Bounce Back Game!

After two horrible losses to the Islanders, The Pens bounced back against the Sabres. The Sabres have been on a great winning streak, as they fight the Caps for a playoff spot, but the Pens edged them out 5-3.

The Pens came out and look liked a fire was lite under them. It was such a contrast to the team that appeared against the Islanders. It was a fast pace game and didn't let up.

The Pens struck first with a power play goal. Geno riffled one into the net pass Miller. Sullivan and Sid assisted on the goal. Sid wasn't over with being on the score sheet.

The Sabres game back to and Leopold scored a goal. Johnson was interfered with a bit to make the second save and Leopold was able to poke the puck into the net.

As expected Sid solved the Miller goalie puzzle via a five hole goal. Sid scored off a bad angle shot and it tickled over the goal line. Sid has scored just about all his goals on Miller via the five hole. It was great to see.

Before the first period ended the Sabres Ennis tied up the game.

The Pens came out and the three headed monster of Sid, Geno, and Neal made the Sabres pay. Geno came in on the rush gave the pass to Sid, Sid to Neal. Neal put it in the net. This became Sid's 600th career point and the 7th youngest to do so.

Sid wasn't done for the night. He had some amazing puck movement from the defensive zone to the offensive zone. He was able to step up Duper who fanned on his shot, but Sullivan put in the loose puck. It was a great show put on by Sid.

The Sabres were able to put in a goal, before the second period ended. Giving the Sabres some life.

The last period was a fast pace shooting frenzy at both ends of the ice. It was crazy to watch. The Sabres emptied their net and Staal put one in to give the Pens a 5-3 win.

It was a great game to watch. Fast pace and close. One of the best games of hockey the Pens have played. Hopefully they can take his momentum into their Sunday day in Pittsburgh against the Flyers.

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Pens @ Sabres End Game Stats

Pens 5 Sabres 3

Goal Summary

1st Period
Geno from Sullivan and Sid (Power Play Goal)
Jordan Leopold from Pominville and Leino
Sid from Sullivan and Duper
Tyler Ennis from Sulzer and Weber

2nd Period
Neal from Sid and Geno
Sullivan from Duper and Sid
Thomas Vanek unassisted

3rd Period 
Staal from Orpik (Empty Net)

Penalties

1st Period
Drew Stanfford, tripping - 2 min

2nd Period
Cooke, boarding - 2 min
Derek Roy, hooking - 2 min
Marcus Foligno, tripping - 2 min

3rd Period
Geno, delay of game-puck over the glass - 2 min

Shots were 34-28 in favor of the Pens. 

Pens @ Sabres Play by Play

Pens 5 Sabres 3


Third Period


0:00- PENS WIN 5-3!!!!! Pens give something for the Sabres fans to BOO at. Great game. Johnson was great in the net and Sid was amazing.


0:22- Johnson with huge pad save.


0:45- Sabres empty net. Johnson with huge save and no rebound.


2:21- Geno heads to the box for delay of game as puck is on edge and goes over the glass. Sabres with PP. Big PK.


4:05- Asham, Staal, and Adams working hard at the boards. Intense battle.


5:42- Emotions rise on the ice. Getting intense, but that has been the whole game.


8:03- Geno tries to jam one into the side of the net.


10:10- Sabres Vanek with a great chance. Puck gets behind Johnson and he reaches back for the puck and then lays down on top on it. Almost goes over the goal line. To close for the Pens.


11:50- Shooting frenzy and fast pace. Becoming a goalie battle between Miller and Johnson.


13:51- Shooting frenzy for the Pens. Sid in the slot goes to one knee and his shot is stopped. Amazing pace of a game. Very fast.


15:51- Geno comes rushing in an draws four Sabres to him. He backhands a pass to Kuni. Miller out to challenge and makes a quick save.


17:02- Johnson with great save on Sabres 3 on 2 chance. Controls the rebound.


18:20- Johnson with huge back to back saves. Amazing goal tending.


19:18- Duper with a breakaway, but Miller flashes the glove to make the save.


20:00- Officially the start of third period. Teams switch ends of the ice.


21:37- Third period time/ finishing second period! Lets get some more goals Pens and keep up the great work.


Second Period


1:37- Taking intermission as pane of glass is broken and will take awhile to fix. Will add to third period. 4-3 Pens


2:14- Geno is robbed and should of had the puck in the net. To close.


3:01- SABRES VANEK SCORES. Weird bounce off the faceoff and no one knows where it is. Vanek with great stick work around Johnson and into the net. 4-3 Pens


4:54- SULLIVAN SCORES! Sid with a great shift out there. One backhand pass to Z that is messed up. Sid gets it and tries again to Duper. Duper fans on the shot and Sully puts it over the stick of Miller and into the net. 4-2 Pens.


5:55- Neal is a man on a mission. Crashes the net and Sabres mauled him. Getting a little chippy.


8:17- NEAL SCORES! Pens come in the zone on the rush. Geno passes to Sid. Sid passes to Neal, right pass Geno where Sabres thought he was going. Neal rips one pass Miller, who can't get over. 3-2 Pens. Sid with his 600th career point and the 7th youngest to do so! Go SID!


8:52- Sabres trips up Z and Pens get PP.


10:00- Pens PP ends and Miller comes up with another huge save at the end on Staal's shot. He bounces around the puck, but is able to cover it for a whistle.


10:51- Johnson with huge save as Sabres get a great SH chance. Pens come back with 4 on 1 chance, but Miller makes his own huge save. Battle of goalies right now.


12:02- Sabres Roy with hooking call and the Pens get a PP.


13:41- Neal with a wicked slap shot hits the post a TING fills the arena. So close!


15:45- Pens kill the Sabres PP. Adams does a great job on the PK once again. Johnson with nice save as PP ends.


17:46- Cooke sits for boarding Sabres Weber. Weber should of been smarter and his fault for the hit.


19:44- Sid, Duper, and Sullivan crash the net. Somehow Miller keeps the puck out of the net.


20:00- Second period starts! Lets keep up the good energy Pens!


First Period


0:00- First period ends. Last few minutes was a shooting frenzy on both sides of the ice. The two headed monster each with goals as this game is tied 2-2 after the first.


2:13- Johnson with a huge save, Sid with a save as Johnny is down and Duper with his own. The whole team playing netminder and keep the puck out of the net.


4:15- SABRES ENNIS SCORES. Ennis directs a wicked wrist shot to the net and it sneaks under the pads of Johnson. He was thinking he would pass it, wants that goal back. Showing some cobwebs from not playing in a while. 2-2.


5:06- Neal is a hard working player. Great back checking and getting in to get the puck first. Tormenting defense.


7:08- SID SCORES! Sid is at the side of the net and takes a bad angle shot. He stuffs it between the pads of Miller and it tickles over the goal line. Sid has figured out Miller's five hole. Amazing. 2-1 Pens


8:18- Johnson just gets his left pad at the post to ROBBED Sabres Foligno. The puck actually hit side of net, but the pad was the reason why.


9:28- Duper takes a shot at the net. The puck hits the face of Sabres Myers. He is down on the ice. He seems ok. Wears a visor, good thing.


10:48- Pens get lucky as a puck is redirected wide of Johnny. Was almost directed into the net.


13:25- SABRES LEOPOLD SCORES! Johnson with the first save, but Pominville prevents Johnson from making a good save. Leopold able to poke it in the net. 1-1 tie game.


16:10- GENO SCORES! Geno gets the puck and goes straight to the net. First shot is saved, but Geno doesn't give up and puts the rebound in the net. It is a PP goal and Geno's career high 48th goal. 1-0 Pens


16:50- Stafford upends Vitale at Pens blue line and sits for it. Pens on PP.


19:22- Sid, Sullivan, and Duper with good start. Duper gets a great chance on Miller, but pad save it made.


20:00- Puck drops and here we go! Pens taking on the red hot Sabres. Johnny in net. Lets Go Pens! 

Line combinations as follows:

Forwards
Kuni, Geno, Neal
Sullivan, Sid, Duper
Cooke, Staal, TK
Admas, Vitale, Asham


D pairings
Z, Orpik
Niskanen, Martin
Strait, Engo


Johnson in the net.

Scratches for the Pens are Tangradi, Lovejoy, Park, Jeffery, Tanger, and Despres.


Pens getting ready to take on the Sabres in about 30 minutes!!

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Pens @ Sabres Preview

The Pens are 47-24-6 in 4th place in the Eastern Conference at 100 points, still. The Sabres are 38-29-10 in 8th at 86 points.

The Sabres have been on fire as they push for a playoff spot. Currently tied with the Caps for 8th, with Caps beating Bruins last night. They have been playing some great hockey and will look to overtake the Caps once again. The big story was there big win over the Caps this week. It was a huge boost to the Sabres. They have gone 7-0-2 in their last nine games, earning a fifth straight win (with win against Caps).

Most productive line for the Sabres right now is the the line of Tyler Ennis, Drew Stafford, and Marcus Foligno. They combine for seventeen goals and 37 assist in their last nine games.

Another big player that has had an huge impact on the Sabres surge for a playoff spot. Miller has been a fortress in the net for them. He was shaky at first with trouble in the net and dealing with a concussion/neck injury. Now he has gone 14-1-3 in his last eighteen starts.

Unfortunately the Sabres loss Christian Ehrhoff due to injury he sustained in the game against the Caps. Big time defenseman for them and will be a big loss for them.

For the Pens we have Sid. He would be a great candidate to crack Ryan Miller. He has scored big time on the netminder, not only at the olympics, but the regular season. Hopefully it happens tonight.

Duper has a chance to establish the NHL's longest point streak for this season. Right now he is tied with Eric Staal and John Tavares. He has notched fifteen points, with nine goals and six assist in that streak.


Geno has reached the 100 point mark, with his 47th goal last night. He is the first player this season to reach the century mark.

The Pens need to bounce back from these two losses against the Islanders. They should learn from the losses and move forward to winning.

Injuries

Pens
Tanger with lower body injury
Niskanen with upper body injury
Vitale with upper body injury
Lovejoy with knee injury

Sabres
Jochen Hecht with concussion
Nathan Gerbe with upper body injury
Matt Ellis with knee injury

LETS GO PENS!!!

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Disappointing Loss

The Pens came out of another hard loss to the Islanders. The Pens didn't come out like the team we are all know.

Last game they needed more defense and in the beginning the Pens had it, but maybe too much. They seemed to much on the defense and the Islanders getting to much zone time. The Pens weren't attacking back, just chasing the puck around in their own zone. This lead to the Isles scoring first after a great puck control cycle that couldn't be cleared.

The period ended with the Pens down. They didn't seem to come out with much effort. Then Duper lighted a spark with a short handed goal.

The hearts of Pens fans fell when Sid was hit in the face with a puck. Reeve flipped up the puck and it caught
Sid right under the visor. He went down and was bleeding quite a bit. He left the ice to go to the locker room. Good news ones he returned and they don't think it is broken. He didn't need stitches, after the game it was just swollen.

The Islanders took back over in the second period. With both a power play goal and a short handed goal. The Pens seemed to be absent from the play. The power play had five forwards and with that it was dangerous play, the Isles took advantage. This is when Tanger is needed most.

The Islanders started the scoring in the third period. The Pens seemed to be unresponsive and then Staal scored to fire them up. It seemed a little to late.

The Pens emptied the net and Geno was able to rifle on into the net. It was not enough for the Pens to come back. When emptying the net once again the Islanders scored an empty net.

A aggravating point was the Pens seemed to be pass to much, just for a perfect play and not shooting. That is not getting to their game. Towards the end they started and it helped. They should of done it from the beginning and it would of made a huge difference.

The end score turned out 5-3 with the Islanders in the lead. Hopefully the Pens can bounce back against the Sabres and show that they have a fire under them. Sabres will be hard as they are fighting with the Caps for a playoff spot. They really need Tanger and Niskanen back and it was evident in the last two games.

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Pens @ Isles End Game Stats

Pens 3 Islanders 5

Goal Summary

1st Period
Marty Reasoner from Streit and Bailey

2nd Period
Duper from Adams and Martin
Kyle Okposo from Bailey and Hamonic (Power Play goal)
Josh Bailey from Pandolfo (Short handed goal)

3rd Period
Kyle Okposo from Bailey and Nielsen
Staal from Z and Martin
Geno from TK and Cooke
Josh Bailey unassisted (Empty net)

Penalties

1st Period
Cooke, holding - 2 min
Josh Bailey, hooking - 2 min

2nd Period
Kyle Okposo, high sticking - 2 min
Despres, hooking - 2 min
Parenteau, slashing - 2 min
Orpik, slashing - 2 min
Orpik, holding - 2 min
Matt Martin, boarding - 2 min

3rd Period
Neal, boarding - 2 min
Strait, hooking - 2 min

Shots are 29-24 in favor of the Pens. 

Pens @ Islanders Play by Play

Pens 3 Islanders 5


Third Period


0:00- ISLANDERS WIN 5-3. Pens started coming back in the third, but it was a little too late once again. Pens need to start getting back to their game. As they face a Buffalo team that is on a run and wanting a playoff spot.


0:04- ISLANDERS BAILEY SCORES. Bailey puts it in the empty net. 5-3 Isles


0:27- Pens call timeout.


1:10- Pull goalie again for the Pens.


1:31- GENO SCORES. Pens empty their net and the Geno is the extra attacker rips on from the blue line. It goes into the net. 4-3 Isles.


3:49- Time not on the side of the Pens.


7:40- Sid with a great chance, but he can't get a shot so he tries to make a centered pass.


9:23- Pens crash the net and the puck just out of the reach of Cooke.


11:40- STAAL SCORES! Staal gets a breakaway and backhands one into the net. 4-2 Isles.


11:50- Pens PP ends.


13:51- Neal and Geno crash the net and draw a penalty. Pens with PP.


14:08- ISLANDERS OKPOSO SCORES. Pens Martin and Z a bit out of position and Okposo comes in unnoticed and puts it in the net. 4-1 Isles.


15:23- Pens trying to set up the perfect play and just need to shoot the puck. Flower with an amazing save.


17:16- Neal is let loose as Pens able to kill the Isles PP. Great PK work.


19:15- Neal heads to the box for boarding. Isles with PP.


20:00- Third period time! Pens need to kick some ass to get back the lead!


Second Period


0:00- Second period ends. Pens tied up on a SH goal, but the Isles answer with a PP and SH goal. Pens will have to pick it up big time. 3-1 Isles


0:44- Pens PP ends.


1:24- ISLANDERS BAILEY SCORES. Short handed goal. Geno can't control the puck and Bailey is off to the races. 3-1 Isles


3:10- Pens get a PP.


3:24- ISLANDERS OKPOSO SCORES. Okposo takes a shot and it hits the skate and stick of Engo, goes between Flower's pads. 2-1 Isles


5:16- Orpik goes back to the box for holding and the Isles with PP.


5:48- Back to full strength. Flower with great save on a sneaky shot through traffic.


6:00- Despres with great jumping in for the play. TK with a great chance.


7:49- Orpik in box and Isles with Parenteau in box. Some 4 on 4 hockey.


8:25- Flower with great save as the puck bounces in front of the net. Close call.


10:53- Sid makes his way back. Cut on his nose.


11:18- Isles PP ends.


11:23- DUPER SCORES! Duper rips a wicked shot that hits the crossbar and goes into the net. SHORTY! 1-1 TIE!


11:58- Staal with great scoring chance.


13:20- Despres with a nice chance, but can't corral the puck. He takes a penalty and the Isles get a PP as the Pens PP ends.


15:20- Pens with a PP chance.


15:51- Z with a nice play to stop the Isles from centering the puck. TK with chance, but Montoya with save.


17:29- Neal in front with a great chance, but his stick can't find the puck.


18:17- Sid was hit in the face with the puck. He goes down and there is a little blood. He heads to the locker room. Lucky that he was wearing a visor, it could of been worse.


20:00- Time for the second period. Pens need to get good zone time and puck movement to put one in the net. Time to get physical and get into the Isles minds. Go Pens!


First Period


0:00- First period ends and the Pens trail the Isles 1-0. The Pens will have to stay out of their own zone and get more time in the Isles zone.


0:58- Tangradi with a great effort tries to jam the puck in. Sid with a great chance in front. Despres with nice defensive work to stay with Isles player.


1:46- Pens get lucky as Isles with a wicked chance as it goes over the net.


3:40- Pens PP ends. Had some good puck movement with Sid, Neal, Sullivan, Kuni, and Geno.


5:40- Pens are getting a PP. Lets hope they can start getting some more offense going!


8:35- ISLSES REASONER SCORES! Isles looked to be on a PP as Pens letting the Isles have puck time in their zone. It finds it way in the net this time. 1-0 Isles.


9:30- Flower comes out to challenge and is caught out of the net. Geno or the post keeps the puck out of the empty net.


10:54- Staal comes rushing into the Isles zone and makes his way around Isles D. Staal all alone in front and hits the post and just misses the the open net rebound. UNREAL!


12:48- Pens with great PK. Flower with nice save and the Pens are back to full strength.


14:49- Cooke goes to the sin bin for holding. Isles with PP.


15:35- Pens finally clear the puck from their zone. Isles with good zone time and puck control.


18:11- Isles get around D and alone in front, puck just bounces off his stick. Close one.


18:52- Sid, Kuni, and Duper are reunited! Duper with a pass to Martin in the slot and Pens with good chance.


20:00- Puck drops and the game is on! Pens look to get back at Isles for Tuesday's loss. Lets Go Pens!

Line combinations as follows:

Forwards
Kuni, Crosby, Duper
Sullivan, Malkin, Neal
Cooke, Staal, TK
Tangradi, Adams, Asham

Defensive pairings
Z, Orpik
Strait, Martin
Despres, Engo


Flower in the net.

Scratches for the Pens tonight are Tanger, Niskanen, Vitale, Jeffery, and Park.

The Pens are getting ready to take on the Islanders!

Pens @ Islanders Part II

The Pens are 47-23-6 in a 4th seed part in the Eastern Conference with 100 points (Rangers with 105 points). The Isles are 32-33-11 with a 13th spots in the Eastern Conference with 75 points.

A loss today would officially put the Islanders out of the playoffs. Even though it is almost impossible for them to make it to the playoffs. As seen on Tuesday, the Isles are not going down with out a fight.

The Isles top line of Moulson, Tavares, and Paneteau have been keeping the team afloat. There not the only ones.

Bailey has a five game point streak going and Okposo with a 3 game goal scoring streak.

Nielson is another great playmaker for the Isles. He scored twice and added an assist in Tuesday's game against the Pens. He has eight points, four goals and four assist, in his last five games. The Pens will have to do a better job of shutting him down tonight.

More goalie woes for the Isles. Nabokov left Tuesday's game with a lower body injury and was replaced with Al Montoya. He will likely start in net for the Isles tonight. The Isles announced that they have signed netminder John Grahme, 36, for the reminder of the season. He has 224 career games in his 13 year professional career.

For the Pens they have Neal. In Tuesday's game the Pens had a season high 54 shots, Neal had twelve of them! That is quite a bit folks for one game. He was able to convert two of those shots to goals and tallied an assist on the night. One of the goals was his 16th power play goal and tied him with Hartnell for the NHL lead in power play goals. Neal now has seven goals, nine assist, and sixteen points in his last nine games. He has multiple points in five of those nine games.

The Pens are 9-3-2 in their fourteen visits to the Nassau Coliseum with a 2-0 record this season. Duper scored the game winning goal in both contest. In the month of March the Pens are 10-2-1.

Sid is only three points away from being the sixth player in franchise history to reach 600 or more career points. If he reaches this huge milestone tonight he will be the sixth fastest player in the NHL to do so (429 games) and tying him with Eric Lindros. He would also be the sixth youngest player in NHL history to do so. The youngest since Pierre Turgeon that did it in 1994 with the Isles.

Geno is on fire for the Pens. He leads the NHL in points at 99. He has had at least one point in his last nine games.


Flower will start between the pipes for the Pens. He is on the verge of his own huge milestone. With a win tonight he would tie Barrasso's all-time franchise win record (226). Also only two wins shy from Barrasso's season win franchise record (43). He is tied with Rinne at 41 wins for the league lead in wins. Winning this he would be the third goaltender in team history to lead the league in wins with Barrasso in 1992-93 and Wregget in 1994-95.

Injuries:

Pens
Tanger with lower body injury
Vitale with upper body injury
Lovejoy with knee injury
Niskanen with upper body injury

Isles
Rick DiPietro with sports hernia/knee swelling
Evgeni Nabokov with lower body injury



LETS GO PENS!!!

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3/29/12 Pens Morning Skate

The Pens held a morning skate this morning.

The ones that partook in the practice were Flower, Johnny, Thiessen, Engo, Striat, Nisky, Despres, Orpik, Sid, Duper, TK, Park, Jeffery, Cooke, Tangradi, Adams, Kuni, and Vitale

Niskanen and Vitale will not play against the Islanders or Buffalo. They will get some contact in the practices.

Flower will be in the net and Johnson will be his back-up.

Thiessen was resigned to WBS.

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3/28/12 Pens Practice

The Pens held a practice today before heading off to Islanders home.

Vitale was practicing with the team today.

The only ones missing from practice were Tanger, Niskanen, and Lovejoy.

Niskanen skated earlier today and will travel with the team. He is day-to-day.

Tanger is still day-to-day and will not travel with the teams with their two road games.

Lovejoy is still recovering from surgery.


Nothing else to report.

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Horrible Game! Pens vs Islanders

The Pens didn't have a good showing last night in a 5-3 loss to the New York Islanders that snapped a ten game home winning streak. The Rangers won and now the Pens are three points from them.

The night didn't start out well for the Pens as the Isles scored in the first five minutes of the game. As the first period whined down the Isles got a breakaway and put it in the net right before the end of the first. That would be the story for the rest of the night.

The Pens came out hard in the second with goals from Neal and TK tying up the game 2-2. This didn't last, as the Pens turned over pucks and didn't play well in the defense zone. It was breakaway after breakaway and the D didn't do well on cover Isles.

Flower was having a bad night. He took a puck to the mask and was tying to fix it and the refs payed no attention. A goal followed shortly after. After the fourth goal, he was mowed over by his own player Martin. The hit was hard and flung Flower's mask off. It was scary as he was down for a bit, but finished the period.

Nabokov for the Isles was hurt during the period also and the refs were sympathetic to him. He didn't play the third as Al Montoya replaced him. Flower was also replaced by Thiessen, Bylsma said after the game it was not for health reasons.

The Pens were down 5-2 after two periods. The came out tying to get the puck in the net. Nabokov had robbed them earlier and now Al Montoya was getting lucky. The Pens were having trouble getting the puck behind the Isles D and setting up puck zone time.

The Pens were called for penalties, but the same was not returned. Duper was tripped up on an open net chance (shown below). It was ridiculous.

The Pens finally were able to get a PP and then pulled Thiessen. They had a 5 on 3 play and Neal was able to score. It was to little to late. The Pens hammered the net, but the puck somehow stayed out. It was a frustrating night all around.

The Pens are at the Isles tomorrow and they can bounce back. I look forward to it.

Here is the sports cover for the Pittsburgh Tribune. Showed the hit Flower received.

Tribune cover / Pittsburgh Tribune Review 

On the bright side the Sabres beat the Caps 4-1 and now the Caps are out of the playoffs! Keep it up Sabres!

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Pens vs Isles End Game Stats

Pens 3 Islanders 5

Goal Summary

1st Period
Frans Nielsen from Reese and Bailey
Michael Grabner from Nielson

2nd Period
TK from Duper and Strait
Neal from Kuni and Geno
Kyle Okposo unassisted
David Ullstrom from Bailey and Okposo (PPG)
Frans Nielson from Bailey and Reese

3rd Period
Neal from Geno and Sullivan

Penalties 

1st Period
Strait, high sticking - 2 min
Casey Cizikas, hooking - 2 min

2nd Period
Casey Cizikas, boarding - 2 min
Sullivan, Slashing - 2 min

3rd Period
Sid, cross-checking - 2 min
Thiessen served by Sid, delay of game over glass - 2 min
Cooke, roughing - 2 min
Andrew MacDonald, roughing - 2 min
Travis Hamonic, hooking - 2 min

Shots were 54-24 in favor of the Pens

Pens vs Isles Play by Play

Pens 3 Islanders 5


0:00- ISLANDERS WIN! The Pens can't get the the two goals needed and loss 5-3 to the Islanders. Get them Thursday boys!


1:33- Pens pull goalie.


4:18- NEAL SCORES! Pens pull the goalie and have 2 man advantage. Neal rips a laser of a shot into the net.


5:48- Staal pulled down on breakaway and Pens with PP.


6:05- Geno with a wide open net and doesn't go in! Refs swallowed their whistles when it comes to Pens. 4 on 4 hockey with Cooke in box. 


10:50- The Isles PP is killed off! Pens coming on.


12:50- Pens back on the PK after Thiessen called for delay of game.


13:32- Pens kill it and Thiessen with a amazing play. Sid with a chance. So close.


15:32- Sid goes to the box for cross checking and Isles with PP. Isles is a good actor as he folded up like a lawn chair.


15:40- Pens come out laying some hard hits on the Islanders.


18:47- Thiessen comes up with a big save.


20:00- Third period starts! Time for the Pens to take the lead and show the Islanders who is the dominating team. Lets Go Pens! Al Montoya in net for Isles and Thiessen for Pens


Second Period


0:00- Second period ends! The Pens came out and tied up the game, but fell apart after. Too many freaking breakaways for the Isles. The defense is going to have to pick it up and the forwards start scoring.


2:10- ISLANDERS SCORE. Another breakaway and the Isles get the goal. Flower comes out to challenge and is hit by his own player Martin. His mask is knocked off and he is down on the play. He gets up and looks ok. 5-2 Isles


2:26- Shots are 30-17 in favor of the Pens, but they need to control the puck better in their own zone.


4:40- ISLANDERS SCORE. Isles on the PP all alone on the side of the net and puts it in the net. 4-2 Isles. Flower with a shot that hit his mask and refs don't see if he is alright. Ridiculous refs.


6:06- Sully goes to the box for slashing that sends the Isles to the PP.


7:12- ISLANDERS OKPOSO SCORES. Okposo gets off to the races with a breakaway and rips a wicked fast shot by Flower. Defense could of worked a bit harder. 3-2 Islanders


8:55- Pens PP ends. Had some great chances. Sid with a change in the slot and the puck is saved by Nabokov and mad scramble in front of net. Nabokov looks to be hurt, but is staying in.


10:56- Isles with penalty and Pens get a PP.


12:28- Pens ice puck and have tired line, so they call a timeout.


15:50- NEAL SCORES! Kuni and Neal get a 2 on 1 chance. Kuni with a great pass across to Neal. Neal goes down to one knee and rips one pass Nabokov. 2-2 Tie game!


18:18- TK SCORES! Sid wins the offense face-off and Pens control. Duper takes the puck from behind the net and takes a hard shot. TK tips it between the pad and post to get the Pens first goal.


18:45- Staal with a backhand shot and is robbed by Nabokov again.


20:00- Second period begins! Pens need to start putting the puck behind Nabokov.


First Period


0:00- First period ends and the Pens trail the Islanders 2-0! Pens need to pick it up!


0:5.5- ISLANDERS GRABNER SCORES. Grabner comes flying into the zone and shoots (may of clipped Martin's stick). Flower gets a piece of it, but it trickles into the net. Flower is pissed! 2-0 Isles


0:20- Pens PP ends. Grabner comes out and drags down Geno with no call.


2:25- Pens are headed to the PP.


3:39- Asham has a great chance. Beats Nabokov and tries to tuck in the puck, but Nabokov somehow gets the glove out to deny him.


4:09- Sully and Sid with a chance, but Sully tries to pass to Sid and it is blocked. Should of shot it!


5:41- Pens kill the Isles PP. Great work by Duper on the PK and want a solid PK. 1st PK in the NHL at home!


7:45- Isles are going to the PP after Strait is called for high sticking. 2 minute penalty


9:02- Kuni is ROBBED by the pad of Isles Nabokov.


11:30- Tavares gets a bit of room and takes a shot. Flower stands tall to make a shoulder save.


12:50- Duper makes a nice pass to Staal who takes a sneaky backhand shot. Isles Nabokov just gets the pads together to trap the puck. Another close one.


14:14- The Pens need to manage the puck better in their own zone.


15:10- Sid comes into the offense zone and drops a pass off to Orpik. He rushes into the zone and takes a hard shot. Duper can't corral the rebound. So close for the Pens.


16:48- ISLANDERS NIELSEN SCORES. The puck hits the inside post and goes back to bounce off the boards. Nielson was wide open and puts it in the net. 1-0 Islanders


18:42- Sully pushes the puck to the front of the Islanders net. Cooke with two good jabs at it.


20:00- Puck drops and it is game time! Lets Go Pens! Geno's line starts!

Line combinations:

Forwards

Neal, Geno, Kuni

Duper, Sid, TK

Cooke, Staal, Sullivan

Adams, Park, Asham 

D Pairings 

Z, Orpik

Striat, Martin

Despres, Engo

Flower in the net. 

Scratches for Pens are Tanger, Niskanen, Vitale, Johnson, Lovejoy, Tangradi, and Jeffery.  

The Pens game is about to begin!

Pens vs Isles

The Pens will take on the Islanders tonight at 7pm in the Consol Energy Center.

The Pens are 47-22-6 with a 4th place seed in the Eastern Conference at 100 points. They can overtake the Rangers (101 points) with a win and if the Wild beat the Rangers tonight.

The Islanders are 31-33-11 in 14th place for the Eastern Conference with 73 points. There chance of getting to the playoffs is almost impossible with being eleven points behind the 8th place Washington and 9th place Buffalo. A loss tonight would officially puts them out of the playoff hunt. That would be their 5th straight year out of the playoffs.

They are not going down without a fight. They fought for a shootout win on Sunday against the Panthers to get a much needed two points.

Even with their struggles their top line has been producing. Mouslon, Tavares, and Parenteau have been carrying the team with accounting for 81 of the Islanders 173 goals. That is 46%.

They have had goal tending trouble with using five different net-minders. Now they have got steady goal tending as of late from Evgeni Nabokov and Al Montoya. Both splitting the work load in the net. Nobokov may be in the net tonight coming off a win over the Panthers and a record of 8-2 in his career against the Pens.

Tavares has put the team on his shoulders. He has achieved personal best with 31 goals, 44 assist, and 75 points in 75 games this season. he has become the first Islander since Alexi Vashin to record over 70 points in a season.

As aslways the Pens are not without their own weapons and great depth all around.


Duper has been in the zone this season. With ten seasons in the NHL under his belt, he is having the best year yet. He currently has a ten game point streak going, career high and the longest active streak in the NHL. He has 23 goals and 50 points so far this season. He now has a career best in points with his previous high of 48 points with the Wild in the 2002-03 season.


Pens with a win tonight they will have a ten game home winning streak, which is a season high. The Pens have been dominating at home all season long.

Sid has been coming on stronger and putting pucks into the net with some flair. I look forward to seeing what he does tonight against the Islanders.

Geno has been on fire and definitely should be considered for the Hart. He wants get to 50 goals this season. I look for him to come up big for the Pens.

Hopefully Flower is in the net, so he can get closer to Barrasso's franchise records. He has been solid for the Pens in the net and showed that he is an elite goalie in the NHL. We all already knew that, but now the rest of the NHL can recognize that he is an elite goal tender.


Injuries:

Pens
Johnson with a undisclosed injury
Vitale with upper body injury (day-to-day)
Tanger with lower body injury (day-to-day)
Lovejoy with a knee surgery (out 4-6 weeks)
Niskanen with upper body injury (day-to-day)

Islanders
Rick DiPietro with sports hernia/knee swelling

LETS GO PENS!!! 


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Pens Game Day Practice 3/27/12

The Pens called up Simon Despres and Brain Strait from WBS. With having Niskanen out with a upper body injury, Lovejoy with a lower body injury, and now Tanger with lower body injury they needed the call up. They both should fill in and be comfortable the Pens are lucky to have such depth.

Sullivan was out skating with the team and will play tonight.

Tanger and Lovejoy were not at practice.

The Pens worked on the PP for quite some time. The first unit consisted of Sully and Sid on the points with Kuni, Neal, and Geno up front. The second unit was Martin and Despres at the points and Cooke, TK, and Staal.

On the injury front:

Johnson skated again with the team and is progressing well.

Lovejoy had knee surgery this morning and will be out for 3-4 weeks.



Niskanen and Vitale skated earlier. They are both day-to-day.


Tanger will not play and has a lower body injury. He is day-to-day.

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Pens vs Devils Review!

 The Pens picked up the win last night in a 5-2 victory over the Devils!

The Pens have won ten straight home games and have dominated at home.

Flower picked up his 41st win of the season and that is a new career high for him! He was amazing in the net and had some close calls, but like always he came up with a big save in the end. He is closing in on Barrasso's franchise records! GO FLOWER!

Sid had a mess up that ended up in a goal, but made up for it. He made an amazing play and words can not describe so I have provided a video. He did it twice in one game and the second time he made sure to put get the puck pass Brodeur. It was a sick play.

Geno scored an emptier netter to get him closer to the 50 goal mark he is reaching for. He is at 46 goals on the season right now.

The Pens lost Lovejoy to a lower body injury in the middle of the first period and he did not return. He is being looked at sometime today. That wasn't the only scare on the injury front for the Pens. Geno was hit in the hand with a puck and went to the bench hurt. Tanger had a nasty head-to-head collision and went to the locker room. He came back, but was tripped up at the boards and went down hard on a dangerous play. Lucky they both are fine.

The Pens look to overtake the Rangers with a win tomorrow at the Islanders!

LETS GO PENS! 

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Pens vs Devils End Game Stats

Pens 5 Devils 2

Goal Summary


1st Period
Kuni from Geno
Zach Parise unassisted
Staal from Cooke

2nd Period
Duper from Sid and Adams

3rd Period
Ilya Kovalchuk from Zajac and Ponikarovsky
Sid from Z and Duper
Geno from Staal and Kuni (empty net)

Penalties

1st Period
Neal, tripping - 2 min

2nd Period
Travis Zajac, slashing - 2 min
Andy Greene, slashing - 2 min
Staal, tripping - 2 min

3rd Period
Ryan Carter, tripping - 2 min
Cooke, interference - 2 min
Petr Sykora, high sticking - 2 min
Martin Brodeur, delaying of game with illegal play by goalie - 2 min

Shots were 34-28 in favor of the Devils
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Pens vs Devils Play by Play

Pens 5 Devils 2


Third Period


0:00- PENS WIN!!! Pens get the win 5-2 over the Pens! What a great game for the Pens! Flower with a new career high with 41 wins!


0:19- Pens with 5 on 3 PP.


0:39- Z gets high sticked and is bleeding. Pens with PP.


1:32- GENO SCORES! Geno puts one in the empty net. 5-2 Pens


1:51- Devils with empty net.


3:09- Another day at the office for Flower with a great save.


4:38- Flower with a great save and Pens clear the rebound. Crazy few minutes at both ends of the ice.


5:04- Sid with a crazy chance as the puck is just pushed wide!


6:40- The Devils PP ends and the Pens with a great PK.


8:40- The Devils will head to the PP as Cooke goes to the box for interference.


9:46- Flower with a big save on a sharp angle shot!


12:27- Pens PP ends!


14:30- Pens with PP. Tanger gets tripped up with dangerous play.


15:05- SID SCORES! Sid with another identical play from earlier, he pokes the puck around Dmen and creates breakaway and goes five hole. Amazing play. 4-2 Pens


16:23- KOVALCHUK SCORES. Pens with bad turnovers and Kovalchuk is left alone and puts it in.


19:39- Cooke goes to the net and just pokes the puck wide of the net.


20:00- Third period time! The Pens need to wrap this one up with a nice bow!


Second Period


0:00- Second period ends and the Pens lead 3-1 over the Devils. Much better period for the Pens and lets keep it up!


0:51- Pens with good defense and get the puck cleared.


4:26- DUPER SCORES! Sid works hard behind Flower to get the puck. Engo passes back to Sid who taps it to Duper and to Adams. Sid and Adams with 2 on 1 chance and everyone goes to the net. Duper puts in the rebound. 3-1 Pens


5:43- Back to full strength.


5:54- Tanger is back on the ice and Devils with penalty. Staal in the box also.


7:47- Pens will get a PP.


10:03- Sid with a sick poke around Devils D and he gets a breakaway. Shoots up high on Brodeur and he makes the save. Sick play by Sid. Tanger heads to the locker room after a head-to-head collision.


10:55- Duper was ROBBED by the glove of Brodeur. Was just sitting in front and so close to making it 3-1.


12:54- Tanger picks the pocket of Devils player. Tanger is hit up high in the head and heads off the ice and looks in pain.


14:22- Flower with a great save with a crazy scramble in front of him. Lovejoy went to the locker room and hasn't returned.


16:53- Z looses his stick and Devil is wide open, but Flower with the great save. Shuts the door once again!


18:30- Oprik with hard shot from the blue line and Sid looks for the rebound, but there is none.


20:00- Second period begins! The Pens need to keep pressuring the Devils and get a bigger lead.


First Period 


0:00- First period ends! Staal with the late goal to put the Pens ahead again. 2-1 Pens


0:55- STAAL SCORES! Adams working hard and Cooke gets the Devils turnover. Cooke passes to Staal rushing into the middle and has it way out to his left. He sneaks one over the blocker of Brodeur to put the Pens back up. 2-1 Pens


3:25- Geno gets a breakaway chance and would of had it, but Brodeur comes out and gets his stick on the puck. Geno was so close!


4:14- Brodeur with a poke check to mess up Sid's chance.


6:40- Tanger with a great sliding play to block the Devils shot.


8:24- Pens with great PK and Flower with the great stops kill the Devils PP.


8:53- Flower gets across the crease in a blink of an eye to rob Parise of a chance.


10:24- Neal goes to the box for tripping and the Pens bring out the PK unit.


10:57- Geno is back on the ice.


11:31- Flower with a great save on a up close shot!


12:54- Geno takes a shot up high and goes to the bench, looks to be in discomfort. Hit his hand and trainer talking to him.


14:50- ZAJAC SCORES! Flower comes out to play the puck and ties up a Devil. Sid with a play in front of the net and Engo misses the puck. Zajac puts it in the net and ties up the game. 1-1


16:51- Neal with a hard shot and Brodeur with the save. Close call.


18:59- KUNI SCORES! Brodeur goes out to play the puck and Geno picks his pocket! Geno with a sick pass to Kuni stationed in front. He puts it in the empty net and the Pens have the early lead. 1-0 Pens


20:00- Puck drops and lets get the job done! Flower in the net and the Pens could get their 10th win in a row on home ice! Lets Go Pens!

Line combinations

Forwards
Neal, Geno, Kuni
Cooke, Sid, Duper
Park, Staal, TK
Adams, Jeffery, Asham


D pairings
Letang, Martin
Oprik, Z
Lovejoy, Engo


Flower in the net!

Scratches for the Pens are Johnson, Vitale, Niskanen, Sullivan, and Tangradi

Almost game time!

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Pens vs Devil Preview

The Pens are 46-22-6 with a 4th seed in the Eastern Conference at 98 points, which is now three behind the Rangers with 101 points. The Devils come into the contest with a record of 42-27-6 with a comfortable 6th seed in the Eastern Conference at 90 points. The hold a four point lead over the Senators.

The Devils are still having trouble with scoring. Even their top scorers are not finding the back of the net. Which could in favor of the Pens, unless they find the twine tonight.

Travis Zajac will be returning for the Devils after having problems with a previous injury (Achilles heel injury). It is his first game back since Jan. 2. This could help the Devils with their scoring problems.

Cooke has been on fire for the Pens, since Sid's return. He extended his career high last night to 19 goals thanks in large part to Sid. Giving credit to Cooke he has been the one with the finishing touches.

Sid has finally scored and this could open the flood gates. Lets hope it does against the Devils.

Flower will between the pipes for the Pens. The net minder has equaled his career high of 40 wins since 2006-07 season. He is only three wins away from tieing Barrasso's single-season franchise win record of 43. He has with 224 career wins and is closing in on Barrasso's all-time franchise record off 226.

Injuries:

Pens 
Johnson with undisclosed injury
Vitale with undisclosed injury
Niskanen with undisclosed injury
Sully with lower body injury

Devils
Henrik Tallender with acute thrombophlebitis of the lower leg


LETS GO PENS! 

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Pens @ Senators Review

The Pens come out of Ottawa with a 8-4 loss, but at least Sid finally got his comeback goal. Hopefully this opens the flood gates as long as the Flower keeps them closed on our side we should be all good.

The night started out weird as the players couldn't hold back laughs at the anthem singer. Even Sid cracked a smile. I could barely stand it at home and bless those that were actually there. He voice is amazing for a person to do that, but not my type of singing.

Last night seem to get off rather good as the Pens answered quickly after a early go ahead goal for the Sens. However every time the Pens scored the Sens answered right back.

Good news was Cooke notched another two goals thanks to helping hands of Sid. Sid even got himself a well deserved goal.

Geno was kept quiet by the Sens. He had some great chances, but nothing more than that. It was a frustrating game for Geno.

Pens Thiessen allowed eight goals and I felt that he should of been pulled early. I understand the need to rest Flower, but that doesn't help Thiessen's self esteem. The players stood by him and Duper gave him a tap after the eighth goal.

Hard night for the Pens, but they have a chance to bounce back today against the Devils and at home!

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Pens @ Sens End Game Stats

PENS 4 SENATORS 8

Goal Summary

1st Period
Milan Michalek from Greening and Kuba
Cooke from Engo
Cooke from Sid and Martin


2nd Period
Gonchar from Foligno and Alfredsson
Phillips from Turris and Alfredsson on the Power Play
Turris from Foligno and Gonchar
TK from Sully and Staal
Alfredsson from Michalek and Cowen (short handed goal)


3rd Period
Sid from Asham and Duper
Spezza from Michalek
Alfredsson from Foligno
Greening from Karlsson and Spezza on the Power Play

Penalties


1st Period
Tangradi, high sticking - 2 min

2nd Period
Cooke, interference on the goalie - 2 min
Klinkhammer, hooking - 2 min
Spezza, tripping - 2 min
Neal, roughing - 2 min
Foligno, roughing - 2 min

3rd Period
M. Michalek, holding - 2 min
Geno, tripping - 2 min
Asham, roughing - 2 min
Cowen, roughing - 2 min


Shots were 40-28 in favor of the Pens


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Pens @ Senators Play by Play

PENS 4 SENATORS 8


Third Period


0:00- SENS WIN. The Sens get the win 8-4 over the Pens. The Pens have a chance to bounce back tomorrow at home against the Devils.


0:16- Sens go to the box and the Pens head to the PP. Not that it matters now!


1:57- GREENING SCORES. Greening puts one pass Thiessen on the PP. Should of pulled Thiessen a long time ago, poor guy has been through a lot.


2:27- Asham goes to the box and the Sens are on the PP.


2:55- ALFREDSSON SCORES! As the Sens PP ends and Alfredsson all alone in front puts one in from the backhand.


3:30- Sens get 30 second PP. Neal with great defensive play to block Sens 2 on 1 pass. Nice work.


4:55- Geno sits for tripping when Sens get a breakaway 2 on 1 chance. 4 on 4 hockey.


5:11- Neal rings one off the post.


5:30- Sens Michalek goes to the box and the Pens get a much needed PP.


6:44- SPEZZA SCORES. Pens turn over the puck and Spezza gets a breakaway with no Penguin in sight. Spezza goes five hole and the Sens lead 6-4.


8:17- SID SCORES!! Asham takes the puck from behind the net and puts it to the front of the net to Sid. Sid holds the puck and puts it top shelf on Anderson. Precision shot by an amazing player. Pens within one!


9:30- Shots are 32-22 in favor of the Pens. Pens need to get some goals as time is winding down.


11:06- Kuni puts one to the net and Neal gets the rebound, but the shot goes wide.


13:01- Gonchar sneaks into the slot and with a hard shot misses the net. Pens didn't pick him up and get lucky.


15:58- Geno with a "TANG" off the goal post. A little bit later Asham redirects a shot and Anderson somehow makes the save.


16:49- Thiessen with a nice glove save. Pens good at coming from behind and hopefully they comeback from this.


19:41- 4 on 4 ends and the Pens have some jump in their game. Good work by Geno.


20:00- Third period underway! 4 on 4 hockey for 19 seconds. Pens need to get goals early and shut down Sens! Lets Go Pens! 


Second Period 


0:00- Second period ends and the Sens are leading 5-3. The Pens need to pick it up and start putting pucks in the Sens net. Thiessen also needs to shut the door on the Sens.


1:48- Sens hit the post and Neal and another Senator are sent to locker room. 4 on 4 hockey.


3:10- Pens PP ends.


3:53- ALFREDSSON SCORES. Alfredsson gets a SH breakaway and Sid is only inches away (hard skating and almost catches him). Alfredsson puts one pass the glove of Thiessen. 5-3 Sens


5:02- Pens get a PP.


6:00- Thiessen makes a great save coming across the goal crease. Huge save for the Pens.


7:22- Sullivan with almost a breakaway and goes down. Anderson pokes away the puck.


9:00- Pens PP ends. Good chances on the PP.


10:37- Mad scramble in front for the puck. Sens Bishop goes down and is in pain. He skates off and is replaced by Anderson. He makes a nice save on Sid.


11:00- Pens are getting a PP.


12:05- TK SCORES! Sens turn over the puck and Staal passes between the legs to Sullivan. Sullivan and TK with 2 on 1 chance. TK puts it in the net and the Pens cut the Sens lead down. 4-3 Sens


12:19- TURRIS SCORES. Gonchar fires from the blue line it is redirected by Folino and then again by the body of Turris. 4-2 Sens.


12:55- PHILLIPS SCORES. Senators Turris with a great pass to a wide open Phillips, stationed on the top part of the face-off circle. With a rising shot and Folino in front screening the Sens take the lead 3-2.


13:37- Thiessen with a nice save on a redirected shot.


14:06- Cooke takes a seat for goalie interference. Goalie with a little acting on that one. Pens to bring out the PK.


14:33- Geno gets a long lead pass and drops the puck to Neal. Neal with a chance after a pass to Kuni. 


15:42- Staal on the rush with a great chance, but hits the post. Rebound is steered away and the Sens clear it.


17:27- Pens don't have any shots on net yet this period. Sens with two.


19:27- GONCHAR SCORES. Folino with nice puck control comes out from behind the net. Gonchar sneaks into the front of Thiessen and is wide open. Gonchar puts it in the five hole and ties the game at 2-2.


20:00- Second period begins! Rangers and Leafs are tied at 1-1! Pens have the lead and look to extend it! Maybe a Cooke gets a hat trick and Sid getting a goal!


First Period


0:00- First period ends! Sens had the first goal and early lead, but Cooke scores two to put the Pens ahead 2-1! Cooke has 19 goals on the season.


1:10- Neal with great fore-checking in the offensive zone. Hard worker.


2:16- Pens kill the Sens PP. Great work and keeping the lanes blocked.


4:25- Tangradi goes to the box for high sticking and Sens get a PP. Sens PP in a cold mode and lets hope the Pens PK keeps it that way.


4:33- Shots are 12-8 in favor of the Pens. Getting a lot of chances and Sid is in the zone!


6:04- Sens hit the goal post with a mad scramble in front of Thiessen. Close call for Pens.


6:59- COOKE SCORES! Sid gets a long pass and gets a chance. He rushes into the Sens zone and with Cooke open. No passing lane, so Sid creates one by a spin-o-rama backhanded pass right in the blue paint for Cooke. Cooke puts it in. 2-1 Pens


10:09- COOKE SCORES! Cooke and Sid get a 2 on 1 on the rush chance. Cooke puts the puck in the 5 hole of Bishop and Sid taps it in for safe measure. Cross the line before Sid touched it, so Cooke goal! 1-1 Tie


10:54- SENS MICHALEK SCORES! Spezza stops up at the blue line and takes the shot. It is redirect by Greening and Thiessen makes the initial save, but Michalek picks up the rebound and puts it in the empty net. 1-0 Sens


12:02- Geno with a chance is stopped by the glove of Sens Bishop. Kuni and Neal look for the rebound, but Bishop's mask is dislodged and play is stopped.


13:47- Sid comes down the side into the Sens zone and shoots a puck up high. Bishop with the save and pushes it away.


15:00- Thiessen with another great save. Geno on the ice was just an equipment issue.


16:52- Pens gets some good time in Sens zone, but Sens come back and return the favor. Pens able to clear. Geno doesn't look to be on the bench.


18:39- Thiessen with a big save on Senators Greening who was right in his kitchen. Point blank shot and nice save.


20:00- Puck drops and here we go! Pens look to take over the division lead and could if they win and the Leafs defeat the Rangers tonight! All ready in the playoffs, so lets get the division lead and the Eastern Conference!

Line combinations are as follows:

Forwards
Kuni, Geno, Neal
Sullivan, Staal, Duper
Cooke, Sid, TK
Tangradi, Adams, Asham

Defensive lines
Martin, Tanger
Orpik, Z
Lovejoy, Engo


Thiessen in the net.

Pens scratches are Niskanen, Johnson, Vitale, Jeffery, and Park.

Pens are getting ready to take on the Senators in Ottawa.