Bleacher Report - Articles by Eric Naughton

A Different Take On The Penguins

Eric Naughton — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:29:41 -0500

It is Thursday, November 19th, 2009. the Pittsburgh Penguins have completed 25.6 percent of their schedule and the only thing people can write about are the injuries.

For everybody's information, the Penguins have not lost the most "man-games" to injury.

The Canucks have lost the most. Roberto Luongo was sidelined and returned recently. Daniel Sedin and Pavol Demitra are out and have not returned.

The Colorado Avalanche has even sustained more lost manpower and they lead the NHL as of today.

Of course, with the news that Jay McKee will be out, Pittsburgh fans might have a good case that the Pens have suffered the most.

At one point, three top defensemen and three top forwards were out of the lineup including superstar (no, not you Max) Evgeni Malkin. When Evgeni Malkin returned to the lineup, Chris Kunitz and Alex Goligoski sat out.

Though another blueliner will be out on Thursday, it is expected that Sergei Gonchar and Max Talbot will return to the lineup.

Now that I've gotten all of the injury nonsense out of the way, the Pittsburgh Penguins are 14-7-0 and have won two straight games.

The Penguins started the season 9-1-0 in their first ten games after a few months of "Stanley Cup hangover" talk. They won 11 games in October, only a few other teams have done that.

The Penguins started their season 7-0-0 on the road. When they were first dealt a road loss by the Los Angeles Kings, the Pens were 12-3-0 and already having injury problems.

I almost forgot, the Pittsburgh Penguins won the Stanley Cup in June, 2009. They had injuries that season, too. Sergei Gonchar returned just as Dan Bylsma took over as head coach in February.

The Penguins have a system that is shared by the parent club as well as the AHL farm team, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

That system was in place when Michel Therrien coached at Pittsburgh and Dan Bylsma coached the Baby Pens. When the Penguins were slumping, Therrien got away from the system. When Bylsma took over in Pittsburgh, he put the system back in place and turned things around.

The Penguins organization also has a good pipeline of players and prospects. Forwards Chris Bourque, Chris Conner and Mark Letestu have been called up and performed well. Blueliners Deryk Engelland, Nate Guenin, and Ben Lovejoy filled in the seriously depleted defensive corps and held the fort.

If the system didn't work, these guys wouldn't do as well as they have. The young defensemen even provided some of the winning spark in the last two victories.

A brilliant move by coach Bylsma was the return of Evgeni "Geno" Malkin. The brilliant move wasn't Malkin's return itself, but playing Malkin and Crosby together.

"The Two-Headed Monster" as they are sometimes called, hasn't always had great chemistry the past year. Rather than have Crosby, Malkin and Staal center depleted lines, Bylsma created a super first line to counteract big, bad Zdeno Chara.

Chara's effectiveness was curtailed by pitting him against two superstars of the game. If he handled Crosby, Malkin would be open and vice versa. This tactic and excellent secondary scoring gave Pittsburgh a victory and ended a four-game slide.

In the 5-2 win against Anaheim, Engelland and Lovejoy assisted on goals and the Crosby powerplay scored for the first time in 30 attempts on the man-advantage.

Today, the Penguins face the Ottawa Senators. Ottawa didn't do too well last year, but even with Dany Heatley gone, the Sens are not going to be pushovers.

Former Penguin, Alexei Kovalev, along with Milan Michalek and Jonathan Cheechoo are new to Ottawa and fitting in pretty well. Kovalev is credited with Mike Fisher's scoring prowess. Daniel Alfredsson and Jason Spezza are still playing in Canada's capital and ready to put the hurt on the Pens.

Their strong defense, who never seem to be intimidated by Crosby or Malkin, are backstopped by a capable goaltender in Pascal Leclaire.

If Eric Godard is in the lineup, expect a fight with Matt Carkner who leads the NHL with nine bouts this season.

To return to the injury report, Talbot and Gonchar are likely to return while defensive bull, Anton Volchenkov, will be a scratch for the Senators.

If the Penguins play simple hockey, get bodies in front of Leclaire, get shots on net, and give Fleury some support, they have a better than good chance to win. If they relax and think that Gonchar and Talbot's return tip the scales, the Pens might be in for a long 60 minutes in Scotiabank Place tonight.

As for the rest of the season, Pittsburgh fans can expect to see the lineup from October 2nd intact by Christmas. Ho, ho, ho and let's go Pens!

Pittsburgh Penguins: California Preview

Eric Naughton — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:49:35 -0500

Tonight, the Pittsburgh Penguins begin a four-game road trip. The first three games will be a tour through sunny California, the home of hockey.

Did I really just say that? Well, let's take a look at that.

The Anaheim Ducks are currently sitting at the bottom of the Pacific Division. However, they are a tough team and a perennial playoff favorite.

In the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs, they nearly knocked off Detroit which would have dashed the hopes of many for a finals rematch.

With a who's who lineup in Scott Neidermayer, Saku Koivu, Ryan Getzlaf, Bobby Ryan, Ryan Whitney (Enough Ryan's for you yet? They've got Ryan Carter, too.), Teemu Selanne, Luca Sbisa, Todd Marchant, and Joffrey Lupul, it's only a matter of time before this team starts clicking.

Since the lockout, the Ducks have made the playoffs every season and won the Stanley Cup in 2007.

As for the perennial losers, the Los Angeles Kings, they are neck and neck with San Jose for the Pacific Division lead. Anze Kopitar leads the league in points with Ryan Smith not far behind.

The Kings are finally coming together and part of their puzzle was solved when they acquired "the piece" from Pittsburgh. The Kings defense has decidedly improved since the addition of Rob Scuderi this past summer.

San Jose leads the Pacific Division and trails Colorado in the Western Conference by a single point. San Jose has been a Western powerhouse since the lockout but has choked consistently in the playoffs. Could this be their year?

These guys know how to play hockey and win games. Joe Thornton currently leads the league in assists, Patrick Marleau has 21 points (good for third in points behind Ovechkin), and Dany Heatley has found a home he likes and rounds out these top scorers in 11th place on the league leader list.

That brings me to the Penguins.

Let's take a quick look at their last 15 games. The first of these 15 was a 2-1 victory at the Joe Louis Arena against the Detroit Red Wings. That was Game Seven of the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals.

This season, the Penguins have shown little sign of letting up. After a disappointing preseason, Pittsburgh has a record of 11-3 and is currently on top of the league with a game-in-hand on Colorado. (The Avs have the same amount of points, but fewer wins than the Pens.)

Marc-Andre Fleury has nine wins and Alex Goligoski leads the league in plus-minus. For the first time in recent history, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are not topping the points chart. Crosby is tied for third in the plus-minus column and has nine goals. Tyler Kennedy leads the league with three game-winning goals.

Pittsburgh's superstars might not be putting up tons of points, but the team is playing together as a winning team. All but two players on the roster have made the score sheet and eight players have three or more goals. Only four players reside on the minus end of the plus-minus rating.

If you ask me, I'd also add that this is a team that hasn't even played to their potential this season.

The problem for the Penguins recently has been injuries. Everyone knew Maxime Talbot, the hero of Game Seven (Did I mention the Penguins won the Stanley Cup?), would be out for a few months after undergoing shoulder surgery in the offseason. But now, Gonchar, Malkin, and Kennedy are out.

Gonchar's impact has been loss of veteran leadership on the ice. People say that the powerplay suffers without him, but it wasn't performing well with him and Alex Goligoski is loving the power play. When Sarge is playing, you can just feel the comfort level is higher.

Malkin is out for a few weeks with a shoulder problem. It was showing in a couple of games before he sat out. I also suspect he was a little under the weather for a few games. Hopefully, Geno's parents will show up and his mother will feed him properly.

Kennedy is listed as day-to-day and he will probably play tonight against the Ducks but his absence was definitely felt the last few games. He has five goals on the season and is part of the Penguins' scrappy third line.

The Cooke-Staal-Kennedy line has been so effective for the Pens when it has been kept intact. They are the line that shuts down opposing team's first line. They are the line with the best cycle and forecheck in the NHL today. They come out after almost every goal (for or against) to provide an answer—either to get a quick goal to even things up or prevent a momentum shift.

With Kennedy back, I'm hoping this line will be together again. Staal centered the second line to ill effects against the Minnesota Wild. Sometimes, comfort level overrides any team's system.

The 2009-2010 Penguins are only one of a handful of teams to win 11 games in October. Dan Bylsma's regular season record is an astounding 29-6-4. That's pretty darn near close to a win rate of 75 percent.

I'm looking forward to three games of exciting hockey in California. I'm also looking forward to attending two of them. (I tried, but couldn't work out a trip to the Bay Area for the Sharks game.)

