Penguins take a big two points in Detroit

Not sure how to view the game tonight. The positive view is as follows. With 9 games left the win leaves the Pens with 92 points and Divisional and Conference titles still possible. They went on the road, against the second best team in the tough western conference, playing back to back games, without yet another key player, coming off a tough loss and WON! The negative view is that the Penguins AGAIN lost a big lead due to bad discipline and a LOUSY power play, extending an ugly trend this season, but luckily snuck out with two points. It is a little bit of both actually. I hate seeing the team give up 3 unanswered goals in the third period, especially since they have done it before. That said, the Pens were coming off a tough loss yesterday afternoon, on the road, controversy surrounding the team over the Cooke incident, and down Cooke, Crosby, Malkin, Orpik, and Letestu. They had a goal disallowed, watched a four goal lead evaporate, but carried play late in the third and in OT instead of folding as they easily could have. At any rate, James Neal blistered a nasty wrister past Joey McDonald to give the Pens a much needed two points, and setting up a big game Thursday against the Flyers. Some notes and thoughts from the game:

The Penguins power play is so far beyond pathetic, it should be someone's job. They are 2 for their last 53 now, and they are rarely even a threat;

Much maligned Pascal Dupuis had 2 goals and an assist tonight, not bad for a guy that everyone had written off;

Kris Letang got only his 2nd assist in 14 games, and lost his composure in the third period. The kid who was in the conversation for the Norris a month or so ago has fallen on some HARD times;

Chris Kunitz, that winger most yinzers think should not be on a first line has 22 goals despite missing 15 games, and has been a monster since his return from injury without Crosby to set him up. Add goal scoring to his puck retrieval and forecheck, and you have a pretty nasty first line winger;

Jordan Staal chipped in two more assists, giving him 10 goals, 15 assists, and 25 points in 34 games for a .735 points per game average, not bad for a second line center to be;

Tyler Kennedy added his 17th goal of the year, and has also been a guy who has stepped up his game with the stars out;

The Penguins got short handed goals in each of their past two games;

If you don't think Matt Cooke is important to this team, know that the Penguins number one PK unit has given up 4 power play goals in the three and a half periods he has been out of the lineup;

The site of Alex Kovalev skating lazily around makes me want to punch his face in;

I was hoping to see much more from Asham, a guy I really like, but he was invisible outside of the questionable interference call on the Craig Adams goal that was disallowed;

The Penguins magic number for clinching a playoff spot is down to 4. Any combination of Pittsburgh getting 4 points or Carolina losing out on 4 possible points and the Penguins clinch a playoff spot. LETS GO PENS!!

Matt Cooke elbows Ryan McDonagh (Headshot hit) | March 20th, 2011 [HD]

Cooke suspended for final 10 games of regular season AND first round of they playoffs

