Bruins at Penguins - 01-10-11
PREGAME
-Greetings from a frigid Pittsburgh. We actually have ice on the rivers:
-One Oxford Centre:
-The dinosaur in front of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh is staying warm:
-A Jarkko Ruutu fan:
-Mark Recchi still has at least one fan here:
-Ty Conklin:
-Consol Energy Center:
-The ice:
-Some jersey sightings. Peter Taglianetti:
-Former Bruins and Penguins forward Bill Guerin:
-We don't even know:
-An interesting choice. Marc Savard:
-Zdeno Chara:
-Another "fan" of Chara:
-Mark L____u:
-Tim Thomas:
-Sergei Samsonov, who was drafted by the Bruins in the 1997 draft in Mellon Arena:
-Alex Goligoski Wilkes-Barre/Scranton:
-Marc-Andre Fleury Wilkes-Barre/Scranton:
-Kevin Stevens:
-Petr Sykora:
-Darius Kasparaitis:
-The team's last two enforcers - Georges Laraque and Eric Godard:
-A Mighty Ducks starter jacket?!?
-Pierre Larouche:
-Mike Rupp:
-Zigmund Palffy:
-Seabass:
-Jerseys of the Night: Bruins defenseman Matt Bartkowski's mom and girlfriend:
-Bartkowski, a Mt. Lebanon native, is making his NHL debut tonight. Words can't describe how excited his mom is.
-Warm ups:
-The Penguins' starters are Matt Cooke, Tyler Kennedy, Jordan Staal, Paul Martin, Zbynek Michalek and Marc-Andre Fleury.
-Their scratches are Arron Asham, Sidney Crosby and Ben Lovejoy.
-The Bruins' starters are Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, Mark Recchi, Zdeno Chara, Dennis Seidenberg and Tuukka Rask.
-Their scratches are Nathan Horton and Adam McQuaid.
-During a moment of silence in honor of the massacre this past weekend in Arizona, some sack of puss yells out "You Suck Chara!"
-Way to go dude. Way to be an attention whore and embarrass our city.
-Jeff Jimerson is never embarrassing:
FIRST PERIOD
17:52: Blake Wheeler seteal a puck off Maxime Talbot in the Bruins' zone an sneaks up the right wing. He rips a wrister to the far side wide.
17:37: Talbot is denied down low by Rask.
14:56: Savard pulls up on the right wing an guns a slapper from the right wing. Fleury fends it off.
14:49: Lucic grips and rips a wrister from the right circle. Fleury denies it with his right foot and freezes play.
14:45: Off a faceoff win, Chara chucks a wrister from the right point. It gets re-directed on its way to the net.
13:24: Chris Conner zips up the right wing, fends off Savard and pushes a little wrister on net. Rask denies it.
12:30ish: Dustin Jeffrey is on with Mike Rupp and Craig Adams. We just don't get why he's on that line. He's a player with a top-six skill set. This team is starving for secondary scoring from the wings? Why not give him a try there instead of Tyler Kennedy?
11:44: Cooke chips a puck towards the slot from the left wing. Staal is there and re-directs it on net. Rask hangs on for the save. The "old" third line looking good so far.
11:23: Staal snaps off a wrister from the right circle. It appears to get deflected wide.
10:01: Mike Rupp smacks Gregory Campbell into the right wing boards in the Penguins' zone. Campbell takes a tumble. Expect Rupp to be suspended for 232 games. We think.
9:35: Evgeni Malkin jabs a loose puck from the slot. It hits something and goes wide.
9:20: Chris Kunitz has a clean chance in the slot but whistles a wrister it wide to the far side.
8:24: Jeffrey is sent to the penalty box for hooking Seidenberg. Staal, Cooke, Brooks Orpik and Michalek take the ice.
7:02: Cooke steals a wraparound pass by Savard on the right wing boards in the Penguins zone and pushes it down ice with a backhander.
6:24: The Jeffrey minor is killed. The Penguins' penalty killer barely allowed the Bruins a sniff at the net.
6:14: The Penguins display some class by noting Bartkowski's NHL debut on the video board. A solid applause is offered by the fans.
4:42: Conner grips a rips a wrister from the right wing over the cage.
