Not long ago the Penguins were the hottest team in the National Hockey League. Toast of the ‘Burgh. Winners of eight in a row and 14 out of 15. Before a season-ending loss to the Flyers in a meaningless game (for the Pens) splashed a little cold water on the flames.
That was then. This is now.
It’s a brand-new season. The Stanley Cup playoffs. The Big Dance.
How will our Penguins fare in the cauldron of postseason competition?
According to a recent article by Bill West in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, advanced stats and analytics suggest the Penguins compare favorably to recent Cup champions Chicago, Los Angeles and Boston. Especially in shot-attempt differential while skating five on five.
Still, games are contested on ice, not paper. Where sweat and sinew meet tendon and bone. Intangibles such as heart, will, energy and drive factor into the equation, too.
So does officiating. As a general rule, NHL referees don’t like to decide games with a call. There’s a tendency to keep the whistles to a minimum. One that favors bigger teams with a bent toward obstruction.
Like the Rangers.
Nonetheless, the Pens’ relentless attack and suffocating forecheck should pose considerable problems for New York. Featuring burners like Phil Kessel and ex-Ranger Carl Hagelin, the black and gold can roll four lines at the enemy in a tidal blur of demon speed when healthy.
There’s the rub. The Pens aren’t 100 percent. Not even close. Bryan Rust—a key possession driver—remains sidelined. So does Evgeni Malkin. The Pens will need ‘em both before all is said and done if they’re to fulfill their (and our) Stanley Cup dreams.
The most pressing concern of all? The health of goalies Marc-Andre Fleury and Matt Murray. Although Fleury returned to practice this week, he may still be feeling the effects of his second concussion of the season. Flower’s a question mark for tonight’s series opener at Consol Energy Center.
The Pens have been tight-lipped on Murray’s status. Since having his bell rung against Philly last weekend the rangy rookie’s skated with the team but hasn’t practiced. Not good.
Should the Pens’ 1 and 1A goalies be unable to go, the netminding load will fall squarely upon the slender shoulders of Jeff Zatkoff. A serviceable backup, the popular Detroit native might rise to the occasion for a game or two. But over the course of a grinding seven-game series? Against a battle-tested foe like New York?
A huge worry.
The good news? The Blueshirts are banged up, too. Defensive stalwarts Dan Girardi and Ryan McDonagh may miss Game 1. Goalie Henrik Lundqvist is shaking off an illness. Eric Staal, Viktor Stalberg and Mats Zuccarello are dealing with injuries as well.
Are the Penguins ready for the playoffs? If Fleury and/or Murray return in reasonably short order…and near top form…I think so. To the tune of a six-game series victory over the Rangers.
If not?
It might be another long summer for Penguins Nation.
Hi Rick,
Are the Pen’s ready? Good question. The easy answer is that they are much more ready now than they were on December 1 st ! For sure.
“But”…( one of the worst three letter words in the English alphabet.)
In my opinion,I have three major concerns about this match up with the Rangers.
First, As you said in your post,Goal. Many of your other contributors put great stock on MAF and MM stealing a game from the Rangers.I believe if the Rangers are getting 40 shots a game on us, we are done for ! This is the play offs,and yes your goalie has to be your best player,however if we allow the Rangers to have that many shots on our net… somebody is not doing their job…and it is not the Goalie. The outcome will not be pretty.
Second, Team defense……Can we play total team defense for 7 games against a bigger,tougher opponent who is going to run us over every time we touch the puck.Transition from defense to offense with few mistakes will be critical. Our defense is small and we can not out muscle the Rangers and except Letang and Daley ?.. turnovers are a problem. We can not have excessive turn overs in a Stanley Cup series and hope to win.
Third, Scoring. Crosby and Malkin are going to be covered like a winter blanket in a January blizzard. If we are going to win, all the others on this team are going to have to do the scoring !! I am very serious on this point.
You are not going to see to many 7-2 games. They will be 4-2 or 3-1.
We need secondary scoring and I am confident these guys can do it.
Points number 1 and 2…..Not so sure ! But I am praying.
Oh, yeah one last thing Rick…..We need to win this series in 5 games ! The longer this series goes I think the advantage shifts to the Rangers because we will be banged up and a lot of our players will be injured.
Let’s go Pens !!
go pens and go carl
Shut it & think POSITIVE! Go pens!
Okay, I will … 🙂
Hi Michelle,
Thanks for your direct comments above.Your position I am sure resonates well among many of our fan base.I am surprised that not more Pen’s fans have not taken me to task over some of my views long before this. It is refreshing to have some one like yourself ,who is obviously very passionate about our team,as am I and all the other contributors to this wonderful blog,to offer different points of view.
If this series goes to 6 or 7 games,as the experts predict, I truly believe what I wrote above will have merit.
Cheers