Penguins at Devils - 03-17-12
PREGAME
{youtube width="465" height="266"}hH5uCnhDZHM{/youtube}
-Greetings from sunny and rather pleasant day in Newark:
(Yes, such a thing exists.)
-This city actually has a fairly nice skyline. It's just when you get up close and stare at it, that's when you see the pimples. A pretty rough place this Newark is.
-The Prudential Center (AKA "The Rock") is a pretty nice structure from the outside:
-This place's exterior is a lot better than Consol Energy Center's.
-Outside, there's a large brick plaza with a Devils logo:
-And in front of "The Rock" is ... a rock:
-A small street hockey rink is set up:
-A statue:
(No word yet if the Islanders want to sign him.)
-A military vehicle with a Devils banner:
-The Devils are wearing their red and green throwbacks for St. Patrick's day. A few fans wearing their colors:
-Travis Zajac:
-Patrik Elias:
-A friendly in a James Neal jersey:
-Inside the arena, the floor for New Jersey Nets games is stacked up in storage:
-A mini Scott Niedermayer banner on a Zamboni:
-The Devils aren't the only ones dressing up for the holiday. Dan Potash has his vintage Pittsburgh Shamrocks jersey:
-The scoreboard:
-The ice:
-Some sights around The Rock. A few more friendlies:
-Some tremendous Devils jerseys here. Glen "Chico" Resch:
-If you have a Mark Fayne jersey, you're a legit fan:
-Zach Parise and Martin Brodeur red and green:
-Aaron Broten:
-Randy McKay:
-A Bill Guerin Devils jersey is up for auction:
-We really like the concourses of this place. Big, bright and open. Notice the high school jerseys on the wall like at the Consol Energy Center:
-Unlike Consol Energy Center, they have a smoking deck here:
-Another feature they have which Consol Energy Center doesn't. You can find their banners:
-And it overlooks the main plaza:
-They have two large round glass rotundas fans enter the barn through:
-They really play up New Jersey here in the marketing:
-A big mural with images of Newark sports:
-A few Mario Lemieuxs:
-Alex Goligoski:
-Brad Thiessen:
-Sidney Crosby:
-Former Penguin and current Devil Johan Hedberg:
-Jersey Foul of the Day: No words:
-An amazing Chris Terreri jersey:
-Tonight's giveaway:
-Brendan Shanahan:
-Jersey of the Day: Given his history with the Devils and his plus-3 the other night, we're going to go with Paul Martin:
-Warm ups:
-The Penguins starters are Pascal Dupuis, Jordan Staal, Steve Sullivan, Brook Orpik, Zbynek Michalek and Marc-Andre Fleury.
-Their scratches are Arron Asham, Dustin Jeffrey, Brent Johnson, Ben Lovejoy and Richard Park.
-Asham was described as "ill" yesterday.
-The Devils' starters are David Clarkson, Jacob Josefson, Alexei Ponikarovsky, Adam Larsson, Anton Volchenkov and Martin Brodeur.
-Their scratches are Cam Janssen and Matt Toarmina.
-The national anthem:
FIRST PERIOD
19:10: Sidney Crosby takes the ice with Tyler Kennedy and Matt Cooke to boos.
18:05: Crosby is on the ice with Chris Kunitz. From the right right wall of the Penguins' zone, Crosby backhands a pass up ice to Kunitz. Kunitz skates by Marek Zidlicky and attacks the net from the left circle. Zidlicky dives and takes out Kunitz's skates preventing a shot but a penalty shot is awarded. Kunitz takes the puck at center ice, veers towards the right wing, evens out and approaches the net. he goes forehand but
18:01: That stop leads to a goal for the Penguins. The Penguins line up for a faceoff in the left circle. Malkin goes against Adam Henrique. He ends up actually losing the faceoff but Henrique accidentally taps it to Neal who is positioned behind Malkin. Neal says thank you and rips a one-timer which burns Brodeur. What an odd sequence. Malkin will get a faceoff, but Henrique deserves one. Penguins 1-0.
14:05: Crosby takes a pass at the New Jersey blue line, enters the offensive zone above the slot and pounds a slapper which Brodeur bodies away.
13:35: Letang coasts up the right wing and snap off a wrister wide to the far side.
13:25: Elias gets a little space on the right wing, winds up and chops a slapper from the half wall. Fleury eats it up.
11:55: Craig Adams whips a wrister from above the right circle on net. Brodeur fights it off.
11:11: Zbynek Michalek pounds a slapper from above the right circle. Brodeur eats it up.
9:56: Letang lofts a wrister from the right point. It hits something in front and bounces to the left of the blue paint. Crosby is in front and has a wide open net. Brodeur falls to his right and appears to deny the rebound chance. Wow.