If you want to read my recaps you just need to visit Experiencing the Evolution.

LET'S GO PENS!!!

Penguins 2009-2010: What, Me Worry?

Eric Naughton — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 01:35:35 -0400

The Penguins return to another preseason after a short summer. The Pens defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets in overtime 5-4, with a typical, training camp squad.

The Penguins were missing some players, most noticeably Evgeni Malkin, and worked several prospects, including draft-pick Simon Despres and Eric Tangradi, acquired from the Ducks last spring with Chris Kunitz.

Many will say that the preseason doesn't mean anything. If that were true, a team's roster would be set by the first game.

Over the next few weeks leading up to the season opener against the New York Rangers, we will get to see how the Pens are meshing together. We will see players (and already have) get assigned to Wilkes-Barre, sent back to other clubs, or given their outright release.

Preseason is here to wet our appetites for the regular season and for the coaching staffs to not only decide their roster, but to get a look at how players and prospects will fit in or how they are progressing.

As we gear up for the NHL's 2009-2010 season, I have to say that I am not the least bit worried about anything. Let me proceed to address some issues that many critics and worry-warts are harping about.

1. Secondary Scoring

With Petr Sykora and Miroslav Satan gone, everyone seems to be worried about the winger positions.

What? I'm not worried about that at all.

I'm not going to bring up the fact that Sykora fizzled at the end of last season because that has been attributed to a shoulder injury and you can't blame the guy. He'll have a great time in Minnesota where he was given a chance by former Pens Asst. GM Chuck Fletcher.

Miro showed up off-and-on during the season and was even sent to the minors, though that move was mostly done to clear up cap space heading into the playoffs. He played in several playoff games and performed well, but because of his overall 2008-2009 performance, he won't be returning.

Another loss will be Max Talbot who will be out for a few months due to offseason shoulder surgery. I would only worry if Max were going to miss the post-season—that's where he shines.

I'm not worried because the top three lines will be intact when Max returns. Crosby-Kunitz-Guerin, Malkin-Fedotenko-Talbot, and Staal-Kennedy-Cooke will be supported by a grab bag fourth line made up of players such as Dupuis, Adams, Rupp, Godard and numerous Wilkes-Barre players.

Talbot really started clicking with Malkin and Feds during the SCP and Kunitz and Crosby proved they have chemistry in the game against the Blue Jackets. These players have also shown (since Bylsma took over) that they can mix and match lines and still produce points.

And we only need to look to the SCF to witness the capable secondary scoring of the Pens. Talbot: four goals, Staal: two goals (including a huge short-handed tally), Kennedy: two goals, Gonchar and Letang: one goal.

2. Defense

Goaltender, I mean, shot-blocking defenseman Rob Scuderi and the U.S.S. Hal Gill both departed the team after outstanding Stanley Cup performances.

These two will be replaced (most likely) by Jay McKee, picked up from the St. Louis Blues, and Alex Goligoski, who stepped up big in his rookie year filling the shoes of Ryan Whitney or Sergei Gonchar (depending on who you ask).

Everybody talks about how irreplaceable Scuderi and Gill are. I was often frustrated with Scuderi being out of position, missing assignments and making simple mistakes (he called to Fleury for the puck which was picked up by Ovechkin for the empty netter in Game Seven against the Caps). Gill was slow and wasn't as physical as he could (should) have been.

McKee plays a very similar style to Scuderi. He will need some time to get used to the Penguins' zone defensive play. I predict that McKee will be a solid, stay-at-home blueliner this season.

Goligoski is a puck-moving, offensive defenseman. This was witnessed at the intra-squad game in Wilkes-Barre on Thursday - he scored a hat trick for the black squad. Alex is ready to be a starting defenseman and follows in the footsteps of Kris Letang who also came up from Wilkes-Barre and plays a similar style.

The defensive pairings will now be Gonchar-Orpik, Letang-Eaton and Goligoski-McKee (or perhaps Letang and Goligoski will swap). This will give the Pens three full lines comprised of an offensive defenseman and a stay-at-home defenseman. This suits the Pens' system under Dan Bylsma much better.

3. Goaltending

Mathieu Garon was acquired last year from the Edmonton Oilers in January for Dany Sabourin. Both players are now with new clubs. Garon played very well for the BJ's against the Pens the other night and Sabourin is now with the Boston Bruins.

The Pens signed Brent Johnson in the offseason and John Curry is still at Wilkes-Barre.

Okay, who cares? Fleury is the starter. Fleury is the man. People liked Sabourin but he was ousted twice in relief of Fleury - once by Ty Conklin and then by John Curry. Brent Johnson is a good goalie and will be a capable backup.

If Fleury gets injured, Johnson and Curry will be able to hold the fort. I'm not worried.

4. The Stanley Cup Hangover

Didn't the Pens suffer from the hangover in 2008-2009? They started well (even without Gonch and Whitney) through November. (Wasn't the Detroit-come-from-behind-losing-by-five-goals-and-winning-in-overtime game sweet?) They faltered in December and January and then drank a Dan Bylsma Red Bull (no, Red Bull isn't sponsoring me), and went all the way.

Entering training camp, the Penguins' attitude is this, "we are one of 30 teams, trying to win the Stanley Cup." These guys are here to play and to get the job done.

My guess is that all the champagne these guys had over the summer will act as the hair of the dog.

No worries from me.

5. Everybody Else

The only thing that worries me is everybody else! The Pens play in what is arguably the toughest division in the NHL. The Flyers and the Capitals are definitely gunning for the Penguins. The Red Wings want another SCF rematch. Every team in the NHL will be out to beat the 2009 Stanley Cup Champions.

I'm not worried... any more than I usually am.

GO PENS!!!

Fedotenko Will Stay in Pittsburgh Next Year

Eric Naughton — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:33:43 -0400

Ray Shero managed to keep one piece of the Stanley Cup puzzle in Pittsburgh. Unrestricted free agent Ruslan Fedotenko has signed a one-year, $1.8 million contract.

(Read more at Pittsburgh Penguins News and SI.com.)

Fedotenko joins Craig Adams and Bill Guerin as players who took a pay cut to stay with the Stanley Cup Champions.

This is good news for the Penguins on the heels of losing two important defensemen in Hal Gill and Rob Scuderi, who took big pay increases from the Canadiens and Kings, respectively. Due to salary cap issues, there is no chance that Pittsburgh would have been able to afford these two players, even with hometown discounts.

Fedotenko represents the most important free-agent retention for the club. Feds has great chemistry with Evgeni Malkin and scored 39 points in 65 regular-season games as well as seven goals and 14 points in the playoffs.

Deals have not been made with Petr Sykora, Miroslav Satan, Phillippe Boucher, or Mike Zigomanis. While Satan is likely to leave Pittsburgh, Sykora should be a top priority for the Pens.

Sykora is an important player for Pittsburgh with 46 regular-season points. His late-season slump and playoff absence has been attributed to a shoulder injury.

Shero has proven to not be in a hurry this year and results on these contracts might be pending for some weeks.

EDIT: Ray Shero's comments here indicate that they may not be trying to re-sign Boucher but confirm my thoughts that Sykora's future will unfold over the next week or so.

Rob Scuderi Follows the Money to Los Angeles Kings

Eric Naughton — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:37:09 -0400

Reported a little over an hour ago, Rob Scuderi has signed with the Los Angeles Kings for a four-year deal worth $3.4 million annually.

(Click on this LINK to read an article about it.)

Looking at the picture above, you can see why L.A. went for Scuderi. Not only did he prove himself as one of the best blue-liners in the NHL, he can also play goalie!

I think this is a fantastic move for the Kings. They have a ton of cap space and need the help of a guy like Scuderi who brings experience, evenness, and solid, stay-at-home defense.

Now, the Kings need some veteran leadership up front, and will be ready to join the playoff mix on a regular basis.

I had thought L.A. was a possibility for Hossa, but he went with another team I was thinking would be a good fit for him.

The result for Pittsburgh is another blow to their defense. Losing Scuderi was huge, and makes losing Gill a little more serious.

Goligoski will certainly have a regular spot in the lineup this season, and perhaps Ben Lovejoy will move up. With the signing of Brian Strait and the drafting of Simon Despres and Philip Samuelsson, the organization continues adding depth on the blue line.

I predict the lines will work out this way: Orpik-Gonchar, Letang-Eaton, Goligoski-Boucher/Lovejoy. These pairings create three solid lines with a stay-at-home defenseman and an offensive-minded defenseman - perfect for Bylsma's aggressive, offensive style of hockey.

