I was watching last night’s Game 3 between the Penguins and Islanders at the Fireside Inn, enjoying a grilled cheese sandwich and imbibing in a brewski (or two-ski). It was between periods and I was basking in the fact that our boys held a seemingly secure 3-1 lead.
We’d gotten goals from Kris Letang, Jeff Carter and Jason Zucker. “Zucks” tally in particular was a thing of beauty, born of teamwork, hustle and some fancy moves by the previously snake-bitten winger. Tristan Jarry looked sharp and confident between the pipes.
Suddenly a stark reality set in, bubbling up from my hockey subconscious and oozing into my brain like some primordial warning beacon.
With the series tied 1-1, the Pens blew a 3-1 Game 3 lead against Montreal last fall.
I shuddered…then quickly tried to reassure myself. No way that could happen again. This is a different bunch. Much more depth and character.
The third period started. I began counting down the time while keeping an anxious eye on the clock in the upper-left portion of the TV screen. It ticked down to 18 minutes, 17 minutes and then…WHAM! John Marino’s helmet was dislodged during a scrum along the boards. Complying with a ridiculous rule that requires helmetless players to head straight to the bench, No. 6 exited the ice, leaving us a man short. While confusion reigned, Cal Clutterbuck drove to the net and scored.
Little did I know it was only tip of the iceberg. Indeed, the gritty winger’s tally touched off one of the wildest finishes to a game I can ever recall. Mayhem and chaos ruled, including a madcap 5-on-5 scrum moments later that resulted in the Pens’ top line and defensive pairing being crammed into the penalty box like so many sardines in a tin. Which led to an Islanders power play. Which led to a game-tying goal by Anthony Beauvillier at 5:54.
To borrow a phrase from Mike Lange, I truly didn’t know whether to cry or wind my watch.
Then, in perhaps the most bone-headed move of the century if not the millennium, Clutterbuck inexplicably performed a swan dive on top of Jarry. The judges gave him a 7 out of 10. The refs issued two minutes for goalie interference. Which opened the door for scoring sensation Carter to beat Seymon Varlamov stick side courtesy of a pretty feed from Evgeni Malkin following a diving play along the boards by Kasperi Kapanen.
That’s 12 goals (yep…a dozen) in 17 regular- and postseason games for the big guy while wearing the black and gold. We should by-pass the voting process right now and name Ron Hextall GM of the Year for acquiring him.
At this stage I was cautiously optimistic that we might actually hold onto the 4-3 lead. But Clutterbuck, anxious to redeem himself, tipped home a long-range blast from Scott Mayfield with five minutes and change left to knot the score again.
I covered my eyes and shook my head…maybe muttered an unrepeatable or two. We’re gonna’ blow this one for sure, I glumly thought.
Then the cavalry came to the rescue in the form of Brandon Tanev. The electric Pens’ winger circled to the slot as Letang cut loose a shot from the right point. The puck struck the stick blade of Isles defender Noah Dobson and hopped high in the air. Timing the fluttering puck perfectly, “Turbo” waited for it to fall below crossbar level before whacking it past a stunned Varlamov, touching off a wild black-and-gold celebration.
Again our guys were stingy when they had to be, refusing to allow a shot on goal for the final 1:55.
At the horn, I was finally able to exhale and enjoy the moment, our hard-earned 2-1 series lead…and my beer.
Sid Selke
For the second straight game, Sidney Crosby authored an extraordinary defensive gem. With a shade over three minutes remaining and the outcome still very much in the balance, he scurried back to our zone following a failed offensive thrust.
He’d barely gotten into position when Brock Nelson teed up a shot at a wide-open Pens net from the left circle. Displaying incredible presence of mind and split-second timing, Sid dove to the ice to deflect Nelson’s shot from harm’s way. A save that may grow to rival Frank Pietrangelo’s in Penguins lore.
Sid Selke, indeed!
Puckpourri
The Islanders held an edge in most statistical categories, including shots on goal (30-27), faceoffs (53 percent) and hits (47-29). The Pens had 14 takeaways…10 more than New York. Each team tallied a power-play goal.
Letang paced the black and gold with a goal and two helpers. “Tanger” had three hits and two shots on goal and finished a plus-three in 24:20 of ice time.
Malkin collected two assists after missing the first two games of the series. He replaced Evan Rodrigues. With a pair of goals, Carter also finished with two points. Zach Aston-Reese and Frederick Gaudreau tallied assists. Freddy has two points in the series, five in 11 career NHL playoff games.
Tanev led the Pens with eight hits, tying Islanders d-man Ryan Pulock for top honors. Turbo’s line held an impressive edge in Corsi events (48-35).
Game 4 is slated for 3 p.m. on Saturday afternoon in Uniondale.
Around the League
Montreal beat heavily favored Toronto, 2-1, in their series opener. Vegas dumped Minnesota, 5-2, to take a 2-1 series lead.
Down 5-3, Florida rallied for three straight goals, including a power-play marker by ex-Pen Patric Hornqvist, to beat Tampa Bay in OT. Sam Bennett also scored (yes, had to put in a plug for “Playoff Sam”). The Lightning lead the series, 2-1.
