Unbelievable

With the seconds ticking off in the last minute of Game 5 of the NHL Stanley Cup Finals, I stood only a few feet away from my television, quietly staring as the Detroit Red Wings were mere moments away from being inscribed as the 2008 Stanley Cup Champions.

The Pittsburgh Penguins 1st period 2-0 lead, along with their hopes of extending the series, had slowly deteriorated. Darren Helm first put the Wings on the board just shy of 3 minutes into the 2nd period when he took a feed from Maltby and threw a shot on net that deflected and beat Fleury short-side.

At the 13:17 mark of the 3rd the Red Wings took advantage of a Tyler Kennedy Hooking minor, tying the game with Datsyuk's five-hole deflection. Less than 3 minutes later Detroit took the lead when Brian Rafalski took a pass in the high slot and threw one passed Fleury.

And now with time dwindling away on their season, the Penguins pull goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who had been stellar throughout the game, for an extra attacker. I stood motionless. I'm not even sure if I'm breathing at this point. Chant's of "We Want the Cup" are echoing through the Joe Louis Arena.

The puck kicks to Crosby in the corner. Malkin is being tied up in the slot. Extra attacker Maxime Talbot gets himself to the side of the net. With under 40 seconds left in the game Crosby finds Talbot by the post. Wings tender Chris Osgood makes a pad save, but Talbot gets right back on the rebound. He makes another attempt at shuffling it by Osgood. I'm peering closely at the net. The revolution of the planet slows. Time is crawling. I've never wanted to see a red light so badly. Evgeni Malkin raises his arms towards the sky. Behind the net Talbot is celebrating. 3-3. Tie game. ESPN News would later report this as the latest game tying goal in a Stanley Cup elimination game, and I'm prone to believe them.

Throughout the game I had been posting to a Live Game Blog with a panel of other bloggers over at Greg Wysynski's Puck Daddy [which if you haven't noticed is becoming the best hockey blog on Al Gore's internet]. With the breath of life back in the lungs of the Penguins, the decidedly pro-Pittsburgh panel was reinvigorated. I didn't think Sean Leahy of Going Five Hole was going to make it through the night. At the beginning of the game I was hoping to offer impartial insightful commentary, by overtime I was posting a link to Kasparaitis's Game 7 OT goal against the Sabres in 2001.

Heading into overtime I knew the first few minutes would be dangerous. But after you get past a certain settling in period, both teams start playing for the long haul. In retrospect some of the people I've talked with have told me the Red Wings controlled play in the 1st OT. Others said the Penguins controlled the 2nd. I don't know, to me momentum seemed to be shifting ever possession, but everything has begun to blur together. This is probably because I was a ball of anxiety and not enough oxygen was getting to my brain [I held my breath every time the Red Wings possessed the puck in the Penguins zone].

One thing that is for sure, is that as one overtime became two, became three, it was clear that Marc-Andre Fleury was keeping the Penguins in the game. The young goaltender turned in a performance that will go down as one of the all-time greats in the Stanley Cup Finals, and made some saves that will live on forever or poor quality YouTube videos.

Towards the last few minutes of the 2nd OT period, Pittsburgh Penguins winger Petr Sykora caught the attention of Pierre McGuire, the NBC Commentator seated between the team benches. "I'm going to score." he said.

The Penguins caught a break in the 3rd OT when Jiri Hudler's stick caught Pittsburgh defenseman Rob Scuderi in the face. Scuderi never wanted to bleed so badly. They called the double minor and the Penguins had 4 minutes of power-play on the board.

Only a handful of seconds into the power-play Malkin settled down a errant shot behind the net. As he swung around the back of the net to Osgood's left the Red Wing's penalty killers collapsed ] in front of the net. Sneaking into the play, Petr Sykora set up in the left circle. Malkin's pass hit Sykora in stride, with plenty of room, and Sykora let a wrist shot go in the face of a Wing's player, sliding out to block the shot.

Once again time slowed. I'm searching for the puck with my eyes. I don't think it hit Osgood. I didn't hear it ring off the post. It wasn't wide. An eternity passes. Staring at the net, I see the puck falling to the ice. Game over. Jubilation ensues. Penguins win and stay alive to host Game 6 in Pittsburgh.

The game will go down as the 5th longest game in the history of the Stanley Cup Finals. Regardless of the outcome of the series, it will go down as one of the greatest games ever. Fleury's fifty-five saves. Talbot tying the game when the Wings could almost feel the Cup in their hands. Petr Sykora's called shot. Unbelievable.