The Penguins now need to work out the situation with their forwards. Sykora is a favorite and should be a priority. Fedotenko is another player the Pens should and will try to keep.

However, Fedotenko may turn out to be too expensive on the open market and could be the second Penguin to wear a Kings sweater in the 2009-10 season.

The Legend of Marian Hossa

Eric Naughton — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 20:14:33 -0400

One of the biggest stories of the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals is Marian Hossa's departure from the Penguins in 2008 to play for the Detroit Red Wings.

In 1997, Hossa was drafted 12th overall by the Ottawa Senators. He played a few games before being assigned to the minors where he scored 85 points in 53 games as well as WHL Rookie of the Year honors.

An injury in his team's championship run caused him to miss the beginning of the Senators' 1998-1999 season. He returned in December an put up 30 points in 60 games.

The next three seasons showed continued improvement with a high of 80 points in the 2002-2003 season. That year, he led the Sens with 16 points in 18 games during the playoffs which ended in the Eastern Conference Finals at the hands of the New Jersey Devils.

Hossa signed a three-year, $18M contract with the Senators but was traded to Atlanta after the lockout. In his first year with the Thrashers, he scored 92 points and then followed that up with a 100+ point season in 2006-2007.

Even though Atlanta won the Southeast Division, they were eliminated by the New York Rangers in the first round.

In 60 games with the Thrashers during the 2007-2008 season, he scored 56 points. He also appeared in the All-Star Game for the fourth time. Unfortunately, it was obvious that Atlanta would not be making the playoffs.

Hossa, his contract ending and his desire to win the Stanley Cup stronger than ever, was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins along with Pascal Dupuis. It looked as though Hossa would be part of a championship formula.

Barely into his first game with the Pens, Hossa was injured and would sit out for several games.

During the subsequent post-season run, Hossa silenced critics who branded his past playoff performances as disappointing. He scored 26 points in 20 games with the Penguins and nearly forced overtime in the dying seconds of what would be the Wings' Game Six clinching victory.

The events creating this year's big story then happened. Hossa chose to turn down a huge contract with Pittsburgh in favor of giving himself the best chance of winning the Stanley Cup. He chose Detroit.

Isn't that the phrase we hear many times during the playoffs? "We had chances." "Our goalie gave us the chance to win." Et cetera.

I have claimed that Hossa took a single year contract with a great team in order to position himself for a huge, multi-year deal this summer. With an 80+ point season and a Stanely Cup, Hossa might have been able to beat Pittsburgh's eight-year, $56M offer and get upwards of $8.5M for seven or eight years.

Now, who knows where he will end up? Perhaps the Wings will unload some older free agents, keep Hossa and bring in younger and less expensive players? It's possible Hossa will take a huge deal with another up-and-coming club where he can lend leadership and scoring.

Comparing 2008 to 2009, Hossa definitely disappointed many. He scored 71 points in the regular season. That's comparable to the points average he had with Pittsburgh in 12 games.

In the playoffs this year, he only scored 15 points while playing with a group of highly skilled and talented players. While his production went down, Crosby and Malkin elevated their play scoring 31 and 36 points respectively compared to 27 and 22 in the 2008 playoffs.

If Hossa had signed with the Penguins last summer, I'm not convinced that they would have won the Stanley Cup this year. His deal might have prevented many other deals.

After Hossa signed with Detroit, Pittsburgh made a slew of multi-year deals. They signed Fleury, Malkin, Eaton, Orpik, Kennedy, and Max Talbot. They signed Fedotenko, Satan, and Cooke during the summer.

All of these Penguins had a big hand in the success of the Penguins in their 2009 Championship. With $7M committed for eight years, many of these deals would have been tough to swing or wouldn't have happened at all.

A Penguins squad with Hossa in 2008-2009 would have been electrifying. Hossa, Crosby, and Malkin may have ended up as the top three point scorers, creating even more Penguins hating throughout North America. That may have created a Pittsburgh crew sans Malkin, Staal, and Fleury in 2009-2010.

We will never know the answers to the what-if questions.

I, for one, wish Hossa the best. I think he is a talented guy and will continue to have a headlining career.

I hope The Legend of Marian Hossa ends with a Stanley Cup ring and a skate into the sunset.

Red Wings-Penguins: Detroit Leads 1-0—No Need for Panic, Pittsburgh

Eric Naughton — Sun, 31 May 2009 14:40:45 -0400

The Penguins lost their first game to the defending Stanley Cup Champions, the Detroit Red Wings. The score was 3-1 and, unlike Game One in 2008, most people have rated it an extremely even match decided by bounces.

With Detroit leading the series 1-0, now is not the time to panic.

In round one of this year, the home team won the first game in six out of eight series.

Carolina managed to split the first two games in New Jersey and went on to beat the higher seeded club in seven games.

Anaheim proved to be the giant killers, taking the first two games at San Jose and knocking out the number one seed in six games.

The Rangers were able to beat the Capitals in Washington to take a 2-0 lead in the series. The Caps then clawed their way to a victory at home in Game Seven to advance to the next round.

In round two, the home team won the first game in all four matchups.

Carolina again split the first two games, this time in Boston. The 'Canes again defeated the higher seeded club in seven games and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Washington won both of their first two home games against Pittsburgh, but eventually fell to the lower seeded Penguins.

Detroit split their opening home games with Anaheim, who forced a game seven. The Wings prevailed at home over the Ducks in the decisive game.

Chicago and Vancouver also split their first two games in the Canucks' barn. This time, the underdog Blackhawks took only six games to move on to the Western Conference Finals.

In round three, Detroit and Pittsburgh both dominated their opponents winning their home openers, dispatching their opponents in four and five games, respectively.

So, it would seem that the home team winning Game One is to be expected.

Out of 14 first games, the home team won 12 times and the away team won only twice. Out of all the second games, the teams in colored sweaters won eight times and the teams in white won six times.

Statistically, it's less certain that the home team wins Game Two.

Five out of the 14 series have been won by the underdog. In three of those five series, the first two games were split, with a win for the home team followed by a win for the away team. Three of those underdog wins happened in round two, making that round dominated by the lower seeded teams.

So, maybe the odds don't seem so great for Pittsburgh as the first game winner has overwhelmingly won their respective series.

However, if Pittsburgh manages to win Game Two, their chances of winning the series goes up. Also consider that Pittsburgh is the only lower seed to win a series after losing the first two games away.

I have no advice for the Penguins, in fact, if they needed advice they would not be where they are right now. They know they need to win game two to give themselves the best chance of winning the Stanley Cup.

My advice to Penguins fans is merely this: Don't panic.

Mama Malkin's Home Cookin'

Eric Naughton — Sat, 30 May 2009 03:30:14 -0400

Evgeni Malkin may be doing better this year because of one simple reason: his mother's home cooking.

During an interview, Geno said that he feels good and is happy his mother is there to cook for him. She cooks his favorite beef dish for supper and makes him soup before games.

It's not just this time of the year. In February of 2008, there was an article written about the Penguins' disappointment that Evgeni's parents were soon to end their recent visit.

During Natalia and Vladimir's visit, the Penguins played eight games. In those eight games, Geno scored seven goals and tallied nine assists.

Over the next eight games, he scored four goals and had seven helpers. The previous eight games, he scored six goals and had 10 assists.

So maybe it wasn't a drastic change during the middle of the season, especially a season in which Malkin went down to the wire in a points race with countryman Alexander Ovechkin.

But let's consider his output during the playoffs in 2008. In 20 games, he scored 12 goals and had 10 assists. However, his output during the six games of the Stanley Cup Final was an assist on the dramatic Game Five overtime goal and a goal and an assist in the Game Six losing effort.

He was run down at the end of the season and seemed almost lost by the time the long grind of the regular season and the relentlessness of the playoffs were over.

So far in these playoffs, he has played 17 games and has 12 goals and 16 assists - tied with Sidney Crosby in points.

Geno seems to have more energy than ever, able to take charge of games late in the season and throughout the playoffs with little time off and even two back-to-back games against the Washington Capitals.

What's the difference this year? His parents cheering him on from the stands and Natalia's home cookin'.

But with home cooking comes more than just good food. It is clear that his parents couldn't be prouder of their all-star son.

It's also clear that Evgeni loves his parents and even replied to a query about whether or not he had a girlfriend, that he did not have a girlfriend, but that when his mother is in town, she's his girlfriend. I'm sure if he was able to answer in Russian, his remark would have sounded less incestuous and more like, "she's my best friend."

It always helps to have your mom cook you your favorite foods. If you watch the video in which Evgeni and Alyonka Larionov make pierogies, I think you'll agree that Geno's mom cooking might be a little more helpful in his case.

