SB Nation Pittsburgh: All Posts by Jimmy Rixner

2013 Pens/Sens series is tame so far compared to 2010 Pens/Sens

2013-05-22T14:26:22Z

The passage of time can be a funny thing. 2010 can somehow seem like yesterday and a lifetime ago all at the same time. Let’s harken back to April 22nd, 2010. It was in the midst of the final hurrah for the ~~Mellon~~, ~~Civic~~, err, the Igloo. The Pens were defending Cup champions. And they were playing the Ottawa Senators in the first round of the playoffs.

This isn’t a post hinting or assuming history will repeat, because that would be a useless venture. Ottawa only has six of the same players from then (Daniel Alfredsson, Erik Karlsson, Chris Neil, Chris Phillips, Zach Smith and Jason Spezza). Nine Penguins who played remain (Craig Adams, Matt Cooke, Sidney Crosby, Pascal Dupuis, Mark Eaton, Chris Kunitz, Kris Letang, Evgeni Malkin and Brooks Orpik). Both teams have different goalies. Sergei Gonchar has changed sides. It’s worlds apart from what was then to what was now, and that’s not the point.

One thing that never changes is how you feel and the emotional swings of a playoff series. if you’re feeling bad about the Pens double OT loss, let’s harken back to that 2010 series, when it was arguably even more of a roller coaster than we’ve seen to this point.

Back in 2010’s Game 5, with the Pens up 3 games to 1, they lost a third period lead. And then they lost the game in triple over-time. With tough-guy Matt Carkner (currently of New York Islanders) scoring the game winning goal. All of this was at home too, and the Pens had to go to Ottawa for a game 6, drained of energy and the momentum in the Sens corner to feed off of that elimination saving win from the most unlikely of sources.

It can’t get much tougher than that.

Unless by the middle of the second period of Game 6 the score is 3-0 Senators, as it was that night. The Pens would battle back, badly out-shooting Ottawa that night (43-31 overall) and clawed back in time to tie the game in the 3rd period. Pascal Dupuis won it half-way through the first overtime to end the series. The last series Pittsburgh would win until defeating Carkner and NYI a few days ago. Funny how hockey has a way to be circular like that.

The moral of this trip down memory lane? Nothing comes easily this time of year. Everything is an adventure.

Try to enjoy the ride. Nothing is ever as linear or as smooth as it seems, and even the series that your team ends up winning, often times has so many twists and turns within a game (let alone the whole series) that it's important for me to remind myself it's about the journey just as much as it is the destination.

Pressure mounts on Dan Bylsma

2013-05-21T13:54:48Z

For a team with so much in the way of expectations, it was only a matter of time for the second guessing and “Monday morning quarterbacking” to reach a fever pitch. I just didn’t take it that it’d be before the Pittsburgh Penguins were eliminated from contention. Let alone in the second round, a series they’re currently winning 2 games to 1.

Or about a player with above a point per game average in the playoffs so far.

But that’s where we are with Dejan Kovacevic’s article, entitled “Why did Pens even get Iginla?“ in today’s Trib. This isn’t against Kovacevic personally, who’s probably the brightest and most responsive (and responsible) commentator of the Penguins these days. He’s a terrific writer and has usually has wonderful insight and perspective. To me, he misses the mark here, but it’s more about the temperature in the water about how just about everyone, it seems, feels about head coach Dan Bylsma.

Clearly, I don’t stand by all of Bylsma’s decisions- especially when it comes to playing Deryk Engelland over Simon Despres. Or the decision to dress Tanner Glass (and play him on the penalty kill) when it’s clear he’s not been a very effective option. I’ve never been one to be in lock-step with the coach every step of the way, but common sense doesn’t add up here to me.

That said, the complaint is about misuse of Jarome Iginla? The guy with 10 points in 9 games? Below are a couple of rational responses to Kovacevic's biggest charges:

When the Penguins went on the power play four times in regulation, Iginla alternated with James Neal on the first unit and was out of position. Rather than being on the left point, where he'd feasted on goaltenders for a decade-plus in Calgary, he stood idly at the left lip of the crease waiting for passes that never came.

It’s fair to take umbrance that Iginla was on the left point for “a decade-plus in Calgary”, I’ve sent a few tweets and emails to get some reports from more knowledgeable Flames viewers, but as Ryan Lambert (@twolinepass) tweeted “i wouldnt say ‘regularly’” when I asked if Iginla was used on the point on power plays.

The point being- hockey is a fluid sport. Sometimes Iginla uses his shot from the left faceoff circle, sometimes he plays closer to the net looking for gritty goals or rebounds. And that makes sense with Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby usually operating from the wall, or point, or somewhere far from the net, spacing-wise you’d expect other players to be positioned closer to the net. Power play personnel has long been an issue, the Pens have too many skill players for the tradition first unit.

When the Penguins went on the power play in the second overtime with a chance to bury the Senators in this Stanley Cup playoff series, Iginla sat on the bench.

Iginla did sit that power play, but he also played the shift before the penalty and had 2 shifts in that short 2nd OT when the penalty was called. Chris Kunitz and James Neal were more fresh and with that perspective, just as good of options to play in that situation.

Now, tell me again: Why did Ray Shero get this guy?

I’m sure glad the Penguins got Iginla instead of Boston, and if the two teams meet up next round that feeling will be multiplied one hundred times over. I’m not going to go “Fire Joe Morgan” and pick apart Dejan’s every sentence, because he doesn’t deserve that. It’s a well-constructed and reasonable argument, just one I wouldn’t make to question why the Pens acquired Iginla just because he hasn’t seamlessly slid into the Pens.

The feeling that Dan Bylsma can’t win, unless the team wins is the pervasive growing sentiment that I’m picking up on here. The pressure and expectations he’s under is incredible. I tweeted that out and some of the replies were very interesting.

@pensburgh i've always been a critic of HCDB. morrow and neal pairing during a 4-on-4? i mean come on.
— Randy Evremonde (@RandyEvremonde) May 21, 2013

That to me, really stood out to the level of scrutiny that Bylsma is under. Personally, I can’t even recall the exact situation, but is it worthy of a bone to pick? I guess so, if admittedly you are a critic of Bylsma.

@pensburgh Playing Engelland and pairing him with Murray. Glass instead of Jokinen. Moving Iginla back to Malkins line. All head scratchers.
— Patrick (@Mayostard) May 21, 2013

Some of that is reasonable, though if you play Engelland, I can’t see how or why he isn’t on the third pair (same with Douglas Murray). Also I really believe there’s more to the Marty Reasoner knee-to-knee hit to explain the absence of Jussi Jokinen than the team has let on- it just doesn’t make sense to scratch Jokinen after as well as he’s played for the Penguins in many different roles and lines.

@pensburgh criticism of Bylsma will depend on how far team makes it. Anything short of at least the Finals will be considered a failure.
— Bernardo Mainou (@bmainou) May 21, 2013

It’s hard to disagree with that. If they don’t win the Cup, given the trades that Ray Shero has made, and given all the pending free agents that just can’t fit under the salary cap, it’ll be a failure. And failures are harshly judged, as they should be.

@pensburgh I've been hard on HCDB but he/someone seems to have gotten the message across - the end of Game 3 is a call they won't make again
— Catlin Michael(@CatlinMichael) May 21, 2013

This point, to me, is the best criticism to render of Bylsma right now. Why didn’t he use his timeout right before the power play, if only to give himself a minute to consider who he wanted to play on that fateful power play? Or to instruct his guys “OK, let’s push on like usual” or “we’re gonna play more defensive guys and try to grind it out and hang on”. Also, when Sidney Crosby went to the bench in the middle of the play, while all the Ottawa players were changing and Kris Letang safely had the puck behind the Pens net, why didn’t Bylsma implore Kunitz and Malkin to change as well? Both of those forwards stayed on the ice and both were integral parts in the sequence that led to the goal against. If Bylsma could have been more forceful in making the players changed, and he got, say Pascal Dupuis and Matt Cooke or Craig Adams out there, it’s a lot easier to imagine the Pens hold on for that 1-0 win.

There’s always room to criticize and point out mistakes made, but the scale and amount that is already being done just makes me wonder what is to come.

If there’s one thing Bylsma (and Pens fans everywhere) can be thankful for, it’s that at least Tomas Vokoun has played so well (or maybe Marc-Andre Fleury has played so poorly) that there can be no goaltending controversy at this point. That would just about send this fever pitch into an unbearable over-drive from the Monday morning quarterbacks and columnists and fans alike.

Breaking down Ottawa's last minute game tying goal

2013-05-20T17:01:17Z

It's a team game and one little slip can cost you the game. The Pittsburgh Penguins learned that the hard way. The below isn't really meant to dish out blame (everyone could have done something better) but just to illustrate how the breakdown happened.

0:08- Unreal play by Matt Cooke to bat the puck ahead and blow by Erik Karlsson, forcing Karlsson to slash at him, which breaks Karlsson’s stick.

0:20- Whistle blows, Karlsson is yelling at the referee for some reason, not understanding how HE gets the penalty when his stick broke..Maybe cuz he slashed another player and that’s why it broke?

0:55- What a face on Matt Cooke seeing his old buddy throw a fit and go into the penalty box.

1:12- Ok, power play is about to start. 1:27 left in the game and a two minute minor means Ottawa is short-handed for the duration of regulation. Faceoff in Ottawa end, Sidney Crosby to take it. Evgeni Malkin and Chris Kunitz are the forwards, Kris Letang and Paul Martin are the defensemen. Not the true #1 PP unit (since there’s 2 natural defensemen instead of one), but given the situation that’s a good call.

1:20- Right off the bat, this is showing trouble. Crosby loses the draw cleanly to Kyle Turris, Sergei Gonchar controls the puck, makes a pass and another stretch pass is made to Turris who’s inside the Pens zone.

1:31- Malkin muscles the puck away from Turris, swings around the net and skates back to the Ottawa blue-line, where he dumps it in. Ottawa has three players on the blueline and Craig Anderson steadies the puck behind the net.

1:41- Turris skates the puck all the way into the Pens zone, but is stood up at the blueline and Malkin again comes away with it. 1:00 left to go in the game.

1:51- Senators are changing and so does Crosby. Malkin has left the puck behind the Pens net for Letang, who looks out, waiting, 50 seconds left in the game.

1:58- Kunitz gets a pass from Letang, skates up to the Ottawa blueline and somewhat gently chips it in. Somewhat troubling, he’s the only Penguin you see, Malkin is about 5 feet to the right, standing on the wall stationary.

2:05-Chris Phillips won the puck and passed it to Daniel Alfredsson who has wheeled up the zone. Again, you see no other Penguins in the shot other than Kunitz, which is troubling.

2:08- Alfredsson drops the puck for Gonchar and Kunitz stays with Alfie, which is great on his part. So long as the Pens can keep marking all the Sens, they should be just fine..

2:10- Gonchar has entered the zone and at least 4 Penguins are looking at him and closing in on him as he chips it over for Milan Michalek. Kunitz has lost Alfredsson. In fact, no one has even noticed that the guy who just had the puck now has a clear path to the net. Big huge, red lights flashing danger. Even if you didn’t know what happens next, you probably know what is going to happen just based off this picture.

2:11- Paul Martin stays with Gonchar, who’s cleared out room for Michalek to operate. Malkin and Letang are playing in space. Kunitz is coasting. Sutter is ready to challenge Michalek but isn’t going to make it in time. No Penguin on the ice is 100% aware of Alfredsson.

2:11 (part 2)- Moment of the pass from Michalek. Letang and Malkin haven’t done anything and aren’t in a position to stop the puck from going by them, they’re in space. Kunitz hasn’t been a factor in the play since he let Alfie go right by him. Martin’s covering a guy that’s not going in a position to score and Sutter wasn’t able to get to Michalek in time to deflect or break up the pass. And Alfreddson is all alone.

2:12: Good luck, Tomas Vokoun!

And that's how you blow a 1-0 lead with the power play in the last minute of the game. Definite culpability to all five skaters out there, but in order I think you have the best case to lay blame with:

#1 Kunitz - made the lazy dump in when it was clear no one else was on that same page...Then lost Alfredsson completely.
#2 Letang - backpedaled and took himself out of the play, was a non-factor and didn't know where Alfie was, thus didn't have a good angle to break up the pass. I'm no expert in the Pens defensive scheme but given how Martin was in a position to challenge, one would think Letang's role would be to make sure the front of the net was clear and he failed to be in a position to do that.
#3 Malkin - non-factor altogether. Didn't pick anyone up, didn't put himself in a position to be of any use. Ideally, if Geno could have picked up on Alfreddson's track to the net, he could have adjusted stick/skates to at least get in the lane, if not tie the man up but he seemed oblivious to it all.
#4 Martin - covered a guy in Gonchar that wasn't going to hurt the Pens. Allowed a bigger passing lane for Michalek in the process.
#5 Sutter - not really his fault. Used his positioning to push them towards the wall upon entry to blue line and tried to get there to deflect the pass. Failed to do so, of all the players out there, he was the only one consistent in what he was doing, just got there a tick too slow.

Game 3 Recap: Anderson, Sens bounce back to take Double OT win

2013-05-20T13:23:29Z

Sometimes, you just get the feeling it's not going to go the way you want it to. For me it happened when Pascal Dupuis rang a shot clean off the far post in the first overtime. Even when the Penguins beat Craig Anderson, they couldn't score. And very rarely were they able to beat him in the first place.

Game three between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Ottawa Senators featured an entertaining, heavy-hitting, low-scoring affair that saw some great goaltending from Anderson and Tomas Vokoun, as well as a let down by the Pens.

In the last minute of the game, with Pittsburgh up 1-0, the Sens were down a man but still pushing hard for a goal. The Pens got in a weird shell- they weren't playing offense but they weren't really in a good defensive mindset either. It's definitely unusual for a team down a man to pull their goalie and push so hard for a goal, but it's what happens in the final minute of a playoff game. Daniel Alfredsson snuck behind all the Pens and went to the net and made a beauty deflection from Milan Michalek and we were tied.

Overtime saw more of the same, the Pens pushing but Anderson holding the fort. Ottawa counter-striking but Vokoun keeping it out. Rinse and repeat until 7:39 into the second OT when Penguin-killer Colin Greening collected a rebound and punched it home, ending a good, tough, intense game.

Not too much more to say, the Pens were 30 seconds away from a commanding 3 games to 0 lead in the series....Then they were just one goal away. But they couldn't get it, and now we have a series.

Some more thoughts:

50 shots on goal, ten of those from Evgeni Malkin. Not much more you can do. Malkin has been flashing everywhere in the offensive zone, beating defenders but not Anderson. Hopefully it's just a matter of time.
Despite scoring the team's only goal, Tyler Kennedy only got 11:00 minutes of ice-time, by far the least on the team for every player (except Tanner Glass).
Pens PP went 0 for 6. Tough one to take, the power play has to come through, including during an extended 5 on 3. They got some good zone time, passes, movement and even shots on goal, but again, you just have to tip your hat to Anderson, he answered the bell tonight.
29 blocked shots for the Pens tonight, led by Paul Martin (8), Brooks Orpik (6) and Kris Letang (4). Throw in that each of them played 35-37 minutes and you have to wonder what toll this game will have throughout the rest of the series. Luckily there's a two day break and hopefully all will have the chance to recharge, but any multiple-OT game is just going to be brutal on top defensemen.
The hit Craig Adams threw on Jason Spezza was a thing of beauty. Clean, solid and textbook. Spezza, in his first game back since January, was really good playing 18:40, getting 4 shots on goal and winning 60% of his 25 faceoffs. Not much rust there.
Here's something interesting: out of the 97 faceoffs that happened in the game, Sidney Crosby or Brandon Sutter combined for 79 of them. And they won 54% of them. Very clear to see who the coach is leaning on this time of year.

And so, luckily, that's that. Time to turn the page and move on to the next one. It's a tough pill to swallow for the Pens, especially given that they more or less had it in the bag in regulation, but another lesson to learn. Games are 60:00 and a full 60:00 must be played.

Craig Anderson has struggled against the Pens

2013-05-19T13:17:50Z

Ottawa's Craig Anderson has definitely taken the road less traveled to the second round of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs. He's been drafted by two NHL teams (first by Calgary in 1999 then by Chicago in 2001 when he didn't sign with Calgary). The next five years he bounced between NHL and AHL in Chicago's organization before spending three years in Florida and two more in Colorado before a 2011 move to Ottawa. In three seasons with the Senators, Anderson has posted save percentages of .939, .913 and a sterling .941 mark this season in 24 injury shortened games of the lockout season.

By any means, the mark of a goalie who's found his rhythm and become a solid NHL starting caliber goalie. One who would have even merited some talk for Vezina trophy discission, had he not been injured and played more games this season.

There's been one consistent thorn in Anderson's side this season, and that's the Pittsburgh Penguins. Anderson's .941 save percentage would have been .946 (557 saves on 589 shots) had he not faced the Penguins three times in the regular season. The Pens won all three of those games, including a shootout where James Neal, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin all humbled Anderson in the only three shots Anderson faced. Like them or not, shootouts are used to decide games, and again Anderson had no answer for shots off the Penguins sticks.

The same trend has continued so far in the playoffs. The Sens made short work of the Montreal Canadiens in five games, anchored by Anderson who stopped 171 of 180 shots for a terrific .950 save percentage. But ihe first two games of this series, Anderson's yielded seven goals on 51 shots (.863 save percentage) and got a quick hook early in the second period in favor of backup Robin Lehner, who played very well in relief for Ottawa.

For the Senators, their chances of beating the Penguins begins and ends with Anderson. If he isn't, by far, the best player on the ice, Pittsburgh will win games. In a zero games to two hole, Ottawa will have to win four of the next five games in order to move on. Given Anderson's performances so far in 2013 against Pittsburgh (0-3-1, .892 save percentage, 3.40 GAA) it's looking like an uphill battle indeed.

Danger zone: Digging into Dan Bylsma's coaching strategies

2013-05-17T13:31:01Z

You could hear the rumbles from Penguins fans and media yesterday after they saw the lines in practice. Chris Kunitz, as habit has been, was bumped from the Evgeni Malkin / James Neal pair back up to his other “usual” line with Sidney Crosby and Pascal Dupuis. Jarome Iginla dropped down to the Malkin/Neal line, with Neal playing slightly away from his comfort zone on the left wing.

Many vocal Pens fans had long clamored to unite Crosby+Iginla (keeping Iggy on his familiar right side) and keeping the successful Kunitz+Malkin+Neal line together. It offers a reasonable and balanced scoring punch and Bylsma did that, to success, the past few playoff games.

So the sideline coaches and message boarders alike are unhappy with the changes. Why would coach Dan Bylsma continue to tinker when there’s no real reason to do so?

Maybe it’s because keeping players on their toes, and maybe even a little uncomfortable also helps keep their performances sharp.

Take the biggest fish of all in Crosby. He’s only scored 1 goal in the last five games and has one point in his last two games. While he does have nine shots in the last two and has flashed for several good scoring chances, the puck isn’t going in for Crosby right now. It’s no surprise that Crosby is most comfortable and prefers playing with Kunitz-Dupuis, Sid has publicly admitted as much himself. Those are the guys he’s played much of the last four years with, assuming he’s been healthy enough to play. Maybe playing along his usual wingers could give him a kick-start.

And it’s becoming no secret that whichever line has Chris Kunitz on it is the line has been the Penguins best line. There’s probably no coincidence in that- Kunitz plays Bylsma’s system perfectly with pressure on the forecheck, is capable and willing to go into corners and dirty areas to win pucks and is a sneakily underrated in-zone passer with a nose for the net to punch in goals. Give a superstar center that kind of left wing and it’s no wonder he succeeds. Kunitz helps open up more space on the ice for Malkin to operate and Kunitz’s grinding/wear-‘em-down style meshes really well with the down-low game that Crosby loves to play.

It could also be a message to Neal as well, who took three minor penalties in Game 1 and admitted that some were avoidable. Placing him off his normal right wing to the left side might be just the thing to draw some of his attention to detail and alert him to play a more mindful game.

For Iginla, playing with Malkin could be a benefit too. One thing I’ve noticed of Iginla as a Pittsburgh Penguin is he doesn’t want to touch the puck in the neutral zone too much. Be it for age, style or just his mindset, it often seems like he’s either trying to sneak behind the defense (remember those sky passes Crosby has attempted) or Iginla plays the puck quickly and deftly in the neutral zone, content to differ to a teammate. This quality seems tailor made for Malkin, who LOVES, needs and wants to carry the puck up the ice, establish control inside the blueline and dance around defenders to either look for a shot on goal, or make a pass to an open teammate.

Bylsma has seemingly given Malkin+Iginla every chance to work (while most fans clamor for the more established chemistry of Crosby+Iginla) but stylistically in 2013, the more I think about it, the more it makes sense to keep Crosby with his preferred linemates of Kunitz-Dupuis, and keep Iginla in his natural RW spot with Malkin and hope that Neal, who played LW in Dallas, can adjust his game enough.

I realize that’s some heavy philosophy and you might not buy into all that stuff. What you have to buy into though is Bylsma’s recent results. Every lineup decision he’s made lately has seemed to pay off. His decision to make line changes and alterations might irk you, and it might to be difficult to understand as a fan, but there’s undoubtedly a method to the madness. As the old quote about legendary coach Scotty Bowman went: “you hated him 364 days of the year and on the 365th day you got your Stanley Cup ring”. This isn’t to say Bylsma is as prickly or difficult as some coaches, but he has his reasons and they’re not just to temper with success.

Even if it’s not evident or obvious why Bylsma is making the choices that he is, in his mind he’s setting up the team the best for their next game. Though I might not understand or respect every decision (let’s not even get started on Deryk Engelland), digging deep shows there reason behind the decisions.

Pens Points

2013-05-16T18:51:51Z

Sorry for the delay, we had some technical issues (involving things I don't understand) about the site all around SBN hockey yesterda and today...But here's a new feature with various thoughts on the Pens this morning..It’s kinda like Elloitte Friedman’s 30 Thoughts, without being so numerous in points…Or having the inside knowledge…Or insight….So yeah, maybe it’s not a lot like Friedman…

--For the Penguins, it was all systems go in a 4-1 Game 1 win over Ottawa. They were led again by their special teams, with the playoffs top ranked PP going 2 for 3 and the penalty kill going a perfect 5 for 5 (plus Pascal Dupuis netting a short-handed goal). That’s a recipe for success in just about any playoff game.

--Speaking of Dupuis, for the moment at least, he leads the league in goals right now with 6. Enjoy him in a Penguin jersey while it lasts. Watching him evolve in the past five years from trade throw-in to one of the league’s most versatile and capable wingers at both ends of the rink truly has been a treat.

--Staying out of the box, as always, will figure to be important. And hey, who knew Corey Conacher was doing a Brad Marchand impression these days? The diminutive Conacher got his rat on and drew the ire of several Penguins, notably Brooks Orpik and Kris Letang. Conacher and Letang got matching minor penalties for dueling after the whistle- that’s a good trade for Ottawa. Staying smart (James Neal) and not putting the team down a man should be a point to concentrate on.

--Interesting stat provided by Pens communication guru Jason Seidling: Pittsburgh is 26-28 all-time in Game 1’s of playoff series. What stood out to me was the profound difference between their home record (19-12) and away record (7-16).

--One interesting sub-plot will be the adjustment game. With an extra day break, Ottawa coach Paul MacLean will have extra time and instruction opportunities to get his squad regrouped. We all saw the Islanders come back in a big way in Game 2 last series, and it’ll definitely be interesting to see how the Senators will decide to mix it up and how Bylsma and the Pens will counter what they see. It’s a big chess match if you take the macro view.

--The speed and energy added by Tyler Kennedy and Joe Vitale has been eye-popping. Both look like a fire has been lit under them after being healthy scratches for the first four games of the playoffs, and both certainly know that if they can’t find ways to stand out, they’re risking a return to the press box during games. But when every opportunity is maximized and scrutinized in the playoffs, Vitale needs to do better in the faceoffs, a skill he’s known for. Just 2 for 7 last night (29%).

--Tomas Vokoun had an interesting quote about how he wasn’t worried about the high number of shots the team is giving up in front of him (Vokoun has seen 106 shots in three games, or 35 per game). Vokoun indicated that 1/3 of Ottawa’s shots came from far outside and weren’t very big scoring chances. Just something to think about if/when you see statistical analyses later on in the series, all shots and chances are not created equally.

--Perhaps as expected, since they’ve only had a few games to mesh, but the chemistry between the top lines is growing right before our very lines. Dupuis looks fine on the left wing (a change for him) and Sidney Crosby and Jarome Iginla are gelling more and more every shift. For the other big line, there’s no doubting the chemistry between Chris Kunitz, Evgeni Malkin and James Neal. What’s surprised me has been how Kunitz, this year, is seeming to this eye to out-shine Neal (a reversal from last season). Neal has just returned from injury, so we’ll give him the benefit of time, but just an interesting point that Kunitz has been more visible.

--Paul Martin has also returned from a broken bone in hand and hasn’t missed a beat. His transformation in 12 months from deserved goat and turnover machine to invaluable point-scoring member of the team has been incredible. He’s steady and unnoticeable but has made the right play more often than not. Also, Martin’s only been on the ice for two goals against since Game 2 vs. NYI. He’s playing some really heavy ES and PK minutes (131:45) and is helping to keep the puck out, which is just as important as his timely scoring.

--A team doesn’t often change while winning, but the Pens 3rd line hasn’t had as much impact as perhaps I’ve thought. And even their shots on goal or chances aren’t there. Brenden Morrow got a PP assist, but has had a quiet postseason. He’s not needed to be a focal point- a griding 3rd liner that wears down opponent’s defense in a long series is probably enough, but it’d be great if the Pens could get a little more at even strength out of this line.

Links of the day:

Sens series round-table featuring myself and some others on Faceoff-Factor

Brooks Orpik GIF of laying out Eric Gryba from The Pensblog

Really, really bad Ottawa Senators promotional video on Puck Daddy…Hopefully all a precursor to that bizzare Roman warrior guy from a few years ago coming back out

Game 1 Preview: Penguins vs. Senators

2013-05-14T19:33:21Z

My story from today didn’t work, and the Pens are going with Tomas Vokoun. Even though I advocated for Marc-Andre Fleury, it doesn’t seem like a bad move to play the guy who brought ya here, and Vokoun is definitely the reason the Penguins are in the second round.

--Silver Seven Sens dropped in with 5 keys to the series. The one that pops out the most to me:

Spezza practiced with the team on Sunday. It's still unclear when he might return to the lineup, but if he can make it back before the end of Round Two, it'll be big for the Sens' offence. The first concern will be Spezza's health and whether there's a serious risk of re-aggravating the injury he's currently trying to return from, but if soreness and/or fitness is all that's holding him back, his return will be huge. Even if Spezza himself isn't able to produce, he'll draw some of the Penguin's top defenders away from guys like Turris and Mika Zibanejad, giving those two a bit more room to work. We'll see if anything happens here, but Spezza's return would be huge. Based on his recent comments, he sounds motivated to return:

Spezza’s status will be a huge story point going forward.

--Nice look at the stat categories from Faceoff Factor, with them highlighting faceoffs as:

Key advantage here for the Penguins. They were sub-par by their own standards at certain points against the Islanders. Dominance in the Faceoff’s will be key against a stingy Senators defense.

--The Pensblog with a great Top 5 moments in Pens/Sens of series past. I was right behind the net on #2, one of the best moments I’ve seen in hockey.