4:10: Staal rips a big wrister from the slot. It hits a cluster of bodies in front. There's a scramble for the puck. The Bruins are able to push it out of danger.
3:55: Cooke is called for hooking against Johnny Boychuk. Adams, talbot, Orpik and Michalek take the ice.
3:11: Savard one-touches a pass to Steven Kampfer at the right point. Kampfer rips it on net. Fleury eats it up.
1:55: Cooke's minor is killed. The Penguins were a little
1:19: Savard is called for slashing on Malkin. After the whistle, Savard give Malkin a love tap. He's probably the last guy who should be initiating stuff like that. Malkin, Kunitz, Letestu, Letang and Goligoski take the ice.
0:42: Letestu snaps off a wrister from the right wing. Rask gives up a sloppy rebound as Kunitz crashes in. Kunitz doesn't really get a clean shot off. Rask is able to cover the puck and freeze play.
0:03: Letang chops a loose puck on net from the right circle right before the horn. Rask makes the save.
0:00: End of period. Bruins 0, Penguins 0.
SECOND INTERMISSION
-That was a decent period of hockey. But it was a little tame. Not a lot of physical play by either team. There were plenty of scoring chances, but neither side was all that aggressive.
-The Kennedy-Staal-Cooke line looked like it has been playing together all season.
-Malkin still was way too quiet.
-The Bruins' offensive weapons were rather quiet. Savard, Lucic, etc. were hardly noticeable.
-The Penguins have a 14-6 lead in shots.
-Staal leads the game with three shots.
-Tyler Seguin leads the Bruins with two.
-Chara leads the game with 9:07 of ice time.
-Letang leads the Penguins with 8:19.
-The Bruins control faceoffs, 11-5 (69 percent).
-Former Penguin Andrew Ference leads the game with three blocked shots.
-Fire Craig Patrick.
-Orpik leads the Penguins with two.
SECOND PERIOD
20:00: The Penguins will have 41 seconds of power play time on fresh ice. Staal is on instead of Letestu. He's joined by Malkin, Kunitz, Goligoski and Letang.
19:19: The Savard minor is killed. Not a lot going on there for the Penguins. Though the change from Letestu to Staal is a welcome sight.
18:49: Johnny Boychuk cranks a one-timer from the right side
18:54: Seidenberg rips a wrister from the left wing wide on the near side.
18:25: A break here for the Penguins as Patrice Bergeron is called for interference. The Bruins were buzzing around the Penguins' net. Letestu, Kennedy, Makin, Rupp, Martin and Michalek take the ice. The first power play unit is probably gassed a bit.
17:22: Letang jabs a slapper from the right circle. Seidenberg blocks it.
17:03: Malkin cranks a slapper from the right wing high over the cage
16:53: Malkin snaps off a wrister from the right wing. Seidenberg blocks it again.
16:30: Goligoski snaps off a wrister from the slot wide.
16:25: The Bergeron minor is killed. The Penguins were aggresssive but could't find a shooting lane.
15:21: Lucic runs over Talbot on the left wing boards in the Penguins' zone.
15:43: Seidenberg returns to the bench after retreating to the locker room for what appeared to be an equipment adjustment.
13:08: Attendance is announced as 18,245. It is the team's 189th consecutive sellout.
12:45: Dupuis whips a wrister from in tight in the left circle. Rask fights it off.
12:22: Adams puts a half slapper on net from the right circle. Rask boots it out.
12:05: Cooke jabs Krejci on the right wing boards as the puck sails out of play in the Bruins' zone. Krejci and Ference each take exception and give the business to Cooke.
11:27: Boychuk whips a wrister from the right circle Fleury boots it out.
11:18: Kennedy guns a slapper from the right wing. Rask fight it off.
8:21: And th Penguins fniall break through in the pretty unconventional manner. Mike Rupp lumbers his way up the right wing and chips a pretty weak backhander on net from the circle. It hits off Rask's right shoulder and squeaks through to the net. A pretty brutal goal to give up. Engelland gets the lone assist. It's the Penguins' first goal since Arron Asham scored in the first period of Thursday's game in Montreal. Yeesh. The "Woo-Hoo!" song is played. Penguins 1-0.
6:12: Recchi snaps off a wrister from the slot. Letang blocks it.