You may have seen this picture on The Pens Blog. I'm also running it, with the permission of the creator, my clever and aptly skilled photoshop jobber brother John.

Fleury and Talbot Out for Pens

As if last nights game in Philadelphia wasn't enough for Penguins fans, the bad news just keeps on coming. Marc-Andre Fleury, who left 5 minutes into a game against Calgary on December 5th, will miss 6-8 weeks with a high ankle sprain.

It seems as if goaltending has been a constant issue this season. Fleury struggled early in the season, but he had just seemed to turn things around before the injury. Responsibility will fall on the shoulders of backup Dany Sabourin.

This will probably only act as fuel on the fire that has been trade rumors involving Pittsburgh and goaltenders.

At the same time, it appears like Maxime Talbot's high ankle sprain is worse than expected, and he will most likely miss the next 2-4 weeks.

With injuries mounting, the Penguins will have to buckle down and try to make it to the January all-star break. If not, and they struggle, Ray Shero might be forced to act via trades.

Game 26: 12/4/07: Penguins 3 - Coyotes 1

For two teams that had only seen each other once in the past 3 and a half years, there was a lot of bad blood between the Phoenix Coyotes and Pittsburgh Penguins at the Mellon Arena Monday night. It makes me wish the two meet a little more often. This is also true because I like saying "Coyotes" (It's not Co-yo-tes, people. It's Coy-otes).

The Penguins squandered 4 power-play oppurtunities in the 1st period, but Maxime Talbot, in his first game back from a high ankle sprain, scored in the final minute of the period giving Pittsburgh the 1-0 lead. The goal was assisted by Georges Laraque, who was playing his first game against his former team since being traded to the Penguins last season.

Despite ample opportunities the scored stayed at 1-0 through the 2nd period and into the 3rd, in part thanks to a couple posts and crossbars.

If the Penguins are going to put together a winning streak like the one that catapulted them to the top of the Atlantic division last season, they are going to have to learn how to put away teams. But they didn't, the Coyotes held on, and on the power-play a minute 26 seconds into the 3rd.

Thankfully the Penguins finally took advantage of their numerous power-play opportunities. Scoring on their 7th power-play when Sidney Crosby's fake shot-pass found Kris Letang, who scored his first goal of the season.

Later Tyler Kennedy put the game away with a wicked wrist shot that beat Coyotes goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov near post.

Fleury faced only 18 shots and allowed only 1 goal while he picked up his 3rd straight victory. In some of the most entertaining moments of the game, with less than a minute left in the game Fleury looked several times at attempting to shot down ice on the Coyotes empty net, but did not get a shot off. The Penguins teammates appeared to jokingly give Fleury a hard time about it after the buzzer.

Perhaps coach Michel Therrien has stumbled upon a good motivator for his young squad, "lead by 2 and I'll let Fleury shoot at the empty net".

Without a doubt Maxime Talbot was the driving force in this victory, and just in case there was any doubt as to how important he is to this team while he was absent, there is not anymore.

The Penguins (12-12-2) press on a break neck speed, heading to Edmonton to take on the Oilers on Wednesday night.

Game 25: 12/1/07: Penguins 2 - Maple Leafs 4

The Penguins attempt at a season high 4 game winning streak was denied by the Vesa Toskala and the Toronto Maple Leafs, who held off the Penguins late game attacks for the 4-2 win.

Dany Sabourin was called to start for the Penguins, after starter Marc-Andre Fleury faced 28 shots in a 4-1 victory the previous night. But the Leafs got to him early, with Mark Bell scoring his first of the season 3:56 into the first period.

Bell missed the first 15 games of the season and was placed in the NHLPA Substance Abuse Program after an off-season incident which lead to drunk driving causing injury and hit-and-run charges.

In the 2nd immediately following a power-play Toronto scored on a two man breakaway, with Kyle Wellwood assisting Jason Blake. The Maple Leafs caught the Penguins with only one defenseman on the ice, and when Mark Eaton failed to keep the puck in at the blue line the Leafs were clear in on the two man rush.

Nik Antropov made it 3-0 later in the 2nd, deflecting a Bryan McCabe shot for a power-play goal.

Ryan Malone broke up Toskala's shut out attempt, scoring in the third off a fortunate bounce. Colby Armstrong's bad angle shot deflected off Toskala and then bounced off Malone's knee and into the net.

