Faceoff Factor

Pens Vs Flyers Grades

Mike Adams | Grade "A" Reviews

Apr 3, 10:20 AM | Hype this story!

Go home, Flyers!!!!!

Offense: C

We are starting to see a pattern here. Once again, the Pens got off to a bit of a slow start, then improved as the game went on. While they didn’t score any even-strength goals, their aggressiveness did force the Flyers into taking a number of penalties. Sid in particular was a monster, driving the net at every opportunity. But the entire team seemed to have a playoff mindset last night. There was little overpassing of the puck. When they saw a shot, they took it and went to the net. It was a fairly even game at even strength, with the Pens generating some good chances off transition. And they forechecked the Flyers into some mistakes that led to chances or penalties. I thought in the second half of the game, they really had the Flyers on their heels, and the Flyers just couldn’t keep up.

Defense: B

They were solid defensively, though Fleury did bail them out with a number of key saves on odd-man breaks. On this night, Darryl Sydor got the seat in the press box, probably a good decision considering the Flyers’ physicality. They kept the Gonchar-Orpik tandem together, which worked well. On the one goal they gave up at even strength, Gill kind of got a bit too far to his right, leaving Scott Hartnell with an easy tap-in on the backdoor pass from Danny Boy Briere. After that, the defense did a real good job not allowing the Flyers to establish a strong forecheck or even get rebounds in front. As the game wore on, the Flyers grew frustrated at their inability to outmuscle the Pens, and the chances diminished.

Power play: A

Is this the breakout game we’ve been waiting for? We can only hope so. Everything was clicking just perfectly all night long, and they scored all four goals with the man advantage. Just an incredible display. The Genius’s loaded unit finally came alive, just as many of us were doubting this strategy. It started early on when Sarge took a Sid pass and wristed it past a screened Marty (never won a playoff game) Biron. Luckily, he was screened by his own guy, but we’ll take ‘em any way we can get ‘em. Next, they got a 5-on-3 thanks to the idiocy of Hartnell, who had tried to take Sid’s head off after the whistle. Sid made him pay the best way possible, by one-timing a perfect Gonchar feed past Biron from the bottom of the right circle. But they were just getting started. Next came a Malkin goal after they had almost given up a shorty. Fleury made a key save and Geno cleaned up his own end. Whitney carried the puck in and drew two guys to him before passing back to Geno. Geno fired it through the Ft. Pitt Tunnel (otherwise known as Biron’s five-hole) to give the Pens their first lead of the night. And they wonder why Biron has never led a team to the playoffs. But the Pens weren’t finished with the total destruction of the Flyers’ PK. Hossa dug the puck out of the corner and got it back to Sarge. His slapper was going wide, but Sid amazingly deflected it between his legs for the clincher. That was some amazing skill on display. Total carnage for the game: the power play was 4/6 on the night with 4 goals on only 6 shots. It’s games like this that will make teams leery of taking bad penalties against the Pens. In fact, we’ll see how the Flyers play on Sunday.

Penalty kill: A-

Overall, the PK did a very good job, though they were dented once. Two of the kills were 4-on-3 for a while, and those are harder to kill than 5-on-4. The Flyers only managed five shots on the five power plays, and only one of those was a real tester for Fleury. Well, two, because one went in. The goal was just a point shot that was stopped, but Jeff Carter knocked in the rebound out of a scramble in front. Other than that, the Pens did a great job the rest of the night. Gill was a monster, and the skill guys on the kill really did a great job.

Goaltending: A

Another great game by Flower. He seems to be maturing into a top-notch goalie right before our very eyes. I just cannot believe how calm and in control he looks right now. He is supremely confident, and his teammates are feeding off of that. Last night, he made all the positional saves but then used his athleticism to steal a couple. He made two saves on odd-man breaks where he went right to left amazingly quickly. One of them led to the Malkin goal. He flashed the leather on a couple occasions, too, most notably a glove save on a point shot. He might be playing the best of any goalie in hockey right now, and he will carry the Pens far if he keeps it up.

