In terms of pure hockey entertainment, last night’s wild-and-woolly affair between the NHL’s two black-and-gold teams was the pinnacle, featuring goal-scoring in bunches, wild momentum swings and a dramatic finish.
Tough on the ol’ ticker, too.
In the end the big-game hunting Penguins bagged the Bruins, 6-5, at TD Garden, to keep pace in the Eastern Conference playoff scramble.
The contest opened with a bang as Bruins nemesis Brad Marchand slammed the puck past Pens goalie Alex Nedeljkovic from the doorstep just 41 seconds in. The conflagration escalated from dumpster fire to four-alarm blaze in a hurry, with most of the damage fortunately being inflicted by the good guys.
Drew O’Connor knotted the score at 5:04, burying a juicy rebound off the pads of B’s goalie Jeremy Swayman. Ryan Graves staked us to a lead just over a minute later when his shot from center point deflected off Charlie Coyle’s stick and knuckled into the net.
The Bruins countered on the ensuing shift on a tally by David Pastrnák, somehow left unattended around the net through a typical comedy of errors in d-zone coverage.
Fortunately, our guys came loaded for bear. At 7:21 we retook the lead on a drive-by goal from Jake Guentzel, courtesy of a hustling play and picture-perfect setup from Sidney Crosby. We wrapped up our first-period pyrotechnics on a sizzler from the right circle by Lars Eller, thanks to an equally beautiful feed from O’Connor.
Four-two Pens after 20 minutes…and a chance to catch your breath.
Bruins disturber Trent Frederic decided to stir the pot early in the second period by getting in Jeff Carter’s grille in front of the benches. Bad idea, Trent. Seconds after a power-play expired, big Jeff parked himself on the doorstep and chipped a Kris Letang rebound over Swayman’s left pad and glove.
Faster then you can say, “Michael, Michael motorcycle,” our Pens are up 5-2 and cruisin.’
Somehow you just knew it was too good to last.
Midway through the period Morgan Geekie beat Nedeljkovic on a stoppable shot from the right circle. The first chink in the normally redoubtable goalie’s armor.
I remember thinking if we could just get out of the period with a 5-3 lead we’d be okay. However, with 36 seconds remaining Jake DeBrusk tipped a long-range Brandon Carlo blast past Ned. Suddenly, it’s 5-4 and the home team has all the momentum.
The Bruins’ surge continued early in the third period despite a delay of game penalty to Charlie McAvoy. Again, Marchand was the perpetrator. The villainous B’s captain actually made a brilliant play shorthanded, turning Letang into the proverbial turnstile before walking in and torching Nedeljkovic stick side.
With Ned crumbling like an earthen dam and the Bruins charging, it didn’t look good for our boys. But McAvoy took another penalty, this one for hooking at 11:12, and it proved costly.
Can you guess who the Pens’ hero was? Yep, No. 87. Crosby won a faceoff in the left circle to begin the power play, in the process angling the puck off the boards and onto the waiting stick of Erik Karlsson. EK65 artfully drew the B’s penalty killers to center point, in the process clearing space for our captain. After gathering in a return pass from Karlsson, Sid…head up, eyes alertly surveying the scene…whipped a withering wrister through a chorus line of traffic and past Swayman.
How he found an opening I’ll never know. Incredible play by an incredible player.
Although I wouldn’t have bet money on it, somehow we made the one-goal margin stand up. Ned stiffened, stopping Pavel Zacha with 88 seconds remaining. His teammates rolled up their sleeves, too, blocking no fewer than seven would-be shots in the final two minutes and change.
A win, and a biggie, for our boys.
Puckpourri
Per our usual, we had the better of the play according to Natural Stat Trick. We held the edge in shots on goal (35-29), scoring chances (31-22) and high-danger chances (21-12!). Shot attempts were even at 58-apiece.
With 11 goals combined, needless to say it wasn’t a good night to be a goalie. Swayman’s save percentage was .829, a tick above Nedeljkovic’s .828. Whether by design or dictated by circumstances beyond his control, Ned played deeper in his net than usual and suddenly looked all-too-mortal. His size (6’0” 189), or lack of, certainly played a part. Perhaps a hint of what went wrong in Detroit.
Still, he held firm at crunch time to get the win.
Wow, so many impressions, it’s hard to know where to start. On second thought, yes I do. Sensational Sid. Three points, including the game-winner, and top-star honors. What a warrior. What a leader. IMHO, there’s no better all-around player in the game.
What he’s doing at age 36 defies logic…and Father Time.
Letang garnered three more assists. That makes for a Bobby Orr-ish 12 points (all apples) in his last six games! Karlsson had a pair of helpers as well. Great to see the much-maligned Graves get a goal.
Don’t look now, but the depth guys are really starting to chip in. Eller and O’Connor each had a goal and an assist. DOC in particular is emerging as a middle-six force with his speed, size and tenacity. All that stands in his way is confidence, which seems to be growing by leaps and bounds.
Carter continues to pop the odd goal and play a surprisingly effective game in a reduced role, in the process silencing critics (like me). With his grit and speed, Jansen Harkins continues to grow on me. He had a pair of hits in 10:31 of ice time.
Rickard Rakell picked up an assist and now has points in six of his last seven games. I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out that his game has completely turned around skating alongside Sid.
If I’m doling out raspberries, the Evgeni Malkin–Reilly Smith–Bryan Rust trio didn’t do much offensively (four shots on goal combined) and seemed to fuel the Bruins’ fire. Each was a minus-2, although Rusty did assist on Carter’s goal.
I confess, I held my breath over the Karlsson/Pierre-Olivier Joseph defensive pairing, which got turned inside out on the play leading to Pastrnák’s goal. But overall they held their own while driving the play offensively.
In personnel news, Matt Nieto underwent surgery on his right knee and will miss 6-to-8 weeks. Former fourth overall pick Jesse Puljujärvi has signed a PTO with the Baby Pens.
On Deck
The Pens (19-14-4, 42 points) host the Sabres (16-19-4, 36 points) on Saturday night. It’ll be interesting to see who Mike Sullivan starts in goal. Both netminders were torched in their latest outings.
We’re currently one point out of the second wild card spot, tied with the Devils, Caps and Red Wings. We’re 8-2-1 in our last 11 games.
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Hey all,
Just wanted to point out a great article by Dan Kingerski on Pittsburgh Hockey Now titled, "Sidney Crosby 'Not Getting Credit He Deserves,' Team & Opponents Gush."
It includes some extremely complimentary comments and statements from none other than Brad Marchand...who basically calls Sid the best 200-foot player in the game.
Well worth the read.
Rick