With less than 2 minutes left in the 3rd Erik Christensen's shot handcuffed Toskala, who initially made the save, but had the puck roll up his shoulder and into the net, bringing the Penguin's within one, 3-2.

However in the dying throws of the game the Penguins turned up the pressure and pulled Sabourin in favor of a sixth skater. After numerous attempts were thwarted by Toskala and the Leafs, Alexei Ponikarovsky sealed the deal with an empty net goal.

Maxime Talbot was again a healthy scratch, but that didn't stop him from having some fun after practice. With 14,000 fans on board for the Penguins open practice, encouraged by Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, Talbot threw on Crosby's 87 jersey and borrowed a stick to take the ice. For 2 minutes he did his best Crosby impersonation to the delight of the crowd and his teammates.

Mark Recchi was once again a healthy scratch, and further ensuring his departure from the franchise, it appears he may have been stripped of his Alternate Captaincy. Defenseman Mark Eaton had the "A" patch on his jersey, though it was not apparent whether this was due to Gonchar's injury or Recchi's absence.

The Penguins (11-11-2) will welcome the Phoenix Coyotes to the Mellon Arena on Monday, in what will be the 2nd game of a hectic early December schedule that sees them playing 5 games in 8 days.

Game 24: 11/30/07: Penguins 4 - Stars 1

After a six day layoff in action the Penguins made it three straight last night, defeating the Dallas Stars 4-1. They've only won 3 in a row once before this season, back in the third week of the season. The victory put the Penguins at .500 for the first time since November 7th.

Sidney Crosby came up big early, scoring 24 seconds into the first period, taking the puck from behind the net and beating Stars backup goaltender Mike Smith five-hole.

Just minutes later Tyler Kennedy jumped on a Stars turnover, and scored his 3rd of the season. Kennedy has seen increased playtime due to his solid play and the injury of Maxime Talbot, and rounded out the 3rd line with Gary Roberts and Jordan Staal.

Five minutes into the 2nd period Dallas pulled within one on a Mike Ribeiro shot that deflected of Daryl Sydor and beat Fleury high. The goal ended Fleury's shutout streak of 85 minutes and 31 seconds since he was pulled in the first period against the Ottawa Senators on November 22nd.

Crosby scored his second of the game, and 14th of the season, putting a Sydor rebound behind Smith and increasing the lead once again to 2.

Evgeni Malkin put the game away in the 3rd period when Petr Sykora found Malkin streaking down the wing, who made it 4-1.

Mark Reechi was a healthy scratch once again, further fueling trade rumors. Surely Reechi must be frustrated, but his poor performance has dictated the Penguins position. Rumors have it that Reechi is pursuing a deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Reechi played under Columbus head coach Ken Hitchcock in Philadelphia.

I'm a little skeptical about whether the Penguins will find a trade partner for Reechi, but even if they do, I can not imagine anyone valuing him to the point that Pittsburgh receives in return anything that would be of use this season. Perhaps a draft pick.

Maxime Talbot and Sergei Gonchar were both scratched due to nagging injuries. Talbot's high ankle strain has kept him out of service since the 17th of November, but he has been skating with the Penguins in practice and should return to the lineup shortly.

Iron Man Gonchar left Saturday night's game against Atlanta with a groin injury, and saw his 105 game starting streak end. He is listed as day to day and is not expected to start on Saturday when the Penguins (11-11-2) take on the Maple Leafs(9-11-6) in Toronto.

Game 22: 11/22/07: Penguins 6 - Senators 5 SO

After a day of giving feasting and giving thanks with close friends and family in America, the Pittsburgh Penguins and Ottawa Senators put on a show in Ontario. Collectively they put up 10 goals, swapping the lead back and forth, and ending on the backhand of a very unlikely stick, that of Penguins agitator Jarko Ruutu.

Marc-Andre Fleury was in the net again for the Penguins after a dissappointing 2-1 loss to New Jersey the previous night. But the Senators scorers got to Fleury and the Penguins early, scoring twice on their first 9 shots, resulting in Michel Therrien pulling Fleury in favor of back-up tender Dany Sabourin.

Later in the first the Penguins recovered, getting goals from Evgeni Malkin and Ryan Malone, only 18 seconds apart, taking the game into the intermission tied up at 2.

In the 2nd the Penguins took the lead when Tyler Kennedy's turn around wrister surprised Senators goalie Martin Gerber.

