Pens 4, Kings 2

The Kings put up a nice fight in the third period but the Penguins prevailed in the end. Pens goals were scored by Malone (congrats on the birth of your boy Ryan!), Staal and Malkin chipped in two.

More importantly the win put the Pens in first place in the Atlantic, 2 points in front of the Flyers. Pittsburgh will have a chance to go 4 points up with a 1:00 game this afternoon.

The Pens played a terrific game overall. It was a bit disappointing that the Kings were able to begin mounting a comback in the third but it was too little, too late.

Injury Update - Crosby continues to make progress with his ankle, No timetable has been given for his return but many are surmising it will be next week. Marc Andre Fluery continues to get closer to game shape. He is projected to return to the line-up sometime this week.

News of Note - Malkin's 3 point (2 goals, 1 assist) put him within 4 points of the NHL lead.

Pens Vs. Kings Today at 1

The Penguins are putting on a show of explosived offensive firepower and are leading the Kings 4-0 at the second intermission. More to come later...

Sid's Back on the Ice! Roberts too!

Penguins center and team captain, Sidney Crosby laced up the skates earlier this week. His time on the ice has been limited and he has not particiapted in any type of organized practice, but for him to get back on the ice only 3 weeks after his high ankle sprain is remarkable.

The Pens have gone 3-2-2 since Sid's injury on January 18th and have been very competititive on the ice during that time. The training staff has been very careful about getting Marc Andre Fluery back on the ice - of course, this has been made possible by the outstanding play of Ty Conklin - and will probably do the same with Sid. At least this will probably be the case as long as Pittsburgh remains in the hunt for the division lead.

Gary Roberts has also made his way back on the ice as well. He suffered a fractured late last year. Also a pretty amazing feat for a 42 year old!

Sometimes it's hard to believe he's only 20 years old...

Here is a very well written profile of Sid, from ESPN.com's Scott Burnside.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/feature/featureVideo?page=sidneycrosby

Game Review: Carolina and New Jersey

The Pens have put together a good run of games since Sid the kid when down with a high ankle sprain on January 18th. They have managed to earn 8 points in 7 games, which kept them in the hunt for the Atlantic Division lead. Unfortunately the Flyers, Devils and Rangers have all been able to earn as many points in those games so everyone is still all bunched up at the top.

I've really enjoyed the past few games. Pittsburgh has shown true heart and determination in each game. Players that needed to step up in Crosby's absence have done so. The performance of players, such as Ryan Malone, Erik Christensen, Jarkko Ruutu, Colby Armstrong (after his bout with the fle) and Max Talbot has been outstanding.

More to come later...

Game Preview: Carolina at Pittsburgh

The Hurricanes will visit the Igloo for a matchup with the Pens tonight at 7:30. This is the third time these two have met this season. The previous games were won by the home team each time. There is still some lingering animosity between these two teams since last year when Brooks Orpik took out Hurricane's winger, Erik Cole, with a tremendous hit. Cole subsequently missed several weeks of action recovering from the injury.

Look for an aggresive start form both teams, as each will be trying to exert their dominance early on. The game should be relatively low scoring, and there will be some big hits!

Injury Update: Marc Andre Fleury is close to returning to the ice after an 8 week recovery from a high ankle sprain. Fleury has been practicing with the team and should make his return in the next 3 or 4 games.

News of Note: Kris Beech finally got his papers in order and was able to cross the Canadian/US border to join his new teammates. Beech, in his second stint with the Penguins, has been waiting in Toronto for his work visa to be approved. He was a first round draft pick (7th overall)of the Washington Capitals in 2000 and has recently been bouncing around the NHL trying to find a place to call home. He has played in Nashville, Vancouver and Columbus along with Pittsburgh and Washington. In 193 career games in the NHL he has scored 25 goals and 42 assists. He may forever be best know for his role in the Pens sending Jaromir Jagr to the Capitals. Kris was the so-called centerpiece of the three players the Pens got in return. Beech was a highly touted prospect coming out of juniors that never lived up to his billing. Here's to Kris finding a home, and a scoring touch, in the 'Burgh! Best of luck!

Pens, Hurricanes Swap Forwards

The Pens and Hurricanes swapped forwards in a trade that was completed on Thursday. Pittsburgh sent Center Joe Jensen to Carolina for left wing David Gove. Gove was immediately addigned to WBS Penguins.

Jensen was the Pens eighth round pick in 2003 and has never appeared in an NHL game. The Minnestota native has registered two goals and two assists for the Baby Pens this season.

Gove, 29, a Massachusetts native, has been with Carolina since 2005 when he was signed as a free agent. He has appeared in two NHL games and has registered on assist.

Game Update: Pens vs. Devils and Pens vs. Thrashers

It was a tale of two very different games earlier this week. The Pens looked like Stanley Cup Champs in beating the Devils on Tuesday night 4-2 and then proceeded to drop one to Atlanta the next night 4-1.

