After the Pens allowed 3 goals in the first period for the first time in 67 games, the Penguins came out sleepwalking to start the 2nd as well. The Pens immediately gave Colorado a golden opportunity for a 3 goal lead when Matt Duchene out-hustled them to the corner and cut off a pass by Marc-Andre Fleury around the boards. Duchene centered it in front of the net but it went right to Kris Letang, who puzzlingly put it right on the stick of a hard-charging Milan Hejduk. Fleury fought off Hejduk's open rocket right in front of the net but the play was a carry over of the Pens' first period struggles.
After Pittsburgh failed to capitalize on a power play, the Avalanche would keep the pressure on for much the first ten minutes of the period. They forced the action, continually putting the Pens on their heels and creating a number of good scoring opportunities. The Pens had one great two on none breakaway after a Colorado turnover in the neutral zone, but Evgeni Malkin could not get the puck to Tyler Kennedy in time before the Avalanche recovered to break up the chance before a shot was put on goal.
With under ten to play in the period, however, the Pens would convert to cut the lead in half. It was a fluky goal after a shot by Arron Asham resulted in a loose puck in front of the net. Colorado goalie Semyon Varlamov thought he had controlled the puck but the whistle never blew. The puck came loose after a collision in front and Pascal Dupuis poked the puck in for the Pens' second goal.
A James Neal tripping penalty would temporarily cut down the Pens momentum after the Dupuis goal. The Pens did have a two on one shorthanded chance but Matt Cooke's shot went wide of the night. Jordan Staal would set up another good chance for Dupuis in front but Varlamov would smother the shot. Hopefully for Pens fans, the final ten minutes of the second will be indicative of what's to come in the final period, as opposed to the sluggish first 30 minutes.