In late January I talked about the final 12 games leading up to the Olympics being key games for the Pens to position themselves for the short post Olympic playoff run. They went 4-2 in the first half of that run, and I had said that they had to duplicate that run on the second half at a minimum to be positioned well..........they could do that in a roundabout way with a win tomorrow.......the Pens go in to tomorrows game 2-1-2 in the latest span, for a total of 6 points, meaning a win gets them the same 8 points of 12 possible, they got in the first six games of the streak. So, as disappointing as a regulation loss against the Habs, a come from ahead loss to the Caps, and an OT loss to the Rangers was, a win tomorrow gets them to the total of 16 points of a possible 24 available to start the twelve game streak, a healthy .666 winning percentage............the shame is they left, in my opinion 4 points on the table that were very attainable in the past 4 games. If they even take two more of those points they are tied for the Atlantic Divsion lead going into tonites play......oh well..... Take the two tomorrow and go into the break on a high note as the twenty games post Olympic break include 18 against Eastern Conference opponents, with many against teams in the playoff picture including 2 against New Jersey, two against Tampa, Boston, and Capitals, and games against Buffalo, Philadelphia, and Atlanta, all which will be 4 point swing games in the playoff race. The two games against New Jersey will be key as they represent a possible 8 point swing in the race for the Atlantic Divsion title. Those points could very easily be the difference in the race.
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