The game against the New Jersey was a teriffic display of teamwork, chemistry and work ethic. The Pens overcame two goal deficits on two occasions and were able to play effectively with a two goal lead through most of the third period. Pens goals by Malone(2), Christensen and Staal.

The following night in Atlanta, a completely different team took to the ice. They made critical mistakes that lead to Atlanta goals while playing an unmotivated, flat game. The Pens lone goal was scored by Whitney in the third to make it a 4-1 game.

The victory over Jersey was very important as far as division standings go. The win propelled Pittsburgh to a one point advantage over the Devils, where they remain as of this morning. So, if they were going to lose one of the back-to-back games in the first place, they did pick the right one to lose. But with that being said, there is no reason so be so motivated one night and not the next, especially with the Atlantic being such a tight race at this point in the season.

What has most impressed me, since Crosby was injured in the 1/26 game, is how Pittsburgh is able to pull together and take a couple of points out of a contest when it is most needed. Not only have they been playing without Sid, they have also had very bad luck with other key team members not being able to get in the lineup. Eight of the players on the current roster started the season in the AHL with the Baby Penguins. Brooks Orpick, a defenseman his entire life, has been pressed into service on the Left Wing the past two games following the acquisition of Kris Beech, who has not been able to get the proper work papers to enter the United States.

Injury Report: Armstrong (Flu, day-to-day), Hall (Groin,IR), Kennedy (Mono, IR), Crosby (ankle, IR), Roberts (leg, IR), Eaton (ACL, IR), Fleury (Ankle, IR).

Pens to Open '08 - '09 Season in Sweden

Sources say that the NHL is getting ready to announce that the Penguins will open next season in Stockholm, Sweden with a 2 game set against the Ottawa Senators. More to come at when additional information is available.

UPDATE: This has been confirmed by the NHL.

Preview: Pens at Flyers

The Penguins and Flyers will face off tonight in the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia. Now let's get this straight from the start. I have no love for the eastern side of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Philly fans are among the worst in professional sports.

The last time these two teams met (12/11/07) there were a combined 156 penalty minutes, 8 fighting majors, 6 ten minute misconducts and 2 game misconducts. So, needless to say, tonight's game will most likely pick up where the last one left off. The Flyers are still sore about being swept in the season series last year by the Pens and were looking for revenge. So far they've got it this season by winning all 4 games against Pittsburgh.

Look for a hard checking, aggressive game this evening. I would not be at all surprised to see Mr. Laraque on the wing for the opening faceoff. Therrien should consider making this move because it would certainly send a message to the Flyers that the Pens are not going to be bullied into submission. Pittsburgh can play the same game the Philadelphia excels at and they are also able to put the puck in the net.

My prediction - Pens 4, Flyers 2.

Injury Update - Tyler Kennedy is out of the line-up with Mono.

VERSUS 2008 NHL ALL-STAR SPOT WITH ALL-STAR PLAYERS

Don't miss the 2008 All Star game and Skills Competition this weekend!!

Upcoming Game Analysis

The Penguins are entering a stretch of extremely important games beginning tomorrow night at Philadelphia and continuing after the All Star break that begins Friday. Four of the next five games are on the road (Philly, New Jersey twice and Atlanta) and three of those are against division opponents in which Pittsburgh is in a standings battle with. If the Pens can manage to take points away from the Flyers and Devils they will be setting themselves up nicely for a busy month of February.

The Pens have 14 games in February, 8 of which are at home but only 4 of the 14 are against division opponents. This should give the team some breathing room with Sid being out. Not that I am suggesting they tank a few games, but with a game every other day and a busy month of March coming up, they are going to need all of the rest they can get and there should be some opportunity to get that facing a couple of Western Conference Teams (LA, San Jose).

Given these facts and looking ahead at the schedule for next month, Pittsburgh is in very good shape to continue with the playoff run they are on and should have the opportunity to grab a few extra points if they are able to continue with they aggressive type of play that they have had and can count of some outstanding goal tending from Conklin and Sabourin.

Malkin Added to the All Star Roster

The NHL announced today that Pens forward Evgeni Malkin has been added to the line up for this weekends All Star Game in Atlanta. Malkin was added to the roster after teammate Sidney Crosby went down with a high ankle sprain.

See the press release here

Catch all of the action on Versus Sunday at 6pm

Congrats to Evgeni for a well deserved honor!!

Crosby Out 6 to 8 Weeks

The Penguins web site is reporting that Sidney Crosby will be out 6 to 8 weeks to recover from the high ankle sprain that occurred during the Tampa Bay game on Friday 1/18.

Click here for the whole story

Pens 5, Caps 6

The Capitals were able to take the Pens down last night in a shootout at Mellon Arena by the score of 6-5. It was an exciting, intense game which was a pleasure to watch. Pittsburgh goals by Malkin(2), Talbot, Sykora and Malone.

Sabourin started the game in goal but was replaced with Conklin after giving up a fourth goal to the Caps.