Well, first off, I am done attempting to write anything positive related to the health of this team, or a lineup that is getting stronger. Two days and one game after I wrote about the glut of forwards the Penguins are getting back, a key component to the grit factor, and more importantly to the league's best PK is now gone for the remainder of the season(10 games), and the first round of the playoffs to boot. This is not the first time that this kind of sequence has occurred this year. Well on to the main subject, all of the Penguins and Matt Cooke haters are hurting themselves patting Colin Campbell on the back for finally "getting it right!" Well, I have made no secret that I am not sure that Campbell even rises to the level of a shitcrumb stuck in the asshairs of life, and this decision has not changed that thought in any way. It has solidified it. I have no issue with hitting Matt Cooke with a 10 game suspension for his  hit on Ryan McDonagh. Cooke is considered a repeat offender, and the hit could have resulted in a serious injury. It did not result in any injury though, and despite the fact that this SHOULD NOT MATTER, the fact remains that in the kangaroo court aka Colin's World of Justice in the NHL it always HAS factored in. A lack of injury has always mitigated the penalty, and a major injury has generally increased the sentence. If you buy into the theory that a playoff game suspension is the equivalent of two regular season games as many do, then Cooke's suspension is up to 24 games! Some will say that Cooke was the unfortunate first customer in a brave new world where the NHL is finally going to send a message to players who target the head, and if that is the case I can accept  this suspension. If Alex Ovechkin elbows someone in the head tomorrow, or Jarkko Rutuu, or late in the season, Chris Pronger does it, and they recieve a 10-24 game suspension, then I applaud the harshness of this decision. It will then appear to be the league taking a stance on dangerous head shots. But we all know that this will not happen, even to other "repeat" offenders. No, in the Garage League known as the NHL, we will soon see that this was nothing more than an idiot who is in a position so far beyond his intellectual capacity getting a shot at sending a message to a player he does not like much. Even more so for the cement head to punish that "arrogant frog who dared to speak out about his ineptitude." I have no doubt in my mind that this is not the first step in actually getting it right in this league. Just look to the Gilles decision, the Chara decision, the Marchand decision, the Heatley decision, the Lucic decision. Also note that three of those involve the Bruins, where Campbell's son plays. The Bruins cannot afford to lose any of those guys during this stretch. On tonight's broadcast the VS crew showed Justin Abdelkader of the Wings taking a blatant elbow to the head, not once but by two different players on the same shift. No call, no league review. Really? Those guys who delivered those blows, one was Martin Erat, do not wear the Black and Las Vegas Gold. Again, make no mistake about my position. The Cooke hit intentional or not was dangerous, and I expected and agree with the 10 games, as that would have been at least somewhat consistent with the suspension given to Gilles. The first Gilles hit and subsequent taunting only drew 9 games, remember that......and Gilles is AT LEAST every bit the repeat offender Matt Cooke is, and nowhere near the actual hockey player.  In fact, Gilles is an assclown with no place at all in the league. . His subsequent hit just 1:51 of ice time after returning from the Tangradi suspension, drew 10 games. In other words both of Gilles hits COMBINED got less than the actual value of Cooke's latest hit! It will be tough to convince me that this Cooke decision was not typical NHL schoolyard justice. Cooke loses $219,000 for the 10 games he misses, and the Pens lose a KEY component to the most consistently strong element of their game for the stretch and one round of the playoffs, the penalty kill. Despite the fact that a guy like Asham could probably spell Cooke fairly well in 5 on 5 situations, do not underestimate the impact his absence could have on the penalty kill. If you combine that with the missing offensive weapons,  Campbell's axe to grind with Mario  just dealt a significant blow to the Penguins playoff chances. Adding the entire first round of the playoffs to the suspensions was pure BS. On another note, Mark Madden is railing against the suspension also based on the fact that the NHL GM's chose not to ban head shots in their recent GM meetings, and I have to disagree with that logic. He is implying that the league must not care about head shots enough to ban them, but I am not sure about buying into the Madden mania.  I am a big fan of Matt Cooke's so take my opinion within that context, but again, I was not shocked about 8-10 games for the hit, intentional or not.   The speed of the game is a factor here, and the time players have to make decisions at a high speed is minimal.   The additional playoff sentence carrying a value of 14 MORE crucial games put the sentence into the BS category for me, and perpetuates the Garage League status of the NHL. 

**** As I am typing this I got a text that Ray Shero issued a statement siding with the NHL for their decision, but I suspect that is because they realize that in this Kangaroo Court, speaking out against the Kangaroo gets you kicked in the nuts. Speaking of which, what number does junior shitcrumb wear again? Maybe we will see junior in the playoffs, and send daddy our own message!

