Pens/Rangers Game 4 Grades
Mike Adams | Report Cards
May 2, 10:55 AM | Hype this story!
[NOTE: Game Grades will be on hiatus the rest of this series due to the business-related travels of the preparer of the grades]
When your best players aren’t your best players…
Offense: D
They had some spurts where they generated some momentum, but for the most part, the Rangers shut them down. And when they did get good looks, they just could not beat King Henry. It was just a bad night all around. Hossa had a great chance early, but fired wide. That seemed to set the tone for the night. The Pens didn’t seem to play with the same sense of urgency they had to date in the playoffs. The first period was actually rather dead, and they did take the crowd out of it. Once the Rangers scored, the Pens really never got many good chances on King Henry. The third line was probably their best unit all night. They forechecked hard and at least tried to put pucks on net. The Little Tyger was very good, as was Staal. But the top two lines really didn’t generate too much.
Defense: B
The defense was very solid for the most part, though a disturbing habit reemerged. They had a number of hideous giveaways, mostly by Scuderi and Whitney. I would suggest that Sydor be inserted for Whitney, who has been by far their worst defenseman so far in the playoffs. He is just playing scared, and that is unacceptable. But the only ES goal they gave up was on a rush by Puff Nuts where Gonchar (who has also not been good in this series) backed in, then screened Flower and Jagr zinged it through his legs. It was not a good play at all.
Power play: F
For the first time, the Rangers defended the power play the way all teams should. They were aggressive at every turn. They jumped the Pens every chance they got, making them hurry blind passes all over the ice. The Pens were not ready for it, and as a result the power play was discombobulated all night long. The first two power plays, they also lost the first faceoff in the Rags’ end, and it cost them 30 seconds each time. They just weren’t mentally with it like they had been so far in the series. They were getting outworked along the boards, and got very few good chances against Lundqvist. You just knew the Rangers weren’t going to let Geno keep firing away, and the Pens didn’t adjust to that. The end result was a miserable night with the man advantage.
Penalty kill: C
They gave up two power play goals, but one was the empty-netter. The problem, which has been creeping in through the series, is that they are taking too many penalties. The Rags had seven power plays again last night. This type of undisciplined play will usually catch up to you, and it did at the beginning of the third. Sykora took a lazy hooking penalty at the end of the second. Brandon Dubinsky made a nice spinning move as Gill twiddled his thumbs, and the shot beat Fleury. Just like that, it was 2-0 and the game was basically over. They simply must cut down on the number of dumb penalties they are taking.
Goaltending: B+
One person who cannot be blamed for this loss is Flower. He kept them in the game with a number of key saves. He could do nothing about the first goal, which was a great screen shot by Puff Nuts. He got a bit off his angle by going down on the Dubinsky goal, but I think he expected some help that wouldn’t allow Dubinsky to spin to the middle like that. Overall, though, I have no complaints about his play. Had his mates played as well as he did, the series would be over right now.
Overall: D
Well, you knew they wouldn’t win them all. If this is the worst they play, they are in good shape. But they did not play well last night. The sense of urgency just wasn’t there. They did get their chances, but King Henry was just too good. We’ll see how this series turns now, as the Pens rally from a loss for the first time in the playoffs. Game 5 is HUGE. They almost have to win that one, or we might be seeing a repeat of 1975. The Rangers are a good team that won’t go softly into the night like Ottawa did, and the Pens need to come out with fire in their bellies on Sunday. They need to dent King Henry early, or trouble could be a-brewin’.
And now, the rest of the story…
Evgeni Malkin: C
He’s one of the best players who wasn’t a best player last night. He actually played pretty well, but his grade drops because of that hideous penalty shot attempt. That has to be one of the most pathetic penalty shots in the history of playoff hockey. It was as if his brain just totally locked up and he had no clue what he was doing. I would be willing to bet most high school players would have put on a better move than that. As soon as he did that, I said, “game over.” That was their chance and he blew it.
Sidney Crosby: F
The other best player who wasn’t a best player. He actually was terrible both games in New York. I don’t know if the pressure got to him or what, but he just didn’t play well, especially last night. He had several horrendous giveaways at the Ranger blueline. He was in the “do it all myself” mode where he would try to beat everyone on the ice. It didn’t work once. He needs to take a step back and let things develop instead of always trying to force things that aren’t there.
Sergei Gonchar: F
He’s going back into normal playoff mode now. I guess he got tired from playing so hard in the first round.
Ryan Whitney: F
The sooner they put Sydor in for him, the better. I am sick of him constantly coughing up the puck.
Puff Nuts: A
The Rags’ best player was their best player, by far. It just goes to show, when he wants to play, he’s still an elite player. Trouble is, he doesn’t want to play very often.
King Henry: A
Another awesome game for him. I do have one comment though. Good luck next year when they shrink the size of the pads. He’s as big in the net as that renowned Michelin Man, JS Giguere.
Oscars: A
They are awards given to deserving actors. Sadly for Puff Nuts, I doubt he’ll be nominated for his performance last night. Orpik nailed him after his goal on a clean hit. He looked up to see what was going on, then buried his head on the ice as if he was dead. He then rose from the dead after a couple minutes and never missed a shift. A dive, plain and simple. But a lousy acting job.
Monk Moment
Malkin’s penalty shot. It most certainly made you sit up and say to yourself, “did I just see that?”
Striped Buffoon Huh? Call of the Game
Brendan Shanahan tripped Crosby out front with a wide-open net, but no call. I guess the whining paid off.
A Guide to the Grades can be found here http://www.faceoff-factor.com/grading-the-pens/979/a-guide-to-the-game-grades
Comments
Ashley Gallant
May 2, 11:30 AM
That Malkin penalty shot made me think of Gonchar’s shootout attempt where he just totally lost control of the puck. They both made me say, “What the heck was THAT?”
rick
May 2, 11:35 AM
It’s going to be interesting watching ALL the goalies next year if the pads decrease. MAF’s shoulder pads are clearly coming down in size, as well, and all of their catching gloves are surely going to shrink.
Wonder how many GM’s are going to be nervous about goalie contracts this summer, given nobody knows how any new rules will affect the goalies.
Rogue
May 2, 11:42 AM
Ok, so the game sucked, I get it. But really, an F for Whitney? I didn’t see one turnover from him last night, and apparently neither did NHL.com. And if there were any, none of them lead to goals. People like to throw around the word “turnover” every time the puck changes possession. It happens during the course of a game. The offense bears the brunt of this loss, not any one person on D (or 2, if you want to hang Gonchar out to dry for the Jagr goal, which was a sick play) The Pens obviously weren’t at their best, but the Rangers might have had something to do with that. But please, feel free to continue grinding your axe….
DaBich
May 2, 12:39 PM
Wanna borrow my sharpening tool, Mike?
Whitney definitely sucks…especially this series, Rogue, sorry.
Jonathan Farzalo
May 2, 12:44 PM
for me whitney just coughs up the puck in the corners too much….he goes back, gets to the puck, sees a man comin, and gets scared to be hit, and coughs up the puck or tries to move out of the way…INSTEAD of taking the hit to make the play. He just appears soft too many times.
and the Gonchar, back up into the goalie, coverage!? i’m sorry, that’s just back to the same old same old. i thought they learned to stop that over the last 1/4 of a season, apparently not.
malkin, malkin malkin: honestly, i yelled the words, i hate you as i watch that play unfold. drive the net, treat the shot like a breakaway, dear god!
PaPaFuNk
May 2, 12:55 PM
They were getting a little cocky, so this loss should do them good. We will finish them off in Pittsburgh. Hurry bax Mad Max!!
Michael
May 2, 01:31 PM
MCM .. you are right-on regarding Crosby.
I was worried that he wasn’t going to be anywhere near up to his standard of play during these playoffs, after coming back from that injury.
It looks like he’s just totally lost that instinctual excellence that we’re accustomed to seeing. It would have probably been better for the team if he had sat-out game 4. I just hope he doesn’t keep playing like this .. because if he does, the Penguins are in serious trouble.
And I can’t tell how much of Sid’s problem is mental as opposed to physical right now. He’s making bad decisions with the puck, and he’s making bad passes. And he’s trying to beat 4 guys on his own .. as you wrote. Not good!
I hope he can snap out of this. But maybe the effects of the injury are just too much for him to overcome right now. (?)
Also .. I have to think that maybe Jagr’s calling Sid out (“Stay on your feet!!”) has caused Sid to become intimidated ..?
DaBich
May 2, 01:38 PM
LOL on the intimidated Crosby. No way.
The whole team was in a funk Thursday night. Time to move on.
Beav
May 2, 02:12 PM
Honestly I would have benched Crosby in the middle of the second period. He had four horrendous giveaways, one leading to a scoring opportunity and one leading to a power play for the Rags. And did anyone else dislike the panic mode MT went in and put Crosby and Malkin back together? 2 goods lines are better than 1.
Ted
May 2, 03:30 PM
Crosby’s problem isn’t mental; his ankle is acting up. I noticed in the first period that he’s playing just like he did in Tampa (when he came back before the ankle was healed). He won’t really go into the boards, isn’t turning like he normally does, hardly ever stops and starts and is a step slower than he was in the first two games and Ottawa—more than a step slower than his pre-injury incarnation (this speed differential is what causes the turnovers). The sooner we can put the Rangers away, the better for Sid (rest).
I give an F to Therrien for his Malkin, Hossa, Crosby line in period 3. Too easy for the Rangers to defend—win a faceoff and pin the puck to the boards for 45 seconds until the Pens’ biggest threats are tired at the same time, which the Rangers did to perfection.