But the really valuable thing here is comfort level—one of those intangible things that makes everyone perform better or at least not worry about performing better. In 2008, Malkin gave very few interviews in English.

This year, he's not worried if people will give him a hard time for his broken English and gives interviews, even takes questions from reporters during postgame press conferences.

Evgeni Malkin is comfortable. His parents are watching in the stands just like when he was growing up. His mother is cooking for him at home and doting on him. He not only has both his parents to talk to, but his father was also a hockey player and put Evgeni in skates when he was three.

Having the most important people in the world around you at one of the most important points in your career is incalculably valuable.

Evgeni Malkin is one of the luckiest guys in the world. He is blessed with enormous talent and has wonderful parents who raised him, "not as a star but as a regular person." That's why he's so likable and genuine.

Good luck Geno! I hope you bring the Stanley Cup to Pittsburgh this year—not for me and not for the fans, but for your parents and for yourself. You are a champion and you deserve it.

Pittsburgh Penguins-Washington Capitals: Pens Advance to Conference Finals

Eric Naughton — Thu, 14 May 2009 01:24:37 -0400

In the playoffs, hockey becomes a game of inches. In Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Washington Capitals, the Penguins won by a yard.

Marc-Andre Fleury

Fleury faced 21 shots and stopped 19. The difference in this game was Fleury's huge saves on Ovechkin in the first period.

About three minutes into the game, Ovechkin is sprung loose with an excellent outlet pass. Ovie streaks toward the goal, blowing past the Penguins defense, and is robbed by Fleury.

Not long after his first chance, Fleury makes another key save on an Ovechkin shot. AO ripped a wicked wrister from the left circle, intended for the corner above Fleury's blocker. Unfortunately for Ovie, the puck connects with the upper shaft of Fleury's stick instead of the twine behind.

If either of these chances had gone in the net, the game would have gone in a completely different direction. Ovechkin's breakaway would have been the first goal of the game. The next chance would have tied the game at one goal apiece.

Fleury continues to have trouble playing the puck behind the net. The blame for MAF's assist on Ovechkin's empty net goal cannot rest entirely on Fleury's shoulders, however. Watching the CBC replay of that goal, you clearly hear the Pens' defenseman yelling, "Marc!" to get the puck.

Fleury, head down, passes the puck toward the voice, but Ovechkin is swooping in and easily intercepts the pass and coolly deposits it into the vacant cage.

Luckily for the Penguins, they had a five goal lead. At 3-0 or 2-0, this goal may have been the spark the Caps needed to get rolling.

Sergei Gonchar and The Powerplay

Sergei Gonchar returned to the lineup after recovering (enough) from his knee-on-knee collision with Ovechkin in Game Five. Sarge only played 15 minutes but his early shifts were the most important.

His shot toward the net on the Penguins' first powerplay proved to be the primary assist on the first goal of the game after Sidney Crosby corralled the puck and banged it past the Capitals' netminder.

Both of Crosby's goals came on the powerplay. In the first half of a four minute, high-sticking penalty to Brooks Laich, Washington pressed into the Penguins' zone short handed.

The puck wandered off of Ovechkin's stick and Crosby was there to take it, unmolested, two-thirds of the ice and get the puck past Jose Theodore for the sixth tally of the game.

The final part of this story is the deadly, devastating, destructive Washington Capitals powerplay. All five Capitals powerplay goals either tied the game or gave them the lead. In Game Seven, the Caps scored zero powerplay goals. The reason for this is that the Penguins spent zero minutes in the sin bin.

Alexander Ovechkin

This guy is the most dangerous goal scorer in the NHL. He scores great goals, clutch goals and celebrates with enthusiasm. He strikes fear in the hearts of opponents with his scoring power and his hitting power.

In Game Seven, stymied by Fleury twice in the first period, Ovechkin struggled throughout the game to get his wheels turning. He scored on a gimme from Fleury but just couldn't celebrate, choosing a businesslike and determined attitude after the goal. I expected another goal within a shift or two.

Alexander was limited to three shots on goal and five hits on Penguins players. His biggest hit came against Nicklas Backstrom after Malkin avoided the flying Ovie. Backstrom got up slowly and headed to the bench.

Just when the Caps were pressing and threatening to get a short-handed goal, Ovechkin coughed up the puck to Crosby (see above).

Detroit Shut Down

This Game Seven reminds me so much of the Red Wings' performance in last year's Stanley Cup Playoffs. Detroit would get the lead and shut down the opponent.

Ovechkin, Semin, Green, Kozlov, Federov, Steckel...these guys were unable to accomplish anything n the game. Almost every time a Capitals player controlled the puck, three Penguins were there to break up the play.

The Caps were never able to get in the groove due to the Pens' pressure, puck control, effective sticks and shot blocking. The Penguins also executed offensive zone puck possession very well—a good offense is the best defense.

In other games, the Capitals were able to blame their lack of flow on the large amount of penalties. Tonight, you can only credit Pittsburgh's tenacity and commitment to solid defensive play and puck management.

In 2002, the Red Wings defeated the Colorado Avalanche in a Game Seven by the score of 7-0. Detroit, like Pittsburgh, chased the goalie from the net in that game. The only difference was the Colorado netminder was Patrick Roy.

Sidney Crosby

So Mr. Semin, what do you think of Sidney Crosby now?

In six games against the Philadelphia Flyers, Crosby recorded four goals and four assists. In seven games against the Washington Capitals, Crosby recorded eight goals (inlcuding his first playoff hat trick) and five assists.

Three of his goals in this postseason were put in out of midair. He scored another spectacular goal by taking a pass out of midair, expertly maneuvering the bouncing puck around Varlamov and putting it in the net.

Crosby, Ovechkin, and Malkin are the top three scorers in the playoffs but Crosby is tops with 12 goals and 11 assists. Sid is putting up numbers at better then 1.6 per game.

It's not just the points, though. Crosby has an uncanny ability to take control of a game, and swing momentum to the Pens in just one shift. He wins key faceoffs, scores go ahead goals, scores tying goals, assists on key goals, he puts his stamp on the game in every shift.

There is no "I" in "T-E-A-M"

The NHL made this series out to be a duel between Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby. The real key to victory was the team effort put forth by both squads.

Five of the first six games were decided by a single goal. Three of the first six games were decided in overtime.

Both teams had an effective game plan. Pittsburgh's game was offensive zone puck possession and lots of shots. Washington's game was speedy breakouts through the neutral zone with activated defensemen and a strong powerplay.

Washington prevailed in the first two games. It takes a complete team effort to win three games in a row when you're in a 2-0 hole. Both teams won important games on the road.

While it may seem that Ovechkin was Washington's entire offense, he did get a lot of scoring support. Fleischmann, Steckel, Kozlov, and Backstrom provided important secondary scoring.

For Pittsburgh, Geurin, Eaton, Letang, Fedotenko, and former Capital Matt Cooke scored important goals to supplement Crosby's output.

The only drawback...

The only bad thing about this series ending is that it's over. As a Penguins fan, I'm ecstatic that the Penguins continue to beat the runner-up curse and will advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.

I'm disappointed that we will have to wait until September for Alexander Ovechkin to amaze and astound us again.

I am also disappointed that Pittsburgh and Washington will never play each other for the Stanley Cup.

This will surely go down in history as one of the best playoff series ever, despite the seeming blowout Game Seven.

Washington fans must console themselves with the knowledge that their beloved Capitals will return to the playoffs again next year.

Pittsburgh fans must now prepare to chomp on their fingernails for at least four more games.

GO PENS!

Capitals-Penguins: From Russia With Gloves

Eric Naughton — Mon, 04 May 2009 22:19:30 -0400

I'm not a Flyers fan, so I won't complain endlessly about the poor job the officials did in this game. I won't talk about Matt Cooke getting tripped and being unable to cover Ovechkin on the powerplay. I won't talk about the soft penalties (both ways) or the tripping call against Kris Letang, when he clearly got to the puck well before taking out the man.

The difference in this game was the play of the Russians. For the Capitals, it was the unbelievable play of Simeon Varlamov and the scoring power of Alexander Ovechkin.

The Sid vs. Ovie matchup was even tonight in goals, as both players recorded hat tricks. Although Dave Steckel's tally was the only secondary scoring of the game, it was Ovechkin's goals that made the difference—a tying goal, a go-ahead goal, and the game winner.

Simeon Varlamov continues to stymie the Penguins. Not only did he make the save of a lifetime against Crosby in game one, but he continued to make excellent saves in game two.

The Russians, who made a difference for the Penguins, were Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar. Unfortunately, their contribution was not as stellar as their Capital comrades.

