The Penguins were betrayed by special teams tonight and watched the Bruins run away with a 5-2 victory...their 9th in a row. The Penguins just couldn't stay out of the penalty box and it killed them. They were in this game until about the half way point and then the Bruins just started capitalizing on their mistakes.

The players held a closed door meeting post game... Will be back shortly with quotes and reaction from Sidney Crosby, Brooks Orpik and Michel Therrien.

Stay tuned...


Third Period:

The Penguins got their own power play early in the third period, but once again started to overpass the puck. Sidney Crosby got the puck in the right wing circle and faked a shot, instead slapping a pass across the ice trying to work the back door play. It hit a Bruins skate, as they knew it was coming, and Martin St. Pierre was quickly in alone on a short handed break away. He finished it and the Penguins find themselves staring at a two goal deficit.

* * * * *

The Penguins are doing themselves no favors and can't seem to stay out of the box. Alex Goligoski is now serving two minutes for hooking.

* * * * *

Dennis Wideman just lashed a shot past Fleury from way outside. He seemed to misjudge the angle and Wideman picked the corner. The Bruins are really showing the Penguins how far they have come and how much further the Penguins need to go to compete this season. They are really struggling with the elite Eastern Conference teams at this stage of the game.

The Bruins team is dangerous! Definitely getting some big contributions from certain guys who were not expected to step up, but they are probably the best team I have watched live this season.

* * * * *

Petr Sykora is the latest Penguins player to take a penalty in this one...where is the discipline? They can't keep letting this Bruins PP take the ice.

Eight power play opportunities against is certainly not the recipe for beating the Boston Bruins...a team that has less losses on the year than the Penguins had in December alone. Tough night ladies and gentlemen...tough night.

Kudos to Tim Wallace for going toe to toe with Milan Lucic...Lucic is a beast and Wallace gave him a battle. Nice scrap from a scrappy duo...

I will be headed down stairs soon, though I am dreading the post game reactions...will have tons more post game...


Second Period:

The Penguins sell out another one, as 17,132 are taking in this one.

Thus far the period has been a mish mash of icing calls, whistles and not much else...

Thomas is serving up some big rebounds...if the Penguins can get some traffic to the front of the net, that could hurt him. The puck is being put on net from some sharp angles and he is deflecting it almost right out in front of the net.

* * * * *

Brooks Orpik was whistled for interference and on the ensuing power play the B's tied it up. Somehow the largest man in the NHL was left unimpeded to the Penguins net and he took a pass from PJ Axelsson and knocked it behind Marc Andre Fleury. The pass was fed between Ryan Whitney's stick and leg and right onto Chara's tape.

1-1

* * * * *

Phil Kessel and Marc Savard just worked some magic in the Penguins zone. Kessel got the puck near the top of the right face off dot in the Penguins offensive zone. He made a couple of moves to get around Penguins defenders, made a spin-o-rama and slid a back hand pass to Savard who fired it on net. Fleury was able to get his blocker on the shot and it deflected into the slot where it bounced back to him and he was able to cover it up.

* * * * *

Max Talbot and Phil Kessel got into a tangle by the Boston bench and were both whistled for roughing. As the two teams were playing 4 on 4, Crosby and Malkin got caught up ice and Malkin was called for hooking.

The Bruins had a minute to work 4 on 3 and made the Penguins pay. Wideman fed Krejci, who lugged the puck down the left wing boards, flipped a nice saucer pass to Marc Savard who fired the puck high on Fleury with a wicked wrister for the go ahead 2-1 lead.

2-1 Boston...

* * * * *

Pascal Dupuis has been firing pucks on the net lately and not getting much in the way of results, well he just got some. Dupuis was skating down the right wing boards and took a slick feed from Sidney Crosby. He unleashed a rifle of a shot that blew by Tim Thomas's glove hand. Nice shot = nice reward for Pascal Dupuis.

2-2

* * * * *

A Penguins give away in their own zone resulted in a goal against...same story different day I guess. Evgeni Malkin was trying to take a pass along the left boards and had it get away from him. The puck went right to Phil Kessel who fired a shot on net, Fleury gloved it away, but couldn't freeze the puck. The rebound came to Marc Savard who slid a great pass through a couple sticks and legs and right on the blade of Kessel, who pushed it behind Fleury.

3-2 Boston...

* * * * *

Evgeni Malkin was just whistled for interference, however it looked to be a bit ticky tacky to me. Unless I saw the wrong play, it looked as if he just released the puck and briefly got tangled with a Bruins player...

Bruins go to work on the PP...

* * * * *

The Bruins power play just worked the puck around the Penguins zone as if they were playing against school children. It was amazing to watch how they continued to work the puck in a tight triangle down in the corner and opened up space for a shot. They would work that same down low cycle until they freed a man in the slot who could take a pass, or the player below the goal line would step out and take the shot himself. Not only was opening space, it was tiring out the defense as they were practically running in circles trying to get a piece of the biscuit.

The Penguins are hanging in this one, but it could slip away at any moment. They are very fortunate that the Bruins did not get on the board late in this period because a two goal lead could have been insurmountable in this one.