Phil
May 2, 04:03 PM
I’m no Jagr fan, but there’s no way he was trying to ‘buy’ anything. Orpik hit him flush, shoulder on chin. Maybe Jagr wanted to see if he scored or thought he could pop right back up and then realized it probably wasn’t going to happen that way. I don’t think he was diving at all. Orpik annihilated him. Kudos to him for not letting it affect his game though. That’s playoff hockey.
Would I sound crazy if I suggested Sid was bothered from the fall he took into the left wing boards in the first? It’s hard to tell if that did affect him (like he cracked a rib or something, heaven forbid) because there was no previous instances of him in that game as it was close to his first shift. Just a thought…
I agree that the defense should be mixed up a tad (Sydor in for Scuds in game 5, let him heal for the next series, or in for Whitney) because it IS playoff time. Contracts shouldn’t dictate who does what in the postseason cause they’re not getting paid anyway.
By the way, aside from his penalty did anyone see Jarkko Ruutu? Or Roberts, Laraque, Hall, anyone?
Stop mixing the lines, cause Staal-Malone/Dupuis-Sykora isn’t gonna scare anyone for very long. Keep Sid and Geno apart and let them do what they do.
Hey, it was only one game. Hopefully MTL wins the next game even if Philly wins the series later so their series drags out, too. See ya Sunday kids.
Head Coach Michel Therrien
May 2, 04:39 PM
Wow, what can one loss do to our fan?
I am glad de player are not as soff as you bunch of whiner.
We have one bad game. We make many mistake. Our stars were not de best on de ice las’ night. Dis will happen, no?
Dis is de playoff hockey. Der will be adversity. Der will be both win and loss trueout de secon’ season. Deal wit’ it because believe me de player are right now.
De can handle up and down, can you? How about stop with all dis over de top panic. We still control our destiny up tree to one.
Have de fate in your team and de player ability to come prepare on Sunday.
Some of de comment I read have some constructive criticism in dem. Some point out de obvious flaw dat nearly every player had las’ night. And den some make me want to make de vomit.
If you can’t stan’ de heat, no?
Michel
andrew
May 2, 06:33 PM
i have watched close to 90 % of all the games the past 2 years at least. And following the game the next morning whether i watch or not i love to see what your game day grades are like. i absolutely love reading the grades column. but recently i have noticed a pattern.and im not trying to scrutinize, but your expectations are way to high. i understand why you do this and its a great read, but its becoming a little monotonous. try and give credit when credit is due but the pens were not gonna win 16 straight? u cant really think that and whats wrong with saying “hey they had some bad bounces” ..just feedback man thats all.. still love the grades tho
rick
May 2, 09:29 PM
Thank God for Letang, because it seems clear that without him in the lineup, this team would be playing in the ECHL.
Ashley Gallant
May 3, 12:20 AM
Tom – I don’t disagree with you one bit, but it’s still frustrating to see that kind of penalty shot.
Eric
May 3, 05:13 AM
7-1 in the playoffs = ECHL team? haha. I guess the idiots are finding themselves onto computers now.. You have usurped the reigning idiot of the FF. Congrats!
I liked Malkin’s approach. One inch higher and everyone would’ve praised how calmly and poised he took the penalty shot and how was able to shoot high on Lundqvist – something they’ve been trying most of the series. Yes he’s notoriously bad in the SO, but I don’t think it was a bad idea. I’m sure it had Lundqvist thinking.
I thought more people would’ve accepted this as a game they lost, instead of pointing fingers. They’re 7-1 in the playoffs through 2 series. That doesn’t happen often in the playoffs. And when it does, it’s often a sign of a good team.
They had a bad game. A bad game they still managed to only lose by two goals (in reality) to a playoff team. I’m seeing a lot of nervous Nancy’s around here thinking this is the sign of things to come. Throwing pretty much everything they’ve done to get here out the window.
Teams will have bad games, it’s a given. Even come playoff time. Very few teams who even win the Stanley Cup go through the rounds un-flawed for a game or two. The important thing, for the people who’ve already jumped to the conclusion that this series is already going to 6 or 7 games after their game 4 performance, is how they respond in the next game.
Till then, I say reserve your judgment on their playoff performance as a whole.
Ashley Gallant
May 3, 12:12 PM
I don’t think that our confidence in the Pens has completely fallen apart and that we think the team will lose the series. I think we recognize that Game 4 was a bad game for the Pens. I, for one, believe that the guys will wrap it up tomorrow afternoon.
However, I just wonder if the Rangers got in the Penguins’ heads on Thursday. I see how the Flyers got into the heads of the Habs and how that series is going. I also see how the Sharks have pushed a Game 6 after being down 3-0. I think that the Rangers are just as talented as the Sharks and you just never know what will happen now that they are confident in themselves.