9:24: Martin grips and rips a wrister from the left point. Brodeur snags it.
9:09: Elias hustles up the right wing, gets a little space and pounds a slapper from along the boards. Fleury eats it up.
7:50: The Devils get the first power play of the day as Eric Tangradi is called for elbowing Ryan Carter. Cooke, Staal, Orpik and Michalek take the ice.
6:59: Parise takes a pass down low to the right of the cage and tries to sweep in a forehand shot. Fleury takes away the bottom of the cage and keeps it out.
5:49: After the Devils move the puck around the offensive zone, Ilya Kovalchuk booms a one-timer from the left circle. Fleury slides to his right and eats it up.
5:06: The Devils are nabbed for too many men on the ice. Petr Sykora will serve the minor. Kunitz, Malkin, Neal, Crosby and Letang take the ice.
4:18: Neal chps a one-timer from the left point wide on the near side.
3:03: As the power play expires, Kovalchuk pushes it up the left wing one-on-one with Cooke. He cuts towards the slot and leaves a drop pass in the left circle for Andy Greene. Green rips a nice wrister which burns Fleury on the far side and appears to hit juuuust inside the right post. It bounces out quickly. Officials award a goal but go to video to review it. The replay shows the puck just sneaking inside the far post completely and bouncing out. What a shot. Kovalchuk and Fayne get assists. The "Hey Song" is played. Devils 1, Penguins 1.
{youtube width="465" height="266"}lNXTA7Eu2ls{/youtube}
0:00: End of period. Devils 1, Penguins 1.
FIRST INTERMISSION
-That a strong first 15 minutes for the Penguisn then POOF. They limped into the finish line and ended up with a tie game.
-That power play the Penguins had was mass confusion. There was very little structure and they just fumbled the puck. It looks even worse than it did Thursday.
-Crosby was less noticeable. He didn't seem to have the same comfort with Cooke and Kennedy as he did Thursday.
-The Penguins were BY FAR the better team for the first 15 minutes or so. They had play in the Devil's zone more of the period and put plenty of shots on net. Brodeur just did what he usually does and prevented most of them.
-The Penguins lead in shots, 14-6.
-Letang leads the game with three.
-Parise and Elias each lead the Devils with two.
-Anton Volchenkov leads the game with 7:58 of ice time.
-Letang leads the Penguins with 7:42 of ice time.
-The Penguins have a 13-9 lead in faceoffs (59 percent).
-Josefson is 4 for 5 (80 percent).
-Kunitz and Crosby are each 2 for 2 (100 percent).
-Kunitz leads the game with two blocked shots.
-The notorious poor crowd here is actually pretty decent. The holiday and the Penguins seem to have helped:
-The upper decks have more people than the lower bowl.
SECOND PERIOD
19:02: The Devils get an early power play this period. Staal elbows David Clarkon. That's two minutes. The great Joe Vitale, Cooke, Orpik and Michalek take the ice.
17:53: Elias takes a pass in the right, hesitates and snaps off a wrister from the far side.
17:02: And the Devils' power play is killed. Neither one of these powers plays are looking too sharp.
15:59: Malkin leaves a drop pass int he slot for Kunitz
15:47: Neal gets a pass just to the right of the Devils' crease and tries to lift a little wrister but ends up putting it right into Brodeur's stomach. Tough save.
15:06: Crosby taps a pass from the right wing to Letang in the left circle. He unleashes a one-timer which Brodeur eats up.
13:08: Malkin tries to slink up the left wing boards but is planted hard into the wall by Zidlicky. Malkin has taken some abuse the past two games.
11:24: A loose puck slides to the Penguins' crease. Kovalchuk winds up and chops a one-timer wide to the left of the cage.
10:20: Zidlicky controsl the puck at the right point, sneaks up the right boards around the back of the net and tries to tuck in a forehand wraparound attempt. Fleury holds it out.
10:08: After an icing call, the Penguins call a time out to get a breather.
9:50: Pascal Dupuis. Twenty-goal scorer. Staal lugs the puck into the offensive zone on the left side. As he approaches the left circle, he leaves a drop pass for Dupuis. Dupuis winds up and booms a one-timer which toasts Brodeur on the far side by his glove side. What a shot. Dupuis ties his career-high of 20 goals. Staal and Matt Niskanen get assists. Staal extends his career-best scoring streak to 10 games. Penguins 2-1.
8:16: More secondary scoring. Crosby deal his way into the right circle and deals a pass on his backhand by Fayne. Cooke crashes into the blue paint and angles this puck into the net with his right skate. Penguins fans celebrate. Officials rule it a goal but go to a review immediately. Cooke definitely angled his skate to get that deflection but it wasn't a distinct kicking motion. After a thorough review, the call on the ice is upheld. Crosby and Kennedy get assists. Penguins 3-1.