Anyway, sorry for the rambling style of this post, but what else would you expect? I find myself wondering a bit what this incident has done to Cooke's long term status as a Penguin. Hey, he is a key element to this team, and if you don't think so, remember Shero locked Cooke up with a three year deal for 1.8M per year. He NEVER gives third liners in this age bracket three years. We lost Ruutu a couple of years ago based soley on Shero's unwillingness to give him a third year. Giving Cooke that third year speaks volumes about what the organization THOUGHT of him. What we don't know is what they THINK of him now. He has been as advertised on the penalty kill, can deliver big clean hits when necessary, is a forechecking demon who fits in Bylsma's "Let's grind these bitches down" system, and has a knack for scoring some big time goals. However, to make a play  like the play he just made the week after the SI article and the GM meetings to discuss eliminating this kind of hit may have put a favorite player of mine in a precarious position as a Penguin.  After Lemieux made the statement he made about the league missing the boat on the situation in Long Island, I am certain he was not expecting to have one of his players involved in a significant incident involving a shot to the head.  The taste of the shit Lemieux is now eating publicly won't be swallowed easily. I read that Lemeiux gave Cooke the "our way or the highway" speech this afternoon. I don't know if that is true or not, but questions are being asked by the media and fans.  Will the Penguins view Cooke as a guy who has now learned a lesson who is too valuable to give up on? Or will they view the 1.8M per year they pay him as more than enough to go out and acquire  the grit without the risk? Do they feel that Cooke's prescence causes them undue harshness from the league when their other players are involved in physical incidents, or a lack of protection from the same? My business is in no way on the level of an NHL franchise, so don't take this statement in a negative light, but I can recall several situations where we had to give up on talented managers or other employees, as the downside risk they posed with their lack of judgement scared me more than their upside excited me despite several counseling sessions. We also have at least one person whose talent and abilities helped them survive a series of situations that involved poor judgement and we have been amply rewarded for that patience over time.  In my educated opinion Matt Cooke would be an example of the latter.  He is a player who has been asked and paid to play "on the line" for many years in the NHL.  He has made a great living for his beautiful family as a result.  When you play anything "on the line" it is easier to CROSS that line than it might be for those who play nowhere near the line.  Arguably, Matt Cooke in playing on the line over the years has also crossed the line at times, as most people "on the line" inevitably do at times.  I firmly believe that now that it is deemed as the issue that it is, a man as intelligent as Matt Cooke can make the adjustments necessary to remain a key member of this Penguins team.  I would have Matt Cooke riding shotgun with me any time, and I am betting the Penguins will make the same decision.  I for one hope so, and that the hyprocrisy of the media, opposing fans, and especially the league dies down. 

Pens blow another home game

The Penguins had yet another meltdown on home ice and gave a game that could cost them home ice in the playoffs. I have been a defender of Matt Cooke from the beginning, but today's hit was tough to defend, and changed the momentum of a game that the Penguins were doing very well in. He will most surely be suspended for 10 games or more, and he made Mario Lemieux and others who have defended him look like an ass in the process. Also, the 2 for 45 power play is a joke. That is an insult to jokes by the way. The lack of discipline, a season long issue, and the lack of even a threat on the power play gave this game away today. I said these next two weeks would tell you who these Pens were, and this was not the start I was looking for! Another great goal today by Staal, and a beauty of a short handed goal midway through killing a five minute major penalty by Kunitz had the crowd on fire. Then Niskanen gets assessed a double minor for high sticking, and the Rangers score two goals in short order, the first of which was allowed despite goaltender interference by the Rangers. The season long tendency to meltdown in the third period is of great concern, as you might recall the game on 11/15 where the Pens surrendered a game tying goal against the Rangers with under a minute and a half left, before losing in OT, or the game on 11/10 against Boston where a third period meltdown turned a 4-2 lead into a 7-4 loss. You may recall the sequel with Boston on 1/10/11 where the Penguins lost a 2-0 lead with 3:23 in the third by giving up 4 goals in those three minutes to lose 4-2. Montreal stole a game late in third here early in the season by scoring multiple goals as well. That is a lot of home ice meltdown to talk about. One or two of those games go different, and this team is really fighting for the division and conference. As big an issue is that atrocity that takes the ice called a power play, which is a real momentum killer. Finally, Alex Kovalev floated uselessly today, and I am starting to think that the Penguins are going to regret that move, despite the cheap cost, not because of the pick, but because they thought Kovy brought enough to the table that they made no other moves. I am quickly losing patience with the Kovalev experiment. One other quick note is the Goligoski trade. I still think it was the right move over the long haul for Pittsburgh, but for now Goose is outscoring BOTH Neal and Niskanen combined with 1 goal and 8 assists, while Neal has 1 goal and 3 assists, and Niskanen has a goal and an assist since the trade. Not good for short term returns. The Penguins really need to get some points this week against three tough opponents to stay in the top 5 in the conference. Let's see how they rebound from this mess. I think the Asham controversy over ice time was just ended by Matt Cooke's stupidity!