Malkin is absent from this series so far. His performance reminds me of the first two games against the Red Wings in 2008.

Geno woke up for a few moments during the second and third periods, but for some reason, he has been unable to produce. While part of his problem might be snakebitten Petr Sykora, Fedotenko has stepped up his game to pick up the slack.

Sergei Gonchar is one of the big reasons for the Pens' loss in game two. In the third period, he looked like he had played too much.

Twenty-eight minutes in game one and 27 minutes in game two is just a little too much time. Not to mention the fact that both Gonchar and Malkin spend way too much time on the powerplay.

And now we get to it. The Capitals penalty killing is excellent, but the Penguins have to capitalize on the powerplay if they want to win. That doesn't mean playing your top guys for the entire 2:00. That strategy has left these guys gassed early and takes its toll toward the end of the game.

The Penguins need to roll two or three powerplay lines to give the second liners the experience and give the first liners a break.

Bylsma needs to take advantage of home ice to get the matchup against Ovechkin that can shut him down. He also needs to look at his players' TOI. There are 14 guys on the bench. And especially in the playoffs, you have to use them all.

It's tough to play an emotional series against the Flyers and take on another excellent opponent. This is the second year in a row the Pens have followed up a victory over the Flyers only to lose two games on the road.

As the series leaves the ocean of red in the Verizon Center and moves back to the Igloo, there will be plenty of white in the stands and plenty of fight left in the Penguins.

Thanks, Rangers! Pack Your Bags, Flyers!

Eric Naughton — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 20:38:58 -0400

For two-and-a-half hours today, this last day of the regular season, the New York Rangers were Pittsburgh's favorite hockey team.

On April 10, the Penguins beat the Habs and Carolina lost to the Devils, guaranteeing the Pens a finish no worse than fifth in the NHL's Eastern Conference and a matchup with the Flyers. But they wanted to move up just one more spot.

In order to secure home-ice advantage, the Philadelphia squad needed to get three points against the "Big Apple Bunch," the Islanders and the Rangers.

The Flyers handily beat the Islanders and looked forward to having their next three games at home: the last of the regular season against the Rangers and then two against the Penguins in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Philly just needed a win or draw in regulation to lock up fourth place in the Eastern Conference. Only an outright loss would give 4th place to Pittsburgh.

Too bad for the Flyers that John Tortorella decided this game was to be the Rangers' first "postseason" game. Wanting to get his team ready for playing their first two games in Washington, he exhorted his boys to play 60 minutes, and play them hard.

Going into the third period, the Flyers had a 3-2 edge and were playing an excellent game. But the Rangers never gave up and tied the game with a goal by bad boy Sean Avery.

They then took the lead for the first time in the contest with a goal from Blair Betts.

With five minutes to go, Tortorella called a timeout and gave his team instructions on how to protect the lead and get the win (are you taking notes, Boudreau?).

The Flyers threw everything they had at the Rangers but came up empty. The bad blood at the end of the battle might serve to light a fire under the Flyers, but they have to be disappointed with losing the right to host the opening Playoff bouts.

As a Pittsburgh Penguins fan, I want to take this opportunity to thank the New York Rangers. You spoiled the first round for the Philadelphia Flyers, and I hope the psychological effect works to the Pens' advantage.

Now, can I ask you guys for another favor?

Play seven games with the Capitals and bang 'em up good.

Penguins-Rangers: Pens End March With Win

Eric Naughton — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 17:31:49 -0400

Secondary scoring and Sidney Crosby were the difference in the Penguins last game in March—and it didn't hurt that Ray Shero decided to hang up the Powder Blues, either—Max Talbot, Matt Cooke and Ruslan Feditenko scored and Sid got the game winner in a game.

After a surprise scrap between Tyler Kennedy and Sean Avery, today's game turned into a battle. Avery hit Kennedy along the boards and was chased by the Penguins' forward who dropped the gloves near the benches.

Kennedy certainly could have received an instigator penalty, but there was no chance of that where Avery is involved.

The Penguins scored their first goal right after the Rangers successfully killed a penalty.

Ruslan Feditenko put a pass off the boards right on Talbot's stick that was flying through the neutral zone. Talbot took the puck in stride and released a five-hole shot too quickly for Lundqvist to react.

A few minutes later, Malkin passed the puck into the slot where Max Talbot took a low shot of King Henrik's pads. Matt Cooke missed with his first shot off the rebound, but stayed with the play and chipped the puck over Lundqvist's lunging glove hand.

The Rangers took the wind out of Mellon Arena by scoring two goals in the final two minutes of the period.

Ryan Callahan got the puck from a face-off win and had enough time to pick his spot over Fleury's glove hand. Brandon Dubinsky put in a wraparound goal with only seconds left in the first period.

Fleury was there in time but a little off and missed the post with his skate, giving Dubinsky enough room to get the puck in the net.

A few minutes after a heavyweight bout between Eric Godard and Colton Orr, the Penguins struck again.

Rob Scuderi stopped the puck inches from the goal line and swept the puck aside to Feditenko who continued the puck to Tyler Kennedy.

Jumping up on the play, Scuderi took a quick pass from Kennedy and hit Feditenko in stride.

While Derek Morris denied the pass to Jordan Staal, Feditenko took the shot and beat Lundqvist to give the Penguins a 3-2 lead.

The Rangers tied the game on a three-on-two rush. Nik Antropov corralled a rebound and used his long reach to swing the puck into the goal.

The big controversy of the game occurred when Colton Orr was given a five-minute major penalty for interference and a game misconduct after a hit on Mark Eaton.

Tortorella went ballistic on the bench, but it was clear that Orr approached the play with no intent of playing the puck. Eaton's face was smashed into the boards and he went to the locker room bleeding.

The refs gave an even-up call off the draw, but the Penguins were unable to score on the power play, once they got through the two minutes of four-on-four.

Sidney Crosby scored the game winner on a popular play this day.

Flying through the neutral zone, he took a pass in stride from Ruslan Feditenko. Crosby split the defense and buried the puck behind the Rangers' net minder.

In the waning moments of the game, the Rangers could muster no pressure on the Penguins with an extra attacker and committed two more penalties disrupting scoring chances on the empty net.

If a penalty is committed against a player who has a clear path to an empty net, does NHL rules automatically award a goal?

The chances by Malkin and Crosby were borderline calls and there is a case either way for the automatic goal or the penalty.

The Penguins did a great job shutting down Avery and Zherdev, the biggest Ranger threats. Any time Avery was near a Penguin, he got a bump and it threw off his timing, evidenced by whiffed shots and several offsides calls.

The Pens played a full 60-minutes of hockey with important contributions from every line and every player.

Sidney Crosby continued his scoring streak and Malkin's assist on Matt Cooke's goal game him a personal record of 107 points. Malkin still leads the surging Alexander Ovechkin in the NHL scoring lead.

The Penguins have a record of 14-2-3 under interim head coach Dan Bylsma. One of these days, this statistic will stop being reported.

More importantly, the Penguins are now in fifth place in the Eastern Conference and tied at 90-points with the Flyers who have two games in hand.

In the month of March, the Penguins posted a league leading record of 10-1-2.

The Penguins outscored their opponents 46-28 in regulation and scored 33 of those at even strength.

The Pens have one game remaining against the Devils in their record high, eight game home stand before heading south to play the Canes, the Bolts and the Cats.

The Penguins close out their home games against the Isles and then travel to Montreal for the last game in the Habs' 100th season.

NHL to Air New Reality Show (Satire)

Eric Naughton — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 16:33:50 -0400

Move over Brody Jenner, the NHL Network is set to air a spin-off of your MTV reality show.

Martin Brodeur, the new all-time, winningest goaltender, stars in "Bromance: Hockey Style." Brought to you by executive producers Ryan Seacrest, Ashton Kutcher and Elisha Cuthbert.

Martin will intimately audition current and former NHL stars who want to have the honor of being Marty's "Bros" and earn a spot on The Brodeur All-Star Team.

I managed to steal a bunch of episodes so I can give you a sneak peek at some exciting moments and who the finalists are.

****SPOILER ALERT****

If you don't want to know everything about this series, read no further.

Bromance: Hockey Style

Episode 1: The premiere episode features 60 NHL stars vying for one of 18 spots in the "Igloo," a Bryn Mawr, N.J. mansion. The ballroom has been converted into an ice rink and the entire place is adorned with hockey memorabilia.

Lyndon Slewidge sings "Oh Canada" to open the show allowing viewers in the United States to wonder why Canadians never joined the American Revolution.

The hopeful hockey players arrive at the entrance to the mansion on a Zamboni adorned Marty's masked face.

