Penguins-Red Wings Game Four: A Blanket of White in the Igloo

A blanket of white greeted the Detroit Red Wings in Pittsburgh on Thursday night, as the saga continues for the right to the coveted Cup. I am not aware of the significance that the octopus bears, but I will assume that this many-tentaculated being is meant to suck you in.

Well—to this point—these arms have not been far-reaching enough; as the Mighty Malkin scored at the 2:39 mark to get “the first kick at the cat”. However, the Penguins were playing a little too cute in flipping the puck behind them without checking for a recipient. These antics were most ineffective.  Marc-Andre Fleury had to be very steadfast when there was a great deal of flurry around his net midway in the period.

It was not until 18:39 that any more scoring occurred in the first period, when Darren Helm, with an unassisted power-play goal, tied the game at 1-1. I thought Pittsburgh was playing the “pits”.  

Then 46 seconds into the second period Brad Stuart blasted a shot past Fleury and the Red Wings took a 2-1 lead and the momentum had swung Detroit’s way. Pittsburgh seemed confused and ran into trouble when they are assessed back-to-back penalties. A 2-1 lead appears ominous, but Jordan Staal  grabs the puck and ties the game with a short-handed tally at 8:35 on a great individual effort.

Malkin again showed his metal as he and Staal combined for this very crucial goal. Up until this point the game was confusing, with the advantage switching back and forth. Sidney Crosby then scores his first goal of the series at 10:35, and of course, his backup is Evgeni Malkin.

Tyler Kennedy then put the cap on the game at 14:12 of the second period (as there were no goals in the third) and secured a 4-2 victory for the Penguins. However the Red Wings did put on a big surge in the last three minutes of the second period, and Fleury required eyes in the back of his head to keep his focus on the puck.

Detroit came out strong and tough in the third and the Penguins had a hard time containing Wings, but once more Malkin leads the way defensively. He looks confident and skates effortless as his smooth way of moving his body to maneuver around the opposition. Malkin, in my opinion—and no doubt, a lot of others—has become the 100 percent-plus frontrunner for the MVP.

So now for all those you who were so sure that Detroit had won this series—for sure—before the series started; I would say they better have a second thought. Pittsburgh may surprise them all. This could be the Penguins year. Remember! I said could.