Third Period:

Marc Andre Fleury is back in the game for the Penguins. I guess Michel Therrien figured that he would get him some work.

* * * * *

Miro Satan has worked his way down to the Wilkes Barre Scranton unit, as he is now on the ice with Tim Wallace and Dustin Jeffrey.

* * * * *

The Penguins were just about to head back to the penalty box, when Michael Frolik scored on the delayed penalty. He just got the puck in the high slot and fired it past Fleury.

6-1 Panthers...

* * * * *

The Penguins finally got their own power play, but couldn't do much with it. The most exciting opportunity that was produced was a Malkin give away at the point that turned into a two on one for Florida. The Panthers were not able to do much with the play though.

* * * * *

Tim Wallace is now skating with Jordan Staal and Matt Cooke. Therrien is shuffling his deck, but hasn't been able to hit on an effective combo.

* * * * *

The Penguins just didn't have it today...their December sickness has clearly rolled into January and there isn't an obvious cure at this point. I am about to head down to the rooms, will be back post game with reactions from the locker room and coach Therrien.

Second Period:

As expected, Dany Sabourin is now in net for the Penguins. Therrien's predicted post game answer as to why he made the change: "We need to change the flow of the game."

* * * * *

Ruslan Fedotenko just got the Penguins on the board. Malkin won a face off without touching the puck, the puck works it's way around the back boards and deflected right out to Tank, who fired it past Anderson from a sharp angle.

2-1 Panthers...

* * * * *

The Penguins are working on the power play, after Craig Anderson was called for delay of game. They had some nice opportunities, but have not yet been able to beat Anderson for the equalizer. They are showing some desperation though, which is a good thing...now leading the Panthers in shots 14-5.

* * * * *

Seth from Empty Netters tells us that the last time two Penguins were voted into the All Star game as starters was back in 96-97, as Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr both were selected by the fans.

* * * * *

Miro Satan somehow managed to get himself called for roughing, though none of us were able to see it. The Panthers made good on the power play opportunity as it took no time at all for Bryan McCabe to lash a shot past Dany Sabourin.

3-1 Panthers...

* * * * *

Evgeni Makin just put the Panthers right back on the power play by being whistled for interference. That seems to be a major problem for this team right...discipline. They need to stay out of the box!

* * * * *

The great Richard Zednik just picked up a rebound and lashed it past Dany Sabourin. The shot came in from Bryan McCabe and Sabourin kicked it right back out in front. Zednik was positioned just off of the post and slammed it in.

4-1 Panthers...

* * * * *

Sidney Crosby just got into a bit of a scuffle with Greg Campbell and each will serve time in the box, most likely offsetting roughing calls. The frustration is definitely bubbling to the surface with the Penguins at this point.

* * * * *

The Penguins are making Florida look like world burners this afternoon and it is inexcusable. They are at the point where they seem to bring their level of play up or down to whomever they are playing on any given day.

The Panthers are working the puck around the offensive zone as if they are one of the Russian Red Army teams of the 70's and 80's. The Penguins cannot seem to contain them and are running in circles.

* * * * *

Max Talbot just threw off the mitts with Greg Campbell in an attempt to spark the troops. It was a pretty epic brawl that went on for some time. They duo exchanged plenty of shots and even went down several times, jumping back up.

Sidney Crosby tried to keep that momentum going by throwing off the mitts with Brett McLean right off the faceoff. Both he and Talbot seemed to have a serious fire burning inside and needed to get it out.

That is certainly one way to show the leadership that Mike Therrien has been talking about.

* * * * *

Any momentum that the Penguins achieved by the Saturday Afternoon Fights went right out the window when Evgeni Malkin was stopped on a break away and Nathan Horton was not. About two minutes after the stop on Malkin, Nathan Horton went in one on one with Sabourin and blew it over his blocker for his second goal of the game.

5-1 Panthers...

* * * * *

The wheels came off in a big way during the second period. There were 3 Florida goals to the Penguins 1, melt downs, frustration and a goaltending change. The Penguins have dug a pretty deep hole for themselves this afternoon and it really doesn't look like they are going to bounce back.



Marc Andre Fleury is back in the game for the Penguins.