The B's number one line is having a big night and have combined for 4 points through two periods. The crazy thing is that Kessel and Savard could have had more, but Fleury has made some nice stops.

Sidney Crosby doesn't look like himself out there tonight...the assist aside. He has looked lethargic at times and careless with the puck during others...once even skating to the bench for a change while the Bruins were stealing a turnover and heading the other way with the biscuit. It isn't like Crosby to stop at any point between whistles...

The Penguins still trail in the shot department 30-21...

After two, the Penguins trail 3-2...more to come as it happens.


First Period:

Jordan Staal, Matt Cooke and Max Talbot just gave the Penguins a huge boost wit their first shift of the game. They were cycling down low on Boston and came awfully close to cashing in. If Tim Thomas wasn't so swift with a poke check, Max Talbot would have been on the board. Nice energy to this game early...should be a good game if this keeps up...

* * * * *

Mike Ryder just made a power move to the front of the net, but was tripped as he tried to go from backhand to forehand. Mark Eaton was guilty of the infraction and the B's hit the power play.

The Penguins have shown a lot of energy to this point, but have been a bit sloppy with the puck thus far. That needs to stop now or it is going to cost them before all is said and done.

Matt Cooke just got in behind the defense short handed, made a nice move, but Tim Thomas looked sharp in making the save.

* * * * *

Kessel hit the post during the late stages of the Bruin power play. It was a nice shot, but it was an inch off.

The Bruins actually had more chances during the 45 seconds following the power play than they did during. Marc Andre Fleury made two great stops to hold them off of the board. Going into the power play, the Penguins led in shots 4-3, but now trail the B's 9-4!

* * * * *

Marc Andre Fleury is making some game saving stops right now. He just stopped a David Krejci one timed rebound attempt after making the initial stop on a Dennis Wideman shot.

The Bruins are currently leading the Penguins 13-5 in the shot department. Not good...

* * * * *

Petr Sykora just knocked the puck out of play and will serve two minutes for delay of game...the Penguins were already getting outshot by a wide margin, allowing another power play was not the way to make progress in this one!

* * * * *

Zdeno Chara has seemingly won Evgeni Malkin's scoring lead in the National Hockey League by pinning him cleanly in the corner. It was a two point take down and a clean pin...winner! Chara! Seriously...I am bit surprised that no call was made, but that's life in the big city.

Petr Sykora just knocked in a rebound to give the Penguins a 1-0 lead. Dustin Jeffery earned his first NHL point by throwing the puck on net from a sharp angle, Ruslan Fedotenko put the initial rebound on net causing Thomas to slide while stopping it. The second bounced right to Sykora who buried it behind him.

Moments after the goal, the Penguins drew a power play of their own, as Blake Wheeler was called for slashing Brooks Orpik in the defensive zone.

* * * * *

The Penguins seemed to gain some momentum from the goal and were all over the Bruins for the final minute of the period. Hopefully that can translate into some strong play the rest of the night.

* * * * *

After one period the Penguins lead the Bruins 1-0. There were some nice battles in the period, as we saw Chara and Malkin get at each other pretty good, Wheeler and Orpik and a nice one on one opportunity between Malkin and Kessel late.

Kessel looked like he was going to work his way around Malkin, but he threw a late hip check that knocked him off of the puck and the Penguins turned it up ice.

The Bruins owned most of period one and lead the Penguins 16-10 in the shooting department. Marc Andre Fleury definitely won that period for the Penguins and will have to be strong the rest of the way if they want to earn points in this game.

Phil Kessel led the Bruins with 3 shots in the period and showed some nice jump throughout the period. The most notable difference that I can see in him is that he is much quicker and willing to shoot from anywhere. He seems to be in great shape and taking the play towards the net at every opportunity.

Tim Thomas looks strong in net. I have to admit that I was never a big fan of his, but he has seemingly put it all together this year and if he can maintain this pace should get consideration for the Vezina at the conclusion of the season.

Overall, though the Penguins were out played at times, it was an entertaining period of hockey. I am looking forward to the rest of this one... More as it happens...

Post Preview, Pre-Game Thoughts...

Thanks to "Boomer" Gordon over at XM...I had a great time during my appearance as usual. It is always a blast talking hockey with those guys...

I am in the building and set up awaiting warm ups. The Penguins have been coming out later and later for them. It used to be a standard 17:00 or 16:30 on the clock when they would emerge. They didn't hit the ice until the 15:30 mark this evening...

Eric Goddard will be the Penguins scratch. I am looking forward to seeing what Alex Goligoski can do during his shifts on the wing. It seems that this is more about not wanting to scratch Go Go than anything else. He has been a great performer for the team this season and using him in a flex role allows the team to utilize him on the power play and an occasional defensive shift.

Tim Thomas is expected to play tonight, as he and Fernandez are slated to split the home and home series with the Pens.

Hal Gill is moving well and doing a lot of stick handling during the warm up. It doesn't look as if he has any linger effects of his shoulder injury. He skated all over the ice while carrying a puck, moving around teammates, and ended by bouncing backward off of the glass. All looks like a go with the big boy.

