A Second Round Preview?
The Penguins and Capitals meet for the fifth and final time of the regular season tonight. The teams have split the series so far 2-2.
For the Penguins they can clinch second place in the Metropolitan Division with a win. The Capitals with the President Trophy wrapped up are playing for nothing when it comes to the standings.
Still, this is a mighty important game for the Capitals.
The Penguins last two meetings vs Washington, a 3-2 loss and a 6-2 win in the month of March, have given the Penguins new found confidence in that they can not only compete with the Capitals in a seven game series but can beat the NHL-leading Capitals. They don’t scare Pittsburgh.
The Rangers failed in the month of March in keeping the Penguins down with three losses to Pittsburgh when the Rangers had a major physiological edge that now looks gone.
Washington will still be favored in a potential second round matchup, regardless of tonight’s outcome, but if you’re the Capitals, there’s no question you want to make a statement and cast some doubts into the Penguins with a physically imposing performance.
In the 6-2 thrashing of the Capitals, Pittsburgh was able to dictate the pace by getting the puck up quickly and getting the Capitals out of their structure in the neutral zone. By turning the game into a game of foot races, Pittsburgh created multiple odd-man situations and it was the same story for the first 20 minutes or so in the Penguins 3-2 loss at the Verizon Center on March 1st.
A couple key others to watch tonight:
The Penguins have been so good under Mike Sullivan with their ability to beat the first wave of the forecheck from the opposition. Where the Capitals will look to cause the Penguins trouble is with pressuring the puck and establishing a strong cycle that will get them in position to out-physical and out-muscle the Penguins down low and in the net-front area.
How the Penguins counter that will probably tell the story of which team dictates the play, and four of the last six periods between these two clubs have seen Pittsburgh be the team that is dictating the pace and tempo.
The Ottawa game was not the Penguins finest performance by any means. Ottawa had some success early in game in beating the Penguins with speed through the neutral zone and pressuring the Penguins well on the forecheck that led to scoring opportunities.
Any team, though, that sends two skaters deep on the forecheck against the Penguins and gets beat, will have these type of rushes going the other way against them.
Having puck movers on the backend to beat the first wave of the forecheck, to go with speed on the wings in a system that is always thinking attack up the ice, has been the perfect storm for the Penguins.
The Penguins are always heading up the ice and these type of reads from Justin Schultz is where he’s finding a nice niche with the Penguins in jumping up in the play and what should be a 3-on-3 rush is easily turned into a 4-on-3 advantage for Pittsburgh with Carl Hagelin flying down the left side with great speed.
This is the Penguins identity and they are burning teams who have aggressive 2-1-2 forechecks because of the ability to make that critical first pass so quickly out of the zone.
Except they have one defenseman currently dressing who hinders the Penguins breakout greatly and that’s Ben Lovejoy.
Lovejoy continuing to play over Derrick Pouliot might say more about how flawed the coaching staff thinks Pouliot’s game is than anything else.
SULLIVAN: “Sestito can help us win games”
[hide]
— Another Tom Sestito call up and Mike Sullivan talking him up.
“He brings a dimension,” Sullivan said today. “He can help us win games. We’ve got a couple of decisions we have to make from an injury standpoint and he’s one guy who has played NHL games. Tommy is a good player. He’s strong on the boards. He understands his role. He’s another guy part of the group who we feel can help us win.”
INJURY FRONT
— Conor Sheary Is officially a game-time decision.
Sheary on his eye: "It's not as bad as it looks. It's not that painful." #HockeyTough pic.twitter.com/PXJn5eXZWm
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) April 7, 2016
— Sullivan said today that Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust and Olli Maatta will all be held out of the final two games.
“Malkin, Rust, and Olli Maatta will be out for the next two games,” Sullivan said. “Marc Andre Fleury is making progress. He’s making significant progress, so we’re certainly encouraged by that. He’s an important part of this team.”[/hide]
Sam, you ignorant sIut.
Nathaniel Pitt Langford
Tobias Benjamin Jizzstein
Rust-Malkin-Sheary
Sheary isn’t coming out of the line up.
So who is….
Lundqvist…3 goals on 16 shots. What a player!
Loser
Maloni’s GOD.
With the Islanders playing Saturday AND Sunday, if we draw them it probably means we start Thursday?? While if we draw the Rangers, we start Wednesday? I guess they could make the Islanders play on 2 days rest, but that would be f’d up imo.
Sid with game winner and stan is nowhere here to be found along with his fat friend npl probably watching Drouin scored his 1st goal since called up today
To be fair, Sid was a no show until that point.
Important players always show up when game is intense
The game was only intense for 12 seconds I guess.
I would think sullivan is just happy sesito wasnt scored on
Ya, probably not that he was a physical presence, added an assist and was a deterrent.
A deterent to not allow a more talented player to play in his place?
Yes. Beau Bennett would have been a difference make. Welcome back moron.
Hahaha appreciate it
He really deterred Tom Wilson from nearly killing Bonino.
“deterrent”… Oshie and Wilson didnt run any of our guys because Sestito was a presence… gotcha lol
Love the Sestito move. Sullivan pushing all the right buttons.
Hello fellas. How bout them penguins eh?
What up Jeff!
Wasn’t there like 10 Jeffs here at one time? Who is who?
Simply Dusty there was only one Jeff you jabroni
Jeffed
Yeah dude the idiots are still flowing!
What up man been a while seems everything here is status quo lol
Hmmm, #2 seed and a strong chance to come out of the east. Wonder who’s been saying that for 2 months now?