Oddly enough, Sean Avery was told not to even get off the Zamboni and to leave immediately.

The guys are ushered onto the ice where they meet Eddie Johnston, who played every single minute in goal for the '63-'64 Bruins.

He explains to the players that they will participate in a shooting contest to determine the 12 players who will remain in the "Igloo."

The guys all participate in a bunch of shooting drills against Ron Hextall, Patrick Roy, Tim Thomas and, surprise surprise, Martin Brodeur. There was a few tense moments when Eddie took a puck to the head, but he managed to wrap up the segment, holding a towel to his bloody noggin.

Marty picked the following players to stay on and still have a chance to be on his All-Star Team: Chris Chelios, Wayne Gretzky, Ron Hextall, Jari Kurri, Mario Lemieux, Evgeni Malkin, Mark Messier, Alexander Ovechkin, Denis Potvin, Bobby Orr, Steven Stamkos, and Jonathan Toews.

Sidney Crosby had to bow out because the NHL needed him for 7,384 interviews.

I personally think the NHL forced Brodeur to choose a lot of retired players to attract a bigger chunk of the 45- to 85-year-old demographic.

Episode 2: In the second episode, Marty holds a talent show. Steven Stamkos was eliminated when his voice cracked during his rendition of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.”

Episode 3: Throughout this episode, Bobby Orr and Denis Potvin hang out on the porch sipping Molsons and making fun of the “kids” in the competition. They think they’re a lock to be the two defensemen, seeming to forget about Chris Chelios.

Potvin is surprised to receive a “show misconduct” after dropping the gloves against Ron Hextall. Hextall is given five minutes for fighting, a 10-minute misconduct, and a two minute instigator penalty.

Episode 4: With Ron Hextall out of the lineup due to penalties, Marty takes the boys into the country for some moose hunting. Boy, was Johan Hedberg surprised!

The players chased Hedberg through the boreal forest, chucking pucks at him until he gave up. Once he lost his blocker in a fast moving stream, it was all over.

Jari Kurri and Mark Messier were both eliminated when they kept arguing over who Wayne liked the most. Marty uncharacteristically screamed at one point, “The show is about me! I’m the star of the show!”

Episode 5: In a prank to test the guys, Marty has launched a bogus clothing line. Every single piece in the collection has 552 little “w’s” on it. The players are told they must model the clothes at a red-carpet event, and they do look ridiculous.

Alexander Ovechkin is eliminated when he tells phony reporters covering the event that his clothing line is much cooler.

Episode 6, the Finale: The guys all return to the “Igloo” to play three-on-three in an exciting game you only get to see during the All-Star Weekend. Brodeur, Gretzky, Lemieux and Orr play against Hextall, Malkin, Toews and Chelios.

The score ends up being 127-125—a lot more like a cricket match than a hockey game.

In this episode, Marty makes his final cuts. He eliminates Hextall, citing his tackling of Chris Chelios during the game, even though they were on the same team.

Marty then eliminates Evgeni Malkin and Jonathan Toews. In a surprise move, Brodeur names Mike Eruzione the captain of his team.

Mike comes out of nowhere, jumps up on the coffee table and motions for the remaining members of his team to join him. Gretzky, Lemieux, Orr, Chelios and Brodeur all climb onto the coffee table.

After a flash of the camera bulb, the coffee table collapses and the six men fall to the ground in a giggling, face washing heap of NHL manhood.

I hear there are plans for a “Real Housewives of Saskatoon” if they manage to secure an NHL club.

Pittsburgh Penguins' Possible Playoff Opponents and Prognostication

Eric Naughton — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 02:36:55 -0400

Not too long ago, many people were wondering if the Penguins would even make the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Now, everyone is wondering who they'll play in the playoffs.

My prediction is that the boys in black and gold (Vegas gold) will end up in fifth or sixth place. Fourth place is not impossible, but a stretch since the Flyers have three games in hand over the Penguins.

The question going into Pittsburgh's final 10 games is, "how long can the streak go?" Under interim head coach Dan Bylesma, the Penguins are 11-1-3 and undefeated in regulation for their last 11 contests.

If Pittsburgh continues in a similar fashion, they could score 16 or more points by the end of the season and actually end with 100 points.

With big four-point games against the Flyers and Rangers and a game against Calgary, this might seem tough to accomplish, but they proved against Boston that they can beat any team in the NHL right now.

Penguins finish in fifth place (most likely)

I think this is the most likely spot for the Penguins to finish. This would pit them against Philadelphia in another "Pennsylvania State Championship."

This will be an emotional series. Philadelphia certainly wants revenge after the drubbing they received from Pittsburgh in last year's playoffs. Pittsburgh wants to erase the curse of the runner-up.

Like most teams in the NHL, these clubs are very evenly matched. Facing Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, Joffrey Lupul, Simon Gagne, and Scott Hartnell, Fleury and the Penguins' defense will have to be on their toes for 60 minutes.

The top three lines of the Penguins will give the Flyers all they can handle. If Pittsburgh can continue to execute their offensive-minded, puck-possession game, and split the first two games in Philadelphia, they’ll move on to the second round.

If the Penguins finish in sixth place

Conventional wisdom says that the Penguins will face the Capitals in a third vs. sixth-place matchup.

Emotional is an understatement, considering the Crosby-Malkin and Ovechkin-Semin rivalries. The Capitals defense is solid, and they have the NHL’s top scoring defenseman in Mike Green.

With home-ice advantage, the Capitals will definitely have the upper hand. They are tough at home and have a great fan base. If the Pens can split the first two games in Washington, they can force this series to seven games.

Consider the possibility that New Jersey ends up in third place. As I write this article, Washington is in second place, but the Devils have three games in hand and Martin Brodeur.

A series between the Penguins and Devils will be much more emotional for the fans. Though these teams are rivals, their games haven’t been as heated as in years past.

The Devils have solid scoring, solid defense and a wall in goal. The Penguins will have to get a lot of shots on goal, and keep the Devils out of their offensive zone.

If the Penguins are fourth

In order to do this, the Penguins will have squeaked by the Flyers in points, and Philadelphia is most likely in fifth place. They’ll still face the Flyers, but they’ll end up with home-ice advantage and the opportunity of putting Philly away in five games again this year.

On the outside chance that the Rangers get super hot and the Flyers get super cold, The New York Rangers could face the Penguins in fifth place.

A hot Penguins' team vs. a hot Rangers' squad could be a bruising seven-game series.

Tortorella and Avery have definitely injected some enthusiasm into the New York Rangers. Antropov seems like a new player with his new club.

Final thoughts

Since mid-February, the Penguins have proven that they can beat any team in the NHL. They have had many games lately that they would have quit on in December or January.

They have come from behind to win. They have blown leads and found a way to win. They have three solid scoring lines and perhaps a fourth, if Satan joins Talbot and Dupuis.

With home-ice advantage, they will be unstoppable. They are showing that even without home ice, they have the will and desire to win games.

The road to the Stanley Cup will be tough, but the Penguins are definitely capable of being the team to take it home.

The Great 8: Ovie Reaches 50

Eric Naughton — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 22:12:46 -0400

Congratulations Alexander Ovechkin!

Last year, Ovechkin became the first player in over 10years to score over 60 goals.

Tonight, Ovie scored his 50th after being stymied at 49 for a couple games.

I knew he would get there and he might even make it to 60 again, in the remaining nine games.

This is a good week for the NHL. Martin Brodeur won his 552nd game and Patrick Elias became the Devils' all-time scorer in the same tilt. Today, Alexander reaches a great season milestone.

Now, I hope that people stop giving AO grief for not talking to reporters the other night when he failed to score. It's a lot of pressure put on him by others, not to mention the pressure he certainly puts on himself.

That being said, I'm sure this will add fuel to the fire over the Hart Trophy. If Ovie wins again, he certainly deserves it.

Penguins: Regular Season vs. Playoffs

Eric Naughton — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 22:05:33 -0400

There is a lot of talk these days about what match ups fans would like to see in the post-season.

"Our team owned your team in the regular season."

"Our team kicked your team's ass in the regular season."

With the Pittsburgh Penguins fighting for a playoff spot and having struggled this year, Bruins, Devils, Capitals and Flyers fans all smell blood.

Many commentators claim that any team will dread playing the Penguins in the first round, but they haven't been able to convince the fans.

I'd like to add some food for thought with regards to the Penguins performance in the regular season versus their post-season results.

To do this, I'll reference last season since the Pens played in every round and a lot of those players are still with the squad.

Pittsburgh vs. Ottawa

Ottawa owned Pittsburgh in the regular season with a record of 3-1-0 with one win in overtime and a goal advantage of 17-14. In the first round of the playoffs, however, Pittsburgh swept Ottawa and outscored them by a whopping 16-6.

