Win, Playoffs, MVP

A big win tonight, despite some last minute heroics by Tampa Bay, finally clinched a playoff birth for the Pens. With a final score of 6-4, some of the players finally got a monkey or two off their backs. It was also a night to add to Evgeni Malkin's resume for MVP this season. There is only two more games left in the season, one home and one away, and we can still clinch 4th in the conference for home ice advantage in the first round.

I will start off with a quick wrap up of the game, and considering I don't like giving you what is already out there and easily accessible, I won't go too far. We were up 4-0 at one point and then in a blink of an eye, we were only up 4-3. It was kinda ridiculous. We didn't let that stop us from clinching our third playoff ticket in a row. We got important goals tonight. What I mean by this is that certain players need to get back on the horse and start scoring before the playoffs start. One of them was Petr Sykora, he scored his 299th it seems like a year ago, but tonight he finally flung in his 300th career goal. Two other goal scorers are players that have, as of late, been scoring goals consistently. They are Ruslan Fedotenko and Matt Cooke. Our power play got rolling by the hands of Sidney Crosby who, finally, scored two of them in the second with helpers from Geno and Chris Kunitz. The final score ended up being 6-4, but it wasn't as close as it seemed.

We are currently relaxing in sixth place in the East and will more than likely end up playing New Jersey in the first round. The is a chance, however, that we can move up to fourth place as long as we win the last two games, home against the Islanders and in Montreal, while Philadelphia and Carolina both loses the remainder of their games. Actually, Philadelphia only has to lose two of their last three for us to overtake them. I look forward to seeing what ends up happening.

One quick note I really wanted you to realize is that we have 12 players in double digits in goals, 6 of those with 20+, and 2 are sitting at 30+. That is unprecedented depth for our team. Last year we had 11 with 10+, 5 with 20+, and one with 30+. So, basically, what I am saying is that we can roll all four lines and have one or two players on each line that has scored 10+ this season. That gives us a big advantage.

Just looking at the scoring standings between Malkin, Crosby, and Alex Ovechkin, it is getting down to the wire. Malkin is sitting at 110, Ovechkin at 108, and Crosby at 101. Unless there is some craziness occurring in the last couple games, this is how it will probably end up, just add a couple for each player. Now, it sounds funny, but the bigger thing..MVP. The very definition of the award is, "player adjudged most valuable to his team". So, you look where the Penguins would be without Malkin, or where the Capitals would be without Ovechkin. I think the Capitals would be lower in the standings, but still in the playoffs. I do not think that the Penguins make the playoffs this year without Malkin. I see a few in the rear view mirror like Pavel Datsyuk or Zach Parise. I say sure, but like the Capitals, both the Red Wings and the Devils would have made the playoffs without their star. I think there is more of an argument for Datsyuk than Ovechkin, to be completely honest. He should be the close second to Malkin. Ovechkin will get the Rocket Richard award for most goals, but he doesn't deserve any more than that. The only thing he brings to his team other than goals is hits. Datsyuk and Malkin play a more pivotal role on their respective teams. They are both centers, which requires a whole extra set of responsibilities as well as their takeaway skills and blocked shots put them heads and shoulders above everyone else. Malkin should get it though, based on his scoring lead as well as the need for him on his respective team.

Dan Bylsma has brought this team out of the depths of the draft lottery and put up right in the middle of the heap for the playoffs. If they would have replaced Michel Therrien when I asked for it in December or early January, we may have clinched the division a week ago and a playoff spot two weeks ago. Every team should be very afraid to battle us in the playoffs, they will be afraid.

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Pens Still Rolling

In Pittsburgh's 100th consecutive sellout, the Pens beat the Eastern Conference leading Boston Bruins 6-4. Riding Chris Kunitz's first hat trick since joining the Penguins and Bill Guerin's quick goal and two assists, the Pens showed the conference they are back into the same form as last year. Apparently, they took Kunitz's first goal away from him and gave it to Sergei Gonchar, so Kunitz didn't get the hat trick, sorry for the misinformation. They scored two power play goals and Matthew Garon stopped 21 shots in his first start in 19 games due to Marc Andre Fleury's dominance between the pipes.

The Pens also honored Eddie Johnston at the beginning of the game for his 25th year of service to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Now, I don't like blogging by telling you game by game analysis, I figure that is the big sites job. I want to point out what I think about the last couple games and refer to what's ahead. We came back from a hard loss against Ottawa where we securely had a 3-1 lead going into the 3rd and let them creep back and steal a shootout win against us. There is good things and bad things about losing, we gained a point in the last two losses because we went to the shootout. Like I have said in the past, if we are going to lose, do it on overtime, we get something out of it then.

We have gained 4 points out of a possible 6 in the last three games, moving us into 5th place in the East. If the playoffs started today, we would be once again beating the Philadelphia Flyers in the first round of the playoffs. The way we are playing mow, I think we are ready to take on anyone.

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Trade Winds...Final Edition!