Trouble a Bruin as Boston Comes to Town...Pens v Bruins Preview

Though the Penguins lost on Saturday evening against the Montreal Canadiens, they put forth one of their finest efforts in weeks. Here’s hoping that they can bring something akin to that level of play tonight, as they are coming up against a pretty formidable opponent in the Boston Bruins.

The Bruins have been one of the most surprising, feel good stories of the first half. Not that we didn’t expect them to be good, because we saw exactly what they were capable of during a first round playoff loss to the Canadiens last Spring, but who knew that they would be this good!

The B’s sit just two points behind the San Jose Sharks and have only one more loss. Interesting that everyone has been touting the Sharks as a team for the ages that is making an historic run, while the Bruins have quietly gone about their business and look to be just as good to this point of the season.

They are getting contributions from up and down their line-up and have six players with 10 or more goals. They also have eight players with 20 or more points and eleven with at least 15. The slick passing Marc Savard, who is still under-rated in my opinion, paces their forwards. He is joined by the surprising David Krejci, a break out third year player in Phil Kessel, rookie Blake Wheeler and the reclamation project, Mike Ryder who probably has many GMs wishing they would have given him a jingle on July 1st.

Boston also has an impressive group of defenseman, none more so than the walking skyscraper, Zdeno Chara. Chara plays over 26 minutes a game and does it all for the Bruins. The under-rated Dennis Widman, Aaron Ward, Mark Stuart, Andrew Ference, Shane Hnidy and Matt Hunwick join Chara on the blue line. These boys have combined to post a plus-91, which is no easy task.

If you are able to penetrate the Bruins defense, you still have to deal with their two-headed goaltending monster. Tim Thomas has teamed with Manny Fernandez to provide the Bruins with a veritable stone wall on their back end. The duo have combined to post a 2.11 goals against average and a .933 save percentage. Both goaltenders have posted double-digit victories for the team to this point of the season.

The bad news for the Penguins is that even when the Bruins haven’t been playing the kind of hockey that they are this season, they have always given the Penguins headaches. The Penguins are 53-94-24 all-time versus the Bruins, including a 32-35-17 mark at Mellon Arena. Though the Penguins have gone 5-2-0 over their last seven games against the Boston Bruins it hasn’t been easy. Four of the last nine games between the two clubs have gone to a shootout.

Please join me this evening, as I will be live at Mellon Arena bringing you all of the action.

Game Notes:

With his appearance this evening, Jordan Staal will become the youngest player in National Hockey League history to appear in 200 career games. There is something to be said for that…congrats to Jordan Staal on accomplishing this feat. He has certainly come a long way from the kid that was far from a lock to make the opening night roster coming out of his first training camp.

Sidney Crosby will appear in his 250th career game this evening. Crosby ranks among the game’s all time leading scorers to this point of his career, trailing only 5 players. If he is able to notch two points this evening, he would move into fifth place all time. Here is a look at where he ranks:

Wayne Gretzky 537
Mario Lemieux 423
Peter Stastny 403
Eric Lindros 360
Mike Bossy 345

SIDNEY CROSBY 343 (total through 249 games)

Miroslav Satan has posted 26 points (8G 18A) in 34 career games against the Bruins, while Sidney Crosby has 17 points (3G 14A) in 10 games.
Marc-Andre Fleury is 3-1-2 with a 2.35 goals-against average in seven career appearances versus the Bruins.

The Penguins have lost 142 man games to injury thus far on the year.

The Penguins will play three-straight games against Northeast Division opponents. The Penguins are 5-6-0 against the Northeast this season, finishing with an 11-7-2 record last season.

Hal Gill will make his return to the Penguins line-up this evening. The Penguins are expected to dress 7 defensemen to protect themselves in the case of Hal Gill having any issues during his comeback.

The Bruins 8 game-winning streak is the longest since they won 8 in a row to end the 1992-93 season.

The Bruins are 11-1-0 in December.

Paul Bissonnette has been re-assigned to Wilkes Barre Scranton.

Milestone Watch:

Marc-Andre Fleury is one win shy of tying Denis Herron for third all-time in wins (88) and three games shy of tying Les Binkley for fourth all-time in games played among Penguins’ goaltenders.
Evgeni Malkin is five goals shy of reaching 100 for his career and six games shy of playing in his 200th career game.
Miroslav Satan is one goal shy of reaching 350 in his career.
Jordan Staal is nine points shy of reaching 100 for his career, while he is one game shy of playing in his 200th career game. Staal needs four penalty minutes to reach 100 in his career.
Pascal Dupuis is six assists shy of reaching 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.
Mike Zigomanis is 11 games shy of playing in his 200th NHL game.
Michel Therrien is four wins shy of winning his 200th NHL game.
Matt Cooke is six goals shy of reaching 100 for his career.

Penguins Youtube of the Day:

Sidney Crosby notches first NHL fight against the Bruins Andrew Ference…



If you haven’t hopped in the way back machine with me to take a look at how things could be today if Ray Shero had selected Phil Kessel instead of Jordan Staal, please do so! You can find the link below in my archive! There is a nice discussion going on regarding the Penguins wing situation in general in the accompanying thread.