7:59: David Clarkson is called for roughing Orpik. Crosby, Kunitz, Neal, Letang and Malkin take the ice.
7:18: The power play worked just fin there. Crosby fights off a trip by Josefson on the left win board, turns around and slides a cross ice pass to the right circle. Malkin leads down and launches a wicked one-timer which blows by Brodeur's glove hand on the near side. Brodeur didn't have a prayer there. The power play looked sharp there. It's Malkin's 40th goal of the season. Crosby and Kunitz get assists. Penguins 4-1.
3:40: Crosby picks up a puck in his defensive zone, races into the offensive zone on the left wing and rockets a slapper from the circle. Brodeur gloves it. Tough, tough save.
1:03: Sykora sneaks into the offensive zone on the right wing, winds up and pumps a slapper to the far side. His former teammate Fleury snags it with a fancy glove save.
0:00: End of period. Penguins 4, Devils 1.
SECOND INTERMISSION
-What a period for the Penguins. The just let their depth take over there. Goals from secondary sources were capped off by a goal from the NHL's MVP.
-The biggest part of this team's surge as of late has been the secondary scoring. Getting offense from players such as Dupuis and Cooke is vital for any true Stanley Cup contender.
-Crosby seemed to develop a little bit more chemistry there with Cooke and Kennedy.
-The Devils actually controlled the first five minutes or so of the period. The Penguins withstood that charge and regained control of play.
-The Penguins power play took a big first step that period.
-The Penguins are dominating shots, 26-10.
-Jeal and Letang each lead the game with four.
-Parise and Elias each lead the Devils with two.
-Kovalchuk leads the game with 15:28 of ice tme.
-Letang leads the Penguins with 15:18 of ice time.
-The Penguins have a 22-21 edge in faceoffs (51 percent).
-Josefson is 11 for 14 (79 percent).
-The great Joe Vitale is 5 for 8 (63 percent).
-Kunitz and Greene each led the game with two blocked shots.
THIRD PERIOD
18:38: Crosby skates with Sullivan and Kennedy.
18:10: Sullivan and Crosby nearly hook up. Sullivan taps a pass behind a defender from the left wing to the slot. Crosby is there and backhand jabs it on net. Brodeur kicks it out.
17:34: Not so fast. After a prety poor turnover by Cooke on the left wing wall of his own zone, Elias. pokes a soft little wrister on net from the left circle. Fleury boots it out. Sykora picks it up and puts it between Fleury's right pad and the near post. Fire Ray Shero. It's Sykora's 16th of the season. Elias and Dainius Zubrus get assists. The "Hey Song!" is played. Buckle up. Penguins 4-2.
{youtube width="465" height="266"}lNXTA7Eu2ls{/youtube}
16:48: Letang hustles after a puck behind the Penguins' net and plays it around the boards. Eric Boulton blows him up with a huge hit for his troubles. Oof!
14:04: Cooke giveth and taketh away. he rebounds from his poor turnover to restore the three-goal lead. Kennedy moves in off the right wing wall and kinds of flips a backhander towards the cage. It kind of clunks its way towards the net. Cooke gets a stick on the puck and re-directs it by Brodeur. What an up and down game for Cooke. He now has a career-high 16 goals. Kennedy and Crosby get assists. Penguins 5-2.
13:10: Dupuis whips a hard wrister from the left wing. Brodeur snags it with a sharp save.
12:40: Crosby is working on Staal's wing with Sullivan.
11:00: Deryk Engelland winds up and chops a slapper from the left point. Brodeur gloves it. A scrum breaks out in the right circle. Adams and Ryan Carter are in the middle of it. Boulton is sent to the box for a ten-minute misconduct.
10:18: Kennedy has a plum chance in front of the crease but can't beat Brodeur. Argh.
9:42: Engelland is nabbed for hooking Josefson. The Devils must score here to have a chance. Dupuis, Staal, Orpik and Michalek.
8:33: Kovalchuk snaps off a wrister fromt he left circle. Michalek leans down to block it.
7:42: Two minutes later and the Devils failed to record an official shot on net.
7:00: Niskanen pops a one-timer from the left point. Brodeur knocks it dead and covers.
6:31: Sullivan has the makings of a potential breakaway as he collects a puck off the left boards. Before he can settle it in the slot, Brodeur challenges and pokes it away.
6:25: Things get fesity as Steve Bernier and Tangradi mix it up in the left wing corner. Carter and Bernier each get 10-minute misconduct penalties.
5:50: From the slot, Staal taps a feed to Dupuis to the right of the crease. Dupuis jabs the shot wide.
