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"Twenty Years Later" is a segment with a highly unimaginative name which will appear on Empty Netters throughout the 2011-12 season. We will examine the Penguins' 1991-92 season which led to the second Stanley Cup title in franchise history. We will look back on games on a particular date and catch up with former players, coaches, executives and media members who were a part or around that team.

Today, we look at the Penguins' 6-4 loss to the Capitals, Jan. 26, 1992.

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The Penguins finished a two-game road swing at the Capital Centre in Landover, Md. Right winger Dino Ciccarelli gave Washington a 1-0 lead with a goal against goaltender Tom Barrasso just 57 seconds into the game. The only assist was recorded by left winger Randy Burridge.

Ciccarelli gave Washington a 2-0 lead when he scored his 25th goal of the season at 11:58 of the first period off assists from defenseman Kevin Hatcher and center Mike Ridley.

Left winger Bob Errey scored the Penguins' first goal late in the period at the 18:54 mark against goaltender Don Beaupre. Defenseman Paul Coffey had the lone assist.

At the 5:28 mark of the first period, defenseman Al Iafrate scored to give Washington a 3-1 lead. Center Dale Hunter and Burridge recorded assists.

Right winger Mark Recchi scored at 10:48 to make it a 3-2 game. Assists went to center Mario Lemieux and defenseman Coffey.

The Penguins tied the game, 3-3, when right winger Jaromir Jagr scored with a backhander from the left circle off assists from Lemieux and center Ron Francis.

Defenseman Larry Murphy's 10th goal of the season gave the Penguins a 4-3 lead at 14:50. The goal was unassisted.

A power-play goal by Burridge late in the period at 18:38 tied the game again, 4-4. Ciccarelli and left winger Dmitri Khristich netted assists.

Right winger John Druce scored the game-winning goal at 7:24 of the third period. Hunter had the only assist.

Left winger Kelly Miller scored an insurance goal at 19:01 to secure the win. Ridley netted the lone assist.

Notes:

-Barrasso made 34 saves in the loss.

-The three stars were 1.) Ciccarreli 2.) Burridge 3.) Lemieux.

-Lemieux, Jagr and left winger Kevin Stevens each received 10-minute and game misconducts following Miller's goal from referee Ron Hoggarth. Jagr made contact with Hoggarth and received a 10-game suspension for his actions.

-After the game, Lemieux, who was hooked by Ridley without a penalty prior to the Miller goal, went on a tirade saying "It was a good hockey game until the referee got into it. It's just a disgrace for this game, and as long as we're going to have people like that, the game's not going to go anywhere. We're not making any progress. Sometimes they wonder why we can't get a national TV contract. It's because of guys like that. It's a disgrace. The whole game was frustrating for everybody. There weren't probably five or six calls that he didn't call when we had good chances to score. That guy just can't keep up with us. It's real bad. I think the league has got to go back and do something about that too. We can't go out there and hook and grab all the time. It's a skating game, a passing game. I think that's what the fans want to see. The advantage is to the marginal player now. They can hook and grab, and the good players can't do what they're supposed to do. I think every team does that. Anybody can get away with that. ... That's they way this garage league is run."

-Coffey's assist on Errey's goal was his 1,100th career point. He was the 22nd player in NHL history to reach that mark.

-Penguins defensemen Ulf Samuelsson (flu) and Peter Taglianetti (broken nose) each missed the game.

Statistics:

Player Position	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points
Mario Lemieux, C	41	29	51	80
Kevin Stevens, LW	48	35	41	76
Joe Mullen, RW	48	28	33	61
Mark Recchi, RW	48	27	30	57
Paul Coffey, D	47	9	47	56
Jaromir Jagr, RW	48	22	28	51
Larry Murphy, D	46	10	28	38
Ron Francis, C	38	12	17	29
Bob Errey, LW	46	12	10	22
Troy Loney, LW	45	5	13	18
Phil Bourque, LW	36	6	10	16
Gordie Roberts, D	42	2	14	16
Jiri Hrdina, C	32	3	10	13
Bryan Trottier, C	34	5	6	11
Ken Priestlay, C	39	2	7	9
Jamie Leach, RW	28	4	4	8
Ulf Samuelsson, D	33	1	7	8
Jim Paek, D	39	0	6	6
Paul Stanton, D	28	1	4	5
Grant Jennings, D	35	1	2	3
Peter Taglianetti, D	31	0	2	2
Glenn Mulvenna, C	1	0	0	0
Todd Nelson, D	1	0	0	0
Jeff Daniels, LW	2	0	0	0
Jay Caufield, RW	23	0	0	0

Patrck Division standings:

	Record	Points
Rangers	31-17-2	64
Capitals	29-16-4	62
Penguins	25-18-5	55
Devils	23-16-7	53
Islanders	17-24-6	40
Flyers	14-24-9	37

Also in the news that day:

-Quarterback Mark Rypien threw for 292 yards and two touchdowns and led the Redskins to a 37-24 win against the Bills in Superbowl XXVI at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis.

(Photo: Penguins Hockey Cards; Penguins videos-Jay Korber)

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