Giveaways-Takeaways
Pens: 139H—75BS—63MS—38G—30T (5 games, Home & Road)
Isle: 110H—75BS—61MS—45G—40T (5 games, Home & Road)
Surprisingly, the two teams aren’t all that much different in the hits categories and four others.
Record When Leading After 20 Minutes/40 Minutes—Trailing After 20 Minutes/40 Minutes
Pens: 3-2/2-0—0-0/0-2
Isle: 0-0/1-0—1-0/0-1-1
Record When Scoring First/Trailing First
Pens: 3-2/0-0
Isle: 1-0-1/1-2
The Penguins have scored the first goal in all five of their games.
Penalty Minutes/Game
Pens: 12.8 (11th fewest)
Isle: 11.8 (5th fewest)
In 2011-12, NYI averaged the fourth-fewest PIMs/game at 9.3 and the Pens finished with the 12th fewest (10.7).
Shots For/Against
Pens: 33.9-27.4
Isle: 29.4-30.1
Pens are averaging the most shots in the NHL and giving up the fourth fewest.
*****
Treasure Life!
JT
Pittsburgh Penguins Blogger • 
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