4:04: Malkin appears to make contact with Brodeur behind the net. Brodeur falls over. Volchenkov actually hit Brodeur and he kind of bounced into Malkin before falling over Play is held up. All five skaters scrum behind the cage. A few rabbit punches are exchanged. This is getting a little nasty. A whole mess of penalties are doled out. Clarkson gets minors for roughin and unsportsmanlike conduct as well as a 10-minute misconduct. Engelland gets a roughing minor. The Penguins end up with a power play. Crosby, Niskanen, Kunitz, Malkin and Neal take the ice.
3:31: Crsoby zips through the slot, blows by Zidlicky and tries to tuck a forehand shot by Brodeur. Brodeur holds it out.
2:04: The Penguins' power play expires. They didnt' really press the issue there.
0:10: Penguins fans off a solid standing ovation to their team.
0:00: End of game. Penguins 5, Devils 2.
POSTGAME
-That was impressive. The Penguins came into a building where they have had struggles as of late and just blew the home team out. They dominated the vast majority of the game and just took this contest.
-The hallmark of this winning streak has been the secondary scoring. The Penguins keep getting offense from other sources than the all-stars. Matt Cooke gets two goals. Pascal Dupuis ties his career high. Remember when the Penguins were ONLY getting offense from the top line? That seems like eons ago.
-Sidney Crosby had three assists today and was very involved in the game. He seemed to click a little bit more with Cooke and Tyler Kennedy. We've waited all this time to see him come back and play. Just wait until he hits full stride. He had 15:19 of ice time on 17 shifts, six shots and was 4 for 10 in faceoffs (40 percent).
-The power play had a goal but its still a work in progress. The one goal it did collects was more of an individual effort by Crosby than anything involving a great deal of puck movement, an aspect the Penguins value. But hey, it's a goal. That's all that counts.
-Cooke's transformation into a completely different player has been a marvel to watch. He now has 31 points and 30 penalty minutes. The previous three seasons, he has averaged 30 points and 112 penalty minutes. That's why he was nominated by the Pittsburgh chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association for the Masterton Trophy. He's still a valuable player but he doesn't hurt his team with careless, dangerous play any longer.
-Devils defenseman Bryce Salvador had a really good assessment of Cooke's change: "It makes a big difference when you’re not suspended every week. He’s definitely changed the way he plays out there. He’s not running around with his head cut off and he’s more effective. And he’s getting rewarded for it."
-Pascal Dupuis has taken his game to another level the past few weeks. Everything he shoots it going in. Normally he would blister a 90-plus slapper from the wing right at a goalie for an easy save. Now, he's got a little touch and aim.
-Letang didn't do anything spectacular, but he was very good. Once again, he just give the Penguins a presence in all areas of the game very few defensemen can.
-Lost in this entire hot run is the fact that the Penguins' sterling penalty kill is still dominant. They relied on it a lot last season when they lacked discipline. This season, they don't need it as badly, but it's still one of the NHL's best at 89.6 percent.
-The Devils had a few spurts of strong play, but the Penguins just hopped all over their mistakes and made them pay.
-Martin Brodeur was actually very good. He gave up five goals, but he prevented this from being an eight or nine-goal game for the Penguins.
-Devils captain Zach Parise on the Penguins:
-The great Joe Vitale suffered an "upper-body" injury in the second period. His status for Sunday is not known.
-The Penguins dominated shots, 44-14.
-Crosby remarked on how he wanted to get more shots on net yesterday. He had six today. He led the game along with Letang.
-Eric Tangradi, the great Joe Vitale, Staal and Adams were the only Penguins skaters who failed to record a shot.
-Patrik Elias led the Devils with four.
-Letang led the game with 22:34 of ice time.
-Ilya Kovalchuk led the Devils with 22:48.
-Faceoffs were tied, 29-29 (50 percent).
-Jacob Josefson was 14 for 19 (74 percent).
-Malkin was 8 for 13 (62 percent).
-Chris Kunitz and Andy Greene each led the game with two blocked shots.
-The Penguins have now won 11 consecutive games. It is the third longest winning streak in franchise history. They had 12 last season and 16 in 1992-93.
-The Penguins became the 11th team in NHL history to record 1,500 wins. All-time, they are 1,500-1,526-383-85. That's a point percentage of .496.
-Jordan Staal now has a career-best 10-game scoring streak.
-Malkin now has 198 career goals.
-Cooke (122) passed up Val Fonteyne (121) for 67th place on the franchise's all-time scoring list.
-Tyler Kennedy has three assists in two games with Crosby. Just saying.
-Marc-Andre Fleury has 223 career wins. Tom Barrasso holds the franchise record for goaltending wins with 226.
-Highlights: