The fans tonight were impressive. They gave embattled goal tender Marc Andre Fleury a big, loud vote of confidence between the pipes tonight, and it seemed to work. Fleury only had to face 16 shots, making 15 saves, but he made some spectacular saves, particularly in killing the second of two 5 on 3 power plays awarded to Tampa Bay. He also did not yield that killer soft goal that has become an expectation of late for him. Great job Fleury, let's hope he can build off of it.
Equally encouraging to me was the fact that the defensive play in general was much better, giving up 16 shots despite having to kill 8 penalties and two 5 on 3's. Zybnek Michalek looked for the first time this season like the shutdown defenseman we thought we acquired in the offseason. I loved his game tonite. Kris Letang got an assist of off a rocket shot deflected in by Dupuis to log his 16th point, which ties him for the lead amongst NHL defensemen. Goligoski rebounded from a horrible third period against Boston to net his 4th goal of the season, and Deryk Engelland got in the act with his first goal, and also played a very solid game tonite. Max Talbot, Pascal Dupuis, and Sidney Crosby each had a goal and an assist tonight, and I thought that both Talbot and Dupuis looked tremendous all night. Crosby now has 24 points making him second in the league in scoring. The Penguins penalty kill was very effective, not yielding a shot on the first four power plays given to Tampa, before finally yielding a 5 on 3 goal. I liked Bylsmas defensive pairings tonight with Orpik/Letang, Martin/Michalek, and Goligoski/Engelland giving each pair the offensive player and defensive player. Now if Bylsma can resist showing his "genius" by leaving these combinations together, maybe the team can have the defensive performance that was expected of them. The power play was ineffective again, as was Evelyn Malkin. I know it would be a lot to ask of your 8.7 million dollar man to show strong for two games in one week, silly me. At any rate, I was encouraged at the effort, and wonder why this is not the style of game they play far more often.
Equally encouraging to me was the fact that the defensive play in general was much better, giving up 16 shots despite having to kill 8 penalties and two 5 on 3's. Zybnek Michalek looked for the first time this season like the shutdown defenseman we thought we acquired in the offseason. I loved his game tonite. Kris Letang got an assist of off a rocket shot deflected in by Dupuis to log his 16th point, which ties him for the lead amongst NHL defensemen. Goligoski rebounded from a horrible third period against Boston to net his 4th goal of the season, and Deryk Engelland got in the act with his first goal, and also played a very solid game tonite. Max Talbot, Pascal Dupuis, and Sidney Crosby each had a goal and an assist tonight, and I thought that both Talbot and Dupuis looked tremendous all night. Crosby now has 24 points making him second in the league in scoring. The Penguins penalty kill was very effective, not yielding a shot on the first four power plays given to Tampa, before finally yielding a 5 on 3 goal. I liked Bylsmas defensive pairings tonight with Orpik/Letang, Martin/Michalek, and Goligoski/Engelland giving each pair the offensive player and defensive player. Now if Bylsma can resist showing his "genius" by leaving these combinations together, maybe the team can have the defensive performance that was expected of them. The power play was ineffective again, as was Evelyn Malkin. I know it would be a lot to ask of your 8.7 million dollar man to show strong for two games in one week, silly me. At any rate, I was encouraged at the effort, and wonder why this is not the style of game they play far more often.
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