It all boils down to how the Pens will respond to this adversity. I think that they can overcome it and be better for it, but we will only know for sure tomorrow.
Matt Bodenschatz
May 3, 12:22 PM
Eric, I believe Rick’s comment was a bit sarcastic.
As for Malkin’s shootout skills, I think there is a lot that comes into play. He doesn’t try anything but a generic shot. Trying a deke or whatever certainly would help. The majority of shooter who find the back of the net or the ones who confuse the goalie by making him move one direction, then going another.
As for Letang, well, we’ve gone over this a billion times, Tom, and I (every one here) understand that you love him. What’s not to love about him, honestly? But he can’t be on the ice 100% of the time. Every goal against isn’t because Letang wasn’t on the ice, and every goal against when he is on the ice isn’t despite his efforts. He’s been amazing for this team as a rookie — but he’s not without his flaws. The same goes for Malkin, Crosby, Fleury, etc.
Eric, back to you, I tend to agree that this loss is somewhat blown out of proportion. But let me start by saying this: it wasn’t exactly a confidence boost that they put the types of shots on Lundqvist that they did, yet couldn’t find the net. Regardless, if this was a road loss early in the series, the overwhelming opinion likely would have been that they played a very good road game and that a split in New York was just what the doctor ordered. However, since the Pens won seven consecutive leading up to that loss, anything short of a win is disappointment. Overall, I’m not worried in the least. Now, if the Rags pull out a win tomorrow, I might start to get a bit nervous, but not yet.
DaBich
May 3, 03:21 PM
Tom ~ I am the one who said that LeTang will SOMEDAY be BETTER than Lidstrom, as long as he keeps playing the way he does and matures with it. The kid is awesome and is amazing. Lidstrom – right now – is the best defenseman in the league, and has been for many years. I can see Letang doing this down the road. He is a natural athlete. I, too, would love to see him have more PP and PK time. However, one can’t say Gonchar isn’t a good player. He is. Most of the time, he takes care of business. Don’t fix what isn’t broken. And like Matt said, Letang can’t be on the ice ALL THE TIME. Let him mature into his role…he will soon enough take over!
Ted
May 3, 04:00 PM
Letang’s a well-rounded kid with tons of potential, but Lidstrom’s a once-in-a-lifetime talent on defense. I don’t really see a close comparison.
Matt Bodenschatz
May 3, 07:05 PM
As Ted said, Lidstrom is one of the top defensemen of all time — I simply do not see how Letang can even be mentioned in the same sentence with him at this point. It will take a heck of a career for him to surpass Lidstrom. I hope I am proven wrong, but I sincerely don’t see it happening.
Tom, it’s hard to argue with much of what you say. I think the big thing, however, is that there is no reason to change the PK pairings when the Penguins are sporting the best PK in the playoffs. As Dabich has said time and again, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Eric
May 3, 08:23 PM
Victor Hedman will be the next Lidstrom. Letang is nice and will be awesome, but Lidstrom is a once-an-era type player. I would dream that Letang becomes that good. His current projection has him still at a player who can be very dominant at his position. Which I could never complain about.
Michael
May 3, 08:34 PM
Not really wishing to be redundant, but the more I’m thinking about it, the more worried I’m getting about Crosby.
I think he’s getting frustrated .. due solely to the effects of the injury .. and as someone here mentioned, it could very well be that the ankle problem is now ‘acting-up’ on him. He just can’t physically do what he normally does on the ice, and this is apparently becoming increasingly frustrating for him. The increasing frustration is then leading to forced and/or careless passes and other bad moves and bad decisions. He’s trying to “compensate” .. but in so-doing, he’s not staying within himself. As mentioned already here by someone, he just doesn’t seem to be willing to go into the corners .. which is normally his bread n’ butter, and he doesn’t seem able or willing to make the lateral cuts, nor the stops-and-starts.
I just don’t think there’s much (if anything) that he can do about it, either. Just a damn bummer.
I think this has developed into a much more serious problem than most people are willing to recognize or admit. If Crosby is essentially ineffective, it has to have a significantly negative effect on this team’s results in these playoffs, from now onward.
I’ve very worried about this, but I really do hope Crosby and the team can overcome this particular adversity.
DaBich
May 4, 11:04 AM
Tom ~ I SAID I WAS THE ONE WHO COMPARED LETANG TO LIDSTROM. Do you pay attention???????
It IS NOT broke. Our power play is clicking very well for the playoffs. The best I’ve seen it this season. ONE GAME FLUBBED DOES NOT MAKE A GOOD TEAM BAD. We must move on and play better Sunday (today).
Eric ~ Victor Hedman does not even play in the NHL. It’s a whole new ballgame here from the MODO league.
Let’s see him play in the NHL first before we decide if he is the same caliber as Lidstrom.
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