6:10: Recchi is nabbed for tripping Letang in the right wing corner. Kunitz, Letestu, Malkin, Goligoski and Letang take the ice.
4:48: Welcome back the Penguis' power play. From the right circle, Malkin chips a nice little saucer pass to Letang at the left point. Letang just tees up and strikes a one-timer which beats Rask by his glove hand on the far side. Kunitz had a nice block on that play. Malkin and Martin get assists. That's Martin's 150th career assist. The "Woo-Hoo!" song is played. Penguins 2-0.
4:13: Rupp smacks Seidenberg with a solid hit along the right wing boards in the neutral zone in front of the
3:53: Savard makes a really nice move deking away from Letang behind the net and deals a pass to Lucic in the slot. Lucic jabs a quick wrister on net. Fleury steals the shot without trouble. Orpik dumps Savard behind the Penguins net with a check from behind. Savard falls backwards into the boards in an awkward way. Savard is fin as he's able to stand up and jab Orpik in the back with hsi stick. Orpik and letang take exception and give the business to Savard. Letang and Savard each get roughing minors. Four on four.
2:52: Ooof. A bad moment here for Recchi as he's called for hooking Staal, his former renter, in the neutral zone for unsportsmanlike conduct after he complained about the call. A veteran can't do that. Letestu, Goligoski, Malkin and Kunitz take the ice. The Penguisn will have a four on three for 59 seconds.
1:53: Letang and Savard return. The Penguins still have 1:01 of a five on four.
1:20: Chara chucks a wrister from the right point. Campbell is in front and re-directs it on net.
0:58: Malkin makes a dazzling move around Campbell in the slot in the Penguins' zone and has a clean shot seemingly but Ference poke checks the play puck away at the last minute.
0:42: Goligoski is sent off for interference. Four on four for 1:40.
0:00: End of period. Penguins 2, Bruins 0.
SECOND INTERMISSION
-Things opened up a little bit more that period, especially late. The Penguins appeared to be a little bit more aggressive offensively and even a bit more confident in the offensive zone.
-Fleury has been outstanding. He's had to bail his teammates a few times tonight. This lead is as much a product of his efforts as anyone else.
-Plenty of physical play that period. The hitting picked up a bit.
-Even with the lead, it's still pretty obvious the Penguins are not the same team without Crosby.
(No duh.)
-The Penguins have a 23-20 lead in shots.
-Boychuk leads the game with four.
-Staal and Letang each lead the game with three.
-Letang leads the game with 18:42 of ice time.
-Chara leads the Bruins with 17:19.
-The Bruins have a 22-16 lead in faceoffs (58 percent).
-David Krejci is 8 for 13 (62 percent).
-Letestu is 5 for 9 (56 percent).
-Ference leads the game with five blocked shots.
-Fire Craig Patrick.
-Orpik leads the Penguins with two.
THIRD PERIOD
20:00: The period will start with 1:10 of four on four play.
18:50: The second minor to Recchi is killed.
18:40: And Goligoski's minor is killed. Back to five on five.
18:15: Boychuk and Cooke wrestle each other to the ice in the right wing corner in the Bruins' zone. No call.
16:10: Jeffrey, on with Adams and Kennedy, forces a turnover in the Boston zone. The pucks slides out to Orpik who cranks a one-timer over the cage from teh left point.
14:12: Cooke and Bartkowski race for a puck in the right wing corner in the Bruins' zone. Cooke sticks a shoulder into him and gains possession of the puck.
13:42: With a halt in play, Wheeler and Orpik mix it up behind Penguins net. Talbot limps down the run way to the Penguins' locker room but returns before the end of the commercial break.
12:47: WOW! Rupp has a sloppy turnover inside his blue line. Krejci steals it and from the right circle, taps a pass to Seguin on the backdoor. Seguin immediately jabs it on net. Fleury sticks with the play and slides to his left robbing Seguin with his left leg. What a save! Rupp owes Fleury a beer.
10:29: After a turnover by Letang, Recchi cuts off the right wing and whips a wrister towards the net from the slot. It hits a body in front.
10:24: Ference has a clean look at a one-timer in the right circle but completely whiffs on the shot.
10:18: Malkin taps a puck over the head of Bergeron, moves by him and skates it out of danger in the Penguins' zone.
