Faceoff Factor

Penguins vs. Rangers Game 5 Preview

Matt Bodenschatz | National Hockey League

May 4, 12:33 PM | Hype this story!

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Penguins (2) vs. Rangers (5) Game 5
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Series Score: Penguins 3 – Rangers 1
Game Time: 2:00 EST
Location: Mellon Arena, Pittsburgh
Television: NBC, CBC

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Preview
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The fourth game of the series, one in which many thought the Pittsburgh Penguins may wrap it up, the New York Rangers came on strong and showed some life.

This afternoon, the Penguins will look to put out the fire and clinch a trip to the conference finals, where they would meet their cross-state rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers.

“Obviously, we’re disappointed we didn’t finish them off [Thursday] night, but, at the same time, we’re in good position here coming home,” Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik said to Shelly Anderson of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “I think if you told us [we would split] when we went there, we’d be happy.”

Happy to split, yes. Happy to lose a game, not so much.

But realistically, the Penguins understood they likely wouldn’t win them all, and the true test is not how they performed in their losing effort Thursday night, but how they will perform this afternoon in their first game after a disappointing loss.

“We’re still in great position,” Penguins defenseman Hal Gill said. “We weren’t the team we can be in that last game. We have to get back to doing the things we can.”

The first step in doing that is to control Jaromir Jagr, a job that primarily has been Gill’s. If Jagr can be subdued, the rest of the Rangers roster may not have what it takes to penetrate the Penguins’ defense and, especially, goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who remains confident.

“It was just one game,” Fleury said of the loss. “We need one more win, and they need three more.”

As mentioned above, the key to the game is to keep Jagr off of the scoresheet, but to do that, there is another key: stay out of the penalty box. In the last few games, the Penguins uncharacteristically found themselves with a man disadvantage quite often. That hardly is the way to win games.

The third, and final, key to victory is the return of the intensity line made up of a combination of Georges Laraque, Maxime Talbot, Adam Hall and Gary Roberts. Last game, this group — as well as Jarkko Ruutu, who plays on the third line — was invisible. In order to win, the Penguins must make the Rangers pay the price, and it starts with the hard-hitting, grinding and in-your-face style of the third and especially fourth lines.

If the Penguins can achieve these three keys, victory is theirs, and they’ll be shaking the Rangers’ hand on home ice, in front of the home crowd.

“I’ve never done that, and a bunch of guys here have never done it, so it would be pretty cool,” Fleury said.

For a complete list of team leaders and statistics, click here.

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Injuries
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Penguins: Talbot, DTD (Broken Foot); Scuderi, DTD (Bruised Foot); Eaton, IR (Knee)
Rangers: Avery, IR (Lacerated Spleen); Drury, DTD (Shoulder); Betts, DTD (Facial Injury)