STARS 4 – PENGUINS 1
The Pittsburgh Penguins are a middle of the pack team. Their top end skill will get by teams like the Senators, Panthers, but if Marc Andre Fleury isn’t standing on his head, night’s are going to go like this one went when the Penguins get matched up against a contending team with the type of speed and skill the Stars have.
The Penguins were buzzing in the first 5-6 minutes of the game, it might have been their best five minute stretch of the season, minus the important thing of failing to put the puck in the net.
As the first period progressed we got a glimpse of an important difference between these two teams:
The top-9 of the Stars forward group consistently creates a net-front presence. The Penguins just flat out don’t and with an inability to create offense through the middle of the ice, it’s a bad combination.
It’s a reason the Penguins so often are only scoring on perfect shots, again tonight as their only goal of the game came on a great shot and individual effort from Nick Bonino.
For the Stars, Johnny Oduya’s first period goal was a great example of what the Penguins don’t get enough of. Oduya made a fluttering shot but the Stars had bodies in the slot and sticks in the air that led to Fleury losing sight of the puck as it came on net.
4:10 later John Klingberg made it 2-0 with a beautiful snipe on the power play and Jamie Benn was parked right in front and that starts to wear on a goaltender.
From there it was game over.
The Stars found their legs after the mid-way point of the first period and it showed in their ability to defend the neutral zone like the New Jersey Devils of late 1990’s/early 2000’s in the second period where the Penguins were listless and failed to record their first shot until 11:20 of the period when Nick Bonino scored to cut the Stars lead to 3-1.
The Stars speed overwhelmed the Penguins for the second time this season and Pittsburgh had just four shot attempts through the first nine minutes of the second period.
Maybe even more alarming was the [hide] Bonino goal didn’t give the Penguins any life.
Mattias Janmark would score a 1:42 later to make it 4-1.
The Penguins then got a power play opportunity 52 seconds later, a chance to make it a two goal game again, but they went out and managed just one shot on goal during the power play.
The icing on the cake of what type of night it was — the Penguins couldn’t put a puck in the net on an extended 6-on-3 advantage late in the third —
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St blurry is in the vezina conversation.
He should be. They don’t have three wins because they’re an offensive juggernaut.
Pens need to sign Maatta now while he sucks ass.
Come on Depaoli you can say it, first goal was a bad goal. If Midget gets scored on first then game over. Every time.
The stars look lost, the second tier players (Perron, Hornquist,Maatta,) are going through some of the worst streaks of their career and almost everyone looks exposed. No one takes the body and if they do its the courtesy check its not to separate man from puck. The coach has to go and we need more youth and sandpaper in the line up. Seriously other than Sprongs excitement and Hornquists never ending need to be a pain in the goalies @SID4800$$……what can we count on constantly from this team. And before we blame Crosby and Malkin///it’s team wide. Need a new… Read more »
Good points. The pens don’t put a hurting on anyone.
I think the same thing and I think the problems are behind the bench, not on it.
These wrap ups are getting ridiculous. More of the same incorrect analysis about the offensive system. The problem in this game was all about horrible D zone coverage and a complete lack of effort for about 10 minutes after the Oduya goal. The Pens went to the high percentage scoring areas, they had plenty of high quality shots on goal. They got the life sucked out of them by a bad goal and then started turning the puck over. Against a high powered team like the Stars you can’t let a bad goal in and then stop trying. We lost… Read more »
That is in addition to the fact they did not get into high percentage areas in the offensive zone. They didn’t feel dangerous in the offensive zone after Malmin’s breakaway. Everything was kept to the outside.
I would disagree. Kunitz had a great chance, HQ had several rebound opportunities, Malkin walked right down the lane on a sick drag between the legs, Duper has a whack that went off Niemi’s toe, Cullen hit a post, nd Kessell SHOULD have taken it to the net a couple of times. This game was about momentum, we buzzed for 6 minutes, a little adversity hit, and then we started coughing up the puck. We don’t have the talent in the D zone to play like that. Once Dallas got the lead they just trapped.
Letang was brutal tonight, but he was due. He’s been playing a ton of mistake free minutes.
I have to agree with 90% of this assessment
Not to mention the unreliable goalie laid an egg. But fan boys give Fleury a pass. After all he’s been the Pens best player
All hail st blurry!
Come on wmal, you can’t be mad at st blurry. He has an infectious smile for Christ sake!
…and because st blurry is like the rest of the pens”stars”. They beat up on the garbage teams and get smoked by anyone good. Same story for 3 years.
Johnston needs to go. System is to predictable.
isn’t that what they said about Bylsma