8:30: Lucic appears to walk down the ramp for Boston.
8:14: Bartkowski is sent off for hooking Conner. Big moment in the game here. Do or die for the Bruins. Malkin, Letestu, Kunitz, Letang and Goligoski take the ice.
6:14: The Bartkowski minor is killed with little threat from the Penguins.
6:00: Lucic chops a wrister from the right wing. Fleury makes the save despite having a few bodies collide into him.
5:21: Orpik wipes out Kampfer in the right wing corner in the Penguins' zone. Kampfer appears a bit dazed but is able to recover to his feet. A small scum develops. Orpik is sent off for boarding. A goal is a must here for the Bruins. Cooke, Staal, Martin and Michalek take the ice.
5:03: Savard rips a wrister from the right faceoff circle. Fleury gets a piece of it with his blocker.
3:57: "Fans begin "FLERRRR-EEEEE! FLERRR-EEEEE!" chants.
3:23: Looks like those chants jinxed Fleury. Charat take sa pass from Seidenberg at the right point and cranks a one-timer It sails by the glove hand of Fleury just before the power play expires. Seidenberg and Campbell get assists. Penguins 2-1.
3:11: Oh. Wow. Talk about deja vu. Another late collapse to the Bruins. Campbell gains the offensive zone on the right wing and cranks a long-distance slapper. Fleury makes the save and boots out a rebound to the right circle. Bergeron beats Martin and Malkin to the loose puck, spins and centers to Marchand. Marchand dekes Fleury out of his jock and punches the puck into the empty cage. What an effort by the Bruins. What happened to the Penguins' defense? Bergeron and Campbell each get assists. Unreal. Dan Bylsma calls a time out to get organized. Bruins 2, Penguins 2.
2:08: This just keeps getting worse for the Penguins. Staal, one of the team's top penalty killers is called for holding Seidenberg. Adams, Talbot, Michalek and Orpik take the ice.
2:02: Off a faceoff win, Kampfer rockets a slapper from the right point. Adams slides down to block it.
0:49: Stunning. Just stunning. Ryder snaps off a wrister in the right circle on net. Fleury makes the save but bobbles the rebound. Recchi is there all alone and jabs it in out of midair. How do you let Recchi loose like that? Ryder and Seidenberg get assists. Bruins 3-2.
0:30: Fleury is pulled for an extra attacker.
0:07: A perfect way to end this train wreck of a game. Campbell fights off a stick check from Letang at the Penguins' blue line and pushes it into the cage for one of us:
Wheeler and Bergeron get assist. Bruins 4-2.
0:00: End of game. Bruins 4, Penguins 2.
POSTGAME
-What in the world was that? The loss to Minnesota happened over a boring two and a half hours. It didn't sneak up on anyone. This came out of no where, smacked you on the head and took our wallet. This was a simply stunning loss.
-We know Sidney Crosby is out. We know he's the best player in the world right now. But can one player really mean this much to a team in contention for a Stanley Cup contender? The Penguins have looked like a lottery team without him.
-We understand the Penguins probably have to take a more passive attack without Crosby, but they pretty much tapped on the breaks once they took a 2-0 lead.
-If nothing else, this three-game losing streak is making Crosby's case for the Hart Trophy.
-This can not be put on Fleury. He was outstanding. His defense abandoned him late. He deserved much better.
-Malkin and Staal need to produce. Period. They're two of the highest-paid players on the roster. They need to score goals.
-That said, this was a pretty good game for the Penguins four about 55 minutes. The last five were a flipping train wreck.
-Again, we know Crosby was absent, but the Penguins need something out of their power play. Going 1 for 5 really hurt them.
-The penalty kill wasn't so hot either allowing two goals on five chances.
-The Bruins ended up leading in shots, 32-25.
-The Bruins had a 13-2 lead in shots in the third period alone. Yeesh.
-The Boychuk led the game with five shots.
-Staal and Letang each led the Penguins with three.
-Letang led the game with 26:56 of ice time.
-Chara led the Bruins with 26:17.
-The Bruins had a 28-23 lead in faceoffs (55 percent).
-Ference led the game with six blocked shots.
-Orpik and Letang each led the game with three.
-Martin recorded his 150th career point.