Sports Empty Netters Penguins at Maple Leafs (again) - 03-02-11
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The Penguins, hockey and more, by the PG's Seth Rorabaugh. |
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PREGAME
Hey, guess where we are:
-No, not quite:
-The Penguins' starters are Matt Cooke, Tyler Kennedy, Jrodan Staal, Deryk Engelland, Kris Letang and Marc-Andre Fleury.
-Their scratches are Chris Kunitz and Eric Godard.
-The Maple Leafs' starters are Mikhail Grabovski, Nikolai Kulemin, Clarke MacArthur, Carl Gunnarson, Luke Schenn and James Reimer.
Their scratches are Jonas Gustavsson and Jay Rosehill.
-FSN Pittsburgh provides your lines and defensive pairings:
FIRST PERIOD
19:49: Off the opening faceoff, Kulemin catches the Penguins' off guard and almost scores. He catches Letang flat-footed, makes aby Letang at the blue Line and move sin on net. Letang hauls him to the ice. That's two minutes for holding. Great play by Kulemin. Staal, Zybenk Michalek, Craig Adams and Paul Martin take the ice.
18:37: Shorthanded, Maxime Talbot pushes a puck up ice, gains the offensive zone on the left wing and zips a cross-ice pass to Adams. Adams lifts a wrister which Reimer gloves.
17:53: Fleury gloves a point shot by Brett Lebda.
17:49: The minor to Letang is killed. The Maple Leafs didnt' do much with that chance.
16:00: Ben Lovejoy drives a one-timer from the right point. Reimer snags it.
15:17: Dion Phaneuf is nabbed for cross-checking Cooke. Martin, James Neal, Jordan Staal, Alex Kovalev and Letang take the ice.
14:01: Rupp takes a pass from Kovalev on the right wing and chucks a backhander towards the cage. It goes wide to the far side.
13:17: The Phaneuf minor is killed. The Penguins generated a little pressure, but that wasn't exactly their greatest effort.
13:08: Welcome to the Penguins Matt Niskanen. Off a faceoff win by Talbot in the right circle, Dupuis taps a pass to Lovejoy at the right point. Lovejoy taps the pass to Niskanen just to his left. Niskanen booms a slapper to the far side which beats Reimer on the blocker side. What a shot. It's Reimer's first point aas a Penguin. Dupuis gets the puck for him. Lovejoy and Dupuis get assists. Penguins 1-0.
12:50: Joffrey Lupul chops a spinning slapper from the left circle. Fleury eats it up.
12:37: Martin rips a heavy wrister from the slot. Reimer is in perfect position and eats it up.
10:55: Another penalty for the Penguins. Deryk Engelland is sent off for high sticking Fredrik Sjostrom. Martin, Talbot, Michalek and Cooke take the ice.
10:06: Phil Kessel snaps off a wrister from the slot. Fleury boots it out with his right foot.
9:41: From the left wing, Kessel zips a cross-ice pass to the right circle. Lebda is there with a clean look at the net but fans a bit on the shot. He strikes the puck with the heel of his stick. The puck flutters in on net. Fleury traps it against his chest for the easy save.
8:55: The Engelland minor is killed. That was a pretty weak effort for the Maple Leafs there.
7:30: Kovalev has a little free space on the right wing and floats a pass to the slot. Letestu is there but he's a step slow and can't re-direct it on net.
6:44: Kessel takes a pass on the left wing, gets loose, cuts to the slot around Lovejoy and chops a half slapper high to the right of Fleury. That as a little scary.
5:56: The Penguins turn it over in their own zone and the Maple Leafs take advantage. off a turnover by Letang, Marcarthur tpas a pass from the left wing corner to Kulemin in the left circle. Kulemin take the pass and rips a fantastic shot to the far side by the glove hand of Fleury. What a shot! MarArthur and Grabovski get assists. Maple Leafs 1, Penguins 1.
3:07: Neal has a wrister from above the right circle blocked by Carl Gunnarsson.
2:12: Off the left wing, Grabovski attempts a centering pass. Neal is back on a backcheck and breaks it up.
1:28: Keith Aulie clobbers Dustin Jeffrey behind the Maple Leafs net while battling for a puck. That's two minutes for cross checking. Kovalev, Staal, Martin, Letang and Neal take the ice.
0:42: Mike Komisarek is slashed by Neal. That's two minutes for Neal. Four-on-four for 1:15. Discline continues to be an issue.
0:00: End of period. Maple Leafs 1, Penguins 1.
FIRST INTERMISSION
-What is it with discipline and the Penguins? When did they become the Flyers? All these sloppy minors are hurting them. They should have finished this period on a power play and Neal takes a slash. Right off the bat, Letang took a penalty. This team has an amazing penalty killing unit, but it can't spend this much time killing penalties if it hopes to do something in the postseason.
-The defense looks a lot better with the return of Martin. He just has a confidence about him which seems to settle things down in all sorts of situations.
-The return of the Cooke-Kennedy-Staal line was less than impressive. They weren't a detriment by any means, but they didn't really stand out.
-Niskanen continues to be the best of the "new" Penguins.
-Kessel is going to get a goal. He has been dangerous so far.
-The Penguins have an 8-6 lead in shots.
-Martin leads the game with three.
-Lebda and Kulemin each lead the Maple Leafs with two.
-Phaneuf leads the game with 9:30 of ice time.
-Letang leads the Penguins with 8:49.
-The Maple Leafs have a 13-12 edge in faceoffs (52 percent).
-Staal is 7 for 10 (70 percent).
-Former Penguin Tim Brent and Tyler Bozak are each 4 for 6 (67 percent).
-Aulie leads the game with two blocked shots.
-By the way, these McDonald's "hand" dancers need to go:
SECOND PERIOD
20:00: We'll have 33 seconds of four-on-four hockey on fresh ice.
19:28: The Aulie minor expires. The Maple Leafs will have 44 seconds of power play time.
19:20: Kennedy makes a sloppy pass from the right wing in his own zone. Grabovski seems to have a breakaway from the blue line in but Kennedy makes amends and steals the puck back.
19:20: Staal guns a wrister from the right wing. Reimer fights it off.
19:12: ANOTHER penalty for the Penguins. They get nabbed for too many men on tie ice. Chris Conner will serve the minor. The Maple Leafs will have a two man advantage for 30 seconds. Staal, Adams and Michalek take the ice.
18:39: Fleury fights off a last from Kessel.
18:09: Another penalty but this time its against the Maple Leafs. Lupul is nabbed for tripping Martin. Four on four for 57 seconds.
17:12: Conner comes out of the box. The Penguisn will have 1:03 of power play time.
16:09: Lupul's minor expires. Back to full strength finally.
14:23: From behind the Toronto net, Talbot slides a pass to Michalek at the right point. Michalek booms a slapper. Reimer eats it up with a "thud."
14:07: Rupp gets away with slight cross check on Darryl Boyce in the neutral zone.
13:20: Welcome back to the score sheet Chris Conner. His former Stars teammate Niskanen picks up a loose puck in the defensive zone and slides a pass up ithe left wing. Conner gains the offensive zone, cuts to the slot, uses his speed to get by the bigger Phaneuf and tucks a backhander through the five hole of Reimer. What an effort by Conner. Niskanen gets the only assist. Penguins 2-1.
11:53: Engelland tosses a wrister from the right point. Reimer eats it up despite traffic.
11:30: Jeffrey snaps off a wrister from the right wing. Reimer punches it across the ice with is blocker.
8:40: Kennedy re-directs a point shot by Martin on net. Reimer fights it off.
6:44: Grabovski flies up ice on the right wing, gains the offensive zone, cuts to the slot and whips a wrister. Engelland holds his ground and blocks it out of play.
6:36: Komisarek rattles Conner in front of the benches with a rough hit.
6:23: Grabovski gets behind the Penguins defense, is in all alonge on Fleury, goes to his forehand and fires a wrister wide to the right. What a missed opportunity.
5:04: Niskanen's strong game continues as he chases down Kessel in the offensive zone. Kessel had a slight chance on a breakaway but Niskane made p the distance and forced Kessel to pull off to the right wing.
3:12: Jeffrey has a wrister from the slot blocked by Aulie.
2:56: Jeffrey has a backhander from the slot blocked by... Aulie again.
2:35: Phaneuf cuts in from the top of the slot and has a clean look at a wrister. Martin strips him of the puck with a nice poke check.
2:11: Gunnarsson blasts a one-timer from the left point. It hits a body in front.
1:10: Niskanen rips a wrister from the right point. It hits a body in front.
0:33: The Penguins' lines are all over the place. On a line with Staal and Neal, Kovalev rips a wrister from the right left circle. Reimer reached up with his glove hand and knocks it away.
0:21: MacArthur has a chance in the right circle but Lovejoy makes a nice poke check to knock the puck away.
0:00: End of period. Penguins 2, Maple Leafs 1.
SECOND INTERMISSION
-That was a pretty good period of Dan Bylsma hockey. The Penguins got dirty along the boards, initiated most of the hitting and kept things down in the Maple Leafs' zone for most of the period. Outside of a sloppy start on account of all the penalties and a little burst by the Maple Leafs late, that was a great period for the Penguins.
-How about Matt Niskanen? He was seen as an defenseman with offensive upside when he came here but tonight he has been the Penguins' best all-around player. Yes, he has a hand in both Penguins' goals but he has been just as strong in his own zone.
