Malkin quietly had 10 points in the series

Overlooked in the Alexander Ovechkin – Sidney Crosby hype, Evgeni Malkin quietly had 10 points in the Penguins second round series against the Washington Capitals. Malkin registered 8 points in the final 5 games of the series and while he didn’t put up Crosby, Ovechkin numbers, 10 points in one playoff series is nothing to be disappointed about. Crosby (21 pts) and Malkin (19 pts) have combined for 40 pts through the first two rounds of the playoffs and it’s no surprise the Penguins have advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals when they’re getting that type of production from their two superstars. Malkin is within four points of passing his points total (23) from last years Stanley Cup playoff run

Insider Report: Game 7 Preview

The NHL got its dream matchup between the Washington Capitals and the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals and the NHL got its dream series after David Steckel scored 6:22 into overtime to force a game 7 in Washington, Wednesday night. With the series tied at 3-3, momentum has shifted to the Capitals. Will the Capitals hold serve at home, or will Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins advance to their second consecutive Eastern Conference Finals? Game 7 Preview Pittsburgh – Offense Sidney Crosby has been phenomenal against the Capitals, establishing himself as the games most complete player. Crosby has matched the hype and has 6 goals in the series matching his total for the entire 2008 playoffs. Evgeni

Ovechkin getting little help to combat Crosby, Malkin

Alexander Ovechkin has been sensational in the Capitals second round series against Pittsburgh. Ovechkin has 7 goals in five games and has answered all the hype. Ovechkin’s rival Sidney Crosby has been just as good if not better. While Crosby and Ovechkin have cancelled each other out, a reason the Penguins are up 3-2 in the series is because of Evgeni Malkin. After being held pointless in games 1 and 2, Malkin has been phenomenal since, putting on a dominant performance in game 3 and scoring the OT winner in game 5.

Post-Game Buzz

Alexander Ovechkin was the center of discussion following the game regarding his knee-to-knee hit on Sergei Gonchar in the first period of Game 4. Alex Ovechkin was remorseful indicating the hit was an accident but as expected, the Penguins believe the hit was dirty and among those to speak out was Brooks Orpik. Orpik Added: “That’s three games in a row where he’s out there trying to hurt guys,”. You just watch the way he hits. And I love the way he plays, but he could get a charging penalty every time he hits. He leaves his feet, and takes countless strides. We’ve gotten lucky up to this point. And he likes to target the Russian guys, for some reason.

Penguins contain Ovechkin in 3-2 win

Alexander Ovechkin is one of the most unique hockey players in the history of the game as he possesses a scoring ability that rivals some of the games greatest players but what makes him unique is that he plays a physical style to go along with his goal scoring prowess. The physical type of game that Ovechkin plays is a very rare trait from a goal scorer who has scored more goals in his first four seasons than Mario Lemieux (215) did. Ovechkin lit the lamp against the Penguins in the first two games of the series, scoring four goals and recording 21 shots on goal. It was expected that Brooks Orpik and Sergei Gonchar would get the primary duty

Letang nets OT Winner; Penguins beat Capitals 3-2

Washington leads series, 2-1 In a must-win situation, the Penguins registered 42 shots on goal and got a phenomenal performance from NHL scoring champion Evgeni Malkin but the Penguins needed overtime to solve the Washington Capitals in Game 3.

Fleischmann scores game winner, Capitals take 1-0 series lead

Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin each scored 1st period goals but  the difference in the game was Tomas Fleischmann who scored the tiebreaking goal with 18:14 remaining in the third period as the Washington Capitals beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 Saturday afternoon at the Verizon center to take a 1-0 series lead.

Series Preview: Penguins in 6

Star Power PIT: Evgeni Malkin 112 pts, Sidney Crosby 103 pts, Marc Andre Fleury 35 wins WAS: Alexander Ovechkin 110 pts, Niklas Backstrom 88 pts, D Mike Green 73 pts Advantage – Pittsburgh Forwards Pittsburgh: Down the middle, the Penguins are the deepest team in the NHL with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal. Crosby and Malkin powered the Penguins through the first round combining for 17 points in the series while Jordan Staal has teamed with Matt Cooke and Tyler Kennedy to become the most complete third line in hockey. While Crosby and Malkin are putting up stellar numbers in the playoffs, they are not getting much help from their wingers. Ruslan Fedotenko was the only top 6

No line changes in Friday’s Practice

The Penguins just went through their final practice this morning before they depart for Washington later this afternoon. No line changes from¬†Thursday’s practice¬†as Miroslav Satan skated with the second line for the second consecutive day. As expected, Petr Sykora will be scratched for Game 1. Penguins Lineup for Saturday Kunitz – Crosby – Guerin Fedotenko – Malkin – Satan Cooke – Staal – Kennedy Dupuis – Talbot – Adams Scratches: Godard, Sykora Defensemen Orpik – Gonchar Gill – Scuderi Eaton – Letang Scratches: Boucher I’m told defenseman Kris Letang will be on a

Malkin, Ovechkin, Datsyuk Named Hart Trophy Finalists

NEW YORK (April 29, 2009) – Detroit’s Pavel Datsyuk, Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin and Washington’s Alex Ovechkin are the three finalists for the 2008-09 Hart Memorial Trophy, which is awarded “to the player who is adjudged to be the most valuable to his team,” the National Hockey League announced today.