Two Weeks Notice

The upcoming two weeks for the Penguins reminds me of a nickname we had for my youngest daughter, "Two weeks notice." We called her that because it seemed like it took 2 weeks notice to have her complete ANY task at all. At any rate, two weeks notice here has a different meaning. Despite the fact that there are 4 weeks left in the NHL season, I believe that you will know what the Penguins playoff prospects are and where they will likely stand by the end of the 3/31 game against Tampa Bay. Here is why. As we go into today's play the Penguins stand 4th in the conference, but only 4 points behind Philadelphia, who now only has one game in hand. Philly plays tonight, and if they lose, they will have lost their game in hand, and Pittsburgh could close to within 2 points of the Flyers who are missing Chris Pronger, with a win tomorrow against the Rangers. Add to that, the fact that the Penguins play the Flyers twice in the next 8 days, and you can see the opportunity for the Penguins. In a best case scenario for Pittsburgh, those 2 games are an 8 point swing in the standings as the Penguins winning both in regulation get 4 points, and the Flyers lose the chance at 4 points. Washington also has the same 94 points as the Flyers, leading the Penguins by 4 points, but we have 2 games in hand on the Caps, who have been white hot. You would think they may be due to cool off a bit. The Penguins lead the Rangers by 10 points in the standings, so taking the 2 points tomorrow against them could really put the hurt on their chances of catching the Penguins in the Atlantic Division, as the Penguins have a game in hand on the Rags. Finally, Tampa trails Pittsburgh for the fourth spot in the conference by 2 points, but they play today and could draw even with Pittsburgh. It would appear that the Pens and Lightning will be neck and neck down the stretch, so that game on the 31st, and its possible 4 point swing, looms large in the playoff picture as well. With 4 of their next 7 games against teams clustered right around them in the standings, this stretch will likely tell you who the Penguins are right now, and how the playoff seedings will look. The Penguins magic number is 7 points for clinching a playoff spot. If the ninth place Hurricanes took EVERY single available point remaining they could land with 96 points maximum. They would have to win 10 straight games to achieve this, which is very unlikely. The Penguins who have 11 games remaining sit with 90 points. Even if the Canes win all 10 games, the Penguins still beat them by gaining 7 of the available 22 points remaining. Should make for a fun two weeks!

Adding to the intrigue, is the fact that the Penguins are getting "healthy." Funny to say that given the fact that they currently are without Crosby, Malkin, and Orpik among others, but here is where it gets interesting. The Penguins lineup in terms of forwards most recently was as follows:

Neal, Letestu, Kovalev

Kunitz, Staal, Kennedy

Cooke, Jeffrey, Dupuis

Rupp, Talbot, Adams

Injured players who should be returning in the next week or two include Arron Asham, Mike Comrie, Nick Johnson, and Eric Tangradi. Mark Letestu is now day to day with a shoulder injury. Chris Connor, a healthy scratch. So how do you configure your forward lineup? To me, I give Asham a shot. I know he has been like glass this year, and has not made the impact expected. I would give him a few games on that 3rd or 4th line to see what he can bring though. His 5 goals would project to 10 had he had been healthy thus far, and he can play a smart, physical, grinding game. He was very solid for Philly in a deep playoff run last season, and at his best is similar player to Matt Cooke. When Comrie came back, I would have to look at him also, as an offense starved team cannot afford to not look at all players who have some upside in that area. Comrie looked really good in the pre-season, prior to his hip injury. The problem becomes who do you sit? Production wise it would be Duper right now, but he plays a valuable role on the PK. Talbot and Comrie each play center, so do you sit Talbot for Comrie? Maybe. But Comrie would have to look dangerous in any "tryout" stretch prior to the playoffs, as Talbot has raised his game of late, and he also plays a big role on the PK. Dustin Jeffrey and Mark Letestu both would appear to have a long term future here, and have been productive, so it will be tough to move them from the lineup. They are both centers, but could each move to wing if they had to. Tyler Kennedy has been the Penguins most dangerous forward of late, and has great chemistry with Staal, so he will not be sitting any time soon. And in a best case scenario, Sidney Crosby could be a consideration IF the Penguins get to the second round of the playoffs. That would be a GREAT problem to have! Eric Tangradi and Nick Johnson, neither of whom can participate in the AHL playoffs are depth options coming back. Not a bad thing to have more NHL caliber forwards available to play. On defense, the pending return in a week or so of Brooks Orpik will force Bylsma to pick between Lovejoy or Engelland, both of whom have been very solid, to sit every night. If this team can avoid any other key losses, they are rounding into shape as a possibly dangerous team going into the post season. Not nearly the threat they would be with Malkin and Crosby, but a potential threat no less. The next two weeks will likely tell us how much of a threat.

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