The Caps won the shootout 2-1 with only Ruutu scoring for the Pens. Letang and Christensen both were unable to get a puck past Washington goalie Kolzig.

The next 3 games for Pittsburgh are all on the road and two of the three are against division opponents. If they want to stay in the reach of the divison lead, wins against the Flyers and Devils are essential.

Injury Update - the Pens placed center Sidney Crosby on IR yesterday. He is scheduled for an evalution today so we should have a better idea of how much time he will miss.

Next Up - Pens at Philadelphia this Thursday at 7pm.

Streaks - Pittsburgh's streak of consecutive wins against the Capitals ended at 14 games. Prior to last nights game, the alst time the Caps beat the Pens was March 2006.

Roster Changes - The Pens called up from Wilkes-Barre: Chris Minard, Tim Brent and Johnathan Filewich and sent down Ryan Lannon.

Pens 2, Canadiens 0

The Penguins answered the question of whether or not they could win without # 87 in the lineup by putting a good old thumping on the Montreal Canadiens. Pens goals scored by Taffe and Malkin tossed in an empty netter at the end of regulation for the proverbial nail in the coffin. Pittsburgh won the game by playing sound defense, taking care of their end of the rink by clearing rebounds and blocking shots, by finishing their checks and playing aggressive, hard-nosed hockey. It was an awesome game from start to finish!

If the Pens are able to continue playing the way they did Saturday night they will win a bunch of games before the Return of Sid. But it will put quite a drain on the entire team to have to perform at this level for an extended period of time.

Injury Update - nothing to report.

News of Note - check out Japers Rink Blog. They are doing a story on "Why the Pens will win tonight" and have so pretty good analysis as well as some humorous content regarding Sid's injury.

Pens 0, Lightning 3

The Pens lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning by the score of 3-0 Friday night at the Igloo. The uninspired play was most likely the result of a first period injury to Pens captain and leader, Sidney Crosby. Sid slid into the boards behind the goal mount while attempting to get control of a loose puck. His right foot was bent inward producing what is being called a high ankle sprain.

Pittsburgh has has some extremely bad luck with this particular injury this season. Both Max Talbot and Marc Andre Fleury have suffered with this condition recently and have been out of the lineup for extended periods of time. Talbot was injured in November and sat out a few weeks before attempting an ill fated comeback too early which shelved him for an additional four weeks. Fleury has been out since mid December and, taking a lesson learned from Talbot, has been careful not to put too much strain on his ankle too quickly. Talbot his since returned to the lineup and Fleury is ready to start practicing with the team.

The severity of Sid's injury is not known at this time. The team is most likely keeping a very tight lid on this information. He will, however, be replaced for the All Star game next weekend.

Losing the team captain and natural leader can have a devastating impact on the remaining players. The team will have to come together and play as a unit for the entire sixty minutes of each and every game to pull out victories. Players that have not been producing, such as Jordan Stall, Ryan Malone and Erik Christensen, will have to step up their scoring as well as their locker room leadership. Evgeni Malkin has a larger load on his shoulders but with his recent performance can hardly be asked to increase his production. His leadership on the ice will be sufficient to give the rest of the team an indication of how hard they will have to work to get some points in the W column.

GEORGES LARAQUE VS COLTON ORR 1/14/08

A nice little way to start the game...

Pens 4, Rangers 1

Evgeni Malkin powered the Pens to a 4-1 victory last night over the Rangers by with his second hat trick of the month. Malkin scored the first two goals of the game early in the first within three minutes of each other. Gonchar added the third goal of the opening period about 10 minutes later. Malkin's third goal of the game came on an empty net shot with 24 seconds remaining in the game. The Rangers only managed one goal, a power play goal from Jagr in the third period.

It was a chippy, hard hitting game, which we are getting used to from the Rangers. The opening faceoff featured a fight between Laraque and Colton Orr (video will be posted later), and there were many instances of the Rangers taking shots at the Penguins players throughout the game.

The win put the pens in first place in the Atlantic! What a difference since November when they were hovering around last place. Too bad the Devils have been winning nearly as many games as the Pens or they could have a substantial lead.

The Rangers were not at the top of their game. The looked flat throughout the game until finally finding some life midway through the third. This act of deperation came was too little, too late. The Penguins played solid defense and were hitting at both ends of the rink.

Here is a Yahoo sports video recap of the game:

Click here

Next Up - The Pens have half a week off and won't hit the ice again until Friday night against the Lightning.

Current Streaks - Penguins, 10 games unbeaten in regulation; Conklin 11 game unbeaten in regulation; consecutive games against the Rangers that Laraque and Orr have squared off, 2.

Injury Update - no news of note on Fleury or Roberts.

Home of the Penguins weekly rant - why isn't Malkin on the All Star roster??

RUUUUUUUUTTUUUUUU!

Click the following link for a great article about Jarkko:

RUUUUUUUTTUUUUUU

Here is a picture from the article:



picture by (Gene J. Puskar / Associated Press)