Game 2 Preview: Pens v Sens at Stockholm
Matt Bodenschatz | Pittsburgh Penguins
Oct 4, 09:16 PM | Hype this story!
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2:30 (EST) at Globe Arena,
Stockholm Sweden |
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| Inside The Game |
| The first game of the season for the Pittsburgh Penguins may have
been a preview of what the team must do to win while skating without
their top two defensemen: get a goal from Rob Scuderi. Okay, so maybe that is a bit drastic, considering he pots one every 90 games or so. But his goal illustrated the mentality the defensemen must have: contribute offensively as much as possible, because there may not be a "go-to" guy as there has been in previous years. The game may also have been a demonstration of the Penguins’ offensive depth, as fourth liner Tyler Kennedy, filling in on the second line for the injured Petr Sykora, netted two goals, including the game winner in overtime. While Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are "sure-things" in the point production department, the majority of the remainder of the offense are not. Sunday, playing the role of the home team in the second of a two-game series in Stockholm, Sweden, the Penguins will look to sweep the Ottawa Senators and take home a stylish four points. The lineups for both teams project to be relatively the same, as mildly injured players Sykora (Pit) and Mike Fisher (Ott) aren’t likely to be ready for action. What does project to change, however, is the intensity. Saturday’s game may have started out mildly, but after a few Jarkko Ruutu hits, both teams became physically and emotionally passionate. No fights broke out, but with Chris Neil and Ruutu yapping for the Senators and Paul Bissonnette and Eric Godard patrolling for the Penguins, it seems unlikely game two will follow a similar pattern. As Shawn P. Roarke said in his NHL.com recap of Saturday’s game, "Judging from the events of the first game, Sunday’s game is not to be missed." |
| Standings | ||||||||
| GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | Division | Conference | League | |
| Penguins | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2, Atlantic | 2, Eastern | 2, NHL |
| Senators | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1, Northeast | 3, Eastern | 3, NHL |
| Team Statistics | ||||||||
| GF | GA | PP% | PK% | Home | Away | L 10 | Streak | |
| Penguins | 4 | 3 | 0.0 | 83.3 | 0-0-0 | 1-00 | 1-0-0 | 1 win |
| Senators | 3 | 4 | 16.6 | 100.0 | 0-0-1 | 0-0-0 | 0-0-1 | 1 loss |
| Team Leaders | |||||
| Stat | Penguins | Stat | Senators | ||
| Goals | 2 | Kennedy | Goals | 1 | Donovan, Heatley, Spezza |
| Assists | 1 | Crosby, Satan, Staal | Assists | 2 | Kuba |
| Points | 2 | Kennedy | Points | 2 | Kuba, Spezza |
| +/- | +2 | Gill, Malkin, Scuderi | +/- | +1 | Ruutu, Schubert |
| PIMs | 2 | Six players tied | PIMs | 4 | Phillips |
| Wins | 1 | Fleury | Wins | 0 | - |
| GAA | 3.00 | Fleury | GAA | 4.00 | Gerber |
| Injuries | ||
| Penguins | Injury | Status |
| Sykora, DTD Gonchar, IR Whitney, IR |
Sore Groin Shoulder Surgery Foot Surgery |
Doubtful Out until late January Out until late November |
| Senators | Injury | Status |
| Fisher, DTD | Sore Groin | Questionable |
| Note: Info up-to-date as of 8:15 pm, Saturday, October 4, 2008. | ||
Comments
Eric
Oct 4, 09:37 PM
I liked one of FSN’s story lines in the game re-cap was “Neil won’t fight Godard.” Including highlights of Neil dodging him.
good stuff.
stagerat
Oct 5, 11:30 AM
I noticed Neil crab-crawling away from Gill as well, after he had laid the cheap shot on him at the end of the period… Is it too early in the season to start calling him Chris Crawfish?
stagerat
Oct 5, 11:32 AM
That should have been ‘laid the cheap shot on Letang at the end of the period’
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