Pittsburgh vs. New York

Pittsburgh's record against the Rangers was basically even at 3-3-2 though New York outscored the Penguins 21-16. Again, Pittsburgh defeated their opponent in a convincing fashion, this time four games to one with a goal advantage of 15-13.

Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia

While Philadelphia beat Pittsburgh five out of their eight games and usually by multiple goal margins, they only outscored the Penguins by a single tally with 26 goals. In the Eastern Conference Finals, Pittsburgh smushed the Flyers in five games with 19 goals compared to only eight for Philadelphia.

The comparisons must end here, as Pittsburgh didn't face Detroit in the regular season. The Penguins fell to the Red Wings in six games with Detroit topping the Penguins in goals 16-10.

This season

Pittsburgh's records against the top four teams: 1-2-0 vs. Boston, 2-1-2 vs. New Jersey, 1-3-0 vs. Washington and 4-1-0 vs. Philadelphia.

Five of these games went to overtime or a shootout. The Penguins have only three games remaining against these opponents.

Many people say that the playoffs begin at the trade deadline.

Since the deadline

The Penguins are 3-0-2, Boston is 3-3-0, New Jersey is 3-1-0, Washington 3-1-1, Montreal is 2-2-1, the New York Rangers are 3-2-0, Carolina is 3-1-2, Florida is 1-2-2, and Buffalo is 2-2-1.

Pittsburgh and Carolina are the hot teams heading down the stretch with eight points separating seven teams in the Eastern Conference standings.

With eleven to fifteen games to go for the top ten teams, there is a lot of playoff hockey before we get to the postseason.

Whatever happens during the regular season, teams play the first round with a clean slate. The regular season record merely determines home ice advantage.

The Penguins are setting the tone now and started their run to the Stanley Cup Playoffs with a 9-1-3 record under interim coach Dan Bylesma and a healthy roster.

So, all you fans out there who want your team to play the Penguins in the first round be careful what you wish for…you just might get it.

Penguins-Blue Jackets, One Point Is Better Than None

Eric Naughton — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 23:33:47 -0400

The Pittsburgh Penguins lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets in their third shootout in as many games.

After Columbus scored 63 seconds into the third period, it looked as though the Penguins' win streak would end in convincing fashion.

Crosby and Malkin suddenly stepped up their play even before Gonchar's power play goal. These two took the reins and started flying all over the ice.

The Pens exploded for three goals in first three minutes and 30 seconds of the third period. The Blue Jackets responded by trying not to lose and managed to hold the Pens at bay for the remainder of the game.

Both goaltenders robbed the opposition of several goals in a game that easily could have posted 15 or more goals.

Marc-Andre Fleury was named the Player of the Game by Pittsburgh announcers Paul Steigerwald and former Penguin Bob Errey.

This is the point that I start to wonder.

I wonder why goaltending coach Gilles Meloche can't teach Fleury how to handle the puck behind the net. Every time Fleury goes behind the net, I charge my portable defibrillator.

Fleury was fooled by a shot he thought would be deflected and mishandled a puck that led to the second goal for Columbus.

While Fleury made at least three miraculous saves, I wonder how he can get fooled by another five-hole shot in the shootout (coincidentally by Huselius, who scored the first shot that fooled Fleury).

The Penguins managed a point in the contest and are currently the best team in the league with a 8-1-1 record over their last 10 games.

In other action, several teams had games whose results impact the playoff picture for the Penguins.

Montreal lost in overtime to the Islanders to maintain a one-point lead over Pittsburgh in the Eastern Conference standings.

Carolina lost to the Dallas Stars who desperately needed the win. Carolina remains one point behind the Penguins along with the Rangers who edged Florida out of the top eight with their win against Nashville.

The aforementioned Florida Panthers lost to the Buffalo Sabres 3-1. Both of these teams are very much in the hunt and the magic 92 points to make the playoffs might not be enough.

On a positive note for the Penguins, despite the snapping of their win streak, they came from behind again to force overtime. It's gut-check time and the Penguins are proving they have the guts to stay in the game.

This is playoff hockey and the Pens are showing the NHL that they are ready for the postseason.

Tyler Kennedy Scores Winner For Pittsburgh Penguins, Denied a Star

Eric Naughton — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:40:18 -0500

Tyler Kennedy has earned the moniker "The Little Tiger" by Paul Steigerwald, the FSN-Pittsburgh play-by-play commentator.

In the 2007-2008 season, he earned a spot on the Pens through hard work and smart play.

In September 2008, he earned a two-year contract extension.

He earned the game winner against the Florida Panthers on March 5th.

He earned a second goal on a play made by the quick transition of Ruslan Feditenko and Evgeni Malkin.

He has earned the respect and regard of his teammates so much so that they tried to get him a hat trick.

The only thing he didn't earn that game was one of the three stars dished out by South Florida media.

The stars of the game were Marc-Andre Fleury, Sidney Crosby and Radek Dvorak. Fleury deserved his star by making plenty of key saves to win the game. If you had to give a star to a Florida Panther, I guess Dvorak's goal earned that honor.

Crosby's goal 26 seconds (or 24, depends on who's telling the story) after Dvorak's first tally, tied the game, but it didn't spark the Pens' offense. With only 1:47 left in the second period, it merely cancelled any momentum the Panthers may have gained going to intermission with a 1-0 lead in an even game.

Tyler Kennedy's go-ahead-goal 2:24 into the third period was truly the spark that ignited the Penguins' explosive offense.

Kennedy, reunited on the energy line with Jordan Staal and Matt Cooke, continued the excellent cycle and puck possession game they play so well. All day the three had did a good job of keeping the puck in the offensive zone and slowly wearing the Panthers out.

Their hard work got them the game winner as Cooke and Staal worked the puck on the boards, Kennedy entered the high slot on the cycle. Cooke threw the puck to the slot through Staal's skates and Kennedy ripped a one-timer over Vokoun's strong glove hand.

Kennedy and his third line comrades continued their hard cycling work for the rest of the game. Kennedy got his second goal and easily put the nail in Florida's coffin burying the puck on a beautiful play from Malkin.

Crosby certainly had an impact on the game by dashing Florida's hopes on the rocks, but Tyler Kennedy deserved a star if not the first star.

March Of The Penguins

Eric Naughton — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 20:07:00 -0500

Just when they needed it, the Penguins are finding ways to win and have won three in a row for the first time since mid-November. The Pens have a record of 6-3-1 in their last 10 games.

Since Dan Bylesma took over as interim head coach, the Pens are 5-1-1 and have put themselves back into the playoff picture.

Bylesma's tenure got off to a rocky start, losing a tight game in a shootout to the worst team in the NHL, the New York Islanders.

Out of Bylesma's five wins, four have been won by a margin of a single goal, and in three of those games, the Pens blew two goal leads four times.

The Pens have only outscored their opponents 24-20 in the last seven games, but its been good for 11 of 14 possible points.

Currently in the eighth spot, the Penguins' playoff chances have been enhanced by the lackluster performances of teams above them in the standings.

Buffalo has lost three in a row and are 3-5-2 in their last 10 games. Meanwhile, Carolina is 5-5-0 and the Rangers are 3-4-3 in their last 10 games.

With the trade deadline looming and 12 games in March, the Pens have to keep their skates moving and stay one step ahead of their opponents.

After the rest of the current road trip, a single home game and then an away game at Columbus, the Pens commence a three-week, eight-game homestand that takes the schedule into April.

That should give the Pens some time to get comfortable and put in some solid work on their power-play and new, aggressive system.

Talk has recently turned from, "the Pens need 92 points to make the playoffs," to " the Pens are six points out of fourth place in the East."

Yes, the Penguins are six points behind the Flyers, but the Keystone State rivals also have three games in hand and just got Briere back.

There is a lot of hockey to be played this March, as it comprises two-thirds of the remaining schedule for many teams.

If the Pens can keep scoring, keep winning, and keep passing their rivals in the standings, this March will prove to be the March of the Penguins.

Penguins-Sharks: Penguins Win, Solid But Not Impressive

Eric Naughton — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 15:08:39 -0500

The Pittsburgh Penguins squeaked out a 2-1 shoot-out win against the San Jose Sharks last night in Mellon Arena. It capped a nice home stand with the Penguins getting six out of a possible eight points and not giving any points to Eastern Conference teams.

The first period was a lackluster period of hockey. The Sharks outshot and outchanced the Penguins in the frame. There were no penalties, no goals, and not much excitement.

The game turned into a faster-paced, North-South game in the second.

