Faceoff Factor

Series Wrap-Up – Pens vs. Sens

Jesse Marshall | Pittsburgh Penguins

Apr 17, 09:39 AM | Hype this story!

Revenge is a dish that might be best served in the NHL playoffs.

The Pittsburgh Penguins cooked up a whole serving of it for the Senators in what proved to be the shortest series in the NHL’s first round.

Last year, it was a complete role reversal for the Penguins, who succumbed to an Andrej Meszaros goal 1 minute into the first game last year and never recovered. That experience provided the Penguins with the fire and determination to muster a first round sweep against Ottawa, and you can certainly bet that getting a second crack at the Senators added more fuel to their playoff fire.

So without further adieu, here’s my first round three stars and other noteworthy items to “sweep” up the remains of the series.

#3. Know your role…

Role players for the Penguins played an absolutely vital role in this series. From the onset of game 1, Georges Laraque set up a clinic behind the Senators goal and ate up clock throughout each game. Gary Roberts registered 2 goals in game one and nearly singlehandedly broke the dam open for the Penguins. “Mad” Max Talbot scored a timely goal in game 3 to tie it at 1 and suck the energy out of the crowd, and Jarkko Ruutu bailed the Penguins out last night after they had gotten a bit sloppy in the second period. These goals were not only pivotal in these cases, but they will be absolutely crucial down the stretch as the Penguins head into the second round.

#2. Backcheck, Backcheck, Backcheck…

I wrote an article a little over a week ago commenting on how ferocious the Penguins backchecking had been and how it was key for the playoffs. The Penguins absolutely embarrassed the Senators in this regard. They simply never gave up on a puck out of the offensive zone and into the neutral zone. Ryan Malone, Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby, Jordan Staal, Tyler Kennedy and Marian Hossa feasted on the Senators turnovers in all four games and outworked Ottawa night in and night out. If the Penguins can continue this organized chaos on the backcheck, teams are going to have a hard time generating any type of flow coming out of the zone, and you’ll see even more odd man breaks coming for the Penguins. A little consistency in the lines seems to have helped the Penguins as well. Players are now recognizing what teammates are doing and taking advantage of it in the right places.

#1. Take a load off, Fleury

Marc-Andre Fleury’s back must feel a lot lighter this morning. Fleury shook off the criticism that he wasn’t a playoff performer this past week as he shut the door on the Senators over and over again, out-dueling Martin Gerber on the other side of the ice.

Here’s something for you Penguins fans to chew on: Marc-Andre Fleury’s goals against average in the series was 1.26. Evgeni Malkin’s points per game average was 1.75. That means Evgeni Malkin was registering more points than Marc-Andre Fleury was allowing goals. Anytime you have that combination, you’re obviously winning. The same statistic was available in the regular season when Fleury, over the course of the final 15 games, had a GAA lower than Malkin’s PPG.

For now, Fleury has chased away the ghosts from seasons past. Or, as he put it: “I don’t see them as much as ghosts, but as experience I got through all those years.”

Honorable Mention: Ottawa

A few players stepped up to the plate for the Senators and put it all on the line this series and they deserve some credit. Martin Geber was absolutely unreal for the Senators. These games could have been easily 7-1 had he not been in goal. He weathered storm after storm and did a fantastic job. Anton Volchenkov battled through a vicious head wound to continually be a stout defender. Antoine Vermette had an excellent series and the Senators should try to retain him based on that performance alone. Youngster Nick Foglino also played a tough series despite taking a stupid penalty in game 4. The energy he brought for each game was second to none for Ottawa.