-As strong as the Penguins were that period, they still only have a one-goal lead. The Maple Leafs have done a good job of cutting down on the Penguins' quality scoring chances.
-James Neal has played well in terms of being physical. He has fit in with this team perfectly in that regard. But it's pretty clear he needs a play maker to set him up. He's not going to create a lot of chances on his own.
-The Penguins have a 17-10 lead in shots.
-Martin leads the game with seven.
-Lebda, Kulemin and Kessel each lead the Maple with two.
-The Maple Leafs have a 20-19 lead in faceoffs (51 percent).
-Staal is 11 for 14 (79 percent).
-Boyce is 4 for 5 (80 percent).
-Aulie leads the game with six shots.
-No one for the Penguins has more than one.
THIRD PERIOD
18:54: Staal shuffles a quick shot from the slot wide on the right of the cage.
17:28: Lovejoy snaps of a wrister from right point which hits a body and flutters towards the cage. Letestu is cutting towards the net and swats it out of midair wide on the near side.
15:03: Kessel is all alone in the left circle moves towards the net. Fleury is perfect position and fights it off.
14:53: From the left wing corner, Tyler Bozak deals a pass to Gunarsson at the left point. Gunnarsson coasts backwards towards the slot and whips a wrister towards the net. Kessel is in front and re-directs it by Fleury. What a play by Kessel. Tie game. Gunnarrson and Bozak get assists. Maple Leafs 2, Penguins 2.
11:14: Letang has two slapper from the right poitn blocked in front.
11:00: Engelland manages to sneak a slapper from the left half wall on net. Reimer fights it off.
10:52: Grabovski whips a wrister from the left wing. Fleury gets a piece of that?
8:51: Bozak flips a little backhander from the left circle. Fleury fights it off.
7:10: Bozak tries to wheel and deal through Martin and Michalek. Not a good idea. Both players manage to force a turnover and take the puck away.
6:51: Kessel tries to blow by Martin with speed on the right wing. Martin keeps up with him and pokes the puck away.
5:00: Neal corrals a puck on the right wing, cuts to the slot and whips a heavy wrister high of the cage.
4:38: Kovalev flipes up the right wing, goes behind the net and attempts to flip a puck on net on a wraparound. It hits a stick and flutters on Reimer who eats it up.
4:11: On a two-on-one with Dupuis, Jeffrey flies in off the left wing and whips a wrister high of the cage.
3:18: MacArthur has a step on Lovejoy on the outside off the left wing. Lovejoy dives to poke the puck away and ends up tripping up MacArthur. MacArthur crashes into the net and is shaken up. Lovejoy is sent off for tripping. That's a "good" penalty if that makes sense. Michalek, Cooke, Martin and Staal take the ice.
1:45: Lebda has a wrister from the left circle blocked by Letang.
1:33: Phaneuf booms a one-timer from the right point. Fleury kicks it out with a "thud."
1:18: Lovejoy's penalty is killed. HUGE kill for the Penguins. The Maple Leafs barely had a sniff at the net.
0:29: The Penguins ice the puck and call a time out to get a breather.
0:01: Grabovsky works his way pu the right wing, fends off check from Letang and pushes a backhander to the slot. Fleury leans out to cover and freeze play.
0:00: End of period. Maple Leafs 2, Penguins 2.
THIRD INTERMISSION
-The Penguins are lucky to be going to overtime. The Maple Leafs controlled the bulk of play that period.
-The Penguins have a 29-19 lead in shots.
OVERTIME
4:18: And that didn't take long. The Penguins get too loose in their own zone and the Maple Leafs strike. Gunnarsson feeds a pass from the top of the slot down low to Kesel in the left circle. Kessel on-touches it to Grabovski all alone in the slot. Grabovski whips it through the five hole of a helpless Fleury. Niskanen blew the coverage on that. Kessel and Gunnarsson get assists. Maple Leafs 3, Penguins 2.
POSTGAME
-That was one the Penguins let get away. They simply didn't match the effort or the desparation of the Maple Leafs, particularly in the third period. The Penguins are renown for their energy and effort and they lost that part of the game
-The Maple Leafs are playing desperate. They are battling to stay in the playoff race and they earned this win. Kudos to them.
-The experiment with Letestu as the top center just didn't work. That line of Letestu, Kovalev and Neal just didn't create a thing offensively. We would much rather see Jeffrey in that top spot.
-Kovalev had his most ineffective game in his return to the Penguins. He just didn't create much tonight individually.
-As we said earlier, Neal needs a playmaker to create things. He's not going just score a goal on his own.
-Niskanen was the Penguins' best overall player tonight. Great for Niskanen. Not good for the Penguins. Letang, Kovalev, Staal and other needed to step up.
-That said, Niskanen's coverage on the overtime goal was brutal.
-The Staal, Kennedy, Cooke line didn't blow anyone away tonight.
-Fleury was strong. He wasn't a problem tonight.
-Reimer was a little shaky early on, but he settled down and put his team in a position to win.
-Toronto's line of Grabovski, Kulemin and Kessel created so many problems for the Penguins. They used their speed very effectively.
-The Penguins had a 29-20 lead in shots.
-Martin, Kessel and Grabovski each led the game with four shots.
-Phaneuf led the game with 25:58 of ice time.
-Martin led the Penguins with 24:10.
-The Maple Leafs led in faceoffs, 33-26 (56 percent).
-Bozak was 12 for 17 (71 percent).
-Staal was 11 for 17 (61 percent).
-Aulie led the game with six blocked shots.
-Niskanen and Letang each led the Penguins with two.
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written by NC Dave, March 02, 2011 - 08:27 PM
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written by bastage42, March 02, 2011 - 08:46 PM
Apparently Gillies is at it again tonight in his first game back, getting tossed for a wicked elbow to the head of Clutterbuck.
Anyone shocked that 9 games didn't make anything click for him? I wonder whose poster Konopka's gonna take off his door next to feed poor Gilles' family.
Apparently Campbell and crew didn't quite recognize the significance of his behaviour when he was trash talking Tangradi while the doctors attended to him. I wonder if Eric will be back on the ice by the time Gilles' next suspension is over.
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written by NC Dave, March 02, 2011 - 08:47 PM
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written by Bones, March 02, 2011 - 08:52 PM
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written by bastage42, March 02, 2011 - 08:53 PM
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written by Luiz Mello, March 02, 2011 - 08:54 PM
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written by bastage42, March 02, 2011 - 08:56 PM
The part of me that hopes he'll be tossed for the rest of the regular season is not the logical part that knows he'll probably just get another 4-5 games. TSN pointed out he has more PIMs than minutes played this season (something like 117 penalty minutes to 93 minutes played).
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written by Bones, March 02, 2011 - 08:58 PM
Maybe they heard that the backup goalie for the Wild laughed when he saw Johnson KO DiPietro on Sportscenter that night.
Seriously though, Gillies is starting to look like the biggest psycho the NHL has seen since Billy Tibbetts.
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written by bastage42, March 02, 2011 - 08:58 PM
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written by bastage42, March 02, 2011 - 09:00 PM
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written by Luiz Mello, March 02, 2011 - 09:15 PM
All this in theory, of course.
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written by NC Dave, March 02, 2011 - 09:19 PM
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written by bastage42, March 02, 2011 - 09:20 PM
Hopefully Konopka, being a team guy, can help him cover his trailer park fees.
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written by Bones, March 02, 2011 - 09:20 PM
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written by NC Dave, March 02, 2011 - 09:25 PM
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written by D Sanchez, March 02, 2011 - 09:29 PM
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written by bastage42, March 02, 2011 - 09:32 PM
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written by D Sanchez, March 02, 2011 - 09:36 PM
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written by bastage42, March 02, 2011 - 09:45 PM
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written by Louder_Is_Best, March 02, 2011 - 09:53 PM
He is absolutely not an offensive threat.
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written by D Sanchez, March 02, 2011 - 10:21 PM
I'm not advocating trading him for Sergei Samsonov and a bag of pucks, but we always hear about how teams are beating down the door for Staal. The Pens have plenty of 3rd line center options, but a seriously lack of wingers that are a threat to put the puck in the net.
Then again, maybe if we have Sid and Malkin and even Kunitz, we aren't noticing or talking about Staal. Damnit, if this team was healthy....
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written by bastage42, March 02, 2011 - 11:58 PM
IMO the $4m, while perhaps too much for now, is essentially front-loaded "be happy and stay with us" money that a 2nd overall pick sees earlier than many others. But that said, he's also a 22-year-old Selke finalist who has set a rookie mark for most short-handed goals in a season, and scored a clutch goal that helped us win a Stanley Cup.
Then again, some folks would have traded Fleury for a bag of chips in the first week of November too.
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written by Ceanncait, March 03, 2011 - 12:04 AM
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written by s_rorabaugh, March 03, 2011 - 12:19 AM
Jordan Staal - $4 million.
Jason Spezza - $7 million.
Scott Gomez - $7.3 million.
Who would you rather have when you factor in cap hits?
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written by D Sanchez, March 03, 2011 - 09:15 AM
Seth - C'mon, you can't cherry pick a couple of awful contracts to make your argument.
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written by bastage42, March 03, 2011 - 06:49 PM
I do see where you're coming from. But I still think the position of strength at C is the best strategy. At least until Neal scores 40+ goals for a couple of seasons -- then I'll reserve the right to reconsider ...
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