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Slump Buster? Penguins Knock Off Flyers 4-2

January 13, 2009, 4:39 PM ET [ Comments]

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Third Period Thoughts...

Well, the Penguins started to get a bit slopping during the third period, but were still able to hold the fort and win the game 4-2. They seemed to get out of their trapping mindset a bit and took more chances...ironically it resulted in less shots on goal and more opportunities for the Flyers.

It seems that with the current personnel they are relegated to playing a conservative style that preys on opposition mistakes, which is what worked for them through two periods tonight.

The team got a solid performance out of Marc Andre Fleury, who stopped 27 of 29 shots. The defense didn't allow many second opportunities and it all goes down as one of the best defensive efforts in weeks.

Jordan Staal seems to be reborn since signing his contract. I know that I have been saying that since the signing, but it is true. He scored for a third consecutive game since the signing and looked very strong on the puck. He made play after play and finished 14 up 9 down in the face-off dot for 61%. He is going to score a ton more goals if he keeps shooting the puck the way he did on his third period shot that hit the post.

Flyer fans...how great is it that T Kaberle would not waive his no trade last season...I would be thanking the hockey god's for that one every time I watch Jeff Carter play. That kid looks scary good to me...

Matt Cooke finished the night with 1 goal, 3 shots on goal and 4 hits. It might have been his finest game in a Penguins uni. I say leave him with the big horses for a while...he went to the net, distracted the opponent, got shots on goal and was noticeable on every shift.

Crosby and Malkin are starting to hit their stride again...it seems that when they are together, they go through a wild scoring streak before cooling a bit. Enjoy that hot streak for the next week or so.

Hopefully we might look back on January 13th in Philadelphia the way that we did last year at November 22nd in Ottawa. This was a huge win for a Penguins team that really needed one. However, until they string a few victories together, this will go down as one tiny positive blip on the radar.

More tomorrow...

Second Period Thoughts...

The Penguins are sticking with what worked for them in the first period and it is paying off big time.

The started the period off with a big turnover that Crosby and Malkin turned into the Penguins second goal. They are getting a ton of traffic in front of the Flyers net and getting to loose pucks and in doing so picked up goals 3 and 4 from Jordan Staal and Matt Cooke.

Most of what has gone well for the Penguins tonight has been a direct result of hard work in all zones. I am really blown away at home much going to more of a shut down style has changed the way this team looks in every way. They are actually creating turnovers and creating offense from them...sort of what had been happening to them with frequency over their losing streak.

Matt Cooke has definitely found a home on the top line...at least in the short term while 87 and 71 are skating together. He is doing what no other winger has done for those guys this season. Getting to the net, working hard and even scoring a big goal late in the period.

Minard looks like he is going to make true on his words from early this week. He said that he realizes that he needs to show he belongs this time and that he needs to put the puck in the net. He has looked much better and has 2 shots on goal with a face-off win.

Speaking of face-offs, Jordan Staal is clicking at 61% tonight.

The Penguins lead in shots and have gotten shots on goal from 10 different players. That is huge for this team. They currently sit dead last in the league in shots per game...they have done a nice job of getting the biscuit on net tonight.

40 down...20 to go... can they keep it going?? More in a bit...

First Period Thoughts...

Well, I have to say that was one of the best periods of hockey out of the Penguins in a very long time. The entire group actually looks like they care and have seemingly bought into playing the 1-2-2 trap that has been implemented since Saturday.

The Penguins were clogging the neutral zone, breaking into the Flyers zone with plenty of speed and limiting the Flyers trips up the ice. They have forced the Flyers to play dump and chase and it is paying off. Aside from one horrible bounce that is.

The Penguins had the better of the opportunities in the period and proved that they are still capable of playing a shut down puck control style. Let's just hope that they can keep it going for more than one period.

Matt Cooke is doing a great job on the wing with Crosby and Malkin. He is doing exactly what I thought he would do...getting into the corners, the front of the net and doing an awful lot of chirping. He went right at Mike Richards and the two seem to be after one another now...that is huge because it limits the time that Richards and Crosby are going at one another.

I like the Staal, Sykora, Minard line thus far. They cycled the puck well and had several opportunities.

Miro Satan was noticeable on two occasions, one good and one bad. I actually saw him exert himself to get to a puck in the neutral zone and dump it deep -- the good. He then was whistled for an offensive zone hooking call -- the bad. Hopefully he continues to keep it on the good side. He is hanging in with Tyler Kennedy and Max Talbot...

I am anxious to see how the fighting plays out the rest of the way. We had two good match-ups in Eric Goddard/Riley Cote and Aaron Asham/Paul Bissonnette. I would have liked to have seen the referees allow the Goddard/Cote brawl to continue, but unfortunately they ended it after Cote lost his balance.

How about Bissonnette's jack hammer rabbit punches with his left hand as he was trying to the right to connect.

Overall, we just witnessed the finest period of hockey from the Penguins in a long while. Can they maintain it for 60 minutes...we will see. More in a bit...


Will Cross State Rivalry Motivate Penguins To Pull Out Of Free Fall?