The Penguins managed a goal that came from hard work. An offensive zone turnover by the Sharks was turned up ice by Staal to Satan, who chipped the puck past a San Jose stick to Bill Thomas.

Thomas, working hard to control the bouncing puck, skated past the goal line and flipped the puck back toward the net. Staal, driving hard down the center of the ice, was the intended target, but the puck hit a defenseman's stick and caromed into the net.

The Penguins continued to get scoring chances, and had a power play, but were unable to score again.

The Penguins didn't sit back in the third, and the Sharks had to work hard to prevent the Pens from stifling their attack. The Sharks' third period goal was inevitable as Fleury gave up some juicy rebounds and the Pens lost focus in front of their net.

The last five minutes was exciting with a Penguins powerplay and a last minute flurry in front of Fleury as the Sharks tried to put the game away in regulation.

Again, the Penguins were unable to capitalize on the power play late in the third and again in overtime. They also gave up some short-handed chances.

Sidney Crosby finally tallied a shootout goal this season and it was enough to win as Fleury saved two decent attempts.

I would have to classify Fleury's performance as solid, but not brilliant. He made some good saves, but he continues to have rebound control problems. Some of his good saves were against shots from his rebounds.

The Penguins did have some nice scoring chances generated by good passing. However, too often the forward line ends up with all three players in the same place, digging for the puck and no outlet.

They still need to work on getting shots to the net that aren't easy for opposing goalies to handle. So many shots against Boucher (and Conklin, for that matter) were right into the logo and easily handled.

If the Penguins want a chance at the Stanley Cup again, they need to improve these areas greatly.

The Penguins have a nice schedule to look forward to in the next week. They have three games in eight days and face two teams below them in the standings.

Hopefully, they'll gain some momentum and a little rest before facing the Habs and then Philly and the Caps back-to-back.

Pittsburgh Penguins in Powder Blue: It's Time To Place the Blame

Eric Naughton — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 00:08:59 -0500

The rest of you can blame injuries (I have in the past), Michel Therrien, or Ray Shero (or Hossa, or Satan), for that matter.

I'm blaming the "Powder Blues."

As far as I am concerned, King Tut has nothin' on the Curse of the Third Sweater.

As a merchandising/marketing gimmick, the powder blue retro sweaters were fantastic for the Penguins. Fans gobbled up the sweaters adorned with 87 and 71, and items with the original logo sold like hotcakes (I have a waffle tee and trucker hat, by the way). I made it back to Pittsburgh for a game this season, and I'd say that one third of the sweaters worn by fans were the Powder Blues.

The throwback design first appeared in the 2008 Winter Classic, which was a great event (not only because the Penguins won). I really enjoyed the sense of nostalgia that the retro ensemble injected into the experience.

However, now that the powder blue unis are the official third look for the Pens, I am not so enamored.

The Penguins have a record of 2-4-1 in the Powder Blues (not counting the Winter Classic), and one of those wins was decided by a shoot-out.

The Penguins' record before the 2008-2009 season debut of the Powder Blues was 10-4-2, good for fourth place in the Eastern Conference. Their record since the Nov. 15 game against Buffalo is 16-20-3 and the Pens are struggling to make the playoffs.

I am now reminded of those heady days in the early 1990s, when the Penguins, led by Lemieux, won back-to-back Stanley Cup Championships. During the 1991-1992 campaign, the Penguins introduced a third sweater with the flying penguin logo—an attempt to "modernize" the skating penguin logo.

For the 1992-1993 season, the Pens went completely to the flying penguin design. It would take the Pittsburgh Penguins 15 years to get to the Stanley Cup Finals again.

I see a disturbing trend here. The team introduces a third sweater on the heels of success, switches to the new design, and condemns the team to failure.

I sincerely hope that the Pittsburgh management realizes that merchandise sales are not as important as winning.

You can thumb your nose at superstition, but I think the record is clear. Don't change to the Powder Blues, Mr. Shero. I don't want to be a Los Angeles Kings fan.

Post Script: Here are some records of other teams wearing retro sweaters this season.

Edmonton: 3-4-2

Philadelphia: 5-1-2 (a fitting, Broad Street Bullies record, so I guess the retro look is working for the Flyers)

Vancouver: 3-5-2

Montreal lost to Boston 3-1 in their first game sporting the "barber pole" look (I will refrain from further comment...)

I'd like to add that the Capitals also "modernized" their logo in 1995 and, after several disappointing seasons, wisely went back to a design reminiscent of the original in 2007-2008. They are doing much better now.

(Winter Classic results ignored for this article.)

What if the Penguins DON'T Make It to the Playoffs?

Eric Naughton — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 00:39:09 -0500

It seems more an more likely that the Pittsburgh Penguins will NOT be participating in the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year. I'm sure this will make many people happy, which is unfortunate if only because the league's two leading scorers will sit out the greatest sports tournament in the world.

I am also sure that this will make many Penguins fans decidedly unhappy, including me.

I would like to offer Pens fans some consolation with some of my positive thoughts on the season.

The 2007-2008 season was one of growth, and an amazing run to the SCF. Many young players gained some valuable experience and Evgeni Malkin, and other players, stepped up to fill in for their injured captain, Sidney Crosby.

Sure the 2008-2009 season has been disappointing. Going from a shaky opening few games, to a pretty decent first quarter of the season, the Penguins faltered and got into a habit of blowing multiple goal leads.

After losing their power-play anchor in Sergei Gonchar, effectively for the entire season, the Pens suffered a strange, revolving door of injuries that stifled consistency throughout the season. Ryan Whitney's return gave the team a little boost, but not enough to overcome their problems.

Remember Pens fans, the core of this team is still young and gaining experience. Playing through adversity and knowing how to fill all the gaps effectively is something you learn by playing through it.

The Pens are still strong up the middle with Crosby, Malkin, Staal, and Fleury in there for several years to come. Many of the other players WANT to stay in Pittsburgh because the organization is a great one to play for and the fans are awesome.

(And my prediction of last year may even come true if Jagr returns to the Steel City.)

If Pittsburgh doesn't make the playoffs, they will have a long break to get rested, get healthy and reflect on the past two seasons. The Penguins will also get a proper training camp and preseason this coming fall.

These guys have too much talent and dedication to the game to not be a better team next year.

I hope they make it to he playoffs this year, and I am sure they will win one (if not more) Stanley Cup Championships in the next five years.

Go Pens!!!

Can the Pittsburgh Penguins Overcome Injuries?

Eric Naughton — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 02:29:31 -0500

Last year, Crosby and Fleury were sidelined by high-ankle sprains and missed quite a number of games. During their absences, Malkin stepped up to fill the void left by Crosby.

Ty Conklin put on a show with an impressive (and unexpected) win streak. The rest of the team elevated their play and contributed with tough defense and spreading around the scoring.

This year started off with Ryan Whitney out for a few month due to an offseason surgery. In the preseason, Gonchar was knocked out for essentially the entire season.

Over the next few months, the Penguins were hit with a constant stream of injuries. Sykora, Kennedy, Gill, Dupuis, Talbot, Letang, Cooke, Zigomanis, Eaton, etc...Sometimes these injuries resulted in a couple of games, sometimes closer to 10.

In all, the Penguins have lost 173 man-games due to injuries.

In my opinion, many of these injuries have occurred at critical times. For example, Kennedy went out just when his third line of Staal-Kennedy-Cooke was really cooking.

Feditenko and Dupuis have had hot sticks lately and were recently knocked out, their return date uncertain. Now, just when they need to start putting some wins together, Crosby is day-to-day, Scuderi is questionable, and Talbot might miss a game or two.

Gonchar and Whitney's absence severely affected the power-play. With wingers in and out, Therrien is forced to juggle lines nearly every game. While he did a lot of this last year to give different looks to opponents, that was done with a group of players that had been together for a while and had chemistry coming into the year.

This year, it's impossible to settle on lines because of injuries, and therefore difficult for the players to create some mojo (see my earlier comment about the Staal line).

It might be too late for the Pens this season. It has been said that the Pens need 91 points in order to make the playoffs this season. With 37 games remaining, they have to avoid 15 losses in regulation.

For Penguins fans, it looks like they'll have to be secure in the knowledge that the organization has secured and very talented and young core of players for several years.

I also think that many of the players currently on the roster, will stay with the team through next season. If the Penguins fail to make the playoffs, they'll have a long time to rest and get healthy. They'll also have a "normal" camp and preseason for the 2009-2010 season.

I see no reason not to believe that the Penguins have the potential to win more than one Stanley Cup Championships in the next five years.

(see also this article written after mine...)

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/penguins/s_607407.html?source=rss&feed=8