Well, we didn't get the winger we all hoped for. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? I don't know yet. We picked up Bill Guerin who is 38 years old. He still has gas in the tank and the leadership experience. We also brought in Craig Adams off waivers for some depth. Don't forget the Kunitz trade. We didn't get rid of Jordan Staal as well, so it is almost like a gain. I was truly expecting to lose him this time and gain an even bigger salary in exchange. Overall, I am happy with who we picked up. These players might be the grease that makes the gears work a little better.

Chris Kunitz will come first here. He is 29 and has potential for some greatness with this team. Well, maybe not greatness, but an impact player nonetheless. I look forward to what he can add to what he has already started, 3 goals and 2 assists over 3 games. I really don't expect him to keep up these numbers, but honestly, you never know. I love his speed and grit, his fearless ability to drive to the net and slam into the nearest puck carrier. He is and will be a valuable asset for the next couple years. He has invigorated Staal and Kennedy's line to the point that I don't want the separated. I like what I see. All this and considering we receiver Eric Tangradi, a huge power forward still developing, for Ryan Whitney, a defenseman who desperately needed a change of scenery.

Second, I will talk about Bill Guerin here. He may be 38, but like I said, he still has gas in the tank. We see him often and was the captain of the New York Islanders. He is alot like Mark Recchi. He has won a cup with New Jersey in 1995. He will help the junior leadership get their heads straight for the playoff run. He might not have extreme stats this year, but what he brings to the locker room is essential and we all knew we needed it. You also have to consider what we gave up for him. We sacrifice a fifth round pick if we don't make the playoffs, a fourth round pick if we win a series, or a third round pick if we get any further. I like this deal. We recieved some needed leadership and experience for essentially nothing vital.

After a inconsequential minor league deal we picked up Adams off of the waiver wire from Chicago. I am not going to claim I know alot about this guy, but it seems to be more of a depth move. I can deal with that.

Maybe the biggest for me this year is the trade that didn't happen. That trade would be an overpriced winger for somebody and Staal. I will say I love his gameplay. Now, I know alot of fans bash him for his pricetag and his position in collaboration with what he has put up on the scoresheet. I will be honest here, I am a little disappointed, but I can see him exploding offensively with the right playing time and right linemates. He isn't a Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin, he is different, but essential. You can say what you want about him, but I would rather pay him $4 million a year than have to play against him in the future. He is only 20 and is only going to get better. I am willing to wait. Right now, it looks like Shero smartly filled some holes while not disturbing the chemistry and also without spending a ton. I give him high regards for this year's dealings.

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Changing Tides

So, in the midst of the trade deadline looming, we have been playing some great hockey. It has been two games now, and our defense has impressively improved. Granted, it was against two struggling teams. Dallas just fell out of playoff contention the night before we played them and Tampa Bay has been out of the picture for a while now. It does appear, though, that the defense is finally turning the corner that the offense did a couple games ago.

What timing! We are 9-4-1 for 19 of a possible 28 points since February 1st. This includes 6-1-1 under head coach Dan Bylsma. Before Bylsma took over, we were averaging 2.88 goals for and 2.98 goals against per game. After Bylsma, we improved to 3.37 goals for and 2.75 goals against per game. Obviously, this is a great improvement.

Marc Andre Fleury has been playing significantly better and has been making some incredible saves at all the right times to keep the momentum tipped in our favor.
2008-09 STATS
W-L-OTL GAA SV%
24-16-4 2.86 .909

These numbers are steadily improving. Like I said in an earlier post, I believe that the way MAF plays down this stretch run will dictate how far we will go in the playoffs.

How great does Ray Shero look now that Chris Kunitz has scored 3 goals and 2 assists in the 3 games since his trade. Kunitz is the picture perfect player that Jordan Staal and the rest of the team needed. He meshes so well with Tyler Kennedy and Staal that it will be interesting to see what Bylsma does when Sidney Crosby comes back. I wonder if he will test out a new line or not mess with the working lines.

This all might not even matter though with the pending trade deadline tomorrow at 3 PM EST. There is so many players that are going to be available and I want to guesstimate that about 85% of the trades floating around the rumor mill. I can't say I like them all, but I will give you a quick rundown of who I do like.

Chris Neil

Milan Hejduk

Marian Gaborik

Erik Cole

Jonathan Cheechoo

Martin St.Louis

Ryan Smyth

Alright, I will start with Chris Neil. He is more of a physical presence. He really doesn't have a scoring touch. He would be more of a protection clause for Crosby. I know that we were offering a pick and a prospect for Neil.

Milan Hejduk is a proven scorer, even without a line that has a playmaker as good as Sid. His biggest downside is his age. He is 33 which isn't too bad, but if we need to drop Staal for him, there would have to be a big package coming over with him.

Marion Gaborik is 27 and has an incredible upside of a 40+ goal season. His huge downside is his contract and his small problem of being made of glass.

Erik Cole used to be a perrenial 30 goal scorer until our own Brooks Orpik got ahold of him. He hasn't been the same since.