Yeah , what a game!
my heart was pounding the last few minutes!!
I really dislike Matt Martin, I know we don’t any “fighters” but why does he always grab a smaller forward to push around?
That fourth line has been awesome, I love watching Tanev play- all out, all game, love it.
The defenseman had a good game again…
I really think Ceci has been great, simple plays, good with the puck and without.
Jeff Carter has been great to watch, just shoots the puck, nothing fancy…
The only problem I see , and I know many on here have commented including myself… the lack of a big tough player to help in situations like Martin.
I am worried that one of our stars is going to get it.
Lets get a win Saturday afternoon ( I really dislike afternoon games).
LET’S GO PEN’S
LET’S GO PEN’S
Hey Pens4ever,
Good to hear from you and I couldn’t agree more.
Martin seems to have taken a page from Tom Wilson’s book on bullying 101. So wish we’d gotten Deslauriers from Anaheim at the trade deadline…he’d chew Martin up and spit him out. But of course, that’s water under the bridge and well downstream and Sullivan wouldn’t have played him anyway.
Mike said he wishes we’d dress Angello for a game. I really like him and he can go a little, although he’s not in Martin’s class as a fighter. But I agree it would be great to see someone really stand for the team.
I LOVE Carter…big, great speed, just takes the puck straight to the net and shoots. The perfect playoff hockey player. Thank God we got him. Truly, I don’t know where we’d be without him. Especially with Malkin still feeling his way back. The PERFECT deadline acquisition.
I’m totally with you on Ceci. I can’t say enough good things about him. He just plays a really solid two-way game. In no way, shape or form does he remotely resemble the player who compiled some truly awful metrics with Ottawa while drawing a ton of criticism. I don’t see any of that at all when I watch him play. Just a really competent all-around defenseman.
When all is said and done, I hope we can re-sign him at a reasonable rate.
GO PENZ back at ya!!!
Rick
Rick
Crazy, crazy game but loads of fun to watch. Every time I thought we
we’re in trouble we came back and answered with a big goal.
Couple of notes from last night.
1) “Tanev is a beast” I think back when JR signed him and the blogs
blew up criticizing his contract. He’s worth every penny then some.
2) When we can win a 5-4 game and Sid doesn’t pick up a point it spells
trouble for the Islanders.
3) “Carter is a beast” Talk about a marksman – his shot accuracy is mind
boggling. I’m with you – Hextall for GM of the year.
4) Zuckers goal “wow” are you kidding me? I thought the only possible
way for him to get a shot on goal was with the backhand. You talk about
hands? skill? remarkable goal. Since I’m not in the Burg I watched the
game on NBCSN – the announcers went crazy.
5) I know fans like to beat up our Defenseman but last night our wingers
botched so many chances to clear the zone and failed. They have to do
a better job going forward.
6) Guentzel looked frustrated last night and IMO Rusty looked lost. Still a
good sign winning without production from our top line
7) Thank the good lord “ERod” is out of the lineup. I know in some way he’s
over-achieved but I’m not a fan. Good depth player in the pinch.
8) Could we bring Angello up for at least one game and drop the gloves with
Martin before one of our star players gets injured “Lord”.
Okay – I’m out of breath – Lol. I look forward to your feedback.
GO PENS
Hey Mike,
I understand being out of breath. I’m still trying to process everything…
As always, you make some really good points. I’ll pick up on a few.
I wrote before the series began that I felt the Pens were susceptible to a heavy forecheck and that their defensive structure breaks down under pressure. A big part of that equation is the forwards. It just seems like our overall positioning in our zone just falls apart the longer we’re there.
It’s part of the reason I don’t want to play Boston. They have the ability to get on us.
Zucker’s goal was indeed amazing…a lot of hard work and hustle, not to mention hands and then roofing the puck from in close. To be honest, it’s part of what makes him a little maddening. You see the work rate and ability on a play like this and you’d just like a little more of that. As an aside, he seems like a great team guy…loved that he was jawing with Matt Martin on the bench at one point.
Carter’s been AMAZING. Imagine where we’d be without him (shudder). Love the way he just takes the puck and goes. He doesn’t screw around with it…just gets his shot off and on net.
Speaking of…I thought there was an interesting point-counterpoint with he and Rust last night. On the rush prior to Carter’s first goal, Rust came down the ice in almost the exact same spot and, inexplicably, failed to shoot. Rusty’s usually pretty good about getting the puck on net, but this time he elected instead to carry it behind the cage and the play fizzled.
We’re so much more effective when we make the simple play and get the puck on net and follow up.
You mentioned our top line. I think they’ve been in a bit of a slide for the past month, possibly because we’ve been playing against stiffer competition. Guentzel only has three goals in his past 17 games, going back to a hat trick against the Devils on April 11. Rust has three in his past 11, including a two-goal game. Hope they’re not wearing down. I especially worry about Jake given the pounding he takes.
I hear ya’ about Angello, but we know that’s never going to happen.
Anyway…I’m (Penguin) pooped…lol Go Penz!!!
Rick