Coming off of two deflating losses to the New York Rangers and San Jose Sharks, Michel Therrien decided that it was time to do some tinkering with his line-up. Unfortunately, a quick glance at the new lines doesn’t give me much hope for tonight in Arizona.
The biggest change involves splitting up the dynamic duo of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
Malkin returns to the second line and will skate with Petr Sykora and Matt Cooke. Malkin and Sykora have history on their side in that they have been successful together in the past. A case can also be made that Cooke will fit nicely into the Ryan Malone role of one year ago. He isn’t afraid to go to the front of the net and has good skating and puck skills. He could be the “grit” on the line and score the rebound and garbage goals around the net.
My concern pops up when considering the components of the new look top line. Pascal Dupuis and Ruslan Fedotenko will flank Sidney Crosby. Sure, Fedotenko looked ok skating with Crosby and Malkin the other night, but I am not sure he is the answer for Crosby, especially when teamed with Dupuis. Dupuis has shown that he lacks the finishing touch necessary to skate on the top line and Fedotenko has yet to blossom with the Penguins. Though he isn’t saying it, Sid can’t be thrilled with this unit.
Jordan Staal slips back into the role in which he thrived last season, centering the third line. Staal will skate with Tyler Kennedy and Miro Satan. Kennedy makes sense, as he is a high-energy player who is always moving his feet. Satan is most likely going to flounder in this role. He isn’t what we would call a physical player and is not going to be able to utilize his main skills in the role. Though things were not perfect, he should be skating with Sidney Crosby. That is what he was brought in for. He has a goal scoring acumen and not much else…he may not finish everything that comes his way, but he was burying more Sid passes than anyone else on this team.
The fourth line is made up of Mike Zigomanis, Paul Bissonnette and Eric Goddard. This I can deal with…it should be an effective combination for what they are asked to do. The bad thing is that I do not feel that the above combos are going to produce enough to allow this line to get much ice time.
I hope that this experiment works, but I am not in possession of high hopes that these combos will produce the desired results.
It is worth noting that Therrien has hit upon some unlikely line combinations in the past that have clicked. Let’s hope that this is another one of those situations!
EDIT: Thanks to our friends over at the Pittsburgh Sports Insider for the latest on tonight's line-up. http://pod08.prospero.com/n/blogs/blog.aspx?webtag=KDKA_Sports
Pascal Dupuis, who was injured in practice yesterday when he was hit with a shot, will not be able to play this evening. He will be replaced on the top line by Tyler Kennedy.
Hal Gill will return to the line-up and newly recalled Chris Minard will skate on the third line with Jordan Staal and Miro Satan.
Can Penguins Handle Coyotes Youth Movement
The Phoenix Coyotes come into tonight’s match up with the Penguins very well rested, as the young guns from Phoenix haven’t played since Saturday evening. The Penguins are sure to have their hands full, as they will be going up against long time Penguin killer, Olli Jokinen. The former Panther and newest Coyote has feasted on the flightless bird for years, he is now riding shotgun with Shane Doan and a cast of youngsters that would make any general manager’s mouth water.
The youth movement in the desert is lead by Mikkel Boedker, Martin Hanzal, Peter Mueller, Kyle Turris and former Penguin Dan Carcillo. The Coyotes have five first-round picks 21-years old or younger on the roster and are on their way to becoming a very good team.
The always-impressive Ilya Bryzgalov, who has finally found that elusive starting gig in Phoenix, backstops them. The former Duck has thrived since arriving on the Coyotes roster and gives his young team an opportunity to win on a nightly basis.
There have been stories penned over the past couple of days speaking to the fact that tonight’s game against the Penguins was a big test for their young team, but this could be an even bigger test for a Penguins team that has struggled to score goals lately.
Game Notes:
The Penguins are 6-8-2 against the Coyotes since they moved to Phoenix and have won the last three meetings between the two clubs.
Brooks Orpik leads the NHL with 46 hits as of Oct. 29.
The Penguins are ranked fifth in the NHL with an 87.2 success rate on penalty kills and are ranked seventh in the league with a conversion rate of 20.9 on the power play through games played Oct. 28.
The Penguins have killed off 14 of their last 16 penalties over the last four games.
Evgeni Malkin is tied for the NHL lead in assists with 12 as of Oct. 29.
Evgeni Malkin is tied for the NHL lead with eight power-play assists as of Oct. 29.
The Coyotes are the only team in the NHL that has yet to play an overtime game this season
Entering play on Wednesday, Peter Mueller was tied for 2nd in the NHL with two game-winning goals
An unsettling stat for the Penguins, through the first seven games of the season, the Coyotes are outshooting their opponents 71-55 in the third period. The Penguins have struggled mightily during the third period over the past two weeks.
Penguins to Unveil Third Jersey November 5, 2008
Pittsburgh Penguins players Tyler Kennedy, Kris Letang, Alex Goligoski, Paul Bissonnette and Eric Godard will be on hand to model the Penguins’ third jersey Wednesday, November 5 at Dick’s Sporting Goods in The Mall at Robinson. The event will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. and is open to the public free of charge.
The jersey and uniform are the same light blue color pattern that the Penguins wore in last season’s NHL Winter Classic against the Buffalo Sabres on New Year’s Day. The team originally used the light blue color pattern in the 1970s.
“The blue uniform at the Winter Classic was designed as a one-time thing, but it became so popular among our fans that we decided to ask the league’s permission to use it as our third jersey,” said team president David Morehouse. “It serves a dual purpose – it is a dynamic new look for our current generation of fans, but it also has its roots back in the 70s, so it honors the rich history of the Penguins franchise in Pittsburgh.”
The jerseys will be worn during select homes throughout the remainder of the season starting with the November 15th game against the Buffalo Sabres.
FSN play-by-play broadcaster Paul Steigerwald will emcee the event. The current players will be on hand from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. Penguins’ alumni and Stanley Cup Champions Bryan Trottier and Ken Wregget will sign autographs from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. Iceburgh, the team’s mascot, and members of the Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Vision Plans Pens Patrol will also be in attendance.
Chris Minard Recalled From Wilkes Barre Scranton
The Penguins have recalled Chris Minard from their AHL affiliate.
Minard, 26 leads the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins with 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in seven games this season. He is also tied for the team lead with two game-winning goals and a plus-9 rating. Minard made his NHL debut with Pittsburgh last season registering two points in 15 games, including his first career NHL goal and first NHL assist.
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