Overall: A

How can it not be an A on the night where they clinched their first division title in ten years? The start was a tad sluggish, but the Flyers’ physicality awakened them. Thanks, Flyers. It was an amazing night at the old barn. Just such a tremendous feeling to clinch it against this goon outfit. Those four straight wins the Flyers pulled off against the Pens seem like eons ago. The power play put on a display the likes of which we had not seen all year. They matched the Flyers hit for hit. Unlike some previous Penguin teams, they didn’t give an inch when the Flyers brought out the old Broad Street Bully routine. And they made them pay for every stupid penalty they took. Boy, it was just such fun to watch!

And now, the rest of the story…

Sidney Crosby: A

”Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”—George Santayana. When will the Flyers ever learn that the one thing you don’t want to do is get Sid angry by cheap-shotting him? He was basically unstoppable after Hartnell nailed him from behind. He had not been playing up to his normal level since the injury, but Hartnell got the juices flowing, and that was that. Sid was just amazing. He is in playoff form right now.

Evgeni Malkin: A

Boy, did he remind you of Mario or what last night! The goal was just a laser when he spotted that five-hole open. But where he was most Mario-esque was on the penalty kill. The time he just took the puck and skated around in the neutral zone just harked back to Mario’s young, dominant days. He was just daring the Flyers to take it off him, and they couldn’t. Sheer brilliance.

Sergei Gonchar: A++++++

Those who regularly read this blog know that I am perhaps his sharpest critic. In fact, some would say my bias prevents me from evaluating him honestly. You might be right. But now hear this. Last night was the best game I have ever seen Sarge play. Hands down. Yeah, he got a goal and two helpers. That’s great. We are used to that. But what we are not used to is a physically involved Sarge, and that’s what he was last night. He nailed Hartnell with a huge body check at the offensive blue line. Then he either punched or butt-ended Hartnell in the face behind the net. Good on him. If Hartnell wants to be out there trying to injure people, then he better be prepared to take it, too. And Sarge gave it to him. It was impressive, to say the least.

Hal Gill: A

Flat out, this guy is a better hockey player than I ever gave him credit for. Yeah, he ain’t the swiftest guy out there. But he is smart. He knows where to be and how to use his size and reach. While he might occasionally get beaten by speed, you won’t generally beat him down low. He is just what the doctor ordered for this team. This “unheralded” trade might be akin to the “unheralded” Murphy acquisition back in 1990.

Know your damn role: A

The Rock was right. Every player on this team knows his damn role, and that is a credit to both the players and the coaches. And it’s what you need as you move into playoff mode.

Striped Buffoon Huh? Call of the Game

First off, I would like an investigation into how, in the Pens’ most important game of the season, the two refs who have consistently exhibited an anti-Penguin bias through their careers were both assigned to this game. You knew it was going to be ugly when you saw Kerry Hairspray and Dan “Screwjob” Marouelli. If you didn’t know any better, you would think Ed Snider made the assignment. And the Flyers started right out with the rough stuff, figuring the same. But to their credit, Hairspray and Screwjob actually kept things in check fairly well. Screwjob cost the Pens a goal with a very quick whistle, one that followed on the heels of an equally quick whistle moments earlier. Hairspray called a ridiculous hooking penalty on Hossa when he barely touched the Flyer. This after allowing all kinds of rough stuff all game long. They also missed Orpik getting cross-checked to the ice on the second Flyer goal. But I have to admit the Huh? Call goes to the Gonchar punch/butt end on Hartnell. The Flyers were livid, and they had a right to be. You have to make that call.

Monk Moment

Easy. It was Sid’s between-the-legs deflection of Gonchar’s point shot. That was just amazing. The reflexes and soft hands it takes to make that move are beyond belief. The shot was nowhere near where he expected it, and it was a hard shot. The way he did it was his only option, and he pulled it off to perfection. A distant runner-up was Gonchar actually knocking Hartnell down with his hard check.

Icehole of the Game

Scott Hartnell. It seemed like he was out there actually trying to hurt people. Thankfully, the Pens would have none of it and gave him a shot for every one he gave out.

A Guide to the Grades can be found here