Here’s the ultimate Monday morning quarterbacking poll of Pittsburgh’s disastrous last-minute power-play which turned into a short-handed, game-tying goal by Ottawa’s Daniel Alfredsson in Sunday's Game 3, double-overtime defeat.
With one minute and 27 seconds remaining in regulation and a 1-0 lead, the Penguins went on a two-minute power play (sending Erik Karlsson to the box).
The faceoff was in the Ottawa end at the right circle. Sidney Crosby took the draw. Chris Kunitz was stationed on the inside of the circle near the slot, Evgeni Malkin was by the boards. Kris Letang and Paul Martin were at the points.
Crosby lost the faceoff, but the Sens turned the puck back over to Pittsburgh with 1:17 left.
At 1:07, NBC comments that "Pittsburgh can't be lazy on this power play."
The Sens now have the puck behind their own net. Kyle Turris is pressured by Sidney Crosby at the 1:00 minute mark at Pittsburgh's blue line and Malkin regains possession.
Malkin gives the puck to Letang behind the Pittsburgh net until Sens apply pressure with 47 ticks remaining.
Letang passes to Kunitz.
Kunitz chips puck into Ottawa end with 44 seconds left.
The Sens' Phillips quickly retrieves puck and takes Kunitz past the puck.
Alfredsson gathers the puck at the 38 second mark in front of his own goal.
Sutter is now standing tall at center ice. Alfredsson drops the puck at his own blue line to Sergei Gonchar.
Goalie Craig Anderson skates off the ice while Gonchar carries the puck over Pittsburghs blue line with 32 seconds remaining.
Sutter challenges Gonchar, who passes the puck to the left point. Paul Martin follows Gonchar into the end boards, opening up a lane.
Kunitz is still a few feet on the wrong side of the blue line.
Malkin and Kunitz are steps behind their Sens counterparts and the rest is history.
Here’s what coach Bylsma had to say about the scenario after the game.
"We had two defensemen on the ice and we’re, think we were half way through a change on the forwards line and 16 was on the ice. They had their goalie pulled so it was five skaters apiece. Situation where they were able to make the drop play which created a big gap in our group. They had the entry there and Alfredsson had the speed going to the net and that’s the guy they made the play back to. It was just a play through our guys and they got it because of the drop play that they made."
"Well, we, they got the pow, we had the power play there, went to a possession power play there with the time but we gave up possession with the dump in which we needed to do they got some space and with it the change in goalie 5-on-5 were able to create the speed and come into the zone there and were able to make that play and Alfredsson ties the game up."
"I think you like to think that you can hold onto the puck for the last minute twenty-seven with the power play and that wasn’t the case. They came up with a huge goal."
*****
I get that Tyler Kennedy (11:00 TOI) and Tanner Glass (9:56) saw a bunch less ice time than the rest of the Penguins skaters Sunday night, but even the two lowest Ottawa players -- Cory Conacher (13:22) and Michael Zibanejad (15:08) – saw more ice than Kennedy and Glass. Kennedy scored Pittsburgh’s lone goal in the loss.
*****
Which goalie starts Wednesday for the Pens? Tomas Vokoun will have had plenty of time to recover from his 87-plus minutes of action Sunday night. Marc-Andre Fleury is just sitting around waiting. Many folks assumed that Fleury wouldn’t get back in goal until Vokoun lost a game. Well, he lost Sunday but it wasn’t exactly his fault or a bad showing in any manner.
Coach Bylsma noted Vokoun’s strong performance after the game.
“I think it was Tomas’s best game … he wasn’t busy during the game’s first half but had a couple of great flurries … made the short-side save there with the pad (on Chris Neil). Both goaltenders were extremely good, Anderson was one better there at the end.”
It sounds as though Vokoun will start Game 4.
*****
Penguins Post-Game Interviews
Dan Bylsma
Sidney Crosby
Tomas Vokoun
Matt Cooke
Brandon Sutter
Courtesy, Pittsburgh Penguins
*****
Treasure Life!
JT
Pittsburgh Penguins Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»