JESSICA BOPP-OVATHLETICS.COM
Tuesday nights’ game against the Buffalo Sabres was the first game played since the Olympic break, where Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Marc-Andre Fleury, Brooks Orpik and Sergei Gonchar played for each of their respective national teams in Vancouver.
Buffalo had decided to give Olympic tournament MVP goalie Ryan Miller a break after playing so hard for the United States in the Olympics and Patrick Lalime was put in goal instead. Marc-Andre Fleury also sat out despite not playing in the Olympics at all.
The first period saw only one goal, and Penguins goal. When the Pens went on a power play, Gonchar took a shot from the point from Alex Goligoski and Crosby and put the puck in past Lalime. The goal was Gonchar’s 200th NHL goal.
The Pens took an even greater lead in the second when Pascal Dupuis took a shot that soared right past the goal post. Ruslan Fedotenko and Malkin assisted on the goal.
Then, Buffalo finally got on the board when Toni Lydman scored less than three minutes later. His one-timer from the circle went past back-up goaltender Brent Johnson. Partick Kaleta and Craig Rivet recorded assists.
In the third period Tyler Kennedy and Kris Letang set up Fedotenko who scored his ninth of the season and the third goal for the Penguins.
A fight broke out against Mike Rupp and Paul Gaustad and each received five-minute majors.
Derek Roy pushed to keep the Sabres in the game and scored his 17th of the season, making putting Buffalo down by only one goal. The puck went in the net so directly that it actually passed right through the back of the net. It was only counted as a goal after officials reviewed the play. Kaleta and Chris Butler got the assists.
However, Buffalo were unable to score at tying goal and the Penguins beat the Buffalo Sabes 3-2. That night also saw the debut of newly acquired defenseman Jordan Leopold. He skated alongside Goligoski.
Before Thursday’s game, it was announced that the Penguins made a deal with Toronto to get scoring-line winger Alexei Ponikarovsky, a 6-foot-4, 229-pound winger. The Penguins had to trade winger Luca Caputi and veteran defenseman Martin Skoula.
Thursday night’s game against the New York Rangers was an intense, high-scoring game.
The busy first period saw nine penalties—five to the Rangers and four to the Penguins—and four goals.
Artem Anisimov scored for the Rangers just 2:17 into the first. His wrist shot from the left circle was assisted by Sean Avery and Wade Redden.
The Penguins were right back in it when Chris Kunitz scored on a five-on-three power play goal just under four minutes later.
And then the Penguins took the lead just a few minutes later. Staal’s unassisted goal occurred when he took the puck away from Avery and took a backhand shot. The shot was blocked but then bounced off of a skate and went in the net.
But the Rangers tied the game at two at the end of the first period when Chris Drury scored a power play goal from his knees while facing the opposite way of the goal.
Michael Del Zotto and Olli Jokinen assisted.
New York took the lead when defenseman Michal Rozsival’s wrist-shot went in the net past Fleury. Vinny Prospal and Olli Jokinen recorded assists.
Brandon Dubinsky gave the Rangers a 4-2 lead at 12:49 in the second and sent Fleury out of the net. Fleury was replaced by back-up goalie Brent Johnson after stopping only eight of 12 shots. It was Crosby’s hi-sticking penalty that lead to the power play goal, which was assisted by Rozsival and Matt Gilroy.
But Mike Rupp brought the Pens within one when he scored a goal from Crosby and Chris Kunitz at 14:23.
It was Alex Goligoski who scored the only third period game—a goal that took the game into overtime. Kunitz and Fedotenko assisted.
When Wade Redden received a hooking penalty 1:45 into OT, the Penguins new they had to take advantage of it—and they did. Evgeni Malkin blasted a shot towards the net and it went off of Ranger Dubinsky and fellow teammate Staal and in the net. Gonchar also got an assist.
The Penguins beat the Rangers 5-4 and set a club record with 55 shots on net, which was 39 more than the Rangers has all night. But Ranger goaltender Henrik Lundqvist did achieve something that night too—50 saves, his career-best.
The Penguins faced the Dallas Stars on Saturday afternoon at Mellon Arena and Jordan Staal scored just over two minutes into the game. Matt Cooke setup a nice play that lead to the goal that went past the Stars’ newly acquired goaltender Kari Lehtonen. Gonchar also recorded an assist.
But the Stars tied the game at one when Mike Ribeiro scored against Fleury from Brandon Segal and Stephane Robidas.
Then, Segal made it 2-1 a minute and a half into the second period from Ribeiro and Brenden Morrow.
And then just 29 seconds later, Loui Eriksson extended the Dallas lead by two, making the score 3-1. His goal was assisted by Brad Richards and Steve Ott.
But then, just a little over a minute and a half later, Kunitz scored his 10th goal of the season with help from Crosby and Kris Letang.
Letang also assisted on Pascal Dupuis’ goal about five minutes later, tying the game at three.
Later in the period, Crosby bounced a shot off Dallas defenseman Trevor Daley to give the Pens a 4-3 lead. Kunitz and newly acquired defenseman Jordan Leopold got his first assist with the Penguins.
The end of the period also saw fighting. Steve Ott and Craig Adams dropped their gloves and each were given five-minute majors.
And to start off the first period, Crosby scored yet another goal. But this time the goal was a shorthanded one—Crosby’s second ever. His two goals for the night put him in the lead for the most goals in the NHL this season.
And newcomer Alexei Ponikarovsky scored a power play goal off of a rebound. Gonchar and Goligoski assisted.
Another fight broke out, but this time it was between Mike Rupp and Krys Barch at 15:15. Many other penalties were also handed out in the third.
Fleury made 31 saves and the Penguins beat the Stars 6-3.
Sunday afternoon’s game against the Boston Bruins was a change of pace in comparison to the other games the Pens played this week. There was only a total of three goals scored the whole game.
The first period did not see any goals and witnessed only three penalties, all of which were given out to the Penguins.
Blake Wheeler of the Bruins scored the first goal of the night 3:12 into the second period. The power play goal came from Marco Sturm and David Krejci.
But Penguin Pascal Dupuis tied the game up halfway through the period for his 16th of the season and third since the Olympic break. Dupuis’ insistence got him the goal as the puck was eventually stuffed in the net past Tim Thomas after being smacked repeatedly by Dupuis. Crosby and Rupp assisted.
And the winning goal went to Evgeni Malkin, whose wrist shot from Ponikarovsky went in the net for a Penguins win.
During the game, Bruins center Marc Savard was carried off the ice on a stretcher after a huge hit by Matt Cooke. The hit will be reviewed, and Cooke will more likely than not be suspended for it.
The 2-1 win has now placed the Penguins (40-22-4, 84 points) in first place in the Atlantic Division, five points ahead of the New Jersey Devils in second. In addition, the Pens have now won four consecutive post-Olympic games.
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