I think you Dusty. Some of your better posts.
pens are 39-0-0 when leading after 2 periods….pretty impressive
Pens had to score 4 goals in order to win this is Yoda if fleury would’ve been in net
Sid looked interested on that goal.
You need stans approval
14-1. Since the Russian left for vacation
Yeah Same we can’t use Geno in the playoffs…..idiot!
You see that stan and npl you need a Canadian in a important game
Sid looks disinterested tonight.
Score on one of those power plays this games over.
Murray looks ready.
So does the power play. Yeah a guy wide open in front for a deflection is the goalies fault. Did yogurt hijack your account.
What a BS penalty on Letang when ovi should’ve gotten only not both
Good thing we dressed Sestito… Wilson would have killed Bonino otherwise
Good thing Sestito deterred Wilson.
Complete moron. Still don’t understand the Game do you
he didnt deter him….what doesnt he get?
Orpigggg
Please sign cullen back 16 goals
I approve.
I think scuderi tough Letang how to shut ovi down
I tough that too. I tough it all the time.
Bennett injured yet?
Yes actually.
What’s Errey eating while he calls this game?
Did somebody hurt Bennett so he could be scratched tonight? All of the sudden he is hurt again. What the hell am I saying it’s Beau Brittle!
It’s pretty much at the point that it’s now funny. Bye Felicia lol
Yeah he is a walking joke
its easy to say MJ suckss
but he did not have Haggy,Shultz or daley
those 3 changed the team dynamic alone
He sucked.
Sid had no choice to play more D when you have Shit Defense that is slow like Maatta, Scuderi and a lost case like Lovejoy, with maatta injured scuderi gone and lovejoy as 6th D team been better with the Addition of Shultz as well altough he is not worth 4m yet
He was awful. Another typical canadian coach that had no idea what he’s doing. See also Hartley, Bob and Therrien, Michel.
And DB is any better I tough where ever he goes he will find success yet he failed sabres to the playoffs. If Babcock or Q were sabres coach they would’ve made it this year
Is he better than Hartley or Therrien? You want to go with “as bad?” Does that change anything? Does it make you feel better?
LOL, ya… that was the problem. Those three fixed it and MJ, our 5th choice, was unfairly judged lmao
If he was that bad how come pens finished with 109pts with him most since God knows when
??? He had a 98 point team last year you ******* moron… Bylsma was still coaching the 109 point team HAHAHA. You are sooooo stupid
On top of that the team was absolute fire out of the gate only to limp into the playoffs barely .500. Bylsma was actually better for this team than MJ as much as I hate to say it.
The best part of this is your obsessiveness to continue to talk about Bylsma while you just paid him a great compliment with the 109 point season remark.
There’s a nice article by Lebrun on ESPN about how much Hagelin is helping this team. It’s incredible how much of an upgrade he’s been over Perron.
there should be an article how daley is helping the team over Scuderi
He has been a huge upgrade over Scuderi. Man, was he bad. One of the most frustrating Penguins I’ve seen in recent memory. Brought back memories of Joe Melicar.
lol.
also I cant wait when Lovejoy’s contract is done
he has been the most on highlights of the night
with teams doing it on him
Sutter was never amazing in any capacity. Ever. Not in the playoffs. Not on any line. Not even in his driveway with a hockey ball.
Maybe there should be an article about how Bonino has done a better job filling in on the 2nd line for Geno this year than Sutter did filling in last year.
Sutter been amazing the 2 years he was here inthe playoffs and had 19 goals when he played 2nd and 3rd line and did not have Kessel or haggy
he’s the most blah “amazing” player I’ve ever seen. If his name was Anderson instead of Sutter, he’d be compared to Nick Spalling.
I’ve been trying to forget he exists.
Why would someone write an article about a lesser move that has had a lesser effect? Good writers will always write about the biggest moves that have had the greatest effect.
http://www.autotrader.ca/newsfeatures/20160323/nhl-playoff-heroes-cars/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Display&utm_content=Native-NF-2016_NHL_PO&utm_campaign=CA-DSP-DM-EN-CONTENT#toPW1mkgv7hk4MjX.97
A win tonight helps a few different ways. I’m not a huge believer in believing that the Pens beating the Caps tonight will give them an edge in a playoff series against them, but it could certainly help the mindset of the team going into the playoffs. Clinching 2nd place and beating the best team in hockey for a second straight time can’t do anything but boost the teams momentum going into the playoffs. That paired with the fact that we are doing this without our starting goaltender, #2 defenseman, one of the best centers in the game and a… Read more »
I have to disagree somewhat, with the exception of last season the team has always done well in the regular season when missing key players. nearly every year after the Cup win under DB they were near the top of the league in man-games lost but still were 1 of the top regular season teams year in and year out. In 2010-2011 they finished the last 29 games of the season 15-10-4 missing both Crosby & Malkin and went up 3-1 on TB before failling short in 7 games, then in 2011-2012 they went 36-20-7 in 63 games without Crosby… Read more »
15-10-4 is a huge difference than what they are doing now. We have had good regular seasons, but I don’t ever remember us playing this well heading into the playoffs. It just feels like they have an energy that I haven’t seen since the cup year. Hopefully it translates.
Its a few things, there were red flags that would creep up in the game during the DB years that don’t seem to be there now. Again I can’t say for sure until the playoffs are here but there definitely seems to be a significant difference in the game overall.
Everything going well, could potentially lock up home ice in the first round, what could go wrong?
*awaits Letang or Crosby injury*
dont jinx and make Stan happy
I don’t get happy or mad. It just is what it is. He’s unreliable. Especially when it matters.
interesting article