Pens lose, 6-1, Monday night & trail Bruins two games to none in East final
Heading into the first part of the 2013 regular season, a good number of hockey experts and analysts considered the Boston Bruins as favorites to come out of the Eastern Conference. The Penguins changed the minds of many with their strong play, including a record 15 straight wins in the month of March.
Here we sit, on June 4th, with the Bruins only two victories away from a Stanley Cup appearance while the Pens remain four wins from the final round.
The numbers are a friend to Boston. All the B’s need to do is beat Pittsburgh twice in five games. The Pens, meanwhile, have to knock off the Bruins four times in five contests.
Many Penguins fans already know that their favorite team was the last squad to rally from a two-game deficit to pull off a conference final comeback – the 1991 Pittsburgh Penguins fell behind these same Boston Bruins, two game to none, only to win four straight – they didn’t even need a seventh game.
Former Penguin forward, Kevin Stevens, guaranteed a Pitttsburgh comeback 22 springs ago.
"I said it. I meant it," Stevens told the
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "But I kind of felt we had a better team. We [had] just lost in overtime. The emotions were kind of high. I don't know if it was a good thing to say or a bad thing to say. I got lucky it worked out that way.
"I believed in the guys we had in the locker room. I still thought we'd beat the Bruins. I was kind of wound up a little bit."
Granted, those first two losses back in 1991 – scores of 6-3 and 5-4 in OT – took place in Boston, not in Pittsburgh. But the Penguins have enjoyed success in recent campaigns at TD Garden.
Since 2008-09, the Pens have won seven of nine games against the Bruins in Boston.
All is not lost.
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Game 2 Post-Game Quotes
Dan Bylsma
I don’t think there’s a lot of fault in those three goals on the goaltender. It’s tough to evaluate given the breakdowns and types of scoring chances they scored on, for both goalies.
Gotta restart after that game and that performance. We made some mistakes that allowed them to get up in the score through the beginning of the game, we got off our gameplan, got off playing our game by trying to find a goal … Got away from playing the way we need to play. I think the biggest thing is our attitude. That was a big adjustment for our team earlier this season and that’s what it’s going to have to be for how we re-set how we get refocused, how we go into Boston.
How we played for the last five periods, we deviated. You could tell early again, after second goal we deviated. We’ll come back with how we need to play in Game 3.
We need to play as a group and we didn’t do that, not just 87, 71 and 58. It’s easy to look at one mistake but that’s not an indication of the rest of the game.
I don’t think they (the Bruins) have given us any surprise with how they play or what to expect from the team. When they’ve gotten leads, these two games, they’ve been very good … solid defensively.
Sidney Crosby
Can’t give them easy ones, I did that in the first shift and it ended in the back of the net.
Tonight was terrible, there’s no other way to describe it. We were not good in any area … we’ve got to find a way to dig ourselves out of a hole.
I turned that puck over 30 seconds, they get up 1-0, I felt like we probably tried to get it back, took some chances to do that. We start chasing when we’re down a couple, once you start doing that against a good hockey team you put yourself in pretty bad position.
Bouncing puck, want to make a harder play, don’t want to give them a breakaway. It’s not a good feeling.
Not going to make any excuses, we have to be better (scoring).
Should be no shortage of motivation, guys have a lot of pride in here.
Marc-Andre Fleury
Just be patient, play the way we’ve done and we should be alright.
They're a good team, move the puck around, maybe sometimes we get a little scrambly around the net. It’s costly.
Kris Letang
We didn’t manage the puck, a turnover cost us the game.
Being satisfied with a one-goal game. Got to put in our head we’re going to play a one-goal game.
Jarome Iginla
We’ve dug ourselves a hole. We believe we can get out of this, start with that first one in Boston. We all know we need to find more.
Probably the last four periods haven’t been good for us, turnovers, puck management. We started to press a little bit, weren’t very smart with it and we got outcompeted.
No, we got out-competed tonight and outplayed. I know I need to be better. The Bruins played well but we also didn’t play very well.
Brooks Orpik
I hate to talk about last year. This is a different group of guys than last year. Our approach to the game has to be a little different right now.
Our approach has to change. Right now our focus is to score goals (but) it has to be to keep it out of the net.
Claude Julien
Confidence builds pretty quickly when you start off with an early lead in a visiting building. Marchant two goals, Jags passes he made, hit in front of our bench (on Orpik) that allowed Marchand to score.
He’s (Tuukka Rask) been in a zone for a while, puck seems big to him. Got to ride a goaltender when he’s like that.
You’re right, I’m not second guessing (Vokoun replaced by Fleury). I’ve got to much respect for Dan (Bylsma) to do that.
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Team Notes:
The Penguins have comeback from a 2-0 series deficit five times in franchise history, including the 1991 Wales Conference finals against the Boston Bruins. Pittsburgh’s other comebacks from down 0-2 include a pair of series in 2009 (Washington and Detroit); 1996 vs. Washington; and 1992 vs. Washington.
Pittsburgh’s comeback from down 0-2 against Washington in 1996 was the only time in franchise history that the Penguins have dropped the first two games at home and then rebounded to win a series.
Under Dan Bylsma, the Pittsburgh Penguins are 5-3 on the road in Game 3 contests. Overall, the Penguins are 33-20 in Game 3 all-time – including 21-10 on the road.
Boston’s four goals in the first period are the most the Penguins have allowed in a single period during the postseason. The previous high was three (NY Islanders; Game 4; May 7).
The Penguins finished 1-for-1 on the penalty kill, going perfect on the kill for the third consecutive game (10-for-10). The Penguins have now killed off 40-of-44 penalties (90.9%) this postseason, placing them third in the NHL.
Player Notes:
Brandon Sutter scored his 2nd goal of the playoffs – his first since Game 4 against the NY Islanders in Round 1 – to account for the Penguins only goal of the first period. Sutter led the Penguins with two goals against Boston during the regular season.
Matt Cooke assisted Sutter’s goal – giving him assists in four of his past five games. Cooke also recorded a team-high six hits, giving him 55 this postseason and ranking him sixth overall.
Paul Martin assisted Sutter’s goal –; his eighth helper this postseason. With that assist, Martin ranks fourth among defenseman in assists, trailing Kris Letang (13), Duncan Keith (9) and Zdeno Chara (9).
Courtesy of Pittsburgh Penguins
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Big Pens fan, Michael Gervasi, tweeted me his morning thoughts, making use of 140 characters X 7.
Michael Gervasi @MBGervasi
@JohnToperzer few Qs (1) how much is DB 2 blame? u cant continue 2 prepare & ur players seem so unprepared, 2 much of relaxed environment?
@JohnToperzer (2) why continue to use Geno on point on PP? He's a big defensive liability & the mix of Letang & Geno is a toxic turnover mix
@JohnToperzer (3) has Letang become the "New Mike Green" all offence & all thumbs on defence ?
@JohnToperzer (4) what happened 2 2nd unit PP, makes no sense keeping all skill guys out there if none of them working the front of the net
@JohnToperzer (5) split Geno & Sid on diff PP units & get some net front presence, how many times did puck trickle into slot with no1 there
@JohnToperzer that is all, very frustrating, if they go out i am expecting whole sale changes (DB gone, Fleury gone, bring in Bernier) cont
@JohnToperzer & for the love of God STOP drafting "puck moving D" & get players who can PLAY defense instead of pretending to!
Thanks Michael for your opinions
*****
Treasure Life!
JT
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