Pens Dominate; Win 11th Straight

If any opponents plan on beating the Pittsburgh Penguins, their first problem may be figuring out how to stop them from scoring.

For the second straight game, the Penguins won 5-2 against an Atlantic Division contender on the road.  Pascal Dupuis, James Neal, Matt Cooke and Evgeni Malkin scored as the Penguins played another dominating game en route to their 11th straight win.  More importantly, the Penguins have crept within two points of the New York Rangers.

The Penguins came out of the gates aggressive, leading to a Chris Kunitz penalty shot after he was tripped on a breakaway.  Marty Brodeur, however, produced a big save -as he did for most of the game- stoning Kunitz.

James Neal broke the scoreless tie 1:59 into the first period on what has become a trademark play for his line.  Evgeni Malkin won the face-off back to Neal whose shot beat Brodeur on the far side.

Andy Greene tied the game up for New Jersey with 3:03 remaining in the first period.  With the Penguins’ power play expiring, Ilya Kovalchuk took advantage of a 3 on 2 rush in which the two defensemen for Pittsburgh were actually forwards.  Kovalchuk skated in, dropped a pass back to Greene who fired the puck past the glove side of Marc-Andre Fleury.  The goal was reviewed as the puck came out so quickly it appeared it his the post however, conclusive video evidence showed it was a good goal.

From there, the Penguins kicked into a higher gear and completely demolished the Devils.

Pascal Dupuis’ slapshot midway through the second period snuck inside the far post to give the Penguins a lead.  For Dupuis, it was his 20th goal of the season and Jordan Staal’s tenth straight game with an assist.

Just 1:34 later, Matt Cooke scored his third goal in the past 2 games after receiving a perfect backhand pass by Sidney Crosby.  Cooke redirected the puck off his skate and into the net.  The goal was reviewed but it was determined Cooke did not have a distinct kicking motion.

The Penguins’ fourth goal of the game was simply a dream come true for Penguins’ fans.  With the Penguins on the power play, Sidney Crosby turned with the puck along the far boards and dished a cross-ice pass, while on his knees, to Evgeni Malkin.  With no one in front to block the shot, Malkin’s one-timer beat Brodeur on the short side for his 40th goal of the season.

The Devils came out for the third period as a more aggressive, physical team.  Petr Sykora scored just two minutes into the third period to bring life to the Prudential Center.  All momentum, however, was effectively ended on Matt Cooke’s second goal of the game.  Tyler Kennedy lost control of the puck in front of Brodeur and Cooke’s backhander found the back of the net.

The harder the Devils pressed to score, the more opportunities they created for the Pittsburgh Penguins.  The Devils were outshot 44-14 and 18-4 in the final period.  Had it not been for the excellent play from Marty Brodeur, the Devils may have lost by double-digit goals. Brodeur denied Sidney Crosby four times including a nifty backhand shot on a partial breakaway in the third period.

The Penguins will travel to Philadelphia for their 12:30 game against the Flyers.

• Sidney Crosby has 5 assists in 2 games since returning.
• Pascal Dupuis is the 5th Penguin to have 20+ goals this season.
• The Penguins haven’t lost since February 19th.

Photo courtesy of Yahoo!