Sid-sational Penguins Roll, Dump Blue Jackets 5-2

While I watched the early stages of last night’s Penguins game on the TV at Wright’s Gym, a member joined me at the front desk to catch some of the action. As we began to chew the fat over our favorite hockey team, he voiced his concerns over Sidney Crosby and his apparent difficulty in finding the back of the net. He wondered if Sid’s wrist surgery had robbed him of his shot. I concurred.

Apparently, our exchange provided all the reverse PenguinPoop mojo needed to free Sid from whatever malaise was ailing him. Our captain promptly exploded for a hat trick (four points altogether) to pace the Pens to a 5-2 victory over the home standing Blue Jackets. Our fourth win in a row if you’re keeping track.

Despite the outcome, the game was no walk in the park. In a carryover from the night before, our guys played an uneven first period. We did snatch an early lead just 32 seconds in, with Brian Dumoulin doing the honors on a wide-open look from the left circle. But the Blue Jackets countered mid-period on a short-handed goal by Gustav Nyquist, who fanned on his initial attempt before fooling luckless black-and-gold goalie Casey DeSmith on a sharp-angle follow-up shot.

It appeared the teams would cruise into the first intermission deadlocked at 1-1. But with inside two minutes remaining Jackets captain Boone Jenner rambled to the net like a Mack Truck as he is wont to do and drove the puck between DeSmith’s pads. Yet another in an unfortunate streak of iffy goals allowed by Casey this season.

Coach Mike Sullivan must’ve thought so, too. He pulled DeSmith in favor of Tristan Jarry to begin the second period, but I’m getting ahead of myself. That’s because Crosby knotted the score at 2-2 with 29 seconds to go in the period on a wicked side-of-the-net snipe, aided and abetted by a heady feed from Bryan Rust.

With Jarry between the pipes, the Pens seemed to settle into their game in the second period. Tristan made a big stop mid-period on Jack Roslovic on a 2-on-1. His counterpart, Joonas Korpisalo, was up to the task as well, stuffing Jake Guentzel on a breakaway. But in the final frame the Pens’ big guns took over.

At 5:35, Mike Matheson got plenty of wood (or composite) on a setup from Dumoulin. The resulting center-point blast trickled through Korpisalo’s five hole before veering in slow motion over the goal line.

The Jackets appeared to tie the game at 3-3 on a Max Domi wrister from the top of the left circle. But Sullivan challenged, asserting…correctly…that Emil Bemstrom was offside. The would-be goal was waved off.

With the Blue Jackets back on their heels, No. 87 made sure they stayed that way. Working on a 5-on-3 power play, Rust slipped a beautiful cross-slot feed to Crosby and Sid did the rest, dropping to a knee to whip the puck over Korpisalo’s outstretched glove hand and shoulder.

Sid then applied the frosting on the cake…and notched the hatty…with a one-cushion bank shot that split the Blue Jackets’ empty net with 1:58 remaining.

Vintage Sid. And vintage Pens.

Puckpourri

The Pens outshot the Blue Jackets, 31-27. Jarry stopped all 15 shots he faced after coming on in relief of DeSmith (10 saves on 12 shots).

In addition to Sid’s four-point performance, Dumoulin (1 goal + 2 assists), Rust (2 assists) and Matheson (1+1) enjoyed multiple-point games. Mike has three goals and six points in his last three games.

Kris Letang picked up an assist to quietly run his point streak to 10 games. Tanger has a pair of goals and 13 points over that span.

Zach Aston-Reese returned to the lineup, dislodging Brian Boyle, but was hurt blocking a shot. Jason Zucker (lower body) and Louis Domingue (foot) are among the latest black-and-gold casualties.

The Pens (25-10-5, 55 points) vaulted past the Capitals and into sole possession of third place in the Metro, a single point behind the division-leading Hurricanes and Rangers. Looking ahead, we square off against Winnipeg at the Can for a matinee matchup on Sunday.

Tribute to Jethro

I generally don’t pay homage to players from other teams. However, I was deeply saddened to learn that former Islanders great Clark Gillies passed away at age 67.

By all accounts a terrific guy, at 6’3” and 215 pounds Gillies…aptly nicknamed “Jethro”…was the prototype for the modern power forward. Skating on a line with fellow Hall-of-Famers Bryan Trottier and Mike Bossy, the burly Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan native topped 30 goals six times during his career while helping to lead the Islanders to four Stanley Cups in the 1980s.

A fearsome fighter noted for his powerful punch, Gillies was regarded by many as the NHL heavyweight champion of his day. Fortunately for would-be foes, the hulking left wing had a long fuse, much like Pens contemporary Bob “Battleship” Kelly. However, when riled…watch out.

Goaded into a fury, Gillies famously broke Ed Hospodar’s jaw and caused severe facial injuries in 1981 with a devastating right. Among his other notable battles, a near knockout of Philly bad man Dave “the Hammer” Schultz, a spirited go with the Pens’ equally tough Bob Paradise in the 1975 playoffs, and a brutal four-fight war with Boston’s fast-swinging lefty Terry O’Reilly during the Isles’ 1980 Cup run.

In one of my favorite YouTube segments, titled Clark Gillies talking about whom he feared most in a fight, Gillies gives a colorful and humorous account of his two battles with rugged Behn Wilson. Definitely worth watching.

In addition to his considerable on-ice achievements, Clark was involved in numerous charities and Islanders-related activities. A class act all the way.

Our heartfelt prayers and condolences to his family and friends.