* * * * *

First Period:

The Penguins drew a power play early in the period, but were unable to generate the go ahead goal. It is worth noting that they did employ Ryan Whitney and Kris Letang on the points with the top unit of Crosby, Malkin and Kennedy.

* * * * *

Evgeni Malkin seems to have some jump today. He is getting to any loose puck that is in his vicinity and come close to getting himself in one on one with the goaltender a couple times. He almost scored a goal for Miro Satan by firing the puck into his feet and stick that deflected on Craig Anderson. Keep an eye on his this afternoon....

* * * * *

Hal Gill was just whistled for interference giving the Panthers their first crack at the power play this afternoon.

* * * * *

The Penguins scratches: Eaton, Goddard, Boucher

* * * * *

The Penguins were in the middle of a pretty impressive penalty kill, but were stung late. Keith Ballard took the puck at the left point, dumped down to Ville Peltonen, who was just above the face off dot. Peltonen whipped the puck past Fleury, who seemed to get caught out of position.

1-0 Panthers...

* * * * *

Nathan Horton got in behind the Penguins defense. David Booth flipped the puck up ice and it evaded Ryan Whitney. Horton teased the pass a bit on what amounted to a three on one, and fired the shot on Fleury, who got a piece of it. It deflected past him and into the top right corner.

2-0 Panthers...

Unfortunately, the Penguins hold a 9-4 edge in shots, but trail on the scoreboard 2-0.

* * * * *

The Penguins Pascal Dupuis was just whistled for hooking, giving the Panthers another power play that will carry over into period two.

* * * * *

The Penguins didn't play a horrible period, in fact, they did some good things. It just wasn't enough to keep them from looking at a 2-0 deficit heading into period two. They hold an edge in shots 10-5, but the Panthers made the most of their minimal opportunities. Florida made the Penguins pay for each mistake that they made in the period, while Craig Anderson was there to make up for each breakdown the other way.

Just looking at how Michel Therrien operates, don't be surprised if we see Dany Sabourin start the next period, though he may give MAF a chance to redeem himself.

Tyler Kennedy has looked strong thus far, especially skating. He has looked extra quick today and has created some chances for his team.

Stay tuned for more as it happens...

* * * * *

Pre-Game:

The Penguins meet the Florida Panthers this afternoon and it is as close to a must win game as they come. Sure, the Penguins have had two strong outings over there last three against two formidable opponents in the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens, but those teams are leading the conference. Games against teams that are behind you in the standings are ones that you have to win and the Penguins have not been able to do so as of late. Home ice losses against the Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs stand out most.

Today's match up poses a test for several reason. First, the Panthers have not exactly been on a roll as of late and are trying to pull out of their own mini slump. Second Florida tends to be a very tough opponent for the Penguins to contend with. They just play well against the Penguins.

The Penguins hold a 26-26-5 record against the Panthers all-time, including a 15-10-4 mark at Mellon Arena. The Penguins finished with a 3-1-0 record last season against the Panthers, the first time in six seasons the Penguins won the series. The Penguins have won three straight at home versus the Panthers.

The Panthers are the only Eastern Conference team that the Penguins have yet to face this season.

The Penguins may see the return of Eric Goddard and Tyler Kennedy this afternoon, Therrien has said that the decision would be made after the warm up. However, both look likely to return to the line-up.

Marc Andre Fleury will be back in the net, after Dany Sabourin got the call on Thursday evening in Boston.


I will be live at Mellon Arena bringing you all of the action this afternoon.

Game Note:

Sidney Crosby recorded 15 points (5G-10A) in 11 games against the Panthers; while Evgeni Malkin has eight points (2G-6A) in eight games.

Marc-Andre Fleury is 1-3-0 with a 4.26 goals-against average in four appearances against the Panthers.

The Penguins have never faced the Panthers in a shootout.

The Penguins will play four of their next five games on the road.

The Penguins have lost four straight games at Mellon Arena. The last time the Penguins lost at least four consecutive games on home ice was Oct. 25 to Nov. 21, 2007 when the Penguins lost six straight.

The Penguins will be playing their fourth afternoon game of the season today against the Florida Panthers. The Penguins are 0-3-0 this season in games started before 5:00 p.m. The Penguins finished last season with a 9-2-2 record in afternoon games.