Jonathan Cheechoo has proven that he can put the puck in the net in the past but accumulating 56 goals a few years back. He is relatively young and is currently playing on the third line in San Jose. If we were allowed to choose, this guy would be my favorite for this team. He would be cheaper than the rest due to his recent inability to put the puck in the net.

Martin St' Louis is another older player that would be great for this team. I don't know if I want to see Staal go there for him, but outside Cheechoo, I think I like him best.

Ryan Smyth is another big threat, but reminds me alot like Gaborik in that he has a large contract. He would fit in well, but is too expensive.

To be completely honest, we really don't know what is going to happen, but I am still excited for the end product as always.

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Just Looking At The Standings...

Well, I was, and I loved what I saw.

The teams in red indicate a loss tonight, the teams in blue, a win. So, as you can plainly see is that most of the teams that are just ahead of us lost tonight. When, yes, I said when, we win tomorrow against Dallas who, by the way, lost tonight, we will move up to the 8th and final playoff spot for now. That is awesome. We would need the two points though, not just one.

I wanted to also talk about that exciting game last night between the Pens and the Chicago Blackhawks. What an exciting game it was. We had alot of good things and alot of bad things that came from that game.

I will start with a good point since I am an optimist. I loved our resiliency. I love the way, even though we kept blowing leads, we still came back to win against a very tough Blackhawk team.

A bad point is the fact that we couldn't hold the lead once we got it.

Another good point is that Jordan Staal played out of his mind with his current linemate in Chris Kunitz. They looked incredible together. This fact could really screw up the Penguins plans if indeed they plan on shipping Staal off somewhere else. They seemed to have instant chemistry. They both had a goal and an assist.

Another bad point is that the Pens were dominated in the third period. They gave up twenty shots and looked terrible.

Another good point was that they never lost hope and Marc Andre Fleury looked incredible in net. After all, you can only do so much when you are in a shooting gallery.

A final bad point is that we gave up a hat trick, which will always go down now as the game Jonathan Toews scored his first. I hate that being in the books.

Being an optimist, I will end these on a good note. Did anyone notice the secondary scoring by this team lately. I am loving it. It isn't all on Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby.

We played the type of game that was expected, but I would have to say that two months ago, we would have been blown out of a game like that. It was almost like last year, when we played games, you just expected us to win.

I like our outlook, we are just starting to get hot now with a record of 4-1-1 under our new head coach. Who knows where we can go from here.

Let's Go Pens!

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Trade Winds...Episode #2!

Whitney to Anaheim.

We should all wish him all the good wishes in the world. He was a great guy and a great player for this organization, but we just got too deep in the defensive standpoint. I don't want to get too into Whitney here because I want to cover our newbie.

Chris Kunitz.

He reminds me alot of Ryan Malone, only with more skill. A great fit for Sidney Crosby. He seems like a gritty guy that isn't afraid to throw his body around in defense of his teammates. He is a 20+ goal scorer and 20+ assists as well as a + player. He gets his share of PIM as well. Another thing that keeps getting mentioned is that he plays better with better players. What that means is that if he is on a fourth line, he plays like a fourth liner, first, first-liner. He might be the right person for the job of grit and scoring touch. He plays on the power play and the penalty kill as well. I think this is a good deal for the Pens. Sid should be happy. This hole needed filled.

Height/Weight: 6-0/194

Birthdate: 09/26/1979

Birthplace: Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada

College: Ferris State

NHL Experience: 4

Salary: $3,500,000

Honestly, after reading all the upsides, I would have been happy to see this straight up. Whitney for Kunitz. It gets better though! We also received in the deal a high prospect in Eric Tangradi. He is second in the OHL behind highly touted John Tavares. This looks really good for the Pens.

Height/Weight: 6-3/214
Birthdate: 02/10/1989
Birthplace: Philadelphia, PA
Draft: 2nd Round, 42nd Overall

On an additional note, Chris Minard was released today. I like this move, he didn't seem to be getting anywhere. I believe the organization gave him all the chances in the world, but he just wasn't working out.

I am officially excited for the next week. Who knows what is next. We got a winger for Whitney and a bonus as well. Are we still going to trade Staal? Also, think about this, if we got all this for Whitney, imagine what we can get for Staal. Who knows, Kunitz could be Malkin's other winger with Sykora and something bigger is in the works for Sid.

I try not to talk about every game individually, but this was a necessary point to talk about.
Kudos to Dan Bylsma.
His system finally worked the way he said it would.
I know it was the New York Islanders, but we have been having trouble with everyone we play and they were no exception. If it wasn't for Yann Denis, I believe it could easily have been 5 or 6 to nothing. This style is exciting and fun, it works only because our players are very skilled. Seriously, could you see a team that has half the firepower offensively be able to control the puck like we can? I don't think so. Bylsma saw the skill and speed we have and knew we could play this style and win. I think if we are as successful in Chicago on Friday, Bylsma will be almost on God status in Pittsburgh. I am finally excited to see what happens next. I have been watching the standings and the teams that we need to lose are losing and we are finally winning. This should give us quite a bit of confidence going into the stretch run.

Let's Go Pens!

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