The Penguins, losers of 7 of their last 8 games, head across the state face off against a bitter rival, the Philadelphia Flyers. Though the Penguins hold a 2-1 edge in the season series, don’t be fooled into thinking this game is anything other than a huge test for the Penguins. The two wins came while the Penguins were playing pretty well and the Flyers were struggling a bit. Times have certainly changed, as the Flyers have take over the lead in the Atlantic Division on the strength of their forward depth, while the Penguins are fighting for their collective playoff lives.

The Flyers have one of deepest groups of forwards in the National Hockey League and it all starts with Mike Richards, Jeff Carter and Simon Gagne, who all play a fabulous two way game. They can all score in any situation, be it even strength, short-handed, or power play. They kill penalties with the best of them and always seem to raise their level of play when facing the Penguins. They are joined by the likes of Scott Hartnell, Joffrey Lupul, Scottie Upshall, and Mike Knuble, all of whom can put the puck in the net.

Though the forwards in Philadelphia get a lot of attention, they have a pretty formidable blue line as well. The anchor of the group is Kimmo Timonen, who does everything for the team including playing close to 30 minutes a night. He is joined by one of my favorite NHLers, Braydon Coburn, who has one of the most entertaining NHL commercials of the year with his “I came back” routine, Matt Carle, Ossi Vaananen and rookie stand out Luca Sbisa.

Under normal circumstances I would be very much looking forward to tonight’s match-up, but with the way things have currently been going in Pittsburgh, this one could get ugly. It would be nice to think that the Penguins would get motivated by the fact that this is such a big divisional match-up and get the ball rolling back up the hill. However, that is much easier talked about than done when playing the Flyers.

To try and get things turned around the Penguins have reunited Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin once again…they duo has spent portions of the last two games playing together and they have had some success. They will skate on a line with Matt Cooke. Cooke may be a nice addition to the duo, considering that he is fearless in going to the front of the net and into the corners. Keep your eye on him this evening for some opportunities in the high slot and at the goal mouth.

The team also recalled Paul Bissonnette to take the spot of Pascal Dupuis, who is still not ready to return to the line-up.

Though it is speculated that Mario Lemieux and the Penguins ownership are supportive of staying the course with Michel Therrien behind the bench, it is vital that Therrien and his staff get positive results tonight and tomorrow against Washington.

If the Penguins are still searching for their next victory heading into the match up with the Rangers on Sunday, the team may be forced to make a change.

Marc Andre Fleury will get the start in goal…here is hoping that the team puts forth a good effort in front of him and they can use this game as a springboard to better days…

Game Notes:

The Penguins enter an important stretch of the schedule in which four of their next five opponents are from the Eastern Conference. The Penguins are 17-14-3 against the East, including a 7-3-3 mark versus the Atlantic Division.

The Penguins have allowed at least four goals in six of their last seven games, and allowed 10 goals over their last two games. The Penguins have not scored four or more goals in 10 games. The last time the Penguins recorded four goals was Dec. 22 in a 4-3 overtime win at Buffalo.

Evgeni Malkin has five points (1G-4A) over his last three games and currently leads the NHL with 65 points (16G-49A) and 49 assists.

Sidney Crosby is currently on a three-game scoring streak, registering five points (2G-3A) and is in second place in the league’s scoring race with 55 points.

Crosby has 39 points (18G-21A) in 23 games against the Flyers, while Malkin has 27 points (11G-16A) in 18 games.

Marc-Andre Fleury is slated to appear in his 200th NHL game tonight against the Philadelphia Flyers. He becomes only the fourth goalie in team history to play in at least 200 games for the Penguins. Fleury has posted 88 wins over his 199 games thus far and is tied with Denis Herron for third on the Penguins all time list.

Marc-Andre Fleury is 13-5-0 with a 2.65 goals-against average in 20 appearances against the Flyers.

Brooks Orpik currently leads the NHL with 155 hits, while averaging 20:43 minutes of ice time per contest.

Petr Sykora has nine goals over his last 15 games and three goals in his last three games. Six of his 16 goals have gone as game winners, placing him second in the NHL in the category.

The Penguins are 78-130-31 all-time versus the Flyers with a 22-88-9 mark on the road. The Penguins have lost five straight regular season road games at Philadelphia.

Kimmo Timonen leads all Flyers scorers with six assists in three games against the Penguins this season.


Milestone Watch:

Sidney Crosby is one point shy of tallying 350 for his career.
Miroslav Satan is one goal shy of reaching 350 in his career and 10 games shy of playing in his 100th NHL game.
Evgeni Malkin is four goals shy of reaching 100 for his career.
Matt Cooke is six goals shy of reaching 100 for his career.
Pascal Dupuis is six assists shy of reaching 100 and eight goals shy of 100 in his career.
Philippe Boucher is seven goals shy of reaching 100 for his career and four points shy of reaching 300 in his career.
Jordan Staal is seven points shy of reaching 100 for his career and needs four penalty minutes to reach 100 in his career.
Mike Zigomanis is 11 games shy of playing in his 200th NHL game.
Brooks Orpik is 10 games shy of playing in his 350th NHL game.

Penguins Youtube of the Day:

A tribute to Marc Andre Fleury…



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