But back came the Senators scorers, putting up another pair of goals in the 2nd period, from Heatley and Spezza, regaining the lead, 4-3. Early off in the 3rd the Senators added to their lead with a Christoph Schubert tally.

Once again down by 2, the Penguins offense fired back. Malone's second of the game put the Penguins within one. And after being knocked to his knees, Colby Armstrong found Sergei Gonchar stepping up from the blue line, who tied the game up at 5.

After a scoreless overtime the teams went to the shootout. Jason Spezza lead off the shootout for the Senators, and beat Sabourin to put the Sens up 1-0.

Erik Christensen was apparently stopped by Ray Emery, but a video review revealed that the puck had trickled across the line, tying the shootout at one a piece.

Fleury stopped Heatley, Vermette, and Fisher. Crosby and Petr Sykora were stopped by Gerber, and the game came down to the Penguins fourth shooter. To the face-off circle skated Penguins basher Jarko Ruutu.

Skating down the ice, Ruutu's deke opened Gerber's 5-hole, and Ruutu backhanded the puck into the net, completing the Penguins comeback against the NHL best Ottawa Senators.

Although the night ended on a high note for Ruutu, it is apparent that he has become a target of the NHL's officials, as he was called for 2 diving calls in the game.

Colby Armstrong, who has often found himself a healthy scratch this season, gave head coach Michel Therrien a couple big reasons to keep him in the lineup, mainly, 2 huge assists. The Penguins are always a better team with #20 on the ice, and he's a hard-woring forward who is badly needed with the absence of Maxime Talbot.

The Penguins (9-11-2) take on the Atlanta Thrashers on Saturday, and then will have a 5 day break before getting back into action at home against the Dallas Stars.

Game 19: 11/15/07: Penguins 3 - Islanders 2

It took a goal from an unlikely source, the stick of Georges Laraque, but the Penguins put an end to their losing slump, beating the Islanders 3-2 at home Thursday night. The evening began with ceremonies inducting Paul Coffey into the Penguins Hall of Fame, and it ended with Marc-Andre Fleury picking up his first win since October 23rd.

There was a little bit of a roster shakeup, with Mark Recchi and Daryl Sydor healthy scratches, and Tyler Kennedy and Kristopher Letang getting the call-up. Kennedy was sent down to Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins for a game, in which he had 2 assists, before getting the call. Letang was expected to make the NHL roster after training camp, but after a poor showing he was assigned to Wilkes Barre.

The Penguins gave up the first goal again, on a deflection by Mike Comrie. But Gonchar tied it up before the end of the 1st with a slapshot from the blueline that beat Isles tender Rick DiPietro who was screened by Jordan Staal.

Less than a minute into the 2nd period the Penguins took advantage of a two-man advantage. Evgeni Malkin put the puck on net, but it was Petr Sykora who shoved it passed DiPietro. Later in the 2nd the Islanders evened it up when Josef Vasicek settled down a shot from the point and maneuvered it around a sprawling Fleury.

The eventually game winner came when Sidney Crosby feed Georges Laraque in front of the net. Laraque lifted it high glove side for his first goal in a Penguins uniform. With the assist Crosby extended his scoring streak to 18 games, and Malkins 2 assist extended his streak to 11 games.

It was only a matter of time before Laraque came through big on the scoreboard. He might not be a considerable scoring threat, but his image as just a goon and a fighter is somewhat misguided. He can throw a big hit, but he also knows how to move the puck, and thus far this season he's been a vital part of a hardworking 4th line.

Marc-Andre Fleury ended his personal losing streak with his first win in 5 starts, turning aside 26 of 28 shots. Hopefully the win will instill some confidence in Fleury, who hasn't been able to hold it together for much longer an a few selected games.

The Penguins (8-10-1) will be in New York Saturday night to take on the Rangers (11-7-1). They've already met twice, splitting the series 1-1,

10/10/07: Game 3: Penguins 2 - Canadiens 3

It was a disappointing one in Pittsburgh tonight, as the Penguins had their chances, but failed to make good on them. Instead the story was Carey Price's NHL debut for the Canadiens, making 26 saves on 28 shots in the 3-2 victory.

Sidney Crosby's bruised foot kept him out of practice Tuesday, but it didn't seem to be a problem during the game. Crosby assisted on the Penguins first goal, which Ryan Malone scored over a sprawling Carey Price, who had been knocked to the ice.

The Canadiens answered back with two goals in the six minutes of the 2nd period, taking the 2-1 lead.

