Pens Update
The Pens pulled off a rather improbable victory last night in what was a huge game for them, coming down the playoff stretch. They took on the Ottowa Senators, who led the Pens by just 2 points in the Eastern Conference standings coming into the game.
Down 4-1 in the third, rookie Jordan Staal scored an unassisted shorthanded goal with just over 10 minutes remaining in the game.
With the shorthanded goal sparking the Pens, they struck again just a minute and a half later. The new recruit, Gary Roberts (acquired on 2/27, just before the trade deadline) scored a goal to bring the lead down to 1 and a minute after that, Ryan Malone tied the game. Sidney Crosby finally sealed the deal in an overtime shootout to cap off the Pens comeback and victory.
The Senators earned a point for making it to overtime, but the Pens picked up a big point in that game and still have one game in hand over the Sens.
Of Note: Jordan Staal, who was not expected to be on the Pens roster this season, but sent to Wilkes-Barre, now leads the league in shorthanded goals, with 7. Gary Roberts has played just 3 games with the Pens, but has contributed 2 goals and 2 assists in those three games. Sidney Crosby has been shut out in 4 of the Pens last 5 games - he has 1 goal and 0 assists since 2/25 - but he still leads the NHL points race by 9. Despite being 6th in the NHL with 31 wins, goalie Marc-Andre Fleury has been struggling in net, as of late - in his last 10 games, he has allowed 35 goals on 260 shots for a save percentage of a paltry 86.5%. Fleury was pulled from last night's game at the end of the first period, after allowing 3 goals on just 7 shots. Serving as his backup, netminder Jocelyn Thibault has allowed 10 goals on 121 shots, for a save percentage of 91.7% since the start of February.
Up Next: The Pens take on the division leading Devils New Jersey Devils on Thusday night. If the Pens have any hopes of wrenching the division title away from the Devils this season, they absolutely must take advantage of their two remaining meetings, including this tilt.
Down 4-1 in the third, rookie Jordan Staal scored an unassisted shorthanded goal with just over 10 minutes remaining in the game.
With the shorthanded goal sparking the Pens, they struck again just a minute and a half later. The new recruit, Gary Roberts (acquired on 2/27, just before the trade deadline) scored a goal to bring the lead down to 1 and a minute after that, Ryan Malone tied the game. Sidney Crosby finally sealed the deal in an overtime shootout to cap off the Pens comeback and victory.
The Senators earned a point for making it to overtime, but the Pens picked up a big point in that game and still have one game in hand over the Sens.
Of Note: Jordan Staal, who was not expected to be on the Pens roster this season, but sent to Wilkes-Barre, now leads the league in shorthanded goals, with 7. Gary Roberts has played just 3 games with the Pens, but has contributed 2 goals and 2 assists in those three games. Sidney Crosby has been shut out in 4 of the Pens last 5 games - he has 1 goal and 0 assists since 2/25 - but he still leads the NHL points race by 9. Despite being 6th in the NHL with 31 wins, goalie Marc-Andre Fleury has been struggling in net, as of late - in his last 10 games, he has allowed 35 goals on 260 shots for a save percentage of a paltry 86.5%. Fleury was pulled from last night's game at the end of the first period, after allowing 3 goals on just 7 shots. Serving as his backup, netminder Jocelyn Thibault has allowed 10 goals on 121 shots, for a save percentage of 91.7% since the start of February.
Up Next: The Pens take on the division leading Devils New Jersey Devils on Thusday night. If the Pens have any hopes of wrenching the division title away from the Devils this season, they absolutely must take advantage of their two remaining meetings, including this tilt.
Labels: hockey
posted by MC at
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
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