Andrei Markov increased the lead in the 3rd, scoring off a rebound from an opportunity created by a Penguins defense-zone face-off loss.

Work horse Maxime Talbot put the Penguins within one, putting a no-look backhanded Evgeni Malkin behind-the-net pass behind Price. Malkin destroys me with his no-look backhand passes. I'll give him this one, but for every one that works out, he makes 9 that turn the puck and start rushes down the ice.

The Penguins spent the rest of the 3rd in the Canadiens zone, but were unable to wear down Price, who played very positionally sound throughout the game.

Fleury stopped 35 of 38 shots tonight, but continued to give up big rebounds. If the Penguins want to thwart opposing offense, they are going to have to cut down the amount of shots allowed, and Fleury is going to have to settle down. I'm pulling out hair every time I see him needlessly out of the net playing the puck.

One thing that catches me off guard from time to time is just how much of a monster Gary Roberts is. Of course he's in incredible shape and skates hard up and down the ice, but he can really throw a mean check. And he does, almost at random. I never see it coming, and neither did Kastsitsyn tonight. The hit really fired up the crowd as the Pens were battling to tie it up in the 3rd.

With his 2 assists tonight, Mark Recchi moved past Mike Gartner to 25th in all-time points.

The Penguins play the Maple Leafs in Toronto on Saturday at 7:00 pm.

10/06/07: Game 2: Penguins 5 - Ducks 4

I'm a little late getting this out, but I was slightly under the weather over the weekend (I don't think I'm getting enough Vitamin-C) and duties were neglected.

ANYWAYS, the Penguins bounced back against the defending champs, the Anaheim Ducks, on Saturday. They had left something to be desired after Friday's season opener, but they seemed to be feeding off the intensity of the home opener at Mellon Arena on Saturday.

Petr Sykora picked up a couple goals and an assist, taking huge strides after missing part of the preseason with a broken nose. And Crosby had his first point of the season with an assist on what would turn out to be the game winner from Malone.

During the pregame introductions, I paid close attention to the reaction each player received. And I've got to say, while Crosby definitely brought down the house, Evgeni Malkin and Colby Armstrong received monstrous applauses themselves. Yes, Colby Armstrong. Pittsburgh loves the guy. And he rewarded the crowd with a pretty dynamic one-on-one goal later in the game.

It was a great game for the Penguins offensively, but they still need to limit the amount of opportunities they allow. Fleury has started a little shaky, so the Penguins defense really needs to step up and shut down opposing teams in the defensive zone.

The Penguins play again on Wednesday, when they'll take on the Montreal Canadiens at home.

10/05/07: Game 1: Penguins 1 - Hurricanes 4

After a long off-season a good part of me is just happy to see the Penguins playing again. But even through the opening night euphoria I must say, I really expect more. They were flat most of the preseason, but I was still holding out hope that the opener would flip a switch in them, and they'd come out and play with more passion and intensity. This was not the case Friday night. I know it's only one game, but after watching the MLB pennant race for the past few weeks, I'm fully aware of importance one game can play when the seasons over.

Marc-Andre Fleury gave up 2 in the first and 2 in the second, and was replaced by Danny Sabourin to start the third. He can only shoulder so much of the blame, though, with an uninspired team playing in front of him. I was disappointed with his rebound control, which was directly responsible for one of the goals. His play wasn't anywhere in the vicinity of warranting being pulled, so I imagine Therrien was only resting him so he can start tonight in the home opener against the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Anaheim Ducks.

Sabourin did play well replacing Fleury. He blanked the hurricanes in the 3rd frame, making 7 saves.

Mark Recchi picked up the Penguins lone goal, with 3:23 left in the 3rd, tipping an Evgeni Malkin behind the net pass through Hurricanes tender Cam ward. It was Recchi's 1334 career point, putting him only 2 away from passing Hall of Famer Mike Gartner for 25th on the all-time scoring list.

Malkin still has major steps to take in the offensive zone. theres no doubt he can score the puck, but these no look passes continue to be a problem, often ending in an odd man rush the other way. He is in the nasty habit of the throwing the puck where he thinks a teammate should be, instead of taking in his options and moving the puck. I beginning to wonder if he deserves the 2nd line center position. For the time being Jordan Staal was been upgraded from the 3rd line center to the 1st line winger, but if Therrien doesn't feel like its a good fit, I wouldn't be surprised to see Malkin moved out of his position, and Staal centering the 2nd line.

The Penguins take on